Amegari Urpekari Topwater Lure

Our take

A full wire tuna diving popper at 33.25 EUR is not something you come across often. The through wire frame is exactly what makes the difference when a bluefin runs at full speed under the boat, and Amegari did not cut corners on it. If you head out to busting fish offshore, put one in the box.

Key facts

• Floating ABS diving popper, 180 mm for 90 g
• Full wire build, metal frame running right through the body
• Stock hooks: 2 BKK Viper 41 trebles
• 3D eyes and realistic finishes
• Sweep and pause action, with long bubble trails
• Three possible retrieves: long subsurface pulls, short popper pulls, walking the dog
• Target species: bluefin tuna, GT, mahi mahi and pelagics
• 2 colours: Flying Fish and Black Anchovy

On busting fish

A 180 mm profile matched to the baitfish of our coasts

Amegari sized the Urpekari to match the small pelagics bluefin tuna chase in the Atlantic and the Mediterranean, sardines, anchovies and scad. That is the interesting compromise of this lure: compact enough to get past selective fish in a full bust, bulky enough to stay visible in a chop and at range. If you are after a lighter size you can cast all day, the Dzanga 140 covers the same ground at 42 g. Three retrieves cover most situations:

• Long sweeping pulls, the lure dives and leaves a continuous bubble trail behind it
• Short sharp pulls, to make it spit on the spot and stay in the strike zone
• Walking the dog on the surface, when fish refuse the noise of an outright popper

That versatility saves you from changing lures every time the mood of the fish shifts, which counts when a bust only lasts two minutes. It sits naturally alongside the rest of your lures for bluefin tuna.

Full wire and ABS: what the build takes

In this kind of fishing, breakage almost never comes from the body of the lure but from the hook anchoring. The full wire build answers that: a metal frame runs through the lure end to end, so the pull is taken by the wire and not by the plastic. The ABS body meanwhile handles knocks against the gunwale and teeth better than a varnished wood body, which makes it a pragmatic choice for a lure meant to be cast hundreds of times a day.

That leaves the classic weak link, the terminal tackle: fit Big Game Heavy Duty split rings and check them after every fish. As for the setup, this lure calls for a dedicated popping rod, to be picked among the rods for bluefin tuna.