Monday, July 29, 2013

Booyah Poppin Pad Crasher Review


Poppin Pad Crasher:   Colors: 6     Length: 2 1/4 inch    Weight: 1/2oz   Pack Count: 1

Intro:

Booyah came crashing onto the frog scene in 2012 with it's PadCrasher frog, a high quality bait that out priced the competition yet was built to last. In 2013 they came back to the table offering a Popping model of the now famous pad crasher, and let me tell you.. they didn't miss a step 


Overall Rating: 8.5/10
Each frog is rated on the following criteria: Quality, Castability, Presentation, Hook-up Ratio Available Options, Product Availability & Price



Quality & Durability: 4.5/5

My confidence in the Booyah Pad Crasher line is extremely high, you may remember last season when I reviewed the original pad crasher I wondered how long (and if at all) the super thin skin of this frog would hold up.. well the answer to that is it holds up very well.. better even then some higher priced frogs that have a thicker skins (example: Live Target). These frogs take abuse well, but fish after fish they keep on popping



Castability: 4.5/5

Just like with the original Pad Crasher the Popping frog feels very light in your hand but is surprising heavy. Coming in at 1/2 oz you can cast these baits for miles and they always land upright. Personally I find they have a softer landing then other baits in their weight class, it is subtle enough not to spook fish, but loud enough to make fish in the area aware of it's presence (kinds like a dinner bell)

Presentation: 4.0/5

Though not the best popping action of the frogs I have test driven this season, the Poppin Pad Crasher does a great job calling in fish. It has a smaller mouth then most of it's competition and a slight underbite. The underbite allows you to drive the frog down and force the water up for a decent spit. I find that this also gives the frog a little hop when popped, which can be debated as a good or bad thing

Hook-up Ratio: 4.5/5

The reason the Booyah Pad Crasher series is as popular as it is, can be attributed to its stellar hook-up ratio. Simply put this bait is so soft it collapses when you breath of it.. It is loaded with a sharp strong hooks, and it sits slung low in the water allowing fish to target in on it and eat it whole. If will be tough to find another frog that offers you a similar hook-up ration and impossible to find one at offers it at the same price point.






Availability: 3.5/5

The Original Pad Crasher grew in popularity so fast that within what felt like days of it's release is was widely available. For some reason the same cannot be said for the Poppin Pad Crasher. Yes many major retailers do carry this frog, but some of the giants are still missing.. i.e TackleWarehouse.

All in all you should have no issues getting your hands on one

Options & Price: 4.5/5

With the success of the Pad Crasher I kind of expected some other frog companies to drop their prices or at least introduce a lower priced model to compete with Booyah.. they didn't and to this day it is still one of the best priced baits on the market.. the value for your money is hard to beat



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


Lurenet ($5.99) 

Cabela's ($5.99)

Bass Pro Shop ($6.79)





Field Test Report Card: 

Open Water (Sparse Pads):  A-
Pads (Medium Cover):  A
Slop & Grass (Heavy Cover):  B+



Walk the Dog:  B
Popping Action: B+
Sit/Pause: B


Equipment:

I prefer to use a Dobyns 736c when throwing any popping version of a hollow body frog. The stiffer tip really pounds it down and gives you great sound and spit. My frog reel of choice has to be the Daiwa Lexa 300, the strength and castability it offers make it an unbeatable reel (not to much well priced)



2 comments:

  1. I've been wondering about this frog. For the money, I'm getting a couple of them. Great review. You're converting me to a frog man pretty fast. Right now, I only have 1/2 a Plano box filled with them. I probably will have one or two full boxes before you know it (pssst...don't tell my wife).

    ReplyDelete
  2. it's our little secret.. the day my wife starts reading these blogs is the time she stops giving me an allowance!, lol

    ReplyDelete