Hard Frog Failure

[mark poulson]

I got a chance to fish my hard frog yesterday.  

I fished this one, with the pivoting double hook, held in place by magnets to make it weedless.

 

http://www.tackleunderground.com/community/index.php?/gallery/image/12587-20140114-175550-resized/

 

The good news is that it was virtually weedless, cast like a bullet, and walked really well.

Because it is heavier than a soft plastic frog it really makes a splash on landing, and that seemed to draw fish to it.

I got blown up on and pulled down a dozen times, but never got a hook into a fish, so my design evidently doesn't allow the hooks to pivot up as I had hoped.

Drat!!!

The good news is I have some pretty frogs to decorate my house!  Hahaha

 

I'll probably play around with trying to use the idea with soft plastics.  It really called fish to itself on splashdown.

Edited July 6, 2014 by mark poulson

[Anglinarcher]

I really thought it would have worked.  I hope you don't give up too soon.  Personally, I like what I see.

[mark poulson]

So do I.  That's the problem....I like it, but it doesn't seem to work.  Maybe I can use them to find fish, and then throw back in with Senko to catch them.  

[BobP]

Hey Mark, have you ever heard the saying:  "There's always one guy trying to ski uphill"?  That's you!  I think it's almost impossible to beat the design and materials used in the available soft bodied frogs.

 

But I do admire you for trying

[mark poulson]

Bob,

You know how it is.  It was such a cool idea, and solving the design problems was fun.  Plus it was fun to shape and to paint, too.  

Oh, well, back to the drawing board.

[RayburnGuy]

Skiing uphill...hhmmmmmmmmm At least you'd be able to see the avalanche coming.  

[mark poulson]

Skiing uphill...hhmmmmmmmmm At least you'd be able to see the avalanche coming.

 

Hahaha...

[Nathan]

I actually like the Idea of a hard body frog..I'm working on one myself...They won't fill with water..They cast a mile and defiantly make a heavier foot print for the bass to follow when dragging it over the slop....Mark...I'll join you in that jaunt up hill.....Lol!!!!...Nathan

[mark poulson]

I actually like the Idea of a hard body frog..I'm working on one myself...They won't fill with water..They cast a mile and defiantly make a heavier foot print for the bass to follow when dragging it over the slop....Mark...I'll join you in that jaunt up hill.....Lol!!!!...Nathan

 

I guess misery likes company.  

[Nathan]

Lol.. How true !!!.. Nathan

[RayburnGuy]

I guess misery likes company.  

 

 

Lol.. How true !!!.. Nathan

 

Gloom, Despair and Agony on me..............   Count me in fellas. I'm a sucker for misery.

[Anglinarcher]

Hey, perhaps this winter I will put my limited mind on the great task of skiing uphill, or making a hard frog.  Is the traffic bad going the wrong direction?

 

I still like the idea.  LOL

[mark poulson]

Gloom, Despair and Agony on me..............   Count me in fellas. I'm a sucker for misery.

 

Howdee!!!

[barrybait]

Hey Mark, is there some way you could make the frog in two parts.  If it had a top and bottom hinged at the front held in the "inflated" position with a light wire spring so the body could collapse and get more of the hook exposed during a strike. 

[Nathan]

Ben..that brought back memories!!!..lol..Nathan

[mark poulson]

Bob, 

I wait until I feel the fish before I swing, too.  I usually get a hook into them.  If I lose them, it's usually because they get caught in the weeds and come off.

I got pulled down and felt the fish with the hard frog, but it always pulled out of the fish's mouth without a hookup.

 

Barry,

The hook hanging below the lure makes it land and walk top side up.  I considered using a fixed hook with weed guards, but I  was afraid I'd have to add weight to the belly if I did that.  I was trying to keep the bait really buoyant, so it would stay up on top of the grass.

I'm going to try some lube next trip, and let them swallow that sucker!

[sonoman]

_{why not just fix them in the upright position and utilize that set up Mark Pack uses for the new jig design, bet it would work really well.}

[mark poulson]

_{why not just fix them in the upright position and utilize that set up Mark Pack uses for the new jig design, bet it would work really well.}

With the design I have now, I use the hooks weight to act as ballast, so the bait stays upright until it gets bit.  It is weedless right now, because the hook tines are held tightly to the body by the magnets.  I just need to find a way to get the hooks to pivot up on the strike.  It seems that the body is thick enough that it gets caught in the fish's mouth, without the hooks being engaged.  Grrrr!!!  

[bassrecord]

Mark, how do you get the rubber legs through the body?

[sonoman]

well the way I  was thinking nothing changes other than you using larger hooks, everything stays the same other than the magnet deal, way more gap should allow for way better hook up ratio.

[mark poulson]

The larger frog hooks I've found are also longer, and don't really have that much more gap.

I'll play around with them, though.

I drilled a through hole side to side, just above the channel the hook shanks lay in when the hooks are in the up position, and then used a wire with a hooked end to draw the skirt through.

Edited July 11, 2014 by mark poulson

[sonoman]

I was thinking somewhere along the lines of say a 28 degree wide gap jig hook, mustad 91768 I  believe, might be able to use 1 larger hook or rig two on a pin or something...I'm hoping you find success because here in central Florida that thing would be fantastic, the castability alone would be the deal good luck.

[barrybait]

Maybe you could put a keel on the bottom of the hook shank section.  That would drive the hook up on a strike.  Might not work on matts but should work on open water/holes.

[mark poulson]

Maybe you could put a keel on the bottom of the hook shank section.  That would drive the hook up on a strike.  Might not work on matts but should work on open water/holes.

A deeper bite would definitely help.