Hey guys. First time posting but love reading the forum. I live in Idaho and have a pond near my house with some killer small mouth fishing. No one around here has been able to show me anything though because it is a big area for trout and most people don't even know we have smb around. (So luckily I basically have an awesome smb fishery all to myself) I have been self taught from the internet and this last year had lots of success on jerkbaits, in line spinners, and crank baits. I want to get into topwaters with hopes to find some bigger bass this next year however. What will be my best topwater types, colors, brands, and what retrieves are best on them?

Poppers (megabass) and whopper poppers are smallie killers!

 

But they will eat just about any topwater.

In order of my preference: walkers, poppers, torpedoes

 

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I’ve never encountered a pond with smallmouth so this may not help much. Around here in shallow flowing rivers/rapids they like top waters to be sitting still and they hit them somewhat gently (weird, I know). A lot of guys can catch trophies drifting deer hair bugs with fly rods. They will still hit things like buzzbaits but dead of summer they apparently like bugs sitting still. In lakes I like walking baits as fast as you can walk them. Not sure why but they like it fast in still water and still in fast water 

56 minutes ago, TnRiver46 said:

I’ve never encountered a pond with smallmouth so this may not help much. Around here in shallow flowing rivers/rapids they like top waters to be sitting still and they hit them somewhat gently (weird, I know). A lot of guys can catch trophies drifting deer hair bugs with fly rods. They will still hit things like buzzbaits but dead of summer they apparently like bugs sitting still. In lakes I like walking baits as fast as you can walk them. Not sure why but they like it fast in still water and still in fast water 

Ya well this pond is really big actually practically a small lake. So which walking baits do you prefer?

 

MegaBass PopMax, Zara Spook and Lucky Craft Sammy

 

48 minutes ago, Idahosmb said:

Ya well this pond is really big actually practically a small lake. So which walking baits do you prefer?

 

Well I don’t buy any fishing lure over ten dollars and usually none over 5 so take that into consideration. H20 express TWS is my favorite , unless I can find Zara puppy in the clearance bins for $1. Which happens at wal mart fairly often 

5 hours ago, JWall14 said:

Poppers (megabass) and whopper poppers are smallie killers!

 

But they will eat just about any topwater.

So how do you retrieve your Whopper ploppers?

Steady retrieve is best but some days it’s like a popper, jerk and sit.

Poppers in bone / whopper plopper in bone / heddon torpedo’s

20 hours ago, Idahosmb said:

So how do you retrieve your Whopper ploppers?

I drag it across the top in such a way that a fish would never dream of striking it 

I'd recommend a popper if you have calm conditions. Any brand will do. Pop / pause / pop will get you bit.

 

With a slight chop, a walking bait can bring them up from even deep drop offs. A steady walking retrieve works best for me.

 

If a good chop is on the water, then I'd opt for a double prop bait with jerk / stop / jerk type of retrieve.

 

No doubt about it, smallies love top waters. You just have to experiment with various types & retrieves.

Whopper Plopper 75 or 90 by River2Sea

These are the smallest/lightest in the lineup at 9/16 oz and 1/2 oz (3 in. and 3.5 in.) respectively. Very versatile. You can swim them back with a constant retrieve, fast or slow depending on what the fish want, or use it more like a popper - give it a twitch and it makes an attractive sound. If it breaks off like mine did, it floats so you still have a chance at recovering it (I did ?)

 

PopMax by Megabass

Superb quality, beautifully made and painted, and they make a very pronounced "bloip" when you twitch it on the retrieve.

 

Rage Toad by Strike King

A sinking soft plastic, rigged with the hook coming out of the toad's back, these are great for pads and thick vegetation - drag them across the top, pause them on a pad, pull it into the water, you can swim it on the surface by keeping the rod tip up, or let it sink and swim it back under the surface. Good flapping action on the "feet." Again, very versatile.

 

If I had to pick one for smallies it would be the Whopper Plopper (75/90, either one).

 

I use the Berkley Choppo 90. Its basically a cheaper version of the whopper plopper and it performers great for me. Still, if you want something on the cheaper side any popper will do. My second choice after the Choppo is the Lunkerhunt Popper

Buzzbaits when their is some chop on the surface.

 

Whopper Ploppes when the surface is smooth.

 

Poppers all the time.

 

Frogs in pads and grass and around cover.

 

Toads around grass and pads.

 

And the fish will let you know what they want.

Whopper Ploppper-slow, steady retrieve, just fast enough to get it plopping.

 

Walking baits-typically walk them as fast as I can for smallmouth.

 

Poppers (chug bug is my favorite for smallmouth)-pop, pop, pause, the bait should walk while it pops also.

 

Crawlers-slow, steady retrieve. (pompadour, Deps Buzzjet, and Livingston Walking Boss Part II are my favorites).

I have caught thousands of smallmouth on F11 Rapalas. They do seem to prefer this color or that, but that color preference changes, so i go with various colors, like orange, yellow, or the plainer ones. I let it land, wait a couple seconds, and then repeat. I do that five or six times and then simply retrieve it. On a retrieve, I'll rarely catch a fish. 80% of my fish come in the first three twitches. 

2 hours ago, ol'crickety said:

I have caught thousands of smallmouth on F11 Rapalas. They do seem to prefer this color or that, but that color preference changes, so i go with various colors, like orange, yellow, or the plainer ones. I let it land, wait a couple seconds, and then repeat. I do that five or six times and then simply retrieve it. On a retrieve, I'll rarely catch a fish. 80% of my fish come in the first three twitches. 

I know one guy that fishes that exact technique almost exclusively in any water for almost any fish. Is this Gary???? Haha

Good advice above. 
 

My favorite topwater bait for Smallmouth Bass is the Whopper Plopper 90 Second place would be a Popper style bait like the PopMax or Rebel Pop R. 
 

More than half the time the Smallies around here hit the topwater baits I throw as they hit the water so any topwater lure will work. 

I prefer the Whopper Plopper 75 over the 90... it’s shorter but deeper than the 90 and sounds crazy but has a deeper sounding plop for its size that fish (especially smb) really like.  
 

Also, if you can’t decide between a popper and a walking bait - try a Storm Arashi Cover Pop.  It does both really well.  It walks, and every 3rd or so turn it pops... pretty cool. 
 

Summary for me is when I need to cover a lot of water I use the WP... when I am targeting a high percentage spot I throw a Cover Pop as it stays in/near the strike zone so well..

No mention of a Shower Blow 105?  Insane. 

     Lucky Craft Sammy 100 has been my best topwater. Spent the last 2 Summer's in

 Minnesota and they crush it. Aurora Ghost Shad is a great color in clear water.

http://www.luckycraft.com/luckycrafthome/Products/topwater/sammy100.htm

I fish 4 main topwaters for smallies.

-Plopper 90 in bone or Loon 110

-evergreen Shower Blows in 105 and 125

-Discontinued Lake Fork Magic popper

-megabass pop max and pop max jr

 

 

 

 

lol- they all seem to work here in maine. my best one last year was still catching them when i lost it eventhough it didnt have much paint left on it. have found if the fish dont hit during the day in the summer they sometimes will go wild on topwater poppers just about dark and after.got a headlamp for this.

I don’t think that any one particular brand or exact lure will out fish every other in all conditions. Learn how to “walk the dog” and pick up a Zara Spook. Get a Rebel  Pop-R popper, and a Whopper Plopper in whatever color suits you. Ive also never found any one color that always did better than another.