Spro Bronzeye frog

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Gene B

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I was fishing Monday in a channel, pitching a Stik-o (sorry Toxic) to cover. As we got to the back of the channel there was a lot of junk floating on the surface. I thought what a great place to try my new frog. :wub: I had 4 or 5 blow up on it and no hook-ups. I saw a piece of something in the slop and threw to it. After a few twitches, another blow up and a miss. I left it where it was and twitched it a cuple times and BAM, I'm hooked up and it's big!!! After a brief struggle the soft shelled snapper came to the surface and was not happy. His shell was at least 12" accross and 14 or 15" long. Luckily he was only hooked under the shell and was easy to get off the lure. It was fun though!



Gene
 
Funniest thing I've ever hooked on a Bronzeeye frog - a big (actual) frog. I was twitching it near the bank when something that looked like the size of a small squirrel jumped on it from the bank, making a big splash. I actually had a fight on my hands. Got it to the boat, and it was a VERY large frog with my frog lure hooks in his mouth - firmly hooked. He was NOT happy. I never knew frogs were territorial / canibalistic until I saw this - he actually tried to eat my frog. That is... unless he was trying to do something else to it and just got hooked in the process. :wub: :lol::lol::lol:

All the best,

Glenn
 
Like Toxic's salamander senko story? :lol:



Gene
 
Gene, you've had better luck with the Spro frog than I have... I've never even caught a turtle on one.... only blow-ups and getoffs. On the other hand I rarely miss with the Lake Fork Fork Frog. Seldom a miss and always a decent fish. However, I might have to try again. Did you catch Fred Roumbanis knocking them out on Bassmasters last Sunday?
 
No, I didn't. I wish they would ALWAYS hit top waters. I don't think there's anything more fun. :wub:



Gene
 
Ya have to modify the frog boyzzzzzzzzzz. I would never leave the dock without 4 or 5 all summer!! Trim back the skirts (legs) and make one side about 1/4 inch shorter tham the other. I don't have to tell you to not try and set the hook tooo early right? My hookup ratio on the SPRO is better than all of the other floaters and just behind the solid body frogs. Some people do even more modifications but secrets are secrets and since I didn't figure it out I can't leak it.



TOXIC
 
This is my favorite frog!! Sorry to hear about your misses. I used to have more misses, but I learned to be really patient when setting the hook(really hard to do!). Tox is right about trimming the legs. This is an absolute must!! It will save you on short strikes and it will allow you to change the action with different twitches of the rod, ie- hopping or walking the dog.



Glenn- I have caught several giant bullfrogs on this bad boy. It seems that if you get it near one they can't stand it either!;)



Tim
 
Like Toxic said trim back one side of the legs to 1/2 the size as the other. You have to FEEL the fish before setting the hook. I use them alot and they do produce here in my area. You will be amazed the increase in hook ups if you just wait a bit longer.

Gersh
 
Ok, since I am sponsored by SPRO and this came directly from Rojas.........Take a little bait glue/Super Glue, whatever, and put a drop where the hook(s) come out the bottom of the frog and a drop where the frog and the line tie is. I have one frog that I purposly cut on the bottom so it will fill up with water. I use it in heavy mats and when I want it to "fall" in the holes.



TOXIC
 
That is one well designed and productive frog. I put a couple round tube rattles in mine and RTV the openings to keep it bouyant. I have one with wire lead wrapped on the shank in the cavity for wind and distance. They can get you one of these: :D



11.7lb Monster 3-30-07.JPG




Look in the mouth of this thing.;)
 
I do know to wait, and it is HARD to do. 5 1/2 hours and you broke with the secrets!! ;)I'm glad you're not with the Defense Department. :D How short do you cut back the skirts? The misses make more sense since reading this. (I knew it wasn't me!) I had to take a few seconds and re-configure the frog body back on the hardware after the turtle. I had though about adding a little glue. Dan, Nice fish! I was impressed with how well the thing casts the way it is. How much weight do you think you added to it with the lead wire?



Gene
 
Gene - I used about a 12" piece of lead solder. (The spool is almost as old as me! LOL!) Without being exact, 12" is about 1/4oz., 6" is about an 1/8oz. If you wrap it just behind that funky bend up inside it will work like a keel and keep a really good profile. I also apply clear RTV to the openings when done to increase buoyancy. (I hate having to squeeze a weathered frog between casts.) I don't prefer to trim the legs. I like them to be able to tremble and flair more together on a pause instead of flaring out wide. (Like between pads, holes, or after a missed blowup.) Sitting in one place with a couple rattles inserted and the legs jumping just by shaking the braid has produced many fish from pressured locations. I use 65lb. moss green Power Pro braid. I don't think you can adjust or re-tool this thing wrong. It is just a great bait with plenty of room for fine tuning or tossing it right out of the box!
 
I gave you some of the secrets....not all of them:lol::lol: I don't cut them all that much....about an inch off on the long legs, and inch and a quarter off the odd leg. It really gets a lot of strikes AFTER you get out of the slop because you can "walk the Dog" like a Sammy or a Spook. Leave it to Dan to put an exclamation mark on the frog!!:lol: I never thought of the rattle add on!! Great Idea, you could add them after the frog gets torn up and you are gonna have to glue it anyway. BTW, one of the reasons the new SPRO Chatterbait (The Shake and Bake) works so well is that it uses the same frog hooks and your trailer is not attached directly to them. Caught the same Pike 3 days in a row out in front of the cottage in Michigan...he couldn't stand it!!:lol::lol:



TOXIC
 
OK... here's a frog secret for you. I was keeping this to myself for a while, then I told Tox and a few others, and now here it is in the open...



The ROD. Now, before any of you go sticking your nose in the air... please hear me out. I fished with a lot of rods, trying to find the right action. A lot of people (actually, the vast majority of people I know) like to use a flipping stick - 7 1/2' MH to H. Yeah, you can get them out of the pads or grass with it, but you also end up ripping the frog clean out of their mouths with it, ESPECIALLY if you are using braid. I happen to love using braid in the pads - my favorite is 30lb Power Pro.



A friend of mine, who fishes the heck out of frogs, was using a very old Daiwa rod - a Rick Clunn rod - think it was actually designed for crankbaits - heavier action - probably a MH, but it had a softer tip - I think it was all fiberglass. Anyway - the hookup ratio on this rod was phenominal, especially because the tip had more "give" than the flipping sticks everyone else was using. It had tons of backbone too - he never had problems getting them out of the thick stuff. Unfortunately, Daiwa stopped making that rod years ago.



So, I tried them all, yada, yada, yada - all lengths, actions, etc... One day, while helping a customer during a show at Bass Pro Shops, I picked up a Shakespeare Ugly Stik Lite rod to sell to them - model number CA 1170-1MH. It's a MH rod, 7' long. As I shook the tip while talking to them, it hit me - this was "the" frog rod I had been searching for. Very thick, stout backbone, but it has that Ugly Stik tip - which has just enough "give" for this technique.



It's tip-heavy - so I install those Bass Pro Shops balance weights to balance it out. The end product is a heavier rod to cast, but the benifits far outweigh the negative weight problem.



My catch ratio on the frog has gone through the roof. I've contacted Shakespeare several times about marketing this rod as a frog-rod, but they haven't yet. Good deal for everyone right now though, as it's a less expensive offering - only $40. It's the bottom one on this page:



http://www.basspro.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?storeId=10151&catalogId=10001&langId=-1&partNumber=22372&hvarTarget=search&cmCat=SearchResults



I'm experimenting with the shorter version - the 6'6" CA 1166-1MH, but I think I still prefer the 7 footer, as it casts a mile.



See... not all "specialty rods" have to cost several hundred dollars. There are two in my boat at all times.



All the best,

Glenn
 
Oh, yeah, I forgot about that one......I can't belch it out if I don't remember it!!:lol:



I still have a couple secrets up my sleve that were shown to me and I'll show y'all...just take me fishun!!:p



TOXIC
 
hey toxic,

will you show me? i will take you fishing . you have to throw it to catch fish on it.

like toxic, i would never leave the dock with out one, and dont be afraid to throw it all day long even in bright sunshine.

mike c
 
On the Potomac... I have a hard time putting it away once the sun is up.

All the best,

Glenn
 
HA!!



One of the secrets is yours Mike!! :lol::lol: I suppose I could show it to you!!:p I've got to get out soon, I'm going stir crazy.



TOXIC
 
Take an exacto knife and make a 1/4" slit in the back of the frog,....stuff in a couple 1/4" long sections of old plastic worm AND a rattle or two,...then glue the slit shut.



Result = more weight for longer casts,....additional noise (thumping and rattling) and increased angle (butt low and nose high) for better walking and hook-ups. :rolleyes::cool:



Mac
 
Sounds good Mac but you better be careful that those worm pieces don't get worked to the back and keep the frog from compressing for a good hookset. Can't wait to try some of these ideas!!



TOXIC
 
How about this one - Tie on your frog as usual. Then about a foot or two in front of the frog, tie in a hook with a Polomar knot - kind of like a topwater dropshot rig configuration with the frog in place of the weight. Then put a small worm on the hook in front of the frog for fishing in open water or pads with gaps in them. Makes it look like the frog is after the small worm (or other plastic). Kind of like the old "frontrunner" concept, but with much larger lures in a weedless configuration. Try it with a Zoom Trick worm sometime. Someone used to make a double frog rig, and that is where I got the idea.

All the best,

Glenn
 
How about this one...(to noone spacific)...JUST SHUT UP AND FISH..lol:lol::):lol:
 
gersh23,

I'll remember that next time you have a question. :lol:

All the best,

Glenn
 
my tag was not made to be offensive in any way, dont take it wrong,,,Sorry

Gersh
 
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