Short Frog Rod (for the kayak)
Re: Short Frog Rod (for the kayak)
I was looking for a short frog rod a year or two ago and found a lot of options. The first place I looked were snakehead rods from SE Asia. There are a lot of short, powerful rods in the snakehead world and I ordered a cheap one from aliex. It was more or less what I was looking for, but it had a very slow taper and wasn't really giving me 100% confidence in hooksets. It also had a fairly long rear grip, which seems like a started feature on shorter "big game" rods. I next looked at some of the Bone World rods, but they all seemed too powerful/still for what I wanted to do and again the long rear grip issue. I discovered the Legit Design rods and was looking hard at their rods but couldn't find any real info or videos about them.
At long last I settled on a rod from the new Daiwa Black Label line, the LG 631 MHFB-FR:
It's exactly what I was looking for. It fishes like a sawed off 844c in all the best ways. It's light, balanced and feels like there is no way it can be as powerful as the rating indicates, but I have been using it for two seasons now and am 100% in love with it to the point where I am looking to buy a second one for yak use. For frogging it's amazing, the short length allows super accurate casts and it makes walking/popping very easy. It's got a lot of power, but this is not a rod for bombing casts out into 60y of standing spatterdock, it's a rod for working cover lines. open pools, and light floating pads. I do a lot of hike-in bushwhack fishing and the rod is a dream for that as well. In addition to frogs, it's exelrty for singlehook moving baits and the tip is light enough to load a Zoom Super or PopMax, so it really is a do-all rod for a lot of the marsh fishing I do. Cannot recommend it enough. The prices do seem to be all over the place for the BLX line as a whole, so do some looking around if you are interested in one.
At long last I settled on a rod from the new Daiwa Black Label line, the LG 631 MHFB-FR:
It's exactly what I was looking for. It fishes like a sawed off 844c in all the best ways. It's light, balanced and feels like there is no way it can be as powerful as the rating indicates, but I have been using it for two seasons now and am 100% in love with it to the point where I am looking to buy a second one for yak use. For frogging it's amazing, the short length allows super accurate casts and it makes walking/popping very easy. It's got a lot of power, but this is not a rod for bombing casts out into 60y of standing spatterdock, it's a rod for working cover lines. open pools, and light floating pads. I do a lot of hike-in bushwhack fishing and the rod is a dream for that as well. In addition to frogs, it's exelrty for singlehook moving baits and the tip is light enough to load a Zoom Super or PopMax, so it really is a do-all rod for a lot of the marsh fishing I do. Cannot recommend it enough. The prices do seem to be all over the place for the BLX line as a whole, so do some looking around if you are interested in one.
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Re: Short Frog Rod (for the kayak)
THanks for sharing your story and thought process! The Blacklabel sounds interesting, though the fact that you can fish a Megabass PopMax with it, makes me wonder if it has enough power for what I am looking for. Actually reminds me a bit of my NRX 804c!Houndfish wrote: ↑Fri Nov 26, 2021 6:55 amI was looking for a short frog rod a year or two ago and found a lot of options. The first place I looked were snakehead rods from SE Asia. There are a lot of short, powerful rods in the snakehead world and I ordered a cheap one from aliex. It was more or less what I was looking for, but it had a very slow taper and wasn't really giving me 100% confidence in hooksets. It also had a fairly long rear grip, which seems like a started feature on shorter "big game" rods. I next looked at some of the Bone World rods, but they all seemed too powerful/still for what I wanted to do and again the long rear grip issue. I discovered the Legit Design rods and was looking hard at their rods but couldn't find any real info or videos about them.
At long last I settled on a rod from the new Daiwa Black Label line, the LG 631 MHFB-FR:
123.JPG
Capture.JPG
It's exactly what I was looking for. It fishes like a sawed off 844c in all the best ways. It's light, balanced and feels like there is no way it can be as powerful as the rating indicates, but I have been using it for two seasons now and am 100% in love with it to the point where I am looking to buy a second one for yak use. For frogging it's amazing, the short length allows super accurate casts and it makes walking/popping very easy. It's got a lot of power, but this is not a rod for bombing casts out into 60y of standing spatterdock, it's a rod for working cover lines. open pools, and light floating pads. I do a lot of hike-in bushwhack fishing and the rod is a dream for that as well. In addition to frogs, it's exelrty for singlehook moving baits and the tip is light enough to load a Zoom Super or PopMax, so it really is a do-all rod for a lot of the marsh fishing I do. Cannot recommend it enough. The prices do seem to be all over the place for the BLX line as a whole, so do some looking around if you are interested in one.
I think I will jut order the following three rods from TW and see if I like any of them:
* WILD SIDE Casting Rod 6'4" Extra Hvy Bait Spec Finesse
* Buddy Gross Casting Rod Series 6'10" X Heavy Grass
* Daiwa Fuego Casting Rod 6'9" Heavy
Re: Short Frog Rod (for the kayak)
http://tackletour.net/viewtopic.php?t=83019
I found an old Fredo posted during my frog rod hunt. I’d forgotten about the rod I was initially asking about, the Feed Jungle Bash.
As to it’s power, the BLX shorty is fairly close to a 4p MBR, a “Heavy” rod but not a “heavy cover rod”.
I found an old Fredo posted during my frog rod hunt. I’d forgotten about the rod I was initially asking about, the Feed Jungle Bash.
As to it’s power, the BLX shorty is fairly close to a 4p MBR, a “Heavy” rod but not a “heavy cover rod”.
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Re: Short Frog Rod (for the kayak)
Update,
I got the three rods from TW, aaaaaand... i did not keep any of them.
The Buddy Gross was just too much of a broom stick with little to no tip to throw frogs. It felt more like a pitching stick. It was also rather tip heavy.
The Wild Side I reall tried hard to keep. The craftsmanship on the rod is really nice and a 6'4 rod would be a dream. Unfortunately the rod was just overall too heavy in weight (i think it was almost 6oz) and the tip was way to moderate for my liking.
This left the Fuego. It was close. I liked the the rod. Fast tip, good backbone and it actually looked pretty decent as well. I just could not get by the reel seat (lock knut was super uncomfortable for my way of fishing frogs) and i was also a bit concerned about the longevity of the rod. I dont know, but i could see through the blank almost, which reminded me a bit of a glass rod.
Anyways. I sent them all back and then ordered a Dobyns Champions XP 6'8heavy for 155usd shipped. This rod might be a bit too light in power to get bigger fish out of cover, but i like the fast action and the balance of the rod. It should do for light frogs in sparse cover and also should do well as a buzzbait rod. We will see...
I got the three rods from TW, aaaaaand... i did not keep any of them.
The Buddy Gross was just too much of a broom stick with little to no tip to throw frogs. It felt more like a pitching stick. It was also rather tip heavy.
The Wild Side I reall tried hard to keep. The craftsmanship on the rod is really nice and a 6'4 rod would be a dream. Unfortunately the rod was just overall too heavy in weight (i think it was almost 6oz) and the tip was way to moderate for my liking.
This left the Fuego. It was close. I liked the the rod. Fast tip, good backbone and it actually looked pretty decent as well. I just could not get by the reel seat (lock knut was super uncomfortable for my way of fishing frogs) and i was also a bit concerned about the longevity of the rod. I dont know, but i could see through the blank almost, which reminded me a bit of a glass rod.
Anyways. I sent them all back and then ordered a Dobyns Champions XP 6'8heavy for 155usd shipped. This rod might be a bit too light in power to get bigger fish out of cover, but i like the fast action and the balance of the rod. It should do for light frogs in sparse cover and also should do well as a buzzbait rod. We will see...
Re: Short Frog Rod (for the kayak)
I'm going to have to get that Fuego stick for my Fuego CT and kayak use. Going to frog and work docks with it and paired to the Ray's Long Cast and Elite spools for the Fuego CT it should work well as a pitching, skipping and frogging rig.
Re: Short Frog Rod (for the kayak)
MB P5 Super Destroyer.
Loved it with horny toads, Deps Slither K, etc. this past spring and summer.
Length works well when I am in the kayak at 6'9"
Loved it with horny toads, Deps Slither K, etc. this past spring and summer.
Length works well when I am in the kayak at 6'9"
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Re: Short Frog Rod (for the kayak)
No micros, either, so it's good for leader knots, if you so choose.
Try not to let your mind wander. It is much too small to be outside unsupervised.
Re: Short Frog Rod (for the kayak)
I have a nfc X-ray sj685 on the way to build up as my short kayak frog rod. The sj blanks have a nice quick taper and a great tip for casting accurately and walking. I may cut it down a couple inches more as I’m not the tallest but I’ll see how it feels when it arrives. I definitely have liked most of the X-ray blanks I’ve built so far.
Re: Short Frog Rod (for the kayak)
I flipped my kayak (long story don't ask) with an expride 6'10M in the behind the seat rod holder and snapped it off right below the reel seat. I also lost a braillist with Met reel on the bottom of the lake. I only take my cheap stuff on the kayak now...hoohoorjoo wrote: ↑Thu Nov 25, 2021 6:24 amI know practicality is essentially a lost art here on TT, but I've become exactly that in the last couple years. I've found that I dont need to spend $300+ on a moving bait rod. That leaves more $$$ for other things like reels and baits. If sensitivity isnt paramount for a technique, it usually doesn't enter my thought process when I consider a new rod. Aside from that, you'd feel a lot less anguish from breaking an $80 than a $500+ Megabass X7. That's a real possibility on a kayak.freelancer27 wrote: ↑Wed Nov 24, 2021 10:28 pmThanks for the info.
Without sounding too spoiled, but honestly it has been a while since i considered a $80 rod
Re: Short Frog Rod (for the kayak)
Is there a tether or bungee available for you kayak guys?
Seems like an open market. I am not taking shoots or rod shaming anyone. I've given to the deep too but I think with you guys at least a tether of some sort would help even when you flip you kayak maybe ??
Seems like an open market. I am not taking shoots or rod shaming anyone. I've given to the deep too but I think with you guys at least a tether of some sort would help even when you flip you kayak maybe ??
For by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible
Re: Short Frog Rod (for the kayak)
There's a bunch of different tethers available for rods, paddles etc for kayaks. I've got some attached to the rod holders on my crate, but have a bad habit of not using them.goldrod wrote: ↑Sat Jan 15, 2022 3:40 pmIs there a tether or bungee available for you kayak guys?
Seems like an open market. I am not taking shoots or rod shaming anyone. I've given to the deep too but I think with you guys at least a tether of some sort would help even when you flip you kayak maybe ??
Re: Short Frog Rod (for the kayak)
They exist but look like a huge pain in the rear and they only work if you can get the yack back. Mine took off like a missile once when I got blown off in a storm. I did eventually recover it though. Also all my reels that get kayak use get some rub marks on them. For the hard wearing reels it just some dull spots in the clear coat. For the thin paint reels they can get annihilated. I also lay my reels out in front of me rather than use rod holders or crates. I dont like the way they obstruct my swing but placing them out in front does get them soaked and they jumble around a bit and get rough with each other and sometimes trade paint. For these reasons I like workhorse reels and save my nice stuff for the boat.goldrod wrote: ↑Sat Jan 15, 2022 3:40 pmIs there a tether or bungee available for you kayak guys?
Seems like an open market. I am not taking shoots or rod shaming anyone. I've given to the deep too but I think with you guys at least a tether of some sort would help even when you flip you kayak maybe ??
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Re: Short Frog Rod (for the kayak)
Old thread but just found a rod that would be a good short frog kayak rod if you can find it
Daiwa Blazon 2021
C67MH-FR
C67MH-2/ FR
Daiwa Blazon 2021
C67MH-FR
C67MH-2/ FR