Popper wobbler

A separate place among the variety of wobblers occupy poppers (popper).

Design features

This is a rather curious type of wobblers, differing from the rest even in appearance. Any wobbler imitates a small object of hunting for the predator. Popper in its form is similar to a small fish with an open mouth, feeding from the surface. And due to this form during the animation of the popper emits a characteristic gurgling sound.

Popper in its head part has a bevel or notch. Some models in the side of the body have special cutouts in the form of gills. The very body of such a wobbler can be both oblong and rounded. Another distinctive feature of the popper is the absence of a blade. Often the popper is equipped with two tees and tail plumage, but this equipment can vary, since there are quite a few models of poppers.

However, the main difference between the popper and other wobblers is not even the structure, but the sound. In English, the word “roar” means “gurgle”, “squelch”. Hence the name “popper” – “something gurgling”. At the same time, the popper also splashes water around itself.

When wiring topwater resembles a small weak fish, a small frog, a large insect floundering in the water, creating splashes and splashes. All these “goodies” attract the attention of predators. And the sound produced by the holes in the front of the wobbler, resembles the noise of active feeding fish. For example, the perch hears these sounds, thinks that his fellows somewhere found a good prey and hurries to join. Swimming up, he sees the popper floundering on the surface of the water and rushes at him. One – the striped robber is already on the hook. But this is, of course, only theoretical thoughts. In practice, each topwater produces its own special tone of sound, not always successful. And how the fish behaves in this or that case, how it perceives the bait, the fisherman can only assume.

For the first time, a lure similar to the popper, invented by American James Heddon at the beginning of the last century. His attention was attracted by the reaction of fish to objects falling into the water. Subsequently, the inventor founded a company for the production of fishing tackle, which catalog had a huge number of varieties of surface baits.

Where to use popper

Popper has a very wide range of applications and can help where baits with a large depth will not pass. This can be both open water and heavily overgrown ponds. Popper is especially well suited for lakes, quiet ponds and river bays, shallow gills or river sections with snags on the bottom. Such a topwater is suitable everywhere where there is more grass than water, where there are many plants both on the surface and underwater. If there is a certain skill, you can throw the popper under overhanging branches and bushes or in the windows among the lilies, especially it is convenient to do from a boat.

On the popper can catch any predatory or even mundane fish, such as stud, chub, yazya, redfish, perch and pike. In certain cases, you can even catch catfish, as the sound produced by the popper can resemble the sound of a quokka. There are also known cases of catching on the popper even pikeperch. The main time of catching on the popper – from May to August, when the little things are kept close to the surface of the water, there is a rapid flight of insects, and frogs are active.

Animation of the bait

Special attention should be paid to the wiring of the popper. The matter here is not as simple as it may seem at first glance. Since the popper does not have a paddle, then even wiring in the case of its use will not work. Therefore, his element – jerk animation, aka twitching, aka jerking. It is not difficult to master the technique, but if the angler is not familiar with it, then you will have to spend a little time to study.

To achieve the correct work of the popper, it is necessary to make it gurgle and create splashes and excitement on the surface of the water. This is what is necessary to attract the predator. The jerk is carried out when twitching the top of the rod. Then, during the pause, the slackness of the fishing line is reeled out. Wiring is better to conduct at an intense pace: jerk-pause + winding-jerk.

In addition, there are other variations of wiring, which are selected by experience and may depend on the mood of the fish at this time in a particular place or the temperament of the fisherman. You can alternate pauses and their duration, change the strength and frequency of jerks. And thus select the most tempting under the mood of the fish game.

It often happens that during the wiring of the popper can be seen as the fish goes after him, but on the bite does not decide. In this situation, you need to change the style of play. For example, perch responds well to sharp, short jerks, alternating with pauses without any periodicity or no pause at all. Chaotic and varied wiring can help to induce the predator to attack. If the predator is passive, it is better to use a slower wiring, with long pauses, testing the nerves of the predator for strength.

To successfully catch a popper, it is important for each model to pick up its correct animation. In calm weather it is better to make smoother, softer jerks, and in windy weather, when fishing over large depths – stronger and sharper. And if the fisherman is not able to influence the quality of the sound of the popper, because it depends on the manufacturer, then to select the optimal wiring – it means to show fishing skill.

Selection of “popper” tackle

Since the wiring of the popper is the same twitching, then the tackle should be selected similarly. It is best suited ” fast ” (fast) spinning, it gives a greater range of possibilities for wiring. To be the most convenient to animate the bait, the rod should not be very long. But at the same time, the spinning rod should be quite powerful to be able to “pull” the fish out of the thickets and prevent it from going into the snag.

However, it should be borne in mind that if you use a rigid rod and braided cord with minimal stretch, it can lead to more frequent failures, especially if we are talking about small fish. The most “popper” fish of our reservoirs is perch. And he has very weak lips, which can tear during fishing, especially if the popper is equipped with thin hooks. To reduce the number of unfortunate failures, you can apply an ordinary monofilament. If the object of the hunt is perch, stud or other fish that do not have teeth, the popper can be attached to a clasp or knit directly to the fishing line. But when catching pike, a leash is required, preferably metal.

Materials

Currently, most poppers are made of hard materials. As a rule, it is wood or plastic. Plastic models are the most popular and are more practical and durable. For better long-range performance, they are equipped with a long-range throwing system. At its core there is a weight, which during the throw goes into the tail part of the lure, which provides the most stable flight. In some “bottle” models, this weight is fixed. And at the pause of such a popper is partially submerged in the water tail down, and on the surface remains only the muzzle.

Coloring

Coloring poppers can be very diverse, in this case, the color does not play a decisive role. But it is worth bearing in mind that the predator looks at the popper from below, so to some extent may be important contrast coloring. But much more important is the coloring of the upper part. The one that the angler sees on the surface of the water. Due to the bright color, it is easy to see where the lure is at the moment and what is happening to it. This is much more important than what color the fish sees, especially for the implementation of spot wiring.

The most catchable poppers are

1. Megabass Pop Max
2. Jackall SK-Pop
3. Yo-Zuri/Duel 3DS Popper
4. Fishycat Popcat
5. OSP Louder
6. Kosadaka Killer Pop
7. Strike Pro Pike Pop

Conclusion

Catching a popper does not promise miracles, but it guarantees an interesting time. After all, fishing for any surface lures is very spectacular and exciting. Almost all the outputs of fish and bait attacks are visible to the naked eye. This is a very exciting activity that can lead to the capture of a large predator, but can leave the fisherman with nothing. In any case, on fishing is important not the catch itself, but bright impressions, vivid emotions and acquired experience.