Mike G Posted May 16, 2018 Report Share Posted May 16, 2018 Who would have thought that Poe Lure’s 8” Awaker would inspire a Bass bait half its size? Who would have thought that the bass bait would cost almost as much? Since Dahlberg’s Whopper Plopper is firmly established as a fish getter, I was glad to see a lower cost plopper appear in Barlow’s lure lineup. If you are handy at basic lure building and painting, you can get in the plopper game without taking a second mortgage to cover the $15 cost of the Dahlberg model. It comes in 3.5”, 4” and 5” sizes for $7.00, $7.50, and $8.00 respectively. You do have to finish the body and add hooks. Since clear baits have become popular, you might consider just painting on eyes and gills. For the one I built, I decided to try out the new Jig Skin system-a sleeve that slips over the lure body and shrinks tight over the body when dipped in boiling water. I used their Perch pattern. Here’s what I started with. PartsA by Michael Gerharz, on Flickr Here is the lure ready to go into the boiling water. Readytoshrink by Michael Gerharz, on Flickr The results. FinishedplopperB by Michael Gerharz, on Flickr Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scott Ferguson Posted May 16, 2018 Report Share Posted May 16, 2018 After you buy the knock off blank lure, split rings, hooks, jig skins, shipping and your time to put them all together, are you really saving much money? Those jig skins are pretty interesting. I've never been too keen on photo realistic paint jobs, but I know a lot of guys are. How durable are they? Do they go on the baits easily? The baits that work very well for me seem to do as well or better ter when most of the paint has been knocked off, but if I was to come across lures that were cheap enough and I really hated the colors, I can see trying them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rich mc Posted May 17, 2018 Report Share Posted May 17, 2018 mike i would have bet you that you would have it painted red head and white in honor of Lefty Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joshw Posted May 17, 2018 Report Share Posted May 17, 2018 I'm pretty sure Dahlberg was trying to copy the Mud Puppy sound when he created the Plopper. I believe the Mud puppy then Tally Wacker and LeLure's were the first tail rotators mass produced. That Poes Awaker was one of the first musky baits pushed on TV from Bob M. He for sure is a great salesman! A tip I can offer on those style baits is to take some sand paper and rough up the rivet portion that contacts the bead at the tail. It helps create a grind/squeak that seems to draw some extra strikes at times. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eric Posted May 17, 2018 Report Share Posted May 17, 2018 That perch pattern will definitely catch fish! So will the “Air Ick” cork in the right circumstances. The Whopper Plopper has turned on a whole new generation of bass fishermen to that style of lure. I’m sure it has made River 2 Sea a pretty penny in the processs, but it has also helped people catch a lot of fish ... increasing their confidence and enjoyment in the sport. A lot of budding bass anglers are too young to remember the originals that may have inspired the WP, or simply aren’t / weren’t exposed to musky lures. It amazes me just how much the bass fishing landscape has changed overall. Growing up, seems like there were only a handful of rod, reel, and line manufacturers. Many of the dozens of new brands look so unfamiliar to me! You hear the younger crowd talking about Dobyn’s rods, P-Line, Sun Line, etc. And spending $14.99 on a frog lure or $12.99 on a Whopper Plopper is nothing. Kids have a $100+ per month cell phone habit. Probably tough for a generation of anglers who grew up pouring their own lead head jigs to save a few bucks to fathom. And I don’t blame ‘em. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike G Posted May 19, 2018 Author Report Share Posted May 19, 2018 On 5/16/2018 at 11:42 AM, Scott Ferguson said: After you buy the knock off blank lure, split rings, hooks, jig skins, shipping and your time to put them all together, are you really saving much money? Those jig skins are pretty interesting. I've never been too keen on photo realistic paint jobs, but I know a lot of guys are. How durable are they? Do they go on the baits easily? The baits that work very well for me seem to do as well or better ter when most of the paint has been knocked off, but if I was to come across lures that were cheap enough and I really hated the colors, I can see trying them. Scott, Part of the equation that makes this work for me is that I like to tinker with lure building. Thus my time is not a problem ,and I already have the rings hooks and tools to finish the lure left from other projects. I could have gone with a simpler paint job. I splurged $2 on the jig skin because I wanted to see how they work. It also leaves me with a lure that compares with the $16.99 4 3/8" Perch finish Wopper Plopper. BTW the skin is fairly easy to put on and really tough. I used a brand new Xacto blade for some minor trimming around the shrink. It still required a lot of pressure to cut the stuff. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike G Posted May 19, 2018 Author Report Share Posted May 19, 2018 On 5/17/2018 at 6:33 AM, rich mc said: mike i would have bet you that you would have it painted red head and white in honor of Lefty Rich, A simple R/W would work and put the cost under $8 hooks and all. 2 for the price of one 4 3/8" Wopper plopper. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike G Posted May 19, 2018 Author Report Share Posted May 19, 2018 On 5/17/2018 at 8:01 AM, Eric said: That perch pattern will definitely catch fish! So will the “Air Ick” cork in the right circumstances. The Whopper Plopper has turned on a whole new generation of bass fishermen to that style of lure. I’m sure it has made River 2 Sea a pretty penny in the processs, but it has also helped people catch a lot of fish ... increasing their confidence and enjoyment in the sport. A lot of budding bass anglers are too young to remember the originals that may have inspired the WP, or simply aren’t / weren’t exposed to musky lures. It amazes me just how much the bass fishing landscape has changed overall. Growing up, seems like there were only a handful of rod, reel, and line manufacturers. Many of the dozens of new brands look so unfamiliar to me! You hear the younger crowd talking about Dobyn’s rods, P-Line, Sun Line, etc. And spending $14.99 on a frog lure or $12.99 on a Whopper Plopper is nothing. Kids have a $100+ per month cell phone habit. Probably tough for a generation of anglers who grew up pouring their own lead head jigs to save a few bucks to fathom. And I don’t blame ‘em. Eric, Thanks for reminding me of the Gallo Plopper. Rototail by Michael Gerharz, on Flickr I should be able to do some head to head comparisons when the topwater bite is on. Now I am not sure about comparing modern lures to cell phones. Can I test Uber on a Whopper Plopper? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rich mc Posted June 21, 2018 Report Share Posted June 21, 2018 was in bass pro yesterday. they[bps] now make a double plopper with a rotating fin in the front and bass . it would be noisy but would be harder to walk the dog rich Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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