One of the most productive styles of topwater lures is the good ol’ stick bait.
These baits have caught so many fish for so many anglers for so long, it’s hard to imagine any bass fisherman without at least a couple of these in their tackle box.
You probably have your favorites, like we do, but there is always room for more players.
The Storm Arashi Top Walker 11 is the new kid that we’ve been putting to the test recently.
There are two models of the Arashi Top Walker, the 11 and the 13. The 11 is 4-1/4” with a weight of 3/4 oz. The 13 is 5-1/8” with a weight of 1-1/8 oz.
Both share the same body design, rotated hook hangers, three hook configuration, rattle system, components and paint schemes.
What Storm Designed This Bait to Do
The Top Walker was designed specifically so that body roll is minimized.
The idea is that this keeps the hooks under the body of the bait which increases hook-up percentages. The rotated hook hangers allow the hooks to stay closer to the body as well and let you use larger hooks.
The rattle system in the Arashi uses multiple rattles housed in three separate cavities. The use of different sized rattles emits a variable pitch sound designed to mimic schooling baitfish.
The weight of the rattles help give extra casting distance, while the shape allows the Arashi to cut through wind. The ability to put your bait where you want it can be the difference between a so-so day as opposed to a great one!
The patterns are all somewhat light colors with the majority of them being at least partially translucent.
And Action!
“Storm have obviously spent time fine tuning the action of the Top Walker.”
When using topwater baits the most important elements are the profile and action of the bait. Colors are a distant second to these considerations. Not that poor colors won’t turn some fish off, but poor action will certainly cost you more strikes than any other factor.
Storm have obviously spent time fine tuning the action of the Top Walker.
This bait is easy to get started from a dead stop. That may not seem like much but there are several similar baits that require a definite touch to accomplish this.
The Arashi is willing and ready with the first twitch of your rod tip.
The glide on this plug is another feature that shouldn’t be taken for granted. It is steady and predictable allowing you to vary its length based on the cadence you choose to employ. Short, sharp pops of the rod tip close together results in a tight little walk.
Back off the frequency of those pops and the Top Walker just glides back and forth like it doesn’t have a care in the world all the while keeping the business end of the hooks below the bait just waiting for a strike.
Hooking Up
When the strike comes, the hook-up percentage is very good with this plug. More often than not we have had two of the three trebles firmly embedded in the mouth of the fish. On short strikes, we’ve still managed to get one hook point in them and land them.
At rest the Top Walker sits at approximately a 25 degree angle in the water with the head slightly raised. This keeps the hooks in position to pick up those timid biters while still having a near horizontal orientation in the water.
The Arashi is very reasonable priced for the quality of lure you get. At about $9 per bait, the Top Walker won’t break the bank all the while providing you with a plug that is effective, well built and doesn’t take much to learn to use.
| Storm Arashi Top Walker | |
|---|---|
| Overall Rating |   |
| A reasonably priced effective bait | |
See ya’ on the water …
