fishballer06

The fish act differently every single day (and they'll even change mid day at that). They may not be short striking next time around. You can also try downsizing some. A small Keitech maybe? Or on an underspin to add a little flash? Or a shallow squarebill? Swim jig? It's always hard to say what it is they really want.

Called it!

My theory, more often than not, is that most missed blowups on a frog happen for two reasons. Not saying other reasons can happen (like some here have mentioned), but most of the time it's because of two things. And I'll explain why I believe these two things. 1. The fish are too small and/or the frog is too big. If a frog is too big to fit in a fishes mouth whenever they bite, obviously they're not going to fully get it in their mouth and you won't get a good hook set. So whether its a big frog, or a small fish, this is a common issue. 2. The fish are only slapping at the frog and not trying to fully inhale it. It's no secret that a bass will smack at bait sometimes just out of reaction. They're not always trying to swallow and eat something. So when this happens, they might just be slapping at the bait to stun it, or maybe they're just nipping at the legs of the bait. Either way, you won't hook up if a fish doesn't have the full bait down in his mouth. One thing to keep in mind about a frog - it's designed to get you bites in areas where you cannot fish other baits. So sometimes you have to accept that by its design to be totally weedless, its going to hurt its hookup ratio some, in exchange for some bites in areas that you'd never be able to fish otherwise. Touching back on my topic #1, I came to that theory a few years back whenever I discovered a new pond nearby to me. I went once and checked it out (I found it on Google Maps). When I walked it the first time, it looked like 2 acres of frog fishing heaven. So I went back the next day with just a frog tied on and I threw that bait for nearly two hours and I had close to a dozen blowups, and not a single hookup. I went back again a few days later. Again I had half a dozen blowups and not a single fish. From then on, I decided to fish the pond using Senkos and other style baits and I quickly learned that all the fish in this pond were 10-13" long. Hence why they were probably having a hard time getting a frog in their mouth. If you've ever caught a bass this size on a normal sized frog, you'll know that a frog that size fills their entire mouth basically, so they need to engulf that bait perfectly in order for you to hook a fish that size. Your 735c and 50lb braid is more than ample enough for frogging, so I don't believe it's your equipment.

Because every blade combination that spinnerbaits come in changes the weight of a spinnerbait. Material of the beads and hardware changes the weights as well. If you're that concerned about weights of your baits, I highly recommend you go purchase a small food scale that weighs in grams. They can be had for $15-20 from Walmart/Target/Amazon.

Are you fishing BASS tournaments/clubs where you are required to be a member to fish? That's another thing to consider.

The Cavitron is the buzzbait you want. It's the best off the shelf buzzbait there is for crawling slowly.

Smaller, finesse style. Like a 3.3 or 3.8" Keitech.

I believe that the Ike Abu's are the Premier's with some fancy paint to them. They're a good reel if you're looking to step up into a more premium baitcaster.

When fishing bottom contact lures, I will sometimes do this, but I do it differently than most. I will put the tip of my thumb of my palming hand over the spool, resting the tip of that thumb on my line between the spool and the guide ring of the reel. This gives me a little bit better feel of the bait, and I can easily rest my thumb on the spool for a little additional man made drag.

Buzzbait Buzzbait Spinnerbait In that order. Honorable mention - swimbait.

It's amazing how usually the fattest smallmouth are shorter in length. I've caught a 23" smallmouth during post spawn that only went 3.6lb. Meanwhile, a friend last spring caught one on Erie that was 7-4 that was 19.75". Edit - found another picture of Troy's fish.

Pretty sure they just hit the market this week. Looks like a tasty little morsel sized treat for my local pike to inhale.

Does anyone know when the next TW sale is? I haven't seen anything online...

I throw buzzbaits a ton. 15lb fluoro is a common choice for me unless I'm around really heavy grass, then it's braid. 15lb fluoro is also my choice for general t-rigging as well.

I've had my Trilene knot slip on me while frog fishing, so I've moved away from it on braid (shame, because its the knot I've used the longest). I've since moved to the palomar and haven't been let down.

My thoughts exactly. Same as any fox/coyote/deer getting it.

Never heard of them before but that looks like a killer Shakeyhead worm!

The 734c Champion is THE spinnerbait rod. It's perfect for this application.

I know LPO sells some with .040 wire on them. If no one here knows, perhaps try asking around on a musky forum. Those guys use a much heavier gauge wire than us bass guys. Edit - Looks like LPO makes a 3/4oz with a .045 wire. https://www.lurepartsonline.com/1584HW

Yes, literally thousands of people pour their own lead for fishing baits.

If you aren't pouring your own lead, you'd likely have to find someone who pours their own and ask them to sell you some heads before they bend the wire. Only thing to be careful of is that wire getting bent during shipping.

This is actually a great idea for these. Cheaper than a Menace Grub which I normally use on a spinnerbait or swim jig. To answer @Catt, I bought a few different colored packs but haven't fished them yet.

You think he's truly happy? He's fishing the Northern Opens and is in second place behind only Brandon Palaniuk. As well as fishing the kayak series as well. That's A LOT of dedication for a guy who isn't trying to scrape by.

I can't comment on kayak tournaments... But yes, he could walk right into the Elites if he wanted. I believe he said at the beginning of the season that he wanted to requalify the old fashioned way. So I can respect that.

Pretty cool little article by Ike about his BASS kayak tourny win, and what his *potential* plans may be moving forward. Could we see him leaving MLF and rejoining the Elites? https://www.bassmaster.com/mike-iaconelli/ikes-big-kayak-win