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I use the #13 because you can cast it accurately, but it is light enough that it lands without a big splash.  On the way in reel in fast and jerk your rod tips down with a very short hesitation (if you reel slow the bait will come to the surface). The bait looks injured and fish often hit on the way in. There is only one description for the Tiny Torpedo in early season! Fish it slow…. My first experience many years ago was with a gentleman from Searcy, Arkansas his name was Billy Jo Pierce. Billy tied his Tiny Torpedo on and cast it to a likely spot on the shoreline. He set his rod down and pulled out his favorite cigar, lit it, took a couple of puffs and gently picked his rod up and gave one very short jerk, barely turning the props and set the rod down. He took a couple more puffs, picked the rod up and gave two small jerks or twitches and bam a nice smallmouth hit and he was soon in the boat after a classic smallmouth fight. I took Billy’s picture, he winked as I let the fish go and said in his deep gravely voice “You fish a Tiny Torpedo slow…” or at least during May and the first week or two of June.
Smallies normally spawn anywhere between June 10-20th on an average year. During this time period we fish the baits slow leaving them in the strike zone as long as possible. They can’t be totally still but they also can’t be pulled out of the zone. If you pull it away you are often doing exactly what the bass wants. How big is the strike zone? Think of home plate in baseball. Tiny Torpedo, #13 Rapalas, Skitter Props and # 4 popping bugs on fly rods are the baits of choice during this time period.
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#4 Popper
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Once the fry have hatched on the nests things start happening faster. The smallies hit larger baits like Pop ‘R’s, Chuggers, Torpedo’s (a larger version of the Tiny Torpedo), Jitter Bugs, and Hula poppers. A pop, pop, pop, movement works well, on the prop baits you pull, pull, and pull. Generally we are fishing the same shorelines that the bass were spawning on. Minnows move into spawn so this is still a good time to fish in the bays.
In late June a large portion of the bass move to there summer haunts. Some want access to deep waters; others will want rock and cabbage or weeds, points, and reefs. The topwater bite at this time is usually done with quick movement whether you are using popping baits; propeller, walk the dog (Zara Spook) or buzz baits (spinnerbait with a prop on the front). I have had terrific action fishing a point near deepwater. The bass were coming up from eighteen feet of water to hit the Zara Spook. Bass have the capability of being in fifteen feet of water one moment and an hour later they can be in three feet of water on the same structure.
Late June, July, August and the first couple weeks of September are good time periods for topwater. If you have depth finders use them. You will see the bass on the depth finder if they are using 6-30 feet of water. On calm days if you see baitfish working on the surface fish around them with topwaters. All fish live under the water; they are coming out because something is trying to eat them! I hope this helps you improve your topwater bass fishing. See you on the water!
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