Im a fairly short guy- 5'3" . Im trying to figure out how I would work a frog with a 7'4" rod pointed at the water without 3' of the rod submerged.  Infact, I have trouble even working a 7' rod this way. 6'6" seems best for my build, but unpractical to leverage a fish or drive home heavy frog hooks. 

Maybe im doing it wrong ? 

When I fish. Longer rod I will angle it towards the right (I'm left handed with right hand reels) and Dow to the water. That means when setting the hook I pull up to my right shoulder. I have had fairly good results with that approach.

try working the rod angled toward the right,

 

a 7' will be enough and if you must you could step down to a 6'6 

 

 

Trying to comprehend the problem you are having? Jerk baits run underwater the rod tip tends to be worked downwards and may hit the surface if you are too close to it. Frogs are usually worked by keeping the line off the water surface as much as possible, the rod tip shouldn't be slapping the water surface.

Tom

I am 5'10" but got used to working a frog on the bank. So unlike being on a boat you need to be careful with the rod tip hitting a rock or weeds or whatever is on the bank.

 

I learned to work my frog at an angle. So instead of twitching my rod down I twitch my rod to the side at a downward angle. I hold the rod with my right so my rod tip is aiming left. Because I learned this particular way, I find it hard to walk a frog twitching it down instead of sideways.

 

Regardless, I think you can get away with a 7' rod for frogging. My first rod I used was 7' and I used it for frogs without issue.

Been using a 7' frog rod for a few years and im 6'2".You can get away with it.

as long as your comfortable you can use whatever you like. for the longest time when I was young (real young) I used a 5'10 ugly stick for everything and I mean everything. I caught plenty of fish.

 

what I'm getting at is, yes, there are plenty of technique specific rods out there but if your fishing conditions(ie: your body composition,where you fish or what you fish out of)don't allow for the type of rod you feel or think you need fish with what works for you. a 6'6 heavy rod with 65lb braid will set a mean hook and as long as your stronger then the fish you can turn it.

26 minutes ago, kroberts9 said:

as long as your comfortable you can use whatever you like. for the longest time when I was young (real young) I used a 5'10 ugly stick for everything and I mean everything. I caught plenty of fish.

 

what I'm getting at is, yes, there are plenty of technique specific rods out there but if your fishing conditions(ie: your body composition,where you fish or what you fish out of)don't allow for the type of rod you feel or think you need fish with what works for you. a 6'6 heavy rod with 65lb braid will set a mean hook and as long as your stronger then the fish you can turn it.

A shorter rod gives the fish less leverage so it takes less effort to turn its head.  Long casts, amount of line you can move to generate powerful hook sets and ability to move a fish in a direction you want due to the long lever arm are advantages of a long rod.

Thanks so much everyone

The right 6'6" rod will work well.. Just be sure to get the rod handle up high for big hook sets. Question now becomes which rod?

On 2/10/2017 at 7:39 AM, Bucketmouth King said:

Im a fairly short guy- 5'3" . Im trying to figure out how I would work a frog with a 7'4" rod pointed at the water without 3' of the rod submerged.  Infact, I have trouble even working a 7' rod this way. 6'6" seems best for my build, but unpractical to leverage a fish or drive home heavy frog hooks. 

Maybe im doing it wrong ? 

 

An angler's height should have no bearing on rod length.

An exception would be when working a jerkbait, and the rod-tip contacts the water.

But that situation is easily remedied by working the rod-tip horizontally to the side rather than down.

 

A longer rod exerts 'less' power, not more, it gives leverage to the fish (think stroker rod for tuna).

On the other hand, a longer rod provides greater speed, which is debatably more important than power

during the hook-set. 

 

Roger

I agree with Roger and still can't figure out what the problem is?

Archimdedes lever, longer rod gives the fish more leverage being on the longer end of the lever (rod). Longer rod allows the angler a higher point to lift the bass, but it takes more force by the angler and that shouldn't be a problem with a small fish like bass.

Whatever you are comfortable using should be the right rod length for you.

Tom

like Tom said, whatever your comfortable with .for me i never use a rod under 7'6'' , all my rods are 7'7'' or longer as short rods feel awkward .

On 2/10/2017 at 7:39 AM, Bucketmouth King said:

Im a fairly short guy- 5'3" . Im trying to figure out how I would work a frog with a 7'4" rod pointed at the water without 3' of the rod submerged.  Infact, I have trouble even working a 7' rod this way. 6'6" seems best for my build, but unpractical to leverage a fish or drive home heavy frog hooks. 

Maybe im doing it wrong ? 

 

Found this online: http://www.denalirods.com/lithium610hvyfrogrod.aspx

6'6" rod will work fine even with medium heavy rod. Thats what i use. Just watch the specs. At least 12-20 lb line 3/8-1 oz. Line. And you want a fast or extra fast tip. Your using no stretch heavy braid so the frog hooks will go in fine. I use a cheap quantum tournament grade im8 and its rated for 25 lb line 1 1/2 oz. A strong backbone. Works great for me.

A 6'9" MH is my preferred frog rod. 

 

As a shorter guy (5'8"), I can attest to rod-length preference in general.. Personally, I don't own a rod over 7' (I own 14 combos). It's not that I'm incapable of casting a 7'6" or longer rod, I just feel like I don't have as great of control with a rod of that length.

A lot of people seem to be overlooking this guy's problem. He's short and therefore accidentally hits the water when jerking the rod downward. Not hard to understand. I'm 6'4", I have 13 more inches of room between me and the water to point my rod downwards and work a frog without unintentionally hitting the water with the rod tip.

I understand the geometry & coming from an era when 6'-6'6" was long, I understand the issues of a short rod.

 

The heart of my arsenal is 7' +/- a couple inches, my #1 t-rig/jig rod is 6' 10"; why not 7' or 7' 6"?

 

Cause I'm comfortable with that length with those techniques!

 

If you can comfortably work a 6' 6" try moving up to a 6' 8" or 6' 10".

 

As far slipping the water, don't worry about it, ya gonna do it just minimize em!

 

Another fix is ya don't have hold your rod down, some days it's parallel to the surface, some days it's at 11 °clock.

 

It's called establishing rhythm & is an essential part of establishing a pattern!