Original Floating Rapala Fishing Tips.

In 1936 a Finnish lure company, Rapala, created a fishing lure that would forever change the face of sport fishing, the Original Floating Rapala. Designed to mimick an injured baitfish when given a topwater presentation, and the wobble of a swimming minnow when presented subsurface, this lure has been known for the last 73 years for its ability to land lunker bass in an array of conditions. Now, almost a century later, fishing the Original Floating Rapala and similar lures is a staple tactic used by anglers all over the world, not to mention the fact that Rapala holds the world record for the most world record fish caught on any brand of lure.

Since 1936 Rapala and other lure manufacturers have refined and designed innumerable color patterns, sizes, and knockoffs of the original. Rapala offers a number of sizes and colors as well as a few similar minnow styled lures such as the Jointed Minnow (floating), Countdown Rapala (sinking), Husky Jerk (suspending jerkbait), and the X-Rap (slashbait). The original floating minnow as well as the jointed floating minnow are similar in presentation and will be productive in similar situations when fished as a topwater bait or subsurface. The Countdown Minnow is identical to the Original Floater, yet it sinks at a rate of about a foot per second allowing you to target deeper water. The Rapala Husky Jerk minnow is similar to the Original Floater, however it does not float, it is designed to suspend in the water at a certain depth and to be jerked, or twitched through the water in short bursts. Lastly, the Rapala X-rap is also a suspending lure designed to be fished similar to a jerkbait, yet it is designed to have more side to side slashing action as it swims. 

This review deals specifically with the Original Floating Rapala, Floating Jointed Minnow, as well as the Countdown Minnow. For more on the Husky Jerk see this product review:

Rapala Husky Jerk Review

The original floater is an incredibly versatile lure, which will put some quality bass in your boat year round assuming that the water temperature is above 55-60 degrees. In water below this temperature bass seldom hit a fast moving bait, thus rendering this lure non effective. Given that the water temperature is above this range, fishing an Original Floating Rapala is a great place to start when approaching any fishing situation. If the original floater is not initially successful, throwing on a Rapala Jointed Minnow for some extra side to side action often entices more strikes when bass are finicky. When fishing either of these lures, there are two main techniques used to land some solid catches.

The first presentation to consider is the topwater approach. As is the case with all topwater presentations early morning and evening times will produce the most catches. To fish the Original Floating Rapala Minnow as a topwater bait, cast it out and let it sit for a few seconds. Allow the ripples from the initial splash to die down. Now give a sharp, quick jerk of your rod momentarily dipping your lure underneath the surface and creating a small splash. Now, once again allow the ripples to settle. Repeat this pattern with varying pause lengths as well as the intensity of the jerks (don't be afraid to actually swim the lure beneath the surface for 6 inches to a foot before allowing it to float back to the surface, try out different distances and see what works that particular day). Remember that you are mimicking an injured baitfish floating on the surface, so twitch erratically and try to create a good amount of splash when you jerk the bait. Use this topwater presentation around docks, weed lines, shallow submerged weedbeds, and flats to produce some explosive topwater strikes!

Note that the topwater technique becomes less effective as the surface of the water becomes more choppy. Under windy conditions or current causing rough water, a subsurface presentation is much more effective.

Fishing the Rapala Original Floater subsurface is a great tactic for landing smallmouth and largemouth bass on rivers as well as lakes and ponds. Here we use the lip on the front of the bait to dive under the surface and produce the patented "Rapala Wobble." You can fish this bait to a fairly wide range of depths with some slight modifications. Firstly, your line weight will effect the depth that this bait will naturally run at, the lighter the line the deeper it will run. Secondly clipping a few small split shot a couple of feet up your line will allow you to target deeper in the water column with the Original Floater. The other option of course is to tie on the Countdown Rapala. This lure designed to sink roughly one foot per second so you can essentially "Count It Down" to whatever depth you wish to fish. This lure is identical to the original floater, giving it the same wobbling motion when swam through the water. If you wish to fish underwater structure 5 feet below the surface or deeper I strongly suggest using a Countdown, and a Floater for depths less than 5 feet. 

Rapala offers these three lures in an extensive array of color combinations, which can make it difficult to choose which pattern to use. The first thing to understand is that you need to "match the hatch," which simply means that you need to match your lure selection to what the bass are naturally feeding on in that particular area. Personally I have had the most luck with the Original Floater and Countdown varieties in the Firetiger, Rainbow Trout, Perch, and Bleeding Olive (pictured above) color patterns. These four color combinations will fill your livewell on most any fishery you may find yourself on. As far as the Jointed Floating Minnow is concerned there is no better color pattern than the Brown Trout for Largemouth, Smallmouth, and Pickerel, followed closely by the Brook Trout and the perch. 

Yet another variable to take into consideration when fishing any of these lures is size. Depending on which species you are targeting you may want to vary your size selection. For instance Smallmouth bass tend to hit lures that Largemouth bass hit, just smaller versions of them, so if you are landing a load of Largemouths on a size 9 Original Floater, think about downsizing to a size 7 or even size 5 if you are about to hit an area where you know there are some Smallmouth bass. Furthermore it is good practice to upsize your lure selection when the water cools down a bit and the fish are less likely exert the energy to swallow a small meal. Also, when the fish just don't seem to want to bite it is common practice to fish smaller baits to trigger a strike.

 

Fishing the Original Floating Rapala is a tactic that can be utilized by anglers of all experience levels to land some serious bass, pickerel, trout, or any type of predatory fish. So get out there, tie on an original floater and let the madness begin!

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