Frog Rod/reel Setup

[bassmaster8100]

I had never been much of a fan of frogs until this year. I moved a couple of years ago and am now living on Ross Barnett Reservoir, lake is fully of lilly pads and tons of other vegetation. Tons of fish caught on frogs here and alot of tournaments won on them. This past year I focused on getting better at fishing frogs and they have now become my go to bait. So anyway I'm looking to upgrade my rod/reel setup. I'm considering the G. Loomis Frog Rod Series 7'1  Heavy with fast action tip from BPS. Totally unsure of what I want as far as the reel goes. What are you guys/gals thoughts or suggestions?

[LMB ANGLER]

ahhh   frogs... one of my favorite techniques. A G Loomis frog rod will work perfectly great. i like g loomis rods myself. For reels - ill say pro qualifier or daiwa exceler =both reels are 100 bucks and are top quality.

[motodmast]

i perfer a 7'3 or 7'4 MH or H rod (power depends on brand) with  a fast tip. and a real with  a high speed. 7.0:1 or higher.

[bass1980]

I'm using a 7'3 rod for casting distance and better long hook sets. Paired with a 201E7 with Bocas. Nothing more fun than frogging IMO.

[David P]

Frog fishing is almost all I do from late Spring until late Summer. It's an absolute BLAST! 

 

   I prefer a longer rod, 7'6-8ft in length. Huge top water strikes create slack in the line, the longer rod helps move more line on the hookset and pick up that slack line. The longer rod is also good to keep a distance from where you're fishing and enables you to make a longer cast. I use a Dobyns 736, 766 and 805 depending on what I'm doing. The 7'3 is for closer quarters the other two for more traditional frog fishing.

 

 My hook up ratio on a frog with a 7.1:1 or higher reel is astronomical compared to a lower speed reel. Again, faster retrieve, picks up more slack to quickly set the hook. Also, enables you to reel in quicker once you're out of the strike zone (seconds add up in a tournament to get a few extra casts!).

[Mike2841]

I agree with the higher gear ratio, it allows you to pick up slack quick to make a solid hook set especially on a longer cast

[War Eagle 44]

I also looked at the G Loomis frog rod series a while back and though they are perfectly good rods I found them to be to heavy. I currently use a Powell Max 735C and I couldn't be happier. I haven't even looked at any other frog rods, I haven't had a need. This rod does everything I want out of my froggin' stick. I use a 6 ratio reel and don't have any problems with missed fish or bad hooksets, that said I know that a 7 ratio reel doesn't hurt for this technique and can sometimes really help. I always stick to 50 or 65# braid, I used 50# for years without any problems but I recently switched to 65# and like it even better.

 

So my suggestion is the Powell Max 735C, if you aren't interested then like most of the other guys have already pointed out get yourself at least a 7' H rod and at least a 6 ratio reel with braid. I'm a Loomis fan so I know they make very good rods, I just wasn't impressed with their frog series. If your heart is set on the Loomis then by all means get that rod. Frogs are my favorite way to fish as well so I know how important getting the right set up for you is. I wish you luck in your search.      

[iabass8]

Dobyns savvy 735c

shimano curado 201e7

65# suffix 832

 

i prefer the xf tip for fishing frogs. 

[bassmaster8100]

Thanks for all the suggestions guys. I think I'm gonna take a ride to BPS and take a look at some of these. I think I'll probably go with that 7 ratio reel as a lot of you suggested. I do think that's important as a lot of time fish will hit the frog when slack is in the line. A high ratio reel would definitely help to pick that line up quicker.

[jiggz125]

Is it absolutely necessary to use a baitcast reel? I a spinning setup will work what kind of line would you put on there? I have a braid spool for my Lew's spinning reel. I have already picked up Snag Proof Bleeding Frog and Spro Bronzeye spring/summer cannot come soon enough. Just started frog fishing towards end of the summer and had a blast.

[ZB85]

I use an Abu Garcia Veritas 7'6" mh with a Lews Speed Spool 7:1:1 gear ratio and I thnk it's an awesome combo for frogging.

[Trey Harpel]

For my all around I'm using the savvy 735c and pixy type R with 50lb power pro..

For heavier really thick long distance I use the champion 736c daiwa zillion HLC and 50lb power pro..

Won a tourney up in Wisconsin long casting to isolated pads that were in really shallow water with that combo..

Oh and I would never use a spinning reel for frogging..

[Grantman83]

Dobyns champion 736 and zillion type r here....

The savvy 735 and a high speed reel would be perfect. A lews speed spool would do just fine.

[Mike2841]

Is it absolutely necessary to use a baitcast reel? I a spinning setup will work what kind of line would you put on there? I have a braid spool for my Lew's spinning reel. I have already picked up Snag Proof Bleeding Frog and Spro Bronzeye spring/summer cannot come soon enough. Just started frog fishing towards end of the summer and had a blast.

I've used my medium veritas spinning for frogs before

[Gaerith]

Spinning works fine, but then you don't get the benefit of using 60# braid when you have to pull them out of the slop.

[MarkH024]

Is it absolutely necessary to use a baitcast reel? I a spinning setup will work what kind of line would you put on there? I have a braid spool for my Lew's spinning reel. I have already picked up Snag Proof Bleeding Frog and Spro Bronzeye spring/summer cannot come soon enough. Just started frog fishing towards end of the summer and had a blast.

No. Frog fishing is a very broad term. You can fish a frog in the wide open water or you can fish it in the nastiest thickest mats. I would figure out what type of cover you're fishing frogs with most of the time before you make a decision on equipment.  When in doubt, go a bit heavier because you never know when you'll fish some gnarly stuff. You certainly wouldn't want to pass up a spot if you know the rod couldn't handle the area that is holding fish.

 

I use a MH/F St. Croix mojo with a Curado 200e7 spooled with #50-#65 braid.  Works great for me in any water applications for the most part. I've had a couple instances where in the really nasty stuff it's been a challenge to get fish up and out but I usually always manage. 

[jiggz125]

I've used my medium veritas spinning for frogs before

I have 7' Medium Vendetta; Lew's Lews Speed Spin(cheaper reel but no problems thus far). What line would you recommend,. Thanks for the advice everyone.

[MarkH024]

#20-30 lb 832 or PP braid on the spinning reel would be a good choice. You'll be able to fish just about any frog situation with that set up except some really dense stuff might give you some problems if you hook up with a good sized fish. It'll be a lot of fun regardless though! Hope you catch some hogs, froggin is a ton of fun.

[J Francho]

For froggin', I prefer a faster reel with an aluminum frame, and a strong drag.

[aavery2]

Gen 2 STX makes a good frog reel, good drag pressure with these reels.   I prefer a little shorter rod, because the technique is typically worked tip down, I am only 6ft tall so when I use a rod that is much longer than 7ft, I start hitting the side of the boat and the water when working the bait.   Two things that are a must for me when fishing frogs is a good high quality braided line, I prefer FX2, and a F or XF rod.   I use the Falcon Cara, Jason Christie Frog rod,

[AMAC]

I would always always always roll with baitcasting gear whem it come to frog fishing. A super high speed reel (im gonna deploy an 8:1 MGX) instead of a 7:1 not so much to take up slack for a hook set but to get the frog back to the boat and make more cast per day. Denali has a frog rod in their Rosewood series that is 6'10 H. They also have a signature series where Mark Tyler has a 7'4 H multipurpose rod with a mod fast tip, and a Ray Schiede 7'4 H fast tip. Any of those would make great frog set ups. Hope this helps

[mjseverson24]

in my opinion dont wast money on having an expensive sensitive rod you should be able to see the strike so it just needs to be easy to fish, long, and have a pretty heavy action for fishing in heavier cover, the money should be spent on the reel. Try a 7'6" H lightning rod shock for $50 with either a lews superduty, daiwa tatula, or the abu rocket with the 9:1 gear ratio this is a beast for frogs and jigs. spend the money on the reel make sure it has metal frame and handle sideplate. if you are fishing in sparse cover try a rod more often used for jerkbaits(6'8" MH/F), and use mono like 15 lb should work, a high speed reel is still a good idea, but it doesnt need to be as beefy as the other ones, a lews tournament SS or BB1 would work great for this.

 

Mitch

[boostr]

Rod wise. would this setup also be good for swim baits 5" and up maybe with a slower reel? I want to start frogn' as well Just wondering if I would be able to use it for both.

[sprint286]

I use the Denali Rosewood Frog rod paired up with a 7.0 Lews  Baitcaster .it is an awesome setup the rod has power and sensitivity  and works great for me. and the reel picks up the line fast enough to make a solid hookset and quickly gets the fish to the surface almost skipping them across the pads