Surface Lures - Walk the Dog, Poppers, Skipping, etc

[jean]

I recently purchase a Walk-the-dog lure (WTD) and must say that I was impressed with the swimming action. Yet would like to ask whether any of you have experience with such lures, what sizes are best for our waters, the conditions, and maybe also the type of retrieve.

I experimented quite a bit with the retrieve and what impressed me most is that in very shallow water, no risk of getting stuck. Also that in calm and slightly rough water (just that nice white foam forming against the rocks) it worked well with respect to swimming action.

I'm now thinking of getting a popper, skipping and rattling lures for surface. What are your opinions and experiences guys?   

[clutch_kick]

Jean I am a big fan of Surface lures, I did have a very nice hit once, but most of my lures are now stuck to the Bahgi in Birzebbuga and St Thomas bay (please return to sender - reward Pinta Birra).

Let's just say that in early summer they are perfect for a certain predator, using skipping lures but you need a very tough rod, and a reel with a very fast retrieve ( 5:8:1 or more ) and a very smooth drag.

[jean]

I was re-searching some videos with respect to WTD lures and gathered that my retrieve was totally wrong and for a fish to attack it should have been on nitrous like a dragster racing car (ta hal-far)!

The retrieve has to be carried out with small up and down (or side) jerk motions to the rod, and the speed has to be a constant one, without the lure constantly jetting of the water.  In fact when i slowed down the retrieve its when the 'something' chased me (something cause have no clue hehe, just a silver shadow). 

The rod used is quite a heavy duty one but the reel ratio is lower than that.

[MartinB]

Ive had some great success on WTD,poppers and skipping lure's & once you get your 1st surface take on one you'll be an instant fan!!!
The only "down-side" (if you can call it that! i don't ) is that with poppers and skipping lures you'll inevitably get alot of short strikes/misses,which are exciting to witness but can get to be annoying,especially if you don't hook up!! e-fisher will testify to this as he loves surface lures as much as i do,but was VERY unlucky with short strikes from puka's last season  
Also another thing is you will get a fair number of foul hooked fish,as sometimes predators will flash the lure out of curiosity or instinct rather than a solid take!

Re casting reels:- tbh i saw the daiwa megaforce at silvio's recently,& also the similar daiwa smak which i saw ages ago,& whilst daiwa build an awesome reel (and he has some good ones in stock! i esp like their Daiwa saltiga SA-Z!! but very expensive!!) i wasn't quite convinced of their strength either,as clutchkick said it would be ok for a small sized lampuka or spnotta, but i wouldn't like to pit it against a decent sized ambie...Ive seen a similar size reel almost get pulled off the rod by a 4kg ambie last summer..and consequently it eventually cracked completely off the rod a month later on a cast (it was tutu's an MFF member,e-fisher was also there that day) which was a real shame for him as there was quite a few tunnies around that day.

Also,& this is my personal opinion only,the twitch bar is an awesome well engineered..gimmick for want of a better word!..Don't get me wrong,i loved 'playing' around with it,but in all honestly it serves no real purpose as far as i can see..unless of course you have a problem with learning how to jerk/twitch your rod,which is what surface lure fishing with poppers etc is all about..
I much prefer to animate my lures with a combo of rod twitch's and reeling,& believe me that way you can animate a lure alot better and realistically than with a twitch bar
Regards & Tight Lines
 

[jean]

Guys did any of you look into Mark White Lures?

They are ceramic lures which are very similar to poppers, offer a small size - high weight combo for better casting, and are constructed with a special material to make them very hardy when compared to normal ceramic. I'm thinking of getting one and was thinking of the 28gram white with red eye combo.

Any opinions or experiences with these lures? 

[MartinB]

Nope no experience with these particular brand of lures,but if i was choosing one id get the white one too,simply for the fact that i dress my hooks in exactly the same skirt when the lamps are around also with that big red eye it would be good for 'cudas too
Traditionally when you think of ceramic as material,you'd think it would be brittle or not strong enough to withstand a decent fish,but after reading through the site and seeing the pics and videos he's posted and the testing process he puts the lures through..well im convinced! and the fact that ceramic is such a dense material means you can get 1.5oz (45g give or take) in 1.5" (4cm) lure means you get the best of both worlds..a small lure with a decent weight to cast with..awesome! 

[twoutes]

I love using surface lures and have had much success using the above mentioned 'Walk the Dog' lures, and have some experience.

l use it in weedy areas and cast over the weeds and over to the edge of the weeds...this is where l get the strikes mostly. The lure needs to resemble a fleeing bait fish.
I use a light rod and very slow retrieve, and  a constant twitching action from side to side or up and down on the rod tip making the lure ZIG-ZAG across the surface...and sometimes stopping for a few seconds and starting once again.The lure floats ans will stay above the weeds without getting snagged.

Its a very visual and exciting way to fish,as you see the strikes happening on the surface.

Good luck

[jean]

Hey guys, got some new lures Pity full of work and have to wait to use them

Have you guys been spinning lately? Recording any strikes? I went last Monday, spinned from 3.00pm - 8.30pm, on various rocks and areas. Almost split my head open as I slipped a good one benny hill style to try save a lure (which i inevitably lost), and no fish at all

S,SW wind and there was a nice foaming splash against the rocks, but nothing! Yet the day was fantastic and after getting drenched and making a fool out of myself, spending a few mins just sitting down looking at the surroundings was fantastic! I had a cig, relaxed, then back to spinning. Only thing I missed was a beer - the moment would have been utter perfection with that hehe