topwater baits

[ocf]

what kinds of topwater baits do you guys use, im gonna stock my box and i want to know some things i should put in there, right now i have producer(propbait), a jitterbug, and 2 spinnerbaits,

[EatSleepFish]

dont forget to buy a few good buzzbaits, weedless frogs, and some rebel poppers

[BobOmaha]

Guys over in the Park Rapids forum speak highly of a "scum-frog"

[Deitz Dittrich]

ocf, this is a tough one.. again, I have a coupld boxes full of topwaters.. I dont use them enough but caught a few on some topwaters the other day.

There really are only a few different styles of topwaters..

Topwater slopbaits---Scum frogs, mossboss, Timberdoodle, ect..

Pop bait---Too many to name, some pop, some spit.. and sometimes that makes a huge difference.. I prefer the ones that spit rather than pop...

Prop baits--Buzz baits, devils horse, skitter props..

Walking baits---Zara spooks and ect...

all will catch fish, knowing when to throw them is the key.

When conditions are right, throwing the faster baits(IE buzzbaits and walking baits) is best.. .but when conditions are tougher, slower presentations like the pop/spit baits seem to work best.

I seem to like a lot of the yo-zouri baits as you can find them on sale quite a bit and they perform quite well for me?

[ocf]

thanks for the input

[OnTheWater]

Quote:

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I seem to like a lot of the yo-zouri baits as you can find them on sale quite a bit and they perform quite well for me?

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I'll second that. I've been using some of their walk-the-dog style lures for a few years now, and would suggest them as an option.

[Bobby Bass]

If you don't have any see if you can find some Smithwick Devilhorse baits buy at least one in the 3/8 and 1/2 oz size. A frog pattern or bass pattern is a good choice. Use these on a spinning rod with 10# line. Toss these out around docks, trees and shoreline. Let lure hit the water and don't do anything till the rings from the splash are 8-10' then give it a slight twitch, just enough to make another set of rings, when these rings are about 5' then slowly start to twitch / work it back. You will get hit as soon as it hits the water or the 2nd time you make that twitch. Or anytime on the way back to the boat. there are lots of top waters out there but this is one of my favorite lures and easy to learn how to fish. Two big things you should learn about fishing top water. You should pretend you are teasing a cat with the lure, If you put a yarn ball in front of a cat in his face and just twitch it he will go after it, if you have it a few feet away they could care less, Same with bass. You need to tease them with it and the other thing is patience and letting then take the bait before you set the hook. You need to feel the fish before setting don't set at the splash you will be just catching air. This is a prime time of the year to hit calm water and try this, good luck.

[mille lacs muskie bum]

i like the devils horse, and the rapala skitter pop.also i liks to use a heddon tiny torpedo.

[duckslayer27]

Zara spook is a good place to start.

or try a soft plastic jerk bait like a slugo

[Central Bassman]

BUZZBAITS!!!! if you are fishing a lake or spot that you know holds alot of big fish on it or in it, u need to try a buzzbait. There is not other topwater lure that i have used that catches BIG FISH. its a great big fish bait and u can cover alot of water with it. (which i think is the best part about it). The rebel poppers are a great lure for smallies and large mouth also. The new Spro Frog is a great frog i can use it ANYWHERE. I Love Them!!!!!

[ocf]

ok i guess i have to get my priorities straight first, i nedd to get a rod and then another rod/reel combo, and a tackle box, but after that i will be stocking up my lures

[Maximum12]

By far my favorite topwater is the Jitterbug, including it's connection to an old Wham! hit from the '80's that you need to sing while pulling it out of the tacklebox. The only lure I've every purchased that caught a fish on the very first cast.

I also really like scum frogs, but am too spastic to use them effectively. Intellectually I know I need to wait, but I see that splash & can't help but rear back on the rod...if I could gather a little patience they'd be a lot more effective for me, I get a lot of explosions on them & sometimes even catch a couple.

[slopmaster]

this year i have kept a booklet of every fish i have caught on what lake depth and lure. and have tried topwaters a lot. and my best baits by far are the bass oreno and the scum frog but also i would buy a walk the dog lure

[feeshing]

i would try a HEDDON. They usually work for me!

[8-Ball]

Skitter Pop- clown pattern hands down.

[Doufish2]

Devil Horse is my pick, white with black stripes. Have used this for 20 plus years. I actually have the first one I ever bought. There is no paint left on it. I have it in my trophy case. I like the smaller weight, little different profile than the 1/2 oz. I like using them on the edges of lily pads and reed. There is nothing more rushing than the whoosh of a big one hitting them.

[Tyler Holm]

I do an awful lot of topwater fishing and have found the skitter pop (#9) to be my absolute favorite. They cast a mile and have the best hooking percentage that I've found. Bright colors during low light have turned the most fish for me. The only downfall is that you have to be fishing weed-free water.

If your looking to fish right in the weeds, my fav would be the Moss Boss, closely followed by the long list of imatation topwater frogs (scumFrog, Spuro, etc..)

Don't overlook topwater plastics. Culprit makes a 4" Pro frog that simply scented plastic. You can do all kinds of fishing with these things and they certainly catch fish.

[Huskiedevle]

Do any of you remember the Mann's Hardworm? It is very similar to the Devil's Horse, with the front and back spinners. Many bass were caught in shallow water on that lure.

[Iceseeker]

In-line buzz bait with a weed guard. They are hard to find other than Bass Pro. They use to be a Blue Fox product. They are great in the weeds and lillies. I just wish they were available locally.

Iceseeker.

[delmuts]

check in the muskie/northern section of the stores. grim reaper makes a in-line buzz bait, in two sizes. the smaller one should work well for bass.

[ikeslayer]

What is better about the inline compared to the safety pin style. Just courious if i am missing out on something??? ike

[Huskiedevle]

Iceseeker,the lure you are referring to was/is the Blue Fox Floyd's Buzzer. I still have a Floyd's or three in my tackle box.Floyd's works well in the right conditions.Gators(pike)love'em, along with the bass.

[matthothand]

If I could only bring 4 topwater baits they would be (in order):

1) scum frog

2) buzzbait

3) jitter bug

4) spook

I've got boxes overflowing with scumfrogs and I love em'!

[delmuts]

not necessarily better, but different. the inlines i have do have a treble hook on the back instead of a single, so not as effective aroound reeds and such. they do work well for around patches of weeds. just kind of a different profile.

[Huskiedevle]

The nice thing that Blue Fox had done on the Floyd's was have a single large hook,with the room on the bend to add on a trailer hook.It worked well in the reeds, and heavy vegetation, as compared to an inline with a treble hook as you have. Blue Fox really let a good one go, too bad to.