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  1. #1
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    What would you have done?

    Went shore fishing at a small local pond the other night. Only had an hour or so, so I only took one rod with a Jackall Kaera frog tied on. Wound up getting 8-9 blowups but was only able to hook up with one bass and the one I caught was hooked in the lower jaw. I was patient with my hooksets, giving 2-4 seconds before swinging on them. I haven't had hookup issues with the Kaera frog in the past and feel I get more bites since it's a smaller frog. Granted, I didn't have any other baits/rods available, but what would you have done if you were getting the bites but just not converting them to catches? Change color or size of the frog? Switch to another topwater? Use a follow-up bait? Use something sub-surface? I was fishing around weeds, but nothing that thick. Water clarity was about 2-3 feet also, so it's not as though the bass couldn't see what they were hitting.

  2. Tin Boats Moderator Pokie Pa's Avatar
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    #2
    Try a zoom magnum or regular speed worm. Hit a hole and let it sink. Frogs are my weakness and I use these in pads and weeds. For open surface, nothing beats a whooper pooper.
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  3. Member DrewFlu33's Avatar
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    #3
    Change color if it were me. I usually start with black, if they’re missing it I’ll go to something white. That almost always works when they’re blowing up and missing it, and I think especially in your case where you’re already throwing something small.

    Assuming I’m confident fish are in the area, the main reason I will change frogs/sizes/styles to try to entice the blow ups. But if they’re blowing up on something I figure I’m 95% of the way there.
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  4. Member
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    #4
    Quote Originally Posted by Pokie Pa View Post
    Try a zoom magnum or regular speed worm. Hit a hole and let it sink. Frogs are my weakness and I use these in pads and weeds. For open surface, nothing beats a whooper pooper.
    I've got to be honest and say I've never even fished a speed worm before. Probably something I should try at some point considering a lot of people love using them.

  5. Member
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    #5
    Quote Originally Posted by DrewFlu33 View Post
    Change color if it were me. I usually start with black, if they’re missing it I’ll go to something white. That almost always works when they’re blowing up and missing it, and I think especially in your case where you’re already throwing something small.

    Assuming I’m confident fish are in the area, the main reason I will change frogs/sizes/styles to try to entice the blow ups. But if they’re blowing up on something I figure I’m 95% of the way there.
    Does water clarity affect what color of frog you throw? I felt like a more natural color, like the Bluegill one I was throwing, would be good considering there was 2-3 feet of visibility.

  6. Member DrewFlu33's Avatar
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    #6
    Quote Originally Posted by coreynov902 View Post
    Does water clarity affect what color of frog you throw? I felt like a more natural color, like the Bluegill one I was throwing, would be good considering there was 2-3 feet of visibility.
    It doesn't for me. It affects whether I'll throw one, and the size and type (e.g., walking vs. popping) I'll throw, but I'm basically always starting with black, then switching to white if they're missing it. The one exception is on the river around here where we have shad, I'll usually start with white in those situations. I suppose if it was super clear I'd probably go with something more natural or transparent, though I personally just can't stand throwing a frog in really clear water.
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  7. ARW Fishing fluke1987's Avatar
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    #7
    If they had the frog in their mouth then I wouldn't think that you would need to change baits. What rod are you throwing the frog on and what line? My main frog outfit is a 8 ratio daiwa baitcaster paired up with a 7' 4" Heavy frog rod and at least 55 pound braid. I also trim the legs of the frog back to match the length of the body or just slightly shorter. Also bending out the hook points a little bit away from the body also helps.

  8. Member
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    #8
    Quote Originally Posted by fluke1987 View Post
    If they had the frog in their mouth then I wouldn't think that you would need to change baits. What rod are you throwing the frog on and what line? My main frog outfit is a 8 ratio daiwa baitcaster paired up with a 7' 4" Heavy frog rod and at least 55 pound braid. I also trim the legs of the frog back to match the length of the body or just slightly shorter. Also bending out the hook points a little bit away from the body also helps.
    I was fishing it on a Megabass Levante Perfect Pitch rod paired with a Shimano Scorpion DC (7.2:1 ratio) with 40lb braid. Since the Kaera is a smaller frog and doesn't come with really long legs, I didn't trim the legs, and I haven't had hookup issues with this frog in the past, so I leave the hooks alone (don't bend them out).

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    #9
    I'd probably throw a bullfrog colored zoom horny toad. That is if i were going to fish a frog. Me likey.

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    #10
    Quote Originally Posted by Les Young View Post
    I'd probably throw a bullfrog colored zoom horny toad. That is if i were going to fish a frog. Me likey.
    You think they would actually eat a faster moving bait better? I figured since I was just walking the frog and so it's moving forward slowly and gives the fish more opportunity to hit it and get it in their mouth good. Since they were hitting it but didn't seem to be engulfing it I wouldn't think you would want a faster moving bait.