Hello Steelhead,
Some very interesting observations and questions. Last year I did several seminars on popper fishing.
To answer your first question Yes different popper styles work better weighted than others and also where they are weighted. For a large mouthed popper (ie. polaris) you want the popper to sit with the tail below the water to capture greater amounts of water when pulled. The more slender and small mouthed poppers work better with less of an angle in the water. It's about how much water you want the lure to grab when pulled.
Now for the more interesting question: Are different poppers more suited for particular wayds of being fished? And in differnt kinds of water? Yes
When you have flatter/calmer seas where the noise of the popper is the greater attractant than the visual you want more noise generally. This will be more of the larger diameter poppers or those with larger mouths. however if your fishing breaking white water where the noise is less of a factor the more slender poppers that will have tendency to cut through the water and be more visual to the fish may be a better choice. Also the more slender poppers tend to be easier to maintain in the strike zone in very fast moving waters, ie. the canal when tides are ripping.
These are my experiences only based on lures I make and use. I'm sure someone will say I'm full of it or something less flattering but I've eaten a few nice fish
Good luck and if you have another popper questions, feel free to post them.
Armand
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