River2Sea Spittin Wa review

Spittin Wa  : Colors: 16   Length: 2 1/4"  inch Weight: 9/16oz  Pack Count: 1

Intro:

I have been wanting to publish this review since the end of last season, but decided to let the hype cool off and see if my opinion was the same when fishing it this season vs. the limited time I got with it at the end of last year. The Hype may have cooled off over the long winter, but one thing has not changed and that's that this bait is one of the best popping frogs I have yet to cast

Overall Rating: 8.3/10

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

Quality & Durability: 4.5/5

River2Sea continues to bang our high quality baits that fish just eat up. The SpittinWa is a prime example of this, a nice solid body, with quality hooks and a soft rubber popping mouth that gets the job done and will last longer then a hard lipped popper.

I spent some time banging this bait around on a couple different lakes and was pleasantly surprised at how well it held up to the fish as well as my slapping it around

Castability: 4.5/5

For a popping frog the SpittinWa casts very well. I was able to get some good distance, with only minimal drag caused by the large cupped popping mouth. Like all River2Sea frogs that I have tested thus far the SpittinWa lands well (usually right side up) and can be skipped up under cover.

Presentation: 4.5/5

As a popper the SpittinWa ranks up amongst the best on the market, the wide soft plastic mouth with double bubble holes really gives off a loud spit that calls in fish from miles around (well that may be a slight exaggeration). The only thing that kept this bait from getting a perfect score in presentation is its performance on the pads.. its a drag, literally

In sparse to medium cover this frog moves very well, but when climbing over a large number of pads this bait looses steam quickly and it feels like you are  dragging it along. I'm not a fan of its movement on the pads at all, but can't grade it too harshly since its main function is popping

Hook-up Ratio: 3.5/5

There are a few minor features on the SpittinWa that although not cause for alarm did force me to give it only an average score for hook-up ratio. The first being that the body is fairly firm, and although that helps its overall durability it does not allow the body to compress as much as I would like and thus not as much of the hook is exposed during the bite/hook-set. The second and even more troubling issue for me is that the hooks are pointed inward and not parallel to the body. This can be adjusted with pliers but shouldn't have to be.

Availability: 4.5/5

River2Sea products are highly available in both Canada and the USA. I was easily able to snag a couple of these locally as well as at most major on-line retailers.

Options & Price: 3.5/5

I had a hard time rating this frog as to it's options and price. Both River2Sea and TackleWarhouse have the colour selection listed at 8, but the Bass Pro Shop shows 16 colours? Either way that's a nice selection of colour options but the price tag has a bit of sting to it at on average $9.86

Where to Find:

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

River2Sea ($10.49)

Tackle Warehouse ($9.99)

Bass Pro Shop ($8.99)

Mystery Tackle Box ($9.99)

Equipment:

I was excited to get the chance to break out a new rod when testing this frog. The Dobyns DX746 is my newest frogging rod and it more then lived up to the hype. The perfect mix of balance, tip and power it makes for a great frog rod in all types of cover. As for reels, the Daiwa Lexa pairs well with this rod and gives you a nice over sized spool for that added distance.

Field Test Report Card:

Open Water (Sparse Pads): A

Pads (Medium Cover): B

Slop & Grass (Heavy Cover): C

Walk the Dog: B+

Popping Action: A+

Sit/Pause: B+