Poppers--Floating or sinking?

[Saltheart]

I thought I'd throw this up for discussion. I used to fish Atom poppers when Bob Pond made them in South Attleboro. the atom poppers sunk.

Now a days , most of the better poppers (like Habs) float.

It seams to me that the sinking poppers were more verstile than floating poppers. If you wanted to , you could get right on it and use it like one that floats but youcould also let them sink just below the surface and bring them up to break the surface. You could also let them sink down very low and bring them up so they only occasionally broke the surface for a short time then back down. All different ways a hurt bait fish or bait fish chased in a school during a blitz may behave. You could also swim the popper when you just used it as a casting weight to drag a teaser out there.

I once wrote a big thing about poppers way back for WMI and can't find it. i wanted to post it here. Anyone from the good old days at WMI have a copy of that popper thing I wrote?

Anyway , I used to use a lot of poppers in the fall down in south county and just wonder about how many different types of presentations people are capable of with poppers that float. I'm also interested in peoples preferences of sinkers and floaters.



What do you think?

[Clammer]

Saltheart

It depends, I like floaters up tight& close fishing, oh == this is from a boat== you can cast them on the shore and work them out when the fish are up tight
plus when you snap your line you can get it back
same deal when you get a snarl
also you said you liked the idea of letting it sink ,and change the action == well floaters can be fished liked the freshwater ,stop & twich
they don,t cast as well as wood or heavier sinkers, there is one i use that is difficult to pop in the standard manner
except in the fall I,m more concern about color & action than float or not to float///////////////////////////

[Slipknot]

I like to make my wooden poppers to slow sink. then it doesn't take a lot of speed to keep them up and popping. and you are right , they are more versitile.

[TheSpecialist]

I have some Habs and they sink. I have made both sinkers and floaters, I like the floaters better.

[bloocrab]

Originally posted by Slipknot
...slow sink....they are more versitile..

...kinda what Slip said, but I prefer a "Suspending" popper. My perfect popper would tip the scales at 3 - 3 1/4 oz. and sink like a bobber with a pinhole in it. I could use it in many different ways as stated above. By allowing it to sink, and giving it the occasional twitch, it would appear to be a dying/sinking baitfish. Also by allowing to sink a little..you could almost work it like a Darter, if the 'cup' in the front is deep or angled enough, it will somewhat ..dart~!...Don't get me wrong, there are different lures for different types of fishing and a popper is meant to "POP"..but you could, if you wanted....get a little bUckWilD!!

The problem with a sinking popper is that sometimes given the conditions - depth/current/roughness - you can't work it the way you'd like. Sometimes you gotta work it too hard just to pop and then just end up making a mess and not at all imitating a baitfish. Sinking poppers are preferred in rough waters for me. Anything else, I'd prefer a "Suspender"


...guys like Slip / Specialist / Tattoo and someday bloo have the advantage of making a popper exactly or at least fishly close to how they'd like it...

[MountainBreeze]

What is the preferred way to work both sinking and floating poppers?

Do you reel, pop, and stop, reel, pop, and stop, ... a floater or just reel, pop, reel, pop, ...?

And... do you let a sinking popper hit the bottom or just slowly retrieve and jerk / quick retrieve to pop and let it sink again?

I typically just reel, pop, reel, pop but I have a feeling blues like that better than bass - as I've gotten blues that way but no bass.

Thanks,
Rob

[JohnR]

Rob - yes but I'm still experimenting with diffreent sizes in different conditions depending on the fish...

Saltheart - I like just barely floaters or just barely sinkers - I don't like some that drop like a stone...

[MountainBreeze]

QUOTE:
"Rob - yes"

Uhhh... I'm confused!

John, when you say "yes," do you mean all methods mentioned above work or were you refering to one specifically?

Regards,
Rob

[JohnR]

Yes - I use them and try to do what ever I can to vary the action if it will increase strikes, especially when I'm raising fish and they are not hitting.

Don't forget to stop the popper and even let it slide back from time to time, especially if it's getting intermittantly whacked.

Now this doesn't apply as much to wood, but when you can, get ones that rattle

[Got Stripers]

My favorite popper is a big salt water chrome chug bug and it floats. I'm lazy and the sinkers are just too much work IMHO, for the little added versitility. If I need something to look like an injured baitfish, but occassionally break the surface, I'll throw plastic and weight it for what I need to do. I hate poppers that need to be brought in at warp speed just to keep them popping. Plus the "main" reasons I throw a popper are to experience the top water explosions we all love or to feed fish busting on top, so I don't want to bother with anything that doesn't float.

[NJSurf]

Saltheart,

I think I printed your article on poppers years ago and have it in a folder at home. It was a good read. If you cant find it, I could dig it out & Fax or mail you a copy.

Kurt

[Mike P]

Sinking poppers, like Superstrikes and Atoms, will swim when retrieved slowly. Superstrikes are real easy to keep up top, so you can work them slow.

My favorite poppers are the ones that float vertically at rest, with the tail down. Gibbs and Hawg pencil poppers, and the 3-1/2 oz Polarises. You can throw a floating pencil popper upcurrent at a beaking fish and work it, whereas a sinking pencil popper, like a Gibbs Canal Special, won't ride to the top when thrown upcurrent. The 3-1/2 oz Polaris can be popped and then allowed to slide back. Great way to fish a plug at a first-light slack tide in the Ditch.

[Saltheart]

i looked around and couldn't find it NJSurf. If you could post it here that would be good. I don't have a fax anymore but if you want to mail it or scan it and email it instead of posting it let me know and I'll send an emailwith my home address . If you can email it , Saltheart@striped-bass.com will get it to me fast. Thanks

[CSK]

How many of you use poppers at night?

[GBOUTDOORS]

Smackit floater in most cases as I like to stop it and have it stay on top so it can be twitched like walking the dog. Also the large rattle inside can be worked in slow mode. And they work great on Goose too.

[CSK]

How many of you use poppers at night?

[MountainBreeze]

Good question! And... if you don't use them at night, what lures do you use?

I use poppers and jigs at night - both seem to work fine for blues - as I say... I haven't caught a bass yet.

[NJSurf]

saltheart,

I'll take a look for it tonight and let you know. I only had a printed copy, not an electronic file.


Saltheart, I checked my stuff and could not find your posting on poppers, sorry.

[bassmaster]

Originally posted by CSK
How many of you use poppers at night?

Very rare But in bays when sand eels are being slurped on top, the smallest of creeck chubs workand I made some 2" polaris poppers back in early 90s for that.
I was in cotuit and had bass in May on those into the night.
and Blues the next day
a sinking popper weighted right has its place, the best are the ones that swim when under water.
surely when in slow water and they want a slow retrieve, You will not want a popper that You have to fast just to keep it up.
So I would say just a bunch o types to have on hand when going on an outing to the surf or bays.............