Evolve Nervous Walker Frog Review

                         Nervous Walker:   Colors: 4    Size: 2.5"  Weight: 5/8oz   Pack Count: 1

Intro:

Evolve frogs caught many an anglers eye when they launched their line of "pulse" and species" frogs back at ICAST 2011. And although those hard body frogs left many of us scratching our heads, they quickly followed them up with the launch of a  hollow body series that includes the Nervous Walker. With soft body's and loud rattles, and a decent price tag, I think this line of frogs will be around for awhile to come

Overall Rating: 6.7/10

Each frog is rated on the following criteria: Quality, Castability, Presentation, Hook-up Ratio Available Options, Product Availability & Price

Quality: 3.5/5

I have to give it to Evolve, this has to be one of the softest (if not the softest) frogs on the market today. The body of this frog can be collapsed if you breath on it to heavily.. that being said, it also punctures easier then other hollow bodies, I think they are walking the fine line between the ultimate soft body and a paper body.

The hook appears to be quality, it is nice and sticky and still feels strong 

Castability: 3.5/5

The Nervous walker surely is not afraid of heights, this frog casts like a stone, so watch your reel breaks. This frog really surprised me on my first cast and I well overshot my target. (it does bounce well)

The large body frame as well as the internal beads/rattles give this frog some "oomph", it travels well, and lands hard, but always upright!. I think the body was designed well for casting, but could be improved upon for presentation.

Presentation: 3.0/5

This is the area in which this product suffers the most, unfortunately it fishes like log. It lands hard, and  does not move as well as I would like in the water.  I think the larger body frame effects how the frog moves across the pads. It almost fishes square, and feels more like Im dragging the bait then fishing it. Subtle movements seem lost on this frog

I will give the Nervous walker credit for it's internal rattle or bead system. I dont think enough hollow body frogs utilize a rattle, and it is high on my list of key/important features in the making of a perfect frog.

Hook-Up Ratio: 4.0/5

Moving now to an area in which this frog excels, the Nervous walkers ultra soft body and slightly upturned hooks makes sure any fish taking a swipe, will get nothing but hook.

Usually a wide bulky body on a hollow body frog is not considered a plus, but due to how soft this frog is, it gets away with the larger body frame to approve it's silhouette from below, and it does not effect the hook-up ratio

Availability: 3.0/5

On-line shoppers will have no issue getting their hands on Evolve products. Locally you may have more issue, but due to a great price point, I wont be surprised if these quickly become more readily available.

Options & Price: 3.5/5

Any-day I get to pay less then $9 for a hollow body frog is a good day. The Nervous walker is priced well coming in at about $8 at most retailers. If you find one locally, dont be surprised if you pay closer to $10 as any hollow body under that is a rare find.

The Color options are not vast, but this frog is available in 4 pretty realistic colors. I like really like the leopard brown as the red legs are a red/white color and add contrast to the body color. 

Where to Find:

In case you are having a hard time finding these locally, here are some reliable options for you.

Evolve ($7.79)

Tackle Warehouse ($7.19)

Land Big Fish ($6.99)

Fish307 ($7.19)

Evolve products have become more and more available over the past 12 months. I think this ties directly back to the success they had at ICAST 2011. Many major retailers carry them, and some of the smaller ones are also getting their toes wet. Dont be surprised if you find one or two Evolve products in a store near you

Videos:
I will try to provide you with video links to these frogs in action, or great informational videos. This is not always an easy task, so bear with me.

BassHoles.com  (informational)

Equipment:

As mentioned above this frog fishes pretty heavy, so without a doubt I use my Dobyns 736c. This rod was built to handle hollow bodies and the fish that eat them. 

If you a a frog collector like me, I recommend purchasing the "Leopard Brown", in an ever growing frog market, that color option is just different enough that it may stand out when traditional colors are just not cutting it.