Does anyone else have trouble getting hookups with these things? I'm really loosing patience with seeing a big bass blow up on my frog and when I rear back I just hull water. Sometimes I'll stick one, but it will make a jump and out pops the frog! Any tips would really be helpful.

If you havent already try letting the bass take it for a few seconds then set the hook. If its a soft plastic frog make sure its not upside down when your reeling it in. Sometimes the bass just strike short so reel it in barely and let it sit to see if it will take it again.

I'm assuming you're talking about hollow-bodied frogs, sometimes bass just miss, happens to me more often when I fish matted vegetation. As suggested above, you should wait a couple seconds before setting the hook HARD. If you're fishing an area that is thick with cover, like weeds, a really solid hookset is critical. Achieving this also requires the right equipment: heavy, medium-heavy rod, braided line, and a reel with a relatively high gear ratio (I say relatively high because, depending on spool diameter, some reels with lower gear ratios actually pick up more line per rotation of the handle than reels with higher gear ratios due to a larger diameter spool). If most or all bass are short striking your frog, have a another bait like a soft plastic that you can pitch back to the blowup and see if you can catch the fish. Frog fishing is arguably the most exciting way to fish for bass, but you need patience and discipline to get it down. Once you do, you can have an awesome time catching bass, and big ones!

Good advice, Chex.   It's like that lots of soft topwaters. New skill I'm learning too. . . patience!

AS SLOPPYJOE AND CHEXICAN SAID, GIVE THE BASS A LITTLE MORE TIME BEFORE YOU TRY TO SET THE HOOK.  TO BE TRUTHFUL, I DON'T EVEN WATCH MY FROG AS IT IS BEING RETRIEVED. I'M LOOKING FOR THE NEXT SPOT TO MAKE MY NEXT CAST TO. WHEN A FISH BLOWS UP ON MY FROG, MOST OF THE TIME I DON'T SEE THE BITE UNTILL I FEEL I MY ROD START TO LOAD UP, THAT'S WHEN I TURN MY HEAD TOWARD THE FROG AND FISH AND THEN WHEN THE ROD HAS A LOAD ON IT, I SET THE HOOK. LIKE ALOT OF FISHERMEN OUT THERE I WOULD TRY TO SET THE HOOK ON MY FROG AS SOON AS I SAW THE BASS BREAK THE WATER, AND FOUND THAT I WOULD MISS 75 TO 80% OF THE BASS. THEN I READ AN ARTICAL ON FISHING WITH TOP WATER BAITS IN A OLD COPY OF NAF MAG. FROM 07, OR 08.  IT SAID TO WAIT UNTILL YOUR ROD LOADS UP AND YOU CAN FEEL THE FISH PULLING ON THE LINE, THEN TRY TO SET THE HOOK. I WENT FROM 75% TO 80% MISS RATE, TO ALL MOST A 90 % CATCH RATE. IT REALLY WILL MAKE A DIFFERANCE. 
   THAT GOES FOR ALMOST ALL TOP WATER BAITS THAT I FISH. FROM A HULLA HOPPER, TO A JITTER BUG, TO A POPPING STICK TOP WATER BAIT. YOU USE THE SAME TECKNIQUE, WAIT UNTILL THE ROD LOADS UP THEN SET THE HOOK. YOU'LL FIND THAT IF YOU DO LEARN TO WAIT THAT HALF SECOND OR SECOND, THAT YOUR HOOK UP RATIO WILL INCRESE BY NO LESS THAN 75%, IF NOT MORE. ALL YOU DO IS WHEN A BASS BLOWS UP ON YOUR FROG OR ANY TOP WATER BAIT, JUST WAIT UNTILL THE END OF YOUR ROD STARTS TO BEND TOWARDS THE FISH, THAT'S WHEN YOU SET THE HOOK. IT'S AS EASY AS THAT. 




                                                                                                                                                   RICK HANKINS
                                                                                                                               A NEW JERSEY TROPHY LIFE MEMBER

                                                                                                                                 A. K. A. THE EVERYDAY FISHERMAN

P. S. 
         THE EVERYDAY FISHERMAN IS ALSO THE NAME OF A BOOK I WROTE WHICH WILL BE FOR SALE IN LATE NOV. OR DEC. 2011.   
         THE EVERYDAY FISHERMAN IS A BOOK FOR BEGINNERS, THAT TEACHES THE BASICS. FROM A BREFF HISTORY, TO HOW TO FISH WITH A HAND LINE, TO HOW TO CAST A BAIT CASTER, AND HOW TO FLY FISH.  FROM HOW TO I.D. THE FISH YOU CATCH, TO HOW TO CATCH THEM WITH WHAT BAIT.  FROM CUT BAIT TO PLASTIC WORMS, AND HOME MADE FLIES, I COVERED IT ALL.

Hey guys, thanks for all the tips! Only thing is, I'm already using them(waiting 2 seconds to set hook, med.hvy. rod, braided line, high speed baitcaster). Then I thought about something Chexican 18 said. "Happens to me more often when I fish matted vegetation". I'm fishing the frog in a shallow, swampy natural pond. At this time of year, the surface is entirely covered with Duckweed(these look like tiny lily pads). I'll bet they're just plain missin' the bait! What do you guys think?

Using tweezers insert a ball of cotton inside the frog. Before casting it put a few drops of anise oil or whatever fish attractant you like to use inside. If the frog tastes and/or smells good to a bass, the frog will less likely be given up.

I agree, wait for the line to load up rather than going by the show of a bass leaping into the air. If you jerk the bait prematurely it will pop too far out of the strike zone. Let the bass succeed in eating the frog, taking several swipes at your bait. When you set the hook it is best to wait a second to let the bass swim away from you or down into the weeds a bit. If the line is laying against his cheek when you set the hook it is much less likely the frog will be jerked out of the mouth. But if the bass is looking your way it is likely you will haul only water.

Seeing the hooks are situated to grab the roof of the mouth, remember it takes much more power to penetrate the hardest flesh in the mouth. Once a barb sinks into the bone you will lose that fish only due to a broken line or hook. Not knowing how well the hook has penetrated, never let slack come on the line. When frogging I aim to get the fish on top of the mat and try to skip it to the boat.

Jim

A few other things I'll add after looking over your post again. The first is that if they are missing the bait, try to get a rhythm in your retrieve; bass will have an easier time striking the frog based on it's predictable pattern of movement. Also, make sure to check the hooks on your frog and sharpen them if they need it. The last thing is that if they keep missing, be sure to have a soft plastic to pitch back to the hole the fish made and it might come back and hit it. If it does come back and your bait is there, there's a real good chance you'll get bit because the bait you throw back in there will appear to the bass as the injured thing it tried to get earlier.

If you are using frogs that you rig yourself, make sure that the point of the hook is just barely under the skin of the bait. The less frog the hook must penetrate the better the hookset!

Hey fellas! News flash...update...I think I've got a live one here. I spread the hooks slightly out off of the body of the frog and BOOYAH! My hookup ratio has doubled, if not tripled. Maybe it's the brand frogs I'm using...I've noticed the hooks are really tight against the body on them. A lot of other frogs are the same way though, so this might be a mod you can try.

are you using braid to throw those frogs on no stretch better hookup ratio. But the nature of the beast is your gonna miss as many or more then you catch in heavy vegetation. I throw my frogs on 50 llb braid. It canbe frustrating to miss them but so exciting to watch. try it. Scott

Yes, I am using braid, but I've been having trouble with it digging into the spool and then on the next cast pop...there goes the frog, flying to the other side of the lake! I've been using 30lb. braid, which is only the diameter on 8lb. mono. Would the heavier 50lb. you're using be less apt to do this?

                                                               

I always had a issue with the smaller size braids thats why i switched to a 50 lb braid better castability easier to control. good luck. Scott

yeah use braid between 20 and 60 lbs depending on the amount of cover. yeah the hardest part is not seting the hook rite away

Since we're on the topic of bass fishing with frogs, what do you guys think is the best brand/type of frog for fishing a really swampy pond?

Well, I'm using Matzuo Kroaker frogs, but there are a bunch of other brands. The only major difference I've seen in them is the price. They all have the same basic body type, same double hooks, and same reputation for missed strikes! They are unequaled for excitement though!

            



            

I'm gonna go buy some tomorrow. maybe it'll help me catch that big boy in the swampy pond below my house. thanks.

if its realy "swampy" pond youll probbly want to go with a darker color. black always seems to get some good hits

I got a black Matzuo with black and white tassles/legs. There was a couple of PIGS that knocked the hell out of it when I threw it waaaay over to the opposite bank where all the foliage is but, guess what I did AFTER I'd already read this thread? Snatched the frog right outta there mouths as soon as it got hit! Man, it is gonna take some practice to avoid that reaction, especially when them big u{1}**** it like that! I'm right there with you Mo! Ah, I wanted to throw myself in the pond when I missed them bass! URGH!

Posted By kjordan4 on 26 Sep 2011 09:53 PM
I got a black Matzuo with black and white tassles/legs. There was a couple of PIGS that knocked the hell out of it when I threw it waaaay over to the opposite bank where all the foliage is but, guess what I did AFTER I'd already read this thread? Snatched the frog right outta there mouths as soon as it got hit! Man, it is gonna take some practice to avoid that reaction, especially when them big u{1}**** it like that! I'm right there with you Mo! Ah, I wanted to throw myself in the pond when I missed them bass! URGH!

How about those black Matzuo frogs? that's one of my favorites, but I'm tellin' ya, spread those hooks a little off the body and your hookup ratio will increase dramatically!