Croaker Frog lure

[Denny Welch]

Depending on the length / size of the trailer hook, it might interfere with the action of the legs.

[Botanophilia]

Trailer hook should work great if you're not working it in structure and slop for the hook to catch.  I personally go without them.  If a bass hits short they either aren't hungry or are too small.   And a topwater hit is exciting and fun regardless.

[BrynM31]

Yea where I like to fish there isn't any slop or whatever on top of the water but the bottom is nothing but weeds. The bass haven't been biting much lately but they never strike top water with any kind of force which is a little disappointing. They barely even break the surface when striking top water baits.

[superharmonix]

What hooks are y'all using?  I use the 5/0 28 degree Mustad, screw-locked and hooked through the body between the legs.  That hook seems to be too heavy to keep the bait on top without holding my rod at 1:00 and on a good blow up that leaves me with zero hook-setting room.

I love how the baits look both in and out of the water, and they have been my number 3 best seller over the last 2 years, I just need to dial in my setup so I can go frog frippin'.

[Lamar]

   Sometimes bass will hit a bait with there mouth closed. Smallmouth will do that allot. With a crank bait you'll hook them on the outside of the mouth and that's why. They just punched or slapped at it and didn't mean to eat it. I have always felt that they mean to stun it and then circle around and eat it. They're not real hungry so it's kind of like playing with your food. They do that on the Ohio River all the time and a lake I live by I see it in the summer when there is plenty of shad and fish are on isolated cover. What I do when this happens is I take a tube with a real light to no weight in it as a back up bait. Then I take a buzz bait and toss it around cover. Sometimes they don't even hit the bait. It may just be a weed move or a ripple in the water. I crank the buzz bait in fast and pitch the tube right back to that spot. Allot of times they'll hit that. You got there attention and they're fired up. But you need to set the hook fast because most of the time it's a hit and spit and you don't have much time to connect. Try that and see if that's not whats going on.

[pjmcla]

That's a catch 22 situation.  Lighter hooks will allow the bait to float better; but increase the chance of a straighten hook.  Especially in cover or slop, where the frog is typically fished.  High end hooks are usually made from higher end steels and are typically forged & tempered better.  Go with as small a high end hook as you can without sacrificing hookups.  Or, try a small high end weedless hook off the nose with a hitchhiker.  Sometimes slop can be a real pill on the nose hook method.   I wish there was a light weight Owner Beast hook.  I like the design of this hook for frogs / toads.   

[andrewlamberson]

Sure would be nice if Do-it came out with a Croaker jig mold that allowed you to use big hooks with light weight, that helped make sure the frog landed top side up, had an upturned eye so it wouldn't catch weeds...and....??

I'm planning on molding some Snootie jigs this weekend in Tin to use as my slop jigs and I'm hopping they work well with the Croaker and Swim Toad on the slop

(pun intended)

[Jerry V]

Sure would be nice if Do-it came out with a Croaker jig mold that allowed you to use big hooks with light weight, that helped make sure the frog landed top side up, had an upturned eye so it wouldn't catch weeds...and....??

I'm planning on molding some Snootie jigs this weekend in Tin to use as my slop jigs and I'm hopping they work well with the Croaker and Swim Toad on the slop

(pun intended)

That's pretty darn "punny".   

[Denny Welch]

Both you guys need a vacation.

[pjmcla]

I think it's the heat; after all the winter cold. 

[Botanophilia]

What hooks are y'all using?  I use the 5/0 28 degree Mustad, screw-locked and hooked through the body between the legs.  That hook seems to be too heavy to keep the bait on top without holding my rod at 1:00 and on a good blow up that leaves me with zero hook-setting room.

I love how the baits look both in and out of the water, and they have been my number 3 best seller over the last 2 years, I just need to dial in my setup so I can go frog frippin'.

I use the same hook and screw lock and have no problems keeping it on the surface.  You need to pop the rod tip up to get it to the surface, once it's there you should be good.  The closer you are to the water, the better.  Typical bass boat should be fine; the boat I fish from I sit higher above the water and have no problems.  Though I can hold my tip a little lower when I'm fishing from a canoe.  Also the faster you reel the lower you can keep your tip.

[superharmonix]

Are any of you having any luck on the 3.5 or 4 incher just steadily reeling over the muck?  I like to pause and retrieve, similar to walking the dog which is why I am looking for a different hook setup.

[ctom]

I was down on the river for a short time and cast a 3" croaker right up on the slop and reeled it back. 2 blow-ups and no hook-ups. I think they were small pike.

[Botanophilia]

Are any of you having any luck on the 3.5 or 4 incher just steadily reeling over the muck?  I like to pause and retrieve, similar to walking the dog which is why I am looking for a different hook setup.

PB bass (24") came from thick sloppy milfoil.  Hell of a fight!  Also, muskies love the frogs too.  Makes a great explosion!