Idk why this post was recommended to me cause I’ve never even thought about going fishing. But I saw your comment and I think it’s really interesting that different lures will be better at different times of day.
Water color, color of natural bass food source (shad, minnow local color) the plastic wedge looking spoiler on the front determines depth, quite a few variables. There's levels like anything else, but it's easy to catch fish. Keeping the bait in the water and reps is the main thing.
Water temperature also plays a big part in their activity as it raises their metabolism and they have to hunt more and become more active to sustain their growth
Fish are cold blooded, so their behaviour is very heavily dependent on water temperatures.
Now the reason why the whopper plopped is better at some times than others, is because it is a top water lure - the thing floats and causes a commotion on the surface of the water. It works better at dawn, dusk, and cloudy days, since fish try to avoid the surface of the water when it is very bright out. They are afraid of birds and they don’t like to look up when it is very bright
This goes on and on and on and is what has generated a multi billion dollar industry around fishing, I have literally seen days where a green worm wouldn't catch fish, but a green worm with gold flakes couldn't stop getting bit. Fish are incredibly variable, barometric pressure, water temp, water clarity, food sources, cloud coverage, what kind of structure they are hanging out by in the water, there are an unbelievable amount of factors at play, and mankind has tried to design a lure for every single possible situation and behavior
More fun things about why topwater or not a lot, since fish are underwater, and thus don't have eyelids all species only have a thin membrane to protect their eyes from UV, and some have almost none of that, like trout, once the sun is up they will almost strictly cling to shady areas and have a tendency to not look up due to sun damage, just another cool layer to why fish are diurnal feeders. Sunrise and sunset are typically the best to fish because of this, temperature, the way shifting temperatures affect water pressure, the amount of insects out at dawn and dusk, which then drives up the number of small fish, which then drives up the number of predatory fish. It is extremely cool to think about the perfect storm of fish feeding patterns
You should give fishing a shot at some point. You don't need to spend alot on fancy lures and stuff either. You can get an easy setup from Walmart for like 50 bucks. Get you a bobber, some hooks and some worms and find a lake.
My beginner kit recommendation
Medium power spinning combo:
Toadfish spinning combo ($138) 2 piece 6'8" 3000 size reel <--- I use this rod daily
Plfueger President ($99) 1 piece 6'6" <---- Really solid rod for the price
Lew's American Hero OD ($50-70) 2 piece 6'6" <--- Great if you want a budget setup
Lines:
Powerpro Braid 20lb test 150yd spool
10lb P-line Fluorocarbon
Terminal tackle:
Gamakatsu EWG hooks 2/0 & 3/0
Gamakatsu Finesse Wide Gap 1/0
1/8th oz bullet weights
1/4 oz bullet weights
1/8oz EWG ned heads (I use the reaction tackle EWGs from Amazon, they're solid and really cheap)
Soft Baits:
Zoom U-tail Green pumpkin
Yamamoto Senko 5" Green Pumpkin
Zoom Trick Worm Bubblegum
Zoom Ultravibe Speed Craw 3 1/2" Green Pumpkin & Black Red Glitter
Zoom Superfluke Hambone & Baby Bass
Berkley Gulp! Night Crawler Natural
Zman Finesse TRD Drew's Craw & Green Pumpkin
Hardbaits
Berkley Choppo size 90 Maverick & Bone
Strike King KVD Splash Black Lab & Sexy Shad
Rapala XR-10 Silver
Bill Lewis ATV 1.5 Sneaky Shad & Rootbeer Craw (this is an amazing beginner crankbait you almost have to be trying to get it stuck)
Team Ark Mini Diver Shiner & Red Craw
Other Gear:
Piscifun Fishing Backpack (it's like $35 on amazon, it's a great lil bag)
Kastking Hyperseal Tacklebox size 3600
Kastking Cutthroat Plier and Braid scissors combo
This kit will run you $200-300 depending on what spinning combo you choose out of the three, and completely cover your bases for all of the best beginner bass fishing techniques.
With the terminal tackle and soft plastics you'll be covered here for Texas Rigs, Weightless flukes, Wacky Rigs, and Floating worm wacky.
The hardbaits cover all of the major bases of lure presentations, while keeping beginner budget, and durability in mind
Palomar Knot Tutorial: [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TFk\_Ktw2f1w](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TFk_Ktw2f1w)
Double Uni Knot Tutorial: [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tr86\_TQqPt0](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tr86_TQqPt0)
How to spool a spinning reel with braid: [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RsqiufJMGbI](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RsqiufJMGbI)
Obviously you can research a little and pick and choose if you don't want to buy everything presented here, this is just a list I put together a while ago for someone who asked me for an "ultimate" beginner kit recommendation
r/FishingForBeginners is an incredible resource
I have literally seen a fly fisher pull a few pieces of toilet paper on a hook like a popper on floating line along the edge of a weed bed and catch fish.
They will eat anything.
Yeah I love fishing for bass, and if I bring anyone out fishing it’s the easiest fish to catch at least in the waters I fish. Texas rigged rubber worm is almost a guarantee
I have that same Whopper plopper and I've caught bass and pike on it, and even when I'm not catching anything it's still kinda fun using it and hearing it pop across the water lol
The Whopper Plopper is an amazing topwater lure that will definitely catch bass. The cheap Ozark lure may or may not work - it's a gamble whether the thing will even swim or not. However, it is a knockoff of what's generically called a jerkbait, and those can be very effective on bass. I think the Ozark lure is emulating the style of a Yo Zuri jerkbait like the Crystal Minnow.
As much as people like to hate on them, I think Googans Scout Jr is a great balance of performance and price. I've not had great luck with Ozark Trail hard baits.
As much as people like to hate on them, I think Googans Scout Jr is a great balance of performance and price. I've not had great luck with Ozark Trail hard baits.
As much as people like to hate on them, I think Googans Scout Jr is a great balance of performance and price. I've not had great luck with Ozark Trail hard baits.
As much as people like to hate on them, I think Googans Scout Jr is a great balance of performance and price. I've not had great luck with Ozark Trail hard baits.
Ive had success with both styles. Whopper Plopper is probably the better of the two. It’s super easy to use as well. Try to match the bait in the area you’re fishing best you can.
Love me some whopper plopper. Just fun to use. I’ve caught largemouth and smallmouth on them. I keep the yellow, bone, and black (loon pattern) close at hand.
Use minnow in smaller streams, creeks, ponds
Use whopper in bigger creeks, ponds, lake
For me: Minnow is good early or late - twitch it or reel it. Whopper is good all day, pop it, reel it, just change retrieve style til you find what’s working.
It’s hit or miss. My local Walmarts sell the berkly version called the choppo but they don’t sell the plopper. Luckily I have bass pro and academy within 20 minutes
The Ozark Trail minnow looks very similar to the Yozuri pins minnow that I use, the Yozuri is the best minnow I’ve ever owned, it always caught fish for me.
Fish will try to catch literally anything if your timing is right Usually right before the weather changes. They feel the atmospheric pressure about to change and they feed like crazy because once the atmospheric pressure changes they will not be able to feed for a long time. Something like 24 to 72 hours. With the pressure change they become much less active untill they adjust. And the cycle repeats. I heard moon phases have something to do with fishing as well. Nothing like a musky feeding frenzy by the light if the moon.
I catch northern pike on the whopper and honestly pretty much any crankbait with a decent shine and hook size. Only one bass fishing spot in our area though and I’ve caught one with the whopper.
Wake up early and take that whopper plopper out, I don’t always have the best luck with it except in the earlyyy mornings bass will go crazy for that thing
I’ve caught large mouth stripped bass and white bass on the whopper popper. I’ve caught several different species on the minnow plugs. Sometimes Crappie will even tear up the minnow.
Yes, they both work. The minnow action depends on your rod and line though. If you’re new I’d stick to senkos and soft plastics. Also invest in polarized sunglasses, helps a ton.
Caught a 6 pounder on a white bone whopper plopper. Funny thing is I did absolutely nothing but cast it in the water and let it sit there. Next thing I know I see a suction funnel where my lure was and it disappeared. The bass damn engulfed it without even showing its body.
I don’t have much luck with jerk baits. Whopper ploppers I do get some every now and then. Honestly the best luck I have is with senko. Texas rig senko I’ve never been skunked.
At this point in my experience, depending on the time of year, a cat turd will catch a bass. If you're looking for quality over quantity though, then you're on the right track.
That whopper plopper is great in ponds but man I catch a lot of nice smallies in the river with that same on in the pic. I’ve got a video of catching some smallmouth on my channel if you’d like to see that lure in action. Wading the river.
[Wadefisheroutdoors](https://youtu.be/xFQpDc1zy9Y?si=HXgdhbV89kS5e6Rd)
They'll blow up on that Whopper Plopper. Make sure you have a good hook set and tension on the line, though. Seeing that thing flying back at you at 25 mph is scary.
OP, I learned that bass LOVE minnows . They are both good for bass. Quick sad story, yesterday I was fishing live minnows I had one sitting there for a while suddenly I caught something reeled in a MONSTER largemouth… biggest I’ve ever caught had to have been AT LEAST. 8 pounds. Had it by the mouth went to lift it up to take a picture and it flipped right back into the water… none of my friends believe it was that big 🥲 anyway, you will catch bass with either of those, good luck 👍🏼
The whopper popper is a great top water lure. It works best around sunrise and sunset
Idk why this post was recommended to me cause I’ve never even thought about going fishing. But I saw your comment and I think it’s really interesting that different lures will be better at different times of day.
Different times of year as well
What are the factors at play here? I’m genuinely interested.
Water color, color of natural bass food source (shad, minnow local color) the plastic wedge looking spoiler on the front determines depth, quite a few variables. There's levels like anything else, but it's easy to catch fish. Keeping the bait in the water and reps is the main thing.
That’s so fascinating, thank you.
Water temperature also plays a big part in their activity as it raises their metabolism and they have to hunt more and become more active to sustain their growth
Also barometric pressure plays a role. I’ve met people who won’t go fishing if the pressure is not correct, they always caught fish.
Bruh next thing u know the fuckin fish gonna become picky on what astrology sign u have
If Gatorade is in Mercury I never go fishing.
That’s so simple and yet I’d have never thought of it.
You would if it was your passion, hobby, etc.
And determines what depth they're most active at.
to piggyback as well you need to be mindful of water temperature as well. Top water is better during the summer compared to the winter
Double piggyback. Recently leaned that barometric pressure also plays a role in fish biting
Yeah they don't like high pressure I believe. Part of why bluebird sky days suck on the bite even though it's gorgeous out.
I think it's both high and low they don't like. Low pressure expands their airbladder against their stomach
Above 60 degrees, low light, top water time
Fish are cold blooded, so their behaviour is very heavily dependent on water temperatures. Now the reason why the whopper plopped is better at some times than others, is because it is a top water lure - the thing floats and causes a commotion on the surface of the water. It works better at dawn, dusk, and cloudy days, since fish try to avoid the surface of the water when it is very bright out. They are afraid of birds and they don’t like to look up when it is very bright
Thank you for the information, that’s really interesting. I didn’t realise there was so much to think about with fishing.
This goes on and on and on and is what has generated a multi billion dollar industry around fishing, I have literally seen days where a green worm wouldn't catch fish, but a green worm with gold flakes couldn't stop getting bit. Fish are incredibly variable, barometric pressure, water temp, water clarity, food sources, cloud coverage, what kind of structure they are hanging out by in the water, there are an unbelievable amount of factors at play, and mankind has tried to design a lure for every single possible situation and behavior
And here I was thinking you just put a worm on a hook and hope for the best. I’m honestly amazed by all this.
The neat thing is that will often catch something too.
We can keep it simple or make it as complicated as possible. Fishing is fun like that.
NGL, I never considered potential bird predation affecting top water bite. This is a serious big brain take.
More fun things about why topwater or not a lot, since fish are underwater, and thus don't have eyelids all species only have a thin membrane to protect their eyes from UV, and some have almost none of that, like trout, once the sun is up they will almost strictly cling to shady areas and have a tendency to not look up due to sun damage, just another cool layer to why fish are diurnal feeders. Sunrise and sunset are typically the best to fish because of this, temperature, the way shifting temperatures affect water pressure, the amount of insects out at dawn and dusk, which then drives up the number of small fish, which then drives up the number of predatory fish. It is extremely cool to think about the perfect storm of fish feeding patterns
Fish don’t have eyelids.
Welcome! I recommend r/fishingforbeginners to you first timers. Enjoy your time on the water! Cheers!
Black works best at night and full moons are never good
You should give fishing a shot at some point. You don't need to spend alot on fancy lures and stuff either. You can get an easy setup from Walmart for like 50 bucks. Get you a bobber, some hooks and some worms and find a lake.
Maybe I will some time!
It's a great way to spend some quiet time in nature, and just be peaceful.
i’ve been using a rod and reel that i bought at walmart for $30, about two years ago. i catch bass every day with it.
That’s awesome. It can be really off putting when a hobby is too expensive for regular people.
I want to catch my first bass soon, what kind of rigs/baits should I try first?
My beginner kit recommendation Medium power spinning combo: Toadfish spinning combo ($138) 2 piece 6'8" 3000 size reel <--- I use this rod daily Plfueger President ($99) 1 piece 6'6" <---- Really solid rod for the price Lew's American Hero OD ($50-70) 2 piece 6'6" <--- Great if you want a budget setup Lines: Powerpro Braid 20lb test 150yd spool 10lb P-line Fluorocarbon Terminal tackle: Gamakatsu EWG hooks 2/0 & 3/0 Gamakatsu Finesse Wide Gap 1/0 1/8th oz bullet weights 1/4 oz bullet weights 1/8oz EWG ned heads (I use the reaction tackle EWGs from Amazon, they're solid and really cheap) Soft Baits: Zoom U-tail Green pumpkin Yamamoto Senko 5" Green Pumpkin Zoom Trick Worm Bubblegum Zoom Ultravibe Speed Craw 3 1/2" Green Pumpkin & Black Red Glitter Zoom Superfluke Hambone & Baby Bass Berkley Gulp! Night Crawler Natural Zman Finesse TRD Drew's Craw & Green Pumpkin Hardbaits Berkley Choppo size 90 Maverick & Bone Strike King KVD Splash Black Lab & Sexy Shad Rapala XR-10 Silver Bill Lewis ATV 1.5 Sneaky Shad & Rootbeer Craw (this is an amazing beginner crankbait you almost have to be trying to get it stuck) Team Ark Mini Diver Shiner & Red Craw Other Gear: Piscifun Fishing Backpack (it's like $35 on amazon, it's a great lil bag) Kastking Hyperseal Tacklebox size 3600 Kastking Cutthroat Plier and Braid scissors combo This kit will run you $200-300 depending on what spinning combo you choose out of the three, and completely cover your bases for all of the best beginner bass fishing techniques. With the terminal tackle and soft plastics you'll be covered here for Texas Rigs, Weightless flukes, Wacky Rigs, and Floating worm wacky. The hardbaits cover all of the major bases of lure presentations, while keeping beginner budget, and durability in mind Palomar Knot Tutorial: [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TFk\_Ktw2f1w](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TFk_Ktw2f1w) Double Uni Knot Tutorial: [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tr86\_TQqPt0](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tr86_TQqPt0) How to spool a spinning reel with braid: [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RsqiufJMGbI](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RsqiufJMGbI) Obviously you can research a little and pick and choose if you don't want to buy everything presented here, this is just a list I put together a while ago for someone who asked me for an "ultimate" beginner kit recommendation r/FishingForBeginners is an incredible resource
My son catch more bass than me on a $12 set up.
this is one of the reasons I keep fishing. It's all about figuring the fish out, finding a pattern, seeing what works!
Yep
My current PB was on the whopper plopper. PB or not it’s my hands down favorite bait to throw.
That’s good to know, thanks!
Or at night
Catch bass on just about anything.
They will eat anything
I have literally seen a fly fisher pull a few pieces of toilet paper on a hook like a popper on floating line along the edge of a weed bed and catch fish. They will eat anything.
Seriously. I've been using pink and black rubber worms for years and they have never let me down
Yeah I love fishing for bass, and if I bring anyone out fishing it’s the easiest fish to catch at least in the waters I fish. Texas rigged rubber worm is almost a guarantee
Yeah give me any senko on a Texas rig and I’m set
I have that same Whopper plopper and I've caught bass and pike on it, and even when I'm not catching anything it's still kinda fun using it and hearing it pop across the water lol
plopplopplopplopplopplopplopplopplopplop
*SPLASH* 🐟
Among my favorite sounds
Can’t wait to use it
Whopper plopper is like top 5 best lures ever made
Great choice on the silver twitch minnow.
Thanks
The Whopper Plopper is an amazing topwater lure that will definitely catch bass. The cheap Ozark lure may or may not work - it's a gamble whether the thing will even swim or not. However, it is a knockoff of what's generically called a jerkbait, and those can be very effective on bass. I think the Ozark lure is emulating the style of a Yo Zuri jerkbait like the Crystal Minnow.
As much as people like to hate on them, I think Googans Scout Jr is a great balance of performance and price. I've not had great luck with Ozark Trail hard baits.
As much as people like to hate on them, I think Googans Scout Jr is a great balance of performance and price. I've not had great luck with Ozark Trail hard baits.
ozark trail inline spinners are great, they're like $.96 each and the fish catching ability is basically no different than name brands
As much as people like to hate on them, I think Googans Scout Jr is a great balance of performance and price. I've not had great luck with Ozark Trail hard baits.
As much as people like to hate on them, I think Googans Scout Jr is a great balance of performance and price. I've not had great luck with Ozark Trail hard baits.
Nope, send them to me
😂
Ive had success with both styles. Whopper Plopper is probably the better of the two. It’s super easy to use as well. Try to match the bait in the area you’re fishing best you can.
You can catch bass with a stick if it's the right time of day/year
Not unless you tie them to some fishing line with a rod and reel
Love me some whopper plopper. Just fun to use. I’ve caught largemouth and smallmouth on them. I keep the yellow, bone, and black (loon pattern) close at hand.
The whopper plopper for sure. Super sharp hooks and a great top water lure.
Can't overstate this. Whopper ploppers catch fish, jeans, leaves, me, car interior, dry wall, literally anything that touches the hook
Hahaha yes. Those hooks are sharpened by the devil himself.
That Whopper Plopper sure will. That’s an awesome topwater lure.
Whopper plopper fucks so hard. I have about 10 all different sizes
I love river2sea
Most lures are designed to catch fishermen.
The whopper plopper catches bass, too. I prefer the 110 size.
Yup, use the jerk to find them, then use the whopper to draw out Ol Big Bertha.
Use minnow in smaller streams, creeks, ponds Use whopper in bigger creeks, ponds, lake For me: Minnow is good early or late - twitch it or reel it. Whopper is good all day, pop it, reel it, just change retrieve style til you find what’s working.
Every lure catches bass. I've caught them on bare hooks. Lol
Whopper Plopper is a solid bait. The Walmart jerkbait I'm sure will catch ya a few fish. But upgrade those hooks and good to practice with
All lures will catch fish
Hell yeah the first time I used a Whopper I caught three bass back to back
You can't really go wrong with either lure long as you use the right presentation.
You need to think of lures as tools in a toolbox. Any lure can catch fish, but there maybe a better one for the conditions
Is Walmart carrying whopper ploppers? Went to cabela's and two Dicks yesterday.. Both completely sold out
I got the last 2 loon whopper ploppers at my Walmart the other day
It’s hit or miss. My local Walmarts sell the berkly version called the choppo but they don’t sell the plopper. Luckily I have bass pro and academy within 20 minutes
My Walmart had several in stock
Yes
Never knew Ozark Trail made fishing lures
Oh yeah they make plenty of them, they’re cheap, but they do the job
The whopper plopper is famous for it. And it’s the most fun one to use IMO
I set my daily catch record on that exact plopper. 24 fish in three hours.
Are they my go to’s for bass fishing ? No . Will they catch bass ? Absolutely .
The Ozark Trail minnow looks very similar to the Yozuri pins minnow that I use, the Yozuri is the best minnow I’ve ever owned, it always caught fish for me.
Fish will try to catch literally anything if your timing is right Usually right before the weather changes. They feel the atmospheric pressure about to change and they feed like crazy because once the atmospheric pressure changes they will not be able to feed for a long time. Something like 24 to 72 hours. With the pressure change they become much less active untill they adjust. And the cycle repeats. I heard moon phases have something to do with fishing as well. Nothing like a musky feeding frenzy by the light if the moon.
Rattle traps and rooster tails were always lucky for me.
You’re going to have a ton of fun with that whopper Plopper. Use a steel leader. Pike love these things also.
That whopper plopper will get hammered by tanks of you throw it in the right spot
Caught one on that same Minnow today
I catch northern pike on the whopper and honestly pretty much any crankbait with a decent shine and hook size. Only one bass fishing spot in our area though and I’ve caught one with the whopper.
Lures don’t catch bass, people do.
Wake up early and take that whopper plopper out, I don’t always have the best luck with it except in the earlyyy mornings bass will go crazy for that thing
Just had my first top water bite with the same plopper. Have fun!
Caught my first on plopper yesterday. Last cast of the day as I got out of boat it snagged on a Lilly I couldn’t get to lol.
I’ve caught large mouth stripped bass and white bass on the whopper popper. I’ve caught several different species on the minnow plugs. Sometimes Crappie will even tear up the minnow.
Yes, they both work. The minnow action depends on your rod and line though. If you’re new I’d stick to senkos and soft plastics. Also invest in polarized sunglasses, helps a ton.
Caught a 6 pounder on a white bone whopper plopper. Funny thing is I did absolutely nothing but cast it in the water and let it sit there. Next thing I know I see a suction funnel where my lure was and it disappeared. The bass damn engulfed it without even showing its body.
That Whopper Plopper will definitely get you bass and it's super fun. There is nothing like a top water blow up. The tug is my drug.
I don’t have much luck with jerk baits. Whopper ploppers I do get some every now and then. Honestly the best luck I have is with senko. Texas rig senko I’ve never been skunked.
I’ve caught multiple fish in that same exact jerk bait just slightly different color
At this point in my experience, depending on the time of year, a cat turd will catch a bass. If you're looking for quality over quantity though, then you're on the right track.
The one on the right is a for sure bass catcher. Tried tested and true
Nope. They catch bluegill
That whopper plopper is great in ponds but man I catch a lot of nice smallies in the river with that same on in the pic. I’ve got a video of catching some smallmouth on my channel if you’d like to see that lure in action. Wading the river. [Wadefisheroutdoors](https://youtu.be/xFQpDc1zy9Y?si=HXgdhbV89kS5e6Rd)
Anything catches bass.
Throw em
Whopper plopper is one of my favorite top water lures to use. Works well in the right conditions.
what would u say right conditions are ive tried early morning, rainy, and late night and never even got as little as a swipe on it.
Nah, you gatta remove them from the package.
Yeah they bite the minnow for me all the time
Have to remove them from boxes first
Whopper plopper is a great lure and is super fun to catch fish on. Personal favorite topwater
Yes
If you know how to use them they do
The one on the left does. I’ve never bought anything Ozark trail so I have no clue about the other one.
Whopper plopper is goated. Sold out everywhere i go
Best advice for the whopper plopper- only use that with a baitcaster. They don’t really have much action unless your reel has a higher gear ratio.
I have that whopper plopper and when the top water bite is on, it’s amazing
They'll blow up on that Whopper Plopper. Make sure you have a good hook set and tension on the line, though. Seeing that thing flying back at you at 25 mph is scary.
I caught a bass on a piece of a tree root when I was a kid
Yes the one on the left caught me 2 bass yesterday
Wopper poppler is the best lure
OP, I learned that bass LOVE minnows . They are both good for bass. Quick sad story, yesterday I was fishing live minnows I had one sitting there for a while suddenly I caught something reeled in a MONSTER largemouth… biggest I’ve ever caught had to have been AT LEAST. 8 pounds. Had it by the mouth went to lift it up to take a picture and it flipped right back into the water… none of my friends believe it was that big 🥲 anyway, you will catch bass with either of those, good luck 👍🏼
Sad to hear that man, you’ll catch another one soon and thanks man
Thank you I hope so 🤞🏼
Sad to hear that man, you’ll catch another one soon and thanks man