It’s fun and exciting fishing new bass lakes, but figuring out a bite is often time-consuming. Walking topwater baits are one of the best tools for the job. For starters, noisy topwater baits silhouetted against the sky expand strike windows, but not all topwater baits perform equally well as search lures. Wired2Fish’s Kyle Peterson explains the power of using pencil poppers, particularly a dual-purpose pencil popper/prop bait hybrid.
TACKLE USED:
- Savage Gear Prop Walker, color: black
- Savage Gear Battletek Casting Rod, 7’1″ Med Hvy All-Purpose
- Savage Gear Savage Grip Trebles, size: 2
- Daiwa Tatula Elite Casting Reel, 7.1:1
- Seaguar Smackdown Braided Line Stealth Gray, 30lb
- Fish Monkey Performance Face Guard
- Fish Monkey Half Finger Guide Glove
Pencil poppers are heavy and aerodynamic. They make long and precise target casts possible while a seductive walk the dog or straight prop bait retrieve calls big bass through a combination of flash, spitting water and noise. Peterson deploys the blades on the Savage Gear Prop Walker to cover water quickly using a straight retrieve, then switches back to the walking pencil popper action when bass have been located or around cover.
Another sneaky trick — use braided treble hooks on hard topwater baits to improve hookup and land ratios. Kyle discusses why he’s switched from conventional split ring hook attachments to braided treble hooks on baits like hard topwater lures and glide baits.
