What a fun FUN bait.  I’m not great at walking a bait.  But I got good.  Not great, but good.  
 

the fish were hitting a wake-bait, but I wanted to be different.  I just gritted my teeth and kept at it with everyone catching on the wake-bait.  Eventually I homed in on the technique.  I slowed down and would pause.  If a fish missed, I would stop cold. What would happen next would take the air out of my lungs.  They came back to finish the kill.  With an explosion of the water.  It was so exciting.  One time three fish were punching my bait into the air like a water polo match.    I could walk it in fairly choppy water. 
 

the bait in my hands could really benefit with a rod with a softer tip.  It would walk easier.   It weighed 3/4 oz so it shoots thru the air.  It has that weight transfer thing to get it to fly far, even against the wind.  I love the thing and plan to buy the smaller size for my local LMB. 
 

 

 

 

You live in CA, if anything I'd buy the bigger size ?

Topwater fishing is just gobs of fun.

 

That kicknocker looks uncannily similar to an RI Vixen. Price is a little better on the Teckel piece, though.

 

Sometimes, when everybody else is dragging a whole percussion section through the water, a big, slow thud is just the ticket. 

The River2Sea River is a similar bait. It’s an Vixen knock off

and has a more durable paint job. It’s one of, if

not the easiest , walking baits to use. 

I read something a while back saying Reaction Innovations Vixen is a copy of this bait.  Apparently the kicknocker was out of production for a while, and came back.

Not sure who stole the intellectual property, but I went with the Teckle version.  I like his videos, even tho I can’t understand Japanese (yet)

The R.I, Vixen is the og , I have a few that are about 20 years old and still catching fish. I have not used the Teckel but have heard good things about them and I am glad that the DB is having success with this bait. One little trick that works for me at times is after briefly pausing the bait somewhere in the retrieve I will sometimes wind it in straight  about 3-4 quick cranks of the reel and then a quick pause before I resume the traditonal walking retrieve . I have seen them come unglued and annihilate it after that . Just another little trick to add to your arsenal when using these baits.