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Good Ice fishing Combo for Pike?


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#21 MuskieBait

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Posted 20 January 2014 - 01:57 PM

Don't use the rod to set the hook if you're using light gear, instead treat it like you're strip setting a hook, tighten the drag and reel to set it instead.

 

How much pressure does those UL drag puts out? You set the drag too light and you essentially accomplishes nothing on the hookset if the hook point find cartilage. If you set the drag too tight then as soon as you "reel-set" the fish goes on a run on a tight drag and you risk breaking the tip off the UL rod.

 

Unfortunately, unlike fly fishing where you can strip set with your hand, and then let release the fly line with control as the fish runs, pick up stack and fight the fish on a pre-set drag setting on the reel, you can't do that with a spinning or casting reel in an icefishing situation. You pre-set the drag for the hookset, but you'll have to lighten it for the fight.

 

Also, unlike a soft water situation where the fish runs vertically and horizontally and you have room to angle the rod and line to accommodate the fish, when you are icefishing, the line often angled off to the side when a fish runs. It's not that much of an issue now, but come mid-winter when you have 24" of ice, the line often rubs the side of the hole (bottom of the hole) on the run. You set the drag too tight on the hookset and the ensuing initial run and you risk getting the line stuck on an edge without much give and SNAP! With a UL rod and heavier pound test, you risk snapping the rod before you snap the line.

 

Poster is a newer ice angler...who may not have the experience and quickness to dip the rod in the hole and fight the fish around the hole underwater. I post my response with that in mind.


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#22 Christopher K

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Posted 20 January 2014 - 01:59 PM

Actually that reel holds somewhere around 120 yrds of 15lb (braid), and there's no such thing as a 50 yard spool of line (that wouldn't fill any reel), so I'm not sure what you're talking about...


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#23 Christopher K

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Posted 20 January 2014 - 02:02 PM

How much pressure does those UL drag puts out? You set the drag too light and you essentially accomplishes nothing on the hookset if the hook point find cartilage. If you set the drag too tight then as soon as you "reel-set" the fish goes on a run on a tight drag and you risk breaking the tip off the UL rod.

 

Unfortunately, unlike fly fishing where you can strip set with your hand, and then let release the fly line with control as the fish runs, pick up stack and fight the fish on a pre-set drag setting on the reel, you can't do that with a spinning or casting reel in an icefishing situation. You pre-set the drag for the hookset, but you'll have to lighten it for the fight.

 

Also, unlike a soft water situation where the fish runs vertically and horizontally and you have room to angle the rod and line to accommodate the fish, when you are icefishing, the line often angled off to the side when a fish runs. It's not that much of an issue now, but come mid-winter when you have 24" of ice, the line often rubs the side of the hole (bottom of the hole) on the run. You set the drag too tight on the hookset and the ensuing initial run and you risk getting the line stuck on an edge without much give and SNAP! With a UL rod and heavier pound test, you risk snapping the rod before you snap the line.

 

Poster is a newer ice angler...who may not have the experience and quickness to dip the rod in the hole and fight the fish around the hole underwater. I post my response with that in mind.

you don't risk breaking the rod because you don't lift the rod to set the hook, point the rod tip to the hole and it can't break, the reels will let you really tighten down the drag as well.


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#24 MuskieBait

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Posted 20 January 2014 - 02:04 PM

Actually that reel holds somewhere around 120 yrds of 15lb (braid), and there's no such thing as a 50 yard spool of line (that wouldn't fill any reel), so I'm not sure what you're talking about...

 

I guess not...

 

http://www.powerpro....werpro_ice.html


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#25 MuskieBait

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Posted 20 January 2014 - 02:15 PM

you don't risk breaking the rod because you don't lift the rod to set the hook, point the rod tip to the hole and it can't break, the reels will let you really tighten down the drag as well.

 

If you are fishing a deadbait and have time to point the rod down before reeling down, sure. I do that all the time with pike...fish hits, bend the rod, you open the bail, let it run a bit, then when you are ready to set, you point the rod tip down as the line tightens or you reel the line tight...then set (or in your case you keep reeling to set).

 

If you are actively jigging, how fast can you reel down simultaneously and drop the rod tip down at the same time? If you have a perch that likes to suck and spit, or Cisco that does the same, how fast can you reel?

 

If you have a lake trout that comes up to rip the rod out of your hand on the hit when it went from 125 FOW to 50 FOW to smack a swimbait that you are reeling up, how fast can you drop the tip on a UL rod to protect the light blank? How much backbone does the rod have to set the hook on the take? How fast can you simultaneously reel and drop the rod tip? I've had lakers run back down 50 feet in a matter of seconds.

 

I'm not new to this...been icefishing for quite a while...I have a whole quiver of UL to H rods and have fished anything from panfish to lakers. I'm just relating my experience...and I'm sure you're relating yours as well.

 

But I do disagree respectfully.


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#26 Christopher K

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Posted 20 January 2014 - 02:59 PM

If you read my previous post you'll see that I only suggested that you do that while dead sticking and if jigging you should use a beefier rod. And why would you reel to set on a perch? Do you seriously use a heavy rod to jig perch? LOL


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#27 Christopher K

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Posted 20 January 2014 - 03:01 PM

Sorry, I don't buy the ice lines, didn't think of that. But the reel still holds a lot more, so he may have put backing on.


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#28 PUMP KNOWS

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Posted 20 January 2014 - 03:46 PM

Thanks for the advice guys.

 

Do you guys use special line?  Or would mono be fine?


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#29 MuskieBait

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Posted 20 January 2014 - 04:21 PM

Thanks for the advice guys.

 

Do you guys use special line?  Or would mono be fine?

 

Here's my take on line for icefishing...

 

If you are fishing ALL THE TIME in a hut, no doubt the no stretch and supple quality of braid is great for deep water fishing like you intended for Lake Trout. There is no denying that. BUT...braid does soak up water, even the Power Pro Ice Braid (which my buddy uses) after a while of use when the coating falls off. I think some of that coating rubs off when you clear the line of ice build up and when you are reeling your line through frozen guides. Once the braid soaks up water, if you're not fishing in a HUT, the line is prone to freeze on the spool. Yesterday, my buddy has to hand strip out line from his spool to drop lures....down 125 feet of water. When you are in the hut, the warmth inside the hut keeps your line from freezing...even as little warmth as your body heat.

 

I fish outside quite often, especially if I intend to fish different spots throughout the day. I like to pack light and stay mobile. Since I don't fish in a hut, I hate dealing with line freezing onto the spool. I do fish deep water and I need line that is more supple and thinner in diameter. I use Berkley Trilene XL - 2lb to 4lb on the UL rod, 6lb for lighter lure like small Bad Boyz and Williams Ice Jigs, 8lb for heavier lures like bigger Swedish Pimple, bigger Bad Boyz, Little Cleos and Jigging Raps. Basically, I consider whether the lure has enough weight to remove the coils in the line. I have a ML rod for the reel spooled with 6lb line (the lighter lures needs lighter action rod anyways), and the M rod for the reel spooled with 8lb line.

 

That is what I prefer. I've yet to have my line snap on a fish yet. My drag is set according to the line on the reel. You just take your time to fight the fish and land them. I've caught Lake Trout up to 8lbs and Whitefish up to 8lbs on the 6lb line...so I know it is strong enough. I've yet to hook a double digit Lake Trout yet...but if you take your time, it's entirely possible on 6lb line.

 

Since you are new to ice fishing, a word of advice...do not drop your reel on the snow or slush. Once your spool is soaked, water can seep into your spool of line and even mono can freeze into a block on cold days. Always keep your reels out of snow and slush as best as you can. When you reel in your line, water is shed as it contacts the guide so mono usually tends to freeze less frequently (but it can still build up ice and freeze on really cold days).

 

Also, keeping your reels out of snow and slush will slow or prevent your reels from getting too cold and prevent the grease in your reel from freezing. I've had reels completely ceased on cold days and I've broken off the anti-reverse switch level in the reels on cold days. The level simply snapped since the plastic was too brittle in the cold. I fish in -20C to -30C...so that is certainly an issue. When the grease in your anti-reverse bearing freezes, you may either lose anti-reverse or you have a completely ceased reel. A friend of mine suggested using white lithium as a lubricant for reels intended for icefishing.


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#30 Basschaser

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Posted 20 January 2014 - 07:00 PM

Just checked. The Power Pro Ice braid is 100 yards of 15 lb. It will all fit onto my F2 reel since it only 4 lb diameter.
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#31 MuskieBait

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Posted 20 January 2014 - 07:11 PM

Good stuff. Now you're ready.


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#32 Basschaser

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Posted 20 January 2014 - 10:51 PM

Should I use a fluoro leader?
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#33 MuskieBait

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Posted 21 January 2014 - 10:32 AM

I do like a 3-4' fluofocarbon - 2-4lb for perch, 6lb for whitefish, 8-10lb for lake trout, 15lb for pike.


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#34 BowSlayer

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Posted 21 January 2014 - 09:40 PM

Never snapped a rod icefishing (knock on wood)...but then again I use appropriate gear for the appropriate targets.

 

But I would recommend getting 2 rods with different action.

 

1) UL or L for sunfish, crappie, perch, cisco and even whitefish

 

2) ML or M for whitefish, lake trout, pike and burbot.

 

The action has less to do with whether the rod can sustain the fish on the run...but rather detecting bites and sustaining allowing you to set the hook on the bite.

 

Too soft a rod and you have a weak hookset on larger fish with bony mouths, especially when using lure that have stout hooks intended for larger fish. If you try to set the hook to hard, then you risk snapping the rod on the hookset. You can always ease the drag when you fight a fish, but if you ease the drag on the hookset, you simply won't set the hook if the hook finds cartilage.

 

Too stiff a rod and you pull the hook out, or rip right through, fish mouths, especially smaller fish like perch, crappie and cisco. It will be more difficult to detect a lift bite that is so typical of perch, crappie, cisco and whitefish. You may just barely see the line slack for a second but the tip of the rod will not bend. With a soft rod, even smaller lures will keep the rod tip bent. When a fish picks up the lure, you will see the tip bounce up but the line is still relatively tight. You can set the hook (if you have fast reflex) immediately on these lift bites.

you use medium for whities? wow, i never go more then ul, not even light but then again i fish northern lakes for them, where they bite like smelt and fight like lakers, lol.


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#35 MuskieBait

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Posted 22 January 2014 - 02:06 PM

The ML is my dedicated whitefish stick, but the M sometimes gets called too.

 

If I fish lakes in the Haliburton area where whitefish average 1-2lbs, then yeah, I would use a UL to L stick, and I have done so in the past. In fact, that's where I started fishing for whitefish and caught my first few whitefish.

 

But now I don't fish northern lakes much for whitefish that often. I fish Simcoe most of the time and the whitefish I caught in the past average 4lbs. Add to the fact that it is completely reasonable that you can catch sizeable lake trout on the same grounds with the same lures, I never want to go too light.

 

You can always add a spring bobber to the tip of your rod...which is what I do also with northern whities.

 

I don't like to fight a fish forever using super light gear. Yeah, it's fun...but it is not great for the fish's survival. A UL rod has no backbone at all against any whitefish or lake trout over 4lbs. You fight the fish too long and risk lactic acid build up in the fish. That is why I prefer to use heavier gear to bring them up quicker.


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#36 hamiltonangler94

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Posted 24 January 2014 - 07:54 PM

So guys I finally decided. And bought a rapala R-type mh casting ice combo loaded with 20Ib suffix ice braid. Can't wait to try it out!
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#37 BowSlayer

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Posted 25 January 2014 - 12:25 AM

The ML is my dedicated whitefish stick, but the M sometimes gets called too.

 

If I fish lakes in the Haliburton area where whitefish average 1-2lbs, then yeah, I would use a UL to L stick, and I have done so in the past. In fact, that's where I started fishing for whitefish and caught my first few whitefish.

 

But now I don't fish northern lakes much for whitefish that often. I fish Simcoe most of the time and the whitefish I caught in the past average 4lbs. Add to the fact that it is completely reasonable that you can catch sizeable lake trout on the same grounds with the same lures, I never want to go too light.

 

You can always add a spring bobber to the tip of your rod...which is what I do also with northern whities.

 

I don't like to fight a fish forever using super light gear. Yeah, it's fun...but it is not great for the fish's survival. A UL rod has no backbone at all against any whitefish or lake trout over 4lbs. You fight the fish too long and risk lactic acid build up in the fish. That is why I prefer to use heavier gear to bring them up quicker.

there are some ul rods with backbone if you are willing to spend the money, i don't care about fighting a laker or whitie too long, its gonna get freed anyways, lol.


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