There is no better popper on the market for the money than the Team Ark Topwater Popper 70 (TP70), plain and simple. It’s hard to make as definitive of a remark as that these days, with hundreds of companies producing thousands of baits. But with a $4 set of hooks hanging off of it, available in 19 stellar colors, built with multiple rattle chambers and all this at a price point of $6.99… you can see why it’s easy to make such an absolute claim.
OVERALL BUILD
When it comes to a quality bait, you’d be hard-pressed to find a better bait at any price point. The minute scale pattern and gill ridges formed into the body of the TP70 create what’s likely more realism than is even necessary. In some super clear water situations though, like fishing for visual feeding smallmouth on the Great Lakes, it could actually matter. And it certainly doesn’t hurt at any rate.
Ark used sturdy and secure hardware throughout the build of this bait as well, with strong hook hangers, beefy split rings and a simple line-tie eye at the mouth. Some may prefer a bait with a split ring added to the line-tie. It’s believed (and is sometimes the case) that a slit ring used in conjunction with the line-tie eye makes it easier to walk a bait. This bait though pops and walks really easily even without the split ring.
ARK TOPWATER POPPER MOUTH
You can use a loop knot if you’d like with this bait, but I don’t believe one is necessary. And I wouldn’t recommend adding a split ring to the line-tie either, as even that little bit of weight could be enough to throw off the balance of the bait. The mouth has a shallow cup to it, which creates a nice little mild spray and pop. The TP70 doesn’t have a deep, low chug like you get with some baits. And it’s not a really crisp pop either. It kind of has more a nice middle of the road pop and splash.
HOOKS ON THE TOPWATER POPPER
The feathered Mustad Triple Grip on the back of this bait still blows me away for this price. A 2-pack of similar Mustad feathered treble hooks retails for $4.99. The plain Mustad Triple Grip on the front of the bait retails for a little over a dollar apiece.
A quality set of hooks with a feathered hook on the back is really what sets any popper apart from the pack. With just it’s other design elements, the TP70 would be worth more than $6.99 if it had a trash set of stock hooks on it that had to be changed out. The fact that this bait comes pre-loaded with some of the best hooks in the industry for just $6.99 is something that can’t be overstated.
ARK COLOR SELECTION FOR TOPWATER POPPER
Again, the color selection is astounding for a bait at this price point. There’s a good mix of 10 color choices available on TackleWarehouse, but this bait on Ark’s actual site is available in 19 colors in all. Very few hard baits in general come with this many color choices, and none do at this modest of a price point. This is again one of the reasons that it’s so easy to rank this bait at the top of the heap economically.
RATTLES IN TOPWATER POPPER
There are three rattles isolated in three different chambers within this bait. At the tail of the bait, there’s one large ball bearing that aids in casting and also creates a modest knocking sound. Towards the front of the bait, in front of and behind the anchor for the front treble, there are two small chambers running side to side that have a small metal bead in each. These beads roll back and forth as the bait is worked, adding a light, crisper rattle to the overall sound signature of the bait.
SUMMARY OF TOPWATER POPPER
All of this attention to detail and affordability is simply theory and good intentions if the bait doesn’t get bit. However, it does. The quality of the TP70 translates to the water and produced a few quality fish catches for me quickly. The hooks are stout and sharp, the sound
has a nice dual pitch to it, the bait walks really well and the colors look great in the water. For $6.99, there’s no better popper on the market than the Team Ark TP70, plain and simple. Find the Team Ark Topwater Popper at these retailers:
