If you like to catch summertime top water bass, ima Baits has a full lineup of baits in the styles and colors to meet your fishing conditions. To help you catch more and bigger fish, we asked Bassmaster Opens Angler and ima Pro Staffer Jake Maddux to share his thoughts on his favorite ima Topwater baits.
Jake Maddux
Jake Maddux competes on the Bassmaster Opens series in pursuit of the Bassmaster elite series. When he’s not competing on tour, Jake guides on Lake Lanier in North Georgia—widely recognized as one of the premier spotted bass fisheries in the country. His passion and knowledge for the sport allows him to provide clients with an unforgettable fishing experience while showcasing one of the nation’s top bass fisheries.
Finesse Popper
- During the summer no matter what type of lake you are on a popping style bait is good. I really like the Finesse Popper especially when fishing around bluegill beds up shallow on both herring lakes and traditional lakes. Guntersville is a prime example, the bluegill beds are on hard bottom areas, sometimes they are out off the bank in the grass spots. Even on Lanier, the fish will get on bluegill beds, mostly largemouths but you will get some spots mixed in as well. Some of the bigger spots will actually get shallow because of the pressure and they will get on the bluegill beds too.
- Sandy areas are magnets for bluegill and they will bed in these areas as well. A lot of times you’ll see cruisers, so you want to mark that area and then come back later and stay way back off them and make long casts with the Finesse Popper.
- Most of the time when I’m just going down the bank looking for fish, I’m working the popper pretty quick. But when I’m targeting bluegill beds, I’ll stay way off them and maximize each cast. I’ll work it with a bloop and let the rings disappear, kinda like old school and this has been a great option for catching big kicker fish both spots and largemouths, but for the most part this is really a largemouth thing.
- Colors are important and I like Bluegill and Green Perch.
Finesse Popper
#112 Green Perch
Finesse Popper
#103 Blue-Gill
Skimmer/Skimmer Grande/Little Stik
- On a day with light wind and a little bit of chop, I’m gonna pick up the ima Skimmer. It’s my bread and butter but if it’s a little on the windier side then I’ll pick up the Skimmer GRANDE. I do like adding a feather treble to the back of the bait.
- I like to keep my colors pretty simple, I want something that is translucent, I want a Chrome and I want a Bone for spotted bass on a herring lake. If it’s really slick calm then I want the clear color. If it’s sunny with a little bit of chop I want the Chrome and if it’s really overcast that’s when I throw the Bone.
- On a herring lake, if I get a lot of chop, that’s when I really like to throw the LITTLE STIK, it’s just a really good bait. It’s loud and I can throw it a mile. I can call fish up from deeper depths too. A lot of times if you can find sneakier brush piles as I like to call them. Piles that are not on points or anything major, these are the ones that are just gonna be out there on nothing. You can only find these things by idling around a lot, just looking for this stuff. These deep brush piles don’t get fished a lot and you can call them up with the Little Stik because it’s such a loud obnoxious bait. These piles are in 20′ to 40′ and often will top out at 15′ below the surface
- If I am fishing a traditional lake, I’m gonna look for any sort of structure on the main lake to throw a topwater. I’ve done very well with the LITTLE STIK on the Tennessee River. Anywhere there is a current break, edge of the grass, it’s just a very loud bait where even if you miss the sweet spot, you can call fish up from a far distance. I really like the Little Stik just for calling fish up in general, whether it’s a herring lake that’s super deep or in a lot of vegetation but if it’s hot and slick, the ima Skimmer is just phenomenal.
- My color selection on a traditional lake like Guntersville, Pickwick or Lay Lake is a bit different. My number one color is Bone because the fish are eating a lot of gizzard shad. If it’s sunny and the water is clear, I’ll pick up Ghost Minnow and the Chattahoochee Chrome is a good all around bait fish imitator.
ima skimmer
#130 Chattahoochee Chrome
Skimmer GRANDE
#109 Ghost Minnow
LITTLE STIK
#135 Bone
LITTLE STIK
#185 Chrome
Gear Guide
- I like to throw the Finesse Popper and the Skimmer on 12 lb -14 lb mono because I think the action is a little bit better. With the Little Stik, I like 30lb Power Pro Braid to a very short 12” mono 20lb leader. I tie directly to the split ring on the Skimmer and Little Stik but I use a loop knot for the Finesse Popper.
- I really like a 7’2” ML action Shimano Expride Rod with a Shimano Metanium XG for throwing the Finesse Popper and the Skimmer. For the Skimmer Grande and the Little Stik, I’ll go a little heavier with a 7’2” M action Shimano Zodias Rod with the same reel.
