Fishnwire Posted January 23, 2011 Report Share Posted January 23, 2011 Somebody on another board was asking about what he would need to get started ice fishing. I (and others) suggested he go to Crappy Tire (or where ever) and pick out a combo or two. The OP said he'd do that and I have no doubt he'll be able to find a decent set up for a good price. It got me thinking though. When I started to ice fish almost 30 years ago, we didn't have anywhere near the availability of quality "off the shelf" gear that we do now. The first few ice rods I owned I built myself from cut down (often broken) pieces of summer rods. Store bought ice rods were nearly impossible to find, were of terrible quality, and cost a relative fortune. I had to build my own because I'd end up with a better rod for less money than I could acquire commercially for any price. Guys used to see my home-made rods and be blown away...I had requests to built more than a few...I haven't bothered to build one in years and I probably never will again. That's because nowadays I couldn't build as good a rod for less money than what is available in every department store's fishing section. I still have a few of those home-made rods and almost never use them. The ones that are commercially made are simply better rods. I guess as more people started ice fishing, more ice fishing gear became available...and as more ice fishing gear became available, more people were able to start ice fishing. We didn't have cool stuff like pop-up or flip-over portable shelters 30 years ago...It's interesting to think of what will be available 30 years from now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
livinisfishin Posted January 23, 2011 Report Share Posted January 23, 2011 Definitely is sweet having these tools available! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Old Man Posted January 23, 2011 Report Share Posted January 23, 2011 Yeah, my first gear was a piece of wood to hold the green cotton line and what we called a Swedish hook with some frozen smelts. We kept warm by using our old dull Swede bore auger to drill holes and sat on our 5 gallon pails to rest. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BillM Posted January 23, 2011 Report Share Posted January 23, 2011 I only ever bought new gear when I started to fish for lakers and whities. Before that it was a homemade wood tip up. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest ThisPlaceSucks Posted January 23, 2011 Report Share Posted January 23, 2011 i still carry spools of trilene xl for use with a gad. there's nothing lighter to carry and many ice rods are just too stiff for set lines. also, like bill, i still use my tip ups made from an old hocke stick, a dowel, and a doorstop. sure i have some ice rods and such, but if it ain't broke, don't fix it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fishnwire Posted January 23, 2011 Author Report Share Posted January 23, 2011 The thing is, just like my home-made rods, the commercial made tip ups which, when tripped, free spool under the water level where they don't freeze are better than the hockey stick jobs I used in the past. The round "thermal" ones keep your hole from freezing, weigh almost nothing, pack up nice, set up in seconds and work like a charm every time. My old wooden DIYs "ain't broke"...but they're not as good as what I can buy. They are no where near as good. Also, any person who has never ice fished can now get what they need to do so with a simple trip to the store. In the past you had to have a pretty good idea of what you were doing before you could construct what you needed. It was usually a process of trial and error, tinkering and re-tinkering before we had the reliable set ups that some of us still use today. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest ThisPlaceSucks Posted January 23, 2011 Report Share Posted January 23, 2011 (edited) The thing is, just like my home-made rods, the commercial made tip ups which, when tripped, free spool under the water level where they don't freeze are better than the hockey stick jobs I used in the past. The round "thermal" ones keep your hole from freezing, weigh almost nothing, pack up nice, set up in seconds and work like a charm every time. My old wooden DIYs "ain't broke"...but they're not as good as what I can buy. They are no where near as good. i see your point but with regards to tip ups i would disagree based on my personal experiences (pure opinion). while the theory behind the store bought tip ups is good they are typically made from cheap plastic and haven't held up to the wear and tear i would expect for a 30-40 dollar tip up(they become brittle when they are cold). i've owned 3 different plastic tip ups in 4 seasons and i always go back to the hockey stick or gad. i think i'd just rather clear my hole every half an hour than have another tip up break on a back lake. my hockey stick T-U also breaks down into two pieces so it's not much wider than a hockey stick and takes up no room in a backpack. Edited January 23, 2011 by Dr. Salvelinus Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Leecher Posted January 23, 2011 Report Share Posted January 23, 2011 Well I must say that I make my own tipups / tipdowns which ever you want to call them and they are the very best Always satisfied with their functionality and performance and well balanced Leechman Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fishnwire Posted January 23, 2011 Author Report Share Posted January 23, 2011 i see your point but with regards to tip ups i would disagree based on my personal experiences (pure opinion). while the theory behind the store bought tip ups is good they are typically made from cheap plastic and haven't held up to the wear and tear i would expect for a 30-40 dollar tip up(they become brittle when they are cold). i've owned 3 different plastic tip ups in 4 seasons and i always go back to the hockey stick or gad. i think i'd just rather clear my hole every half an hour than have another tip up break on a back lake. my hockey stick T-U also breaks down into two pieces so it's not much wider than a hockey stick and takes up no room in a backpack. Everything I've said is only pure opinion as well...but I can tell you my Frabil round thermal TUs were purchased from CT at their end of season sale for $9.99 each. I've used them for three seasons now and they're in the same shape/working order that they were when I bought them. I've also got a Frabil "Arctic Fire" which I bought (over paid for) at a little bait shop for $25. It's base is plastic but you'd have a hard time breaking it over your knee...every other piece of it is metal. It's on it's fourth season. I also have a pair of ones that say "Sub-Zero" on them. They are all metal apart from their wooden base. I paid $20 each for them. They don't get used unless there a big gang of us but they've given me no problems. I believe you when you say your experiences with store bought TUs have not been favourable but I think it's possible you just haven't used one that is to your liking. I love using mine and often sacrifice my jigging rod for a second tip up when pike fishing. The sight of a raised flag and a blurred spindle gets my heart racing. To each his own. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fishnwire Posted January 23, 2011 Author Report Share Posted January 23, 2011 Leechman...if everyone had your fabrication abilities then there would be no market for a lot of the things at Crappy Tire. They'd sell a lot more of things like drill bits, sand paper and fasteners...but a lot less things like tip ups and crank baits. - I can't tell from your pics...do your units free spool after a fish picks up the bait? To me that is an essential feature of a tip up. - My Dad uses tip ups that look very simular to yours. He outfished me with my ice rods something like 8 to 2 last time we were out for crappie. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
okumasheffield Posted January 23, 2011 Report Share Posted January 23, 2011 It's interesting to think of what will be available 30 years from now. Super sonar/flasher that you no longer have to drill holes before using. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Leecher Posted January 23, 2011 Report Share Posted January 23, 2011 ....I can't tell from your pics...do your units free spool after a fish picks up the bait? To me that is an essential feature of a tip up. My Dad uses tip ups that look very simular to yours. He outfished me with my ice rods something like 8 to 2 last time we were out for crappie. They sure do GoodMan.... all depends how hard the knob on the reel is set after dropping the bait into the hole..... also I have 10 adjustable holes into the top for sensitivity Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fishnwire Posted January 23, 2011 Author Report Share Posted January 23, 2011 They sure do GoodMan.... all depends how hard the knob on the reel is set after dropping the bait into the hole..... also I have 10 adjustable holes into the top for sensitivity My Dad has several holes to adjust his balance too. He also drilled a few shallow holes in the butt section that accomadate 1/4 oz split shots held in by friction fit. He pushes them in and takes them out to minutely adjust the angle of the free arm depending on things like the size/activety of his minnow and wind. What kind and brand of line do you use? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Leecher Posted January 23, 2011 Report Share Posted January 23, 2011 My Dad has several holes to adjust his balance too. He also drilled a few shallow holes in the butt section that accomadate 1/4 oz split shots held in by friction fit. He pushes them in and takes them out to minutely adjust the angle of the free arm depending on things like the size/activety of his minnow and wind. What kind and brand of line do you use? 30# Dacron, roughly 60' of line on the spool with wire leader and 4/0 Octopus hook. Just above the leader, about a couple of inches, a 1/4oz bell sinker. Pike, walleye and perch don't seem too shy about coming to have a lunch on the salty ( salted frozen minnow ) Only allowed dead minnows up here in Quebec in the zone I fish in Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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