The Best Whopper Plopper for Bass – The Whopper Plopper is a topwater prop bait made by River2Sea. The famous fisherman Larry Dahlberg came up with the idea for it. Larry first made the bait for fishing for musky, but bass anglers have become very interested in it.
The Whopper Plopper 190 is the first and largest model. This is the one made for fishing for musky. But it became very popular among people who use swimbaits, who don’t mind at all how big this bait is. Traditional bass fishermen are more likely to use the newer, smaller versions of the Whopper Plopper that are made today.
Key Takeaways
Here are the 5 key takeaways from the article “The Best Whopper Plopper for Bass”:
- The Whopper Plopper is a topwater prop bait made by River2Sea and was first made for fishing for musky, but bass anglers have become very interested in it.
- There are five sizes available, ranging from 75mm to 190mm. The Whopper Plopper 130 is the most popular model and might be the best size for bass.
- The Whopper Plopper 75 is a great choice if you want a beefy profile and a lot of surface action. This is a great size bait if you only have a spinning rod.
- The Whopper Plopper 90 is perfect for light tackle and/or spinning gear fishing. It’s also a good way to downsize when the bite is hard.
- The Whopper Plopper 110 is the third smallest size and is perfect for a standard baitcasting rod. It’s versatile and can be used in many different fishing situations.
The Best Whopper Plopper for Bass
There are a total of five sizes, and the way they are set up is a little confusing, so I hope this will help you understand. But the Whopper Plopper 130 is the most popular model and might be the best size for bass.
You might be wondering what the “130” or any of the other model numbers means. Well, that is the length of the bait in millimeters, and it is written on the belly of every bait so there is no confusion. But each model is different in more ways than just length, so let’s take a closer look at each one from shortest to longest. Also, keep in mind that these baits can either be silent or make noise.
Here’s more to the whopper plopper size chart.
Whopper Plopper 75
There are two smaller Whopper Ploppers, and the 75 is the shorter. It’s shorter but fatter than the 90, so it weighs a little bit more. This is the only Whopper Plopper that doesn’t have a body that gets longer as it goes up. It looks more like a crankbait, with a big head and a tail that gets smaller toward the end.
The 75 is a great choice if you want to shorten the length of your rod but still want a beefy profile and a lot of surface action. This model’s prop blade is almost the same size as the 110s, so it makes a lot of noise. Smallmouth bass can have trouble getting bigger sizes in their mouths, so the 75 is a good choice for catching them. This is a great size bait if you only have a spinning rod.
Length: 3 inches (75mm):
Weight: 9/16 ounce
Whopper Plopper 90
This is the next size up in terms of length, but some might say it’s a smaller bait than the 75 because it weighs less and has a smaller profile. It’s longer because its body is stretched out, giving it the classic Whopper Plopper shape.
The 90 is perfect for light tackle and/or spinning gear fishing. It’s also a good way to downsize when the bite is hard. It’s important to remember that the prop blade on the 90 is much smaller than the one on the 75. This means that the action on the surface will also be smaller. And just like the 75, this is a great size for catching smallmouth bass.
90mm (3.5 inches) in length:
Weight: 1/2 ounce
Whopper Plopper 110
The 110 is longer and wider than the 90, but it is still smaller than the 120 and 130. You could get away with using this on a spinning rod, but a bait caster would be better for this size and up.
This is a great size to use when the 130 seems too big, and, to be honest, the 130 might feel too big for someone who has never fished before. It’s the perfect “in-between size” where you don’t feel like you have a feather or a brick tied to your line.
Length: 4-3/8 inches
Weight: 1 ounce
Whopper Plopper 130
This is the size of the Whopper Plopper that people buy the most. The 130 model is just right for most bass fishing situations because it is neither too big nor too small. You could compare the size to the body of a Zara Spook. These baits should work fine with your topwater rod, and they will give you the best chance of catching bass of all sizes.
This is the first size on the list that has both a rattling and a silent version. It’s also the only size that comes in both freshwater and saltwater forms. The only difference is that saltwater fishing hooks are stronger and the colors are more suited to saltwater.
Length: 5 inches
Weight: 1–3/8 ounces
Whopper Plopper 190
This is the biggest of the Whopper Plopper family, and it was the first model made for fishing for musky. But it didn’t take long for trophy bass fishermen to want to try it out for catching big largemouth, and as it became more popular, smaller versions were made to cover all kinds of bass fishing.
The 190 is a very big lure for bass fishing, but fishermen who are used to throwing big swimbaits with their heavy swimbait rods see it as a great addition to the lures they already throw. The 190 is a great addition to their collection because these guys know how to catch bass with big baits.
Length: 7 1/2 inches
Weight: 2 and 3/4 ounces
Trying to catch Whopper Ploppers
Because of two things, whopper ploppers are one of the easiest lures to fish with. One, the best way to fish with them is to just reel them in straight like you would with any other prop bait. The tail spins and makes a “plopping” sound because of how the bait moves as it moves across the surface.
And second, you don’t have to look for bites carefully. This is a topwater lure, so most of the strikes you get will be visible and audible. Even topwater bites can be silent sometimes, but you should also hear the “plopping” sound stop.
If you can’t hear the bait’s noise, you’re not reeling fast enough. The retrieve speed you want to hit is the one that makes the bait make the loudest noise.
If pulling the bait straight back doesn’t work, you can try stopping it every so often and popping it like a popper lure. Since these lures float, you can stop fishing for as long as you want, but most of the time a straight retrieve will work best.
