TOPWATER A SOUTH THING? never in PA???

[Del from philly]

Iv never caught anything on a topwater bait around her unl;ess it was a crappie on a bumble bee floater

i meen, when iw as a kid maybe in a small pond, but never in a lake

i try a hula popper and a couple frogs every couple weeks and always come up empty, is the hulapopper  too big of a lure for my size bass?

the way people talk on here, buzzbaits and such seem like everyday lures

whats the deal? am i being dumb, anyone from the NE have a lot of luck on these things

[Del from philly]

Also, iu always use a slow retrive with pauses, but ondemand fishing the guy was burning his topwater???

is this how its done?

[Guest muddy]

Hey me and Zel had a few great outings and caught a lot of fish topwater on mauch Chunk lake here in NE PA. We fished as the sun went down, all the way til darkness. He used a Colorodo Blade Spinnerbait fished just below the surface. I was using an old , they don't make em anymore Arbogast Jitter Stick and regular Jitterbugs and we racked up! The Jitter Stick has a longer body and a prop on the back, I reeled slow and steady like a regular bug( get the gargelling sound going) and then I would sto and drag it , quickly across the top, getting the prop going and when I started the retrieve again is when most of my fish came>

[BassHunter69]

when using top waters you generally want to start out with a slow steady retreve,and work your way up to a faster retrive, this way the fish can tell you what they want the key i belive in successful topwater use is the retrive. many people when they start off use only one retrive so change it up and i'm sure you'll see results.

[Del from philly]

so you did wel in PA???? guess its gotta be me

in like what you say hunter, start slow steady, im gonna have to give it a go

thanks for the help, keep it coming if anything comes to mind

[roadwarrior]

Buzzbaits are generally considered a seperate category, but they are still "topwater."

http://www.bassresource.com/bass_fishing_forums/YaBB.pl?num=1190039737

[SPEEDBEAD.]

I am in PA, fishing a buzzbait the majority of the time as a search bait as well as a target-specific bait.

When using a buzzer around visible cover (trees, stumps, laydowns, docks) make sure you are banging that stuff for all its worth. Cast from all different angles and make contact w/ the cover as much as possible.

Another topwater I like is the Torpedo. Rip it, twitch it, reel it in.....Lots of effective ways to throw it.

Wayne

[Sam]

Let me tell you about my experience with a topwater in Penna.

Went to a friend's private pond outside of Clymer, PA (he was one of the signers of the Declaration of Independence) and caught one after the other on a black buzzbait early in the morning.

Had a blast.

Nothing big, just small bass up to about a pound each. But they leveled that buzzbait.

They would never hit a spinnerbait or a crankbait.

They would eat up a finesse worm or a Senko.

Never did throw my Pop-R or Spook since I was having so much fun witt the buzzbait.

I would think the bass in Penna would eat a topwater.  

If they eat Scrapple they will eat anything! ;D

[SPEEDBEAD.]

Let me tell you about my experience with a topwater in Penna.

Went to a friend's private pond outside of Clymer, PA (he was one of the signers of the Declaration of Independence) and caught one after the other on a black buzzbait early in the morning.

Had a blast.

Nothing big, just small bass up to about a pound each. But they leveled that buzzbait.

They would never hit a spinnerbait or a crankbait.

They would eat up a finesse worm or a Senko.

Never did throw my Pop-R or Spook since I was having so much fun witt the buzzbait.

I would think the bass in Penna would eat a topwater.

If they eat Scrapple they will eat anything! ;D

That stuff is awesome, grew up eating it pan fried w/ syrup.

Here is an open invitation that anyone can take me up on, although it is a relatively long time from now....

If you have a pair of chest waders, I will show you some of the craziest PA topwater action you have ever seen. Usually starts the last week of april and goes until last week in May. Details upon request. We have had 100 fish days, easily, with 10 or more fish going 16 inches or better. ALL ON TOP!!

Biggest topwater smallmouth to date stretched the tape to 22.5 inches.

It really doesnt get much better than that.

[dman]

I am in NE PA and i dont have good luck with topwater either.. Get a few here and there.  I only go to topwater when the bite is tough,  just to try something different.  Buzzbait does seem to be popular on here but it is far down on my list of topwater producers.   Scum Frog, Chuggers\Pop R do better for me.  I cant look at the lure either when i fish topwater because i'll miss the few bites i do get by setting the hook as soon as i see water break!  I cant help it....If im not looking i get more fish.

[roadwarrior]

Here is a simply suggestion to get you started: Zara Puppy, black & silver.

You probably won't catch a monster, but this particular topwater lure is a 100% producer. Cast it out, let it sit, twitch and sit, twitch and sit...

[tyrius.]

Here is a simply suggestion to get you started: Zara Puppy, black & silver.

You probably won't catch a monster, but this particular topwater lure is a 100% producer. Cast it out, let it sit, twitch and sit, twitch and sit...

Can you fish it in any wind?  I've always reserved topwater (except for plastic frogs over slop) for nearly dead calm days.  Am I missing out on some good topwater action?

[roadwarrior]

Actually, a slight chop is usually better for topwater fishing (spinnerbaits, too). A little disturbance blurrs the view of the lure ever so slightly from close inspection by the bass. I think you will do better under these conditions than on a perfectly calm day.

[Tokyo Tony]

I have to say, that exact lure, Zara Puppy silver and black, is my all-time favorite topwater.  I don't use it much anymore because I've found the LC Sammy (I love the little popping noise it makes with each twitch), but my heart will always be with that old-school lure.  I like doing a steady walk-the-dog retrieve (slowing down and speeding up throughout), but a lot of the time I probably miss fish because I'm too stubborn to pause it, twitch, pause.  I LOVE that lure, and have loved it ever since I was a little kid.

[Guest muddy]

Actually, a slight chop is usually better for topwater fishing (spinnerbaits, too). A little disturbance blurrs the view of the lure ever so slightly from close inspection by the bass. I think you will do better under these conditions than on a perfectly calm day.

VERY TRUE RW!!! My Log bears that out, at night, with low light the black Jitter bugs outfished the frog colors not by a whole lot, but noticeable.

[Marty]

Topwater is not limited to any one geographic region. Here in the Rochester, NY area I do a lot of fishing from shore and probably use topwaters more than any other category. I've caught fish on virtually every type of topwater bait, but these days I generally use a Jitterbug where trebles can be used, buzzbaits for semi-weedless and buzzing frogs/toads for a weedless presentation.

Chances are if you are fishing decent water and use topwaters enough you will catch fish on them.

[Bass Hammer]

Scrapple they will eat anything! ;D

That stuff is awesome, grew up eating it pan fried w/ syrup.

What the heck is scrapple?

Get a pop-r....you will figure it out.

[S I G M A]

I can't seem to catch anything with any topwaters except the zara spook and i'm from southwest WI

[AJ]

Never fished in Pa. but here  in Ga. you will get your arm broke with a buzzbait. Its one of my no.1 choice for summer and fall bigguns.

[George Welcome]

Tournaments are won in PA and for that matter any other North American lake using a topwater bait. The right time and the right place on any lake makes a topwater bait the number one choice for producing.

[boatnik13]

Back to the original complaint!  Lake VS Pond .  Give me a bass pond that is off limits to fishing and I'll make any top water lure  into a T.V. show performance. Now give me a lake thats hammerd all the time by fishermen  and all the available lures and I'll show you spooked fish that takes a "change - up " to make the fish bite. Whats that mean to you? Use a lure that imitates what the fish are after and matched to the conditions normally work best and then there is always un answerd hook-ups. Some fish you just can't read.   PA. has no secret spots and most all impoundments are accessable  unlike Canada as they have miles of untouched water. So we are a hard worked waterway on impoundments and rivers in this State unlike many other remote area's in the country.

[Low_Budget_Hooker]

Actually, a slight chop is usually better for topwater fishing (spinnerbaits, too). A little disturbance blur's the view of the lure ever so slightly from close inspection by the bass. I think you will do better under these conditions than on a perfectly calm day.

Bigger, louder, stronger baits depending on the chop and use the very subtle and twitch type baits when it's glass.  A slight wind is always your best friend with a topwater bite.

RI Representing.  North of Pa