Leg Style: Buzz Weight: 1oz
Intro:
The Damiki Air frog is one of the more unique frog baits to hit the market over the past few years, and it immediately caught my attention when launched at ICAST back in 2013. Equipped with two air chambers on either side of the bait the Air Frog easily stays afloat while presenting a large bulky profile to hungry bass.
Overall Rating: 6.5/10
Each frog is rated on the following criteria: Quality, Castability, Presentation, Hook-up Ratio Available Options, Product Availability & Price
Quality & Durability: 3.5/5
There is a hell of a lot of plastic put into this frog, and both the legs and body were definitely built to last. The biggest area of concern I have is with the nose end of the bait that seems to tear up easily even while fitting the hook. After my first blow-up the screw ripped out of the nose making it awkward to get the bait rigged back up properly and running straight. Although there is a foam insert in the nose that was designed to help hold a screw in-place but it is still hit or miss and you can tear up baits easily if not rigged properly.
I like Damiki baits but I think some more thought needed to be put into how this bait needs to be rigged vs fished. It fishes well, but on top of the nose issue addressed above I also found it hard to properly size the hook with most hooks currently in my arsenal being to large or too small requiring some tweaking. Double hooks where places through the legs (see above) and single hooks I slide into the ass end of the bait (see below)
Castability: 3.5/5
This is a heavy frog, and it casts like a shot. It lands fairly well but depending on how your rig the bait you may have a hard time getting it to flip over if by chance it lands belly up, the wide body stance covers a lot of surface so its not as easy to flip over (its built like a Hummer)
The belly is conducive for skipping but again the weight means you may need to get in some practise in order to nail the perfect skip. Watch the below video to see whats capable once you get your technique down pat.
The belly is conducive for skipping but again the weight means you may need to get in some practise in order to nail the perfect skip. Watch the below video to see whats capable once you get your technique down pat.
Presentation: 4.0/5
Once you get this bait in the water it kicks up a storm, I really like the way it swims and displaces water driving fish nutty. If rigged right (under the chin) the Air frog keeps its nose above water giving it a slightly submerged look while the large legs stir up a commotion out back.
This is a floating frog, and will stay above the water if rigged and fished properly. Watch the air bladders as the more abuse they take the harder it will be to keep the bait upright. I have tried to show a few rigging options in this review but really this bait is meant to be fished using a screw-in frog hook.
This is a floating frog, and will stay above the water if rigged and fished properly. Watch the air bladders as the more abuse they take the harder it will be to keep the bait upright. I have tried to show a few rigging options in this review but really this bait is meant to be fished using a screw-in frog hook.
A combination of its odd rigging along with its large bulky body means that this frog has a slightly lower then average hook-up ratio. If it wasn't for the soft supple plastic used by Damiki this rating would be even lower.
Availability: 3.0/5
Not widely available he Air Frog can be found at a few of the larger retailers that seem to have become the standard here on the frog pond. If TackleWarehouse and/or LandBigFish don't carry a bait.. consider it hard to find
Options & Price: 3.0/5
The baits themselves come 4 to a pack and on average they will cost your $7.99 a pack or $1.99 a frog. This is slightly painful, even more so if they only hold up for a single fish.
The 6 colour options are an interesting mix of light (white) Dark (black) and the usually suspects like pumpkin and watermelon. The frog you see pictured here is the Moebi colour (I also bought black)
The 6 colour options are an interesting mix of light (white) Dark (black) and the usually suspects like pumpkin and watermelon. The frog you see pictured here is the Moebi colour (I also bought black)
In case you are having a hard time finding these locally, here are some reliable options for you.
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Equipment:I completed all my Air Frog testing with a Dobyns 736c paired with a Daiwa Tatula. This frogs size demands a beefier rod, hence the reason I stepped up from the 735c that i usually throw soft plastic toads on. Larger spool reels will also help you with getting additional distance, frogs like the Air frog excel when you allow the fish to follow the bait for awhile prior to attacking it
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