Primus

Yamamoto grubs work for me.

I do very well with this retrieve and I tend to fish my poppers fairly quick with spraying and skittering 2 or 3' feet and then a brief pause or sometimes I walk it at a moderate pace. That said and the reason I started this post is there are times when a very slow retrieve, that it is a pop or bloop and then pausing it for a few seconds will do better in certain situations such as inactive fish holding tight to cover like boat docks. The slow blooping presentation is one that I wouldn't use very often as I tend to fish generally at a quick pace for the clear water lakes that are abundant in my area, that said I want to have the option of fishing slow with the bloop sound if that's what the fish prefer that day. Today I went out and bought a Baby Lucky 13, Pop n' Image Jr. 3/8 oz White bellied Hula Popper as these are some of the baits that's been suggested so far. I do have a Black Hula Popper that I haven't used in years as I have prefered the Jitterbug for night fishing, that said maybe it's time after I upgrade the hooks that I get reaquainted with this bait. I appreciate the suggestions so far and I will be testing these baits this summer to see which one I like best for this presentation, Thanks guys it's been fun reading your responses.

Just recieved the latest " Bass Book" catalog from Bass Pro Shops and they just came out with the Boinger which sells for $ 6.99 not sure if this is the same one that Bass Tackle Depot sells. I wish I knew about this one before I bought the expensive one. :-/

That PopMax sure looks pretty, just might have to add this one to my collection along with the Skitter Pop.

I've used the Craw Trap rattle bait, this is a very effective plug. I've used the Bluegill cranks a little bit so far this year and have caught a couple of fish but nothing noteworthy so far. I haven't fished it enough to give it an evaluation.

Bluestreak I think you might have touched on to what I was looking for, I consider myself quite proficient with poppers and topwaters in general but there was a difference between his popper and mine, I caught a lot that night as well with my Yellow Magic popper with a quicker more skittering retrieve but nevertheless was impressed with the plug he was using. I will have to look into that, I appreciate everyone's replies so far.

9 times out of 10 I prefer that faster retrieve as I tend to fish most baits as fast as I can get away with and I can get that sound intermittently as part of the retrieve. However on the rare occasion that I want to fish it slow, that is 1 pop and then a pause I can't seem to get that sound out of the poppers that I'm using.

I fish poppers like the Yellow Magic that are great for a spittin' & walikin' type of presentations. However I was fishing a couple of years ago with an older cousin and he did well with a popper that made a constant " Bloop" sound as he worked his bait slowly, I believe he had used an old Pop R. I only have one Pop R but it doesn't consistently make this sound, only after a second pop without a pause. Is there a difference between the older Pop R's & the newer ones ? Is there another brand or model that does this better? Thanks

Similiar to what you've described I've done well with Zoom baits in the Smoke Purple color.

I've done well with their Crawfish trap, I've also picked up a few of their Bluegill baits but haven't used them enough to give offer an opinion other than to say they sure look the part.

I've done well with the Pro Swimbaits brand paddletail, the 3" size is good for numbers.

I use the following... Poor Boys Craw Daddy- This is what I use when I want a faster fall and gives the fish a realistic craw look Netbait Paca Chunk- Great action Yamamoto 5" Single Tail Grub- Very effective trailer for swim jigs 3" Yum Craw Papi- my favorite for finnesse jigs

I've been very happy with mine, though I can't tell you it how it compares to the others out there.

If I could only fish with one spinnerbat it would be the 3/8 oz TJ special with #4 Willow/ # 2 Colorado tandem blades, this has been the most productive spinnerbait I've ever used and I usually buy them 6 at a time.

I bought one, haven't used it yet just waiting for the right conditions as we are still in the prespawn mode and the times I've used topwaters so far has been very limited. The reason I bought one is I heard very good reviews about this bait on another forum. I'll be sure to repost with my impressions of this bait after I've used it a few times later this summer.

I've also soaked a steel rivet in bleach for couple of days to rust the rivet this seems to help give it that coveted squeal.

I bought one last year ( proceeds to hit himself in the head), didn't look good in the water. So far everything I've tried from Reaction Strike hasn't been very impressive which include their paddletail baits & their Bluegill bait.

I've tried just about all of them listed so far and the best I've tried hasn't been mentioned yet, it's made by a small company that goes buy the name Pro Swimbaits. No Chemical smell, made in the U.S.A, can swim at slow speeds unlike some, has a groove for the hook, great colors , reasonably priced and they flat out catch fish. Whatever one you select get some Mend It which will save you a lot of money by allowing you to reuse torn up baits.

I live and fish in SW Michigan and I know what you mean about those Northerns, I have certain lakes where I use mostly 5$ baits because there are a lot of them in there. That said I don't lose very many baits annually and for the occasional one I lose it's either take a chance and get more action out of the bait or use a wire leader which will reduce your catch rate with most baits.

I admit it's a little pricey compared to other Rapala baits however it's in line with japanese baits like Lucky Craft, Ima, Jackall etc. I tried about 6 other jerkbaits yesterday with mediocre results, for some reason this one was the preferred bait on this outing on a heavily fished small 300 acre lake. That said it's probably not better than say an X rap however it's different enough to find a spot in my tacklebox though I can understand why some would be reluctant to pay a premium price.

I'm very impressed with this bait, did very well yesterday fishing it very aggressively with the occasional brief pause. This shined fishing it over shallow water weeds, similiar to a Lucky Craft Flash Minnow but with a more frantic action. It also cast like a rocket, I only have one but I have a feeling I'll be getting a few more 8-)

Lot's of good ones out there already listed, here are some of my favorites. Strike King Red Eye Shad - very consistent, flutter action attracts fish on the drop. Spro Aruku Shad & Jackall Tn series- I like to slow roll these baits, both run with a nose done posture Excalibur- very loud, great bait for ripping off of the weeds and getting the fish to react. Sebile Flat Shad- more subtle bait, some versions knock, some are silent. I like the tranluscent gel filled versions, very effective on pressured lakes. Yozuri Rattlin' Vibe- great all around bait I have on order the Imakatsu Buzzer Beater( both silent & rattling versions)- I've heard very good things about this bait. Also ordered Viper Design Risebacker , Megabass Vibration X Silent & Valley Hill Dekahara. As you can tell I've become obsessed with this bait style.

I would get the new version of the Symetre verses the older Stradic. The main reason is the new angled spool lip that Shimano is now using manages line better than the old system which will allow you longer cast and less tangled line.

Lucky Craft RC 1.5 silent version is my favorite, I also am a big fan of the BDS series along with the Baby 1 minus. I also like throwing wake cranks, have had explosive strikes with the Excalibur wake crank.

I'm not a huge fan of this bait, did catch a few with a slow retrieve mixed with twitches.