11-14-2012, 07:55 AM
The question of using conventional fishing equipment for ice fishing intrigues me. I see that some here do just that, so I have some specific questions. Please answer based on this being completely new to me.
I grew up in Louisiana among bayous and swamps and thought a mountain was fifteen feet. I deep sea fished a lot about forty miles out into the Gulf of Mexico from Grand Isle and caught red snapper with some weighing more than me.
I just had my first season of spinning rod and reel fishing with cast and retrieve of lures and swim bait. I did very well catching big fish and had a lot of fun and learned a lot.
Now I need to figure some things out before I go shopping for ice fishing equipment on black Friday. In particular, I have questions about choosing products for multiple season use. I'm not trying to spend little, but I would prefer to get more use of equipment than just ice fishing unless the substitutions won't preform well and make my fishing less productive.
Here is my thinking based on no experience, so please tell me if I'm wrong and overlooking important criteria.
I like the idea presented here of using my same spinning reels that I've been using.
Ice fishing poles look too weak for the size fish you guys pull out from under the ice.
It seems that I should use the same line strength that I've been using this summer.
I do like the idea of longer rod length presented above to help set the hook, so how about I choose one of my two piece rods and just not use the second half. My 7 foot rod should be 3-1/2 feet and my ten foot two price rod which I like a lot should be 5 feet. Either would be much stiffer than an ice fishing rod which seems right to me, but how am I wrong? Lighter action for big fish when they are under ice? I do have a spinning rod that is 5 feet and ultra light. It's carbon fiber and would seem to be easy to break with a big fish.
Ice fishing tents? The material is black on the inside. Are we trying to keep out light? Other than that, they look very much like my camouflage hunting blind that looks something like this one:
http://www.cabelas.com/product/Hunting/H...t104365080
Is that substantially different from an ice fishing tent?
But, the high dollar item is the fish finder and that's where I would most like multiple use versatility, if it makes sense. I've been reading posts on what people like and I might get a fancy expensive one. Can I get a fish finder that will work well for both boat fishing and ice fishing? Would an ice fishing one work on the boat well? Or should it be the other way around? Or should I get a dedicated ice fishing one and later get a boat one? Can a MarCum LX-9 be used on the boat or would I do better with a boat fish finder that I also use on ice?
I might design and build my own auger to take out a core of ice and much easier and built much lighter. I have some titanium superalloy to make it even lighter still. Has anyone ever seen a core of ice removed to make a hole?
On boots, I've read our posts on that too. How about I wear my insulated waders for ice fishing?
Thanks in advance.
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I grew up in Louisiana among bayous and swamps and thought a mountain was fifteen feet. I deep sea fished a lot about forty miles out into the Gulf of Mexico from Grand Isle and caught red snapper with some weighing more than me.
I just had my first season of spinning rod and reel fishing with cast and retrieve of lures and swim bait. I did very well catching big fish and had a lot of fun and learned a lot.
Now I need to figure some things out before I go shopping for ice fishing equipment on black Friday. In particular, I have questions about choosing products for multiple season use. I'm not trying to spend little, but I would prefer to get more use of equipment than just ice fishing unless the substitutions won't preform well and make my fishing less productive.
Here is my thinking based on no experience, so please tell me if I'm wrong and overlooking important criteria.
I like the idea presented here of using my same spinning reels that I've been using.
Ice fishing poles look too weak for the size fish you guys pull out from under the ice.
It seems that I should use the same line strength that I've been using this summer.
I do like the idea of longer rod length presented above to help set the hook, so how about I choose one of my two piece rods and just not use the second half. My 7 foot rod should be 3-1/2 feet and my ten foot two price rod which I like a lot should be 5 feet. Either would be much stiffer than an ice fishing rod which seems right to me, but how am I wrong? Lighter action for big fish when they are under ice? I do have a spinning rod that is 5 feet and ultra light. It's carbon fiber and would seem to be easy to break with a big fish.
Ice fishing tents? The material is black on the inside. Are we trying to keep out light? Other than that, they look very much like my camouflage hunting blind that looks something like this one:
http://www.cabelas.com/product/Hunting/H...t104365080
Is that substantially different from an ice fishing tent?
But, the high dollar item is the fish finder and that's where I would most like multiple use versatility, if it makes sense. I've been reading posts on what people like and I might get a fancy expensive one. Can I get a fish finder that will work well for both boat fishing and ice fishing? Would an ice fishing one work on the boat well? Or should it be the other way around? Or should I get a dedicated ice fishing one and later get a boat one? Can a MarCum LX-9 be used on the boat or would I do better with a boat fish finder that I also use on ice?
I might design and build my own auger to take out a core of ice and much easier and built much lighter. I have some titanium superalloy to make it even lighter still. Has anyone ever seen a core of ice removed to make a hole?
On boots, I've read our posts on that too. How about I wear my insulated waders for ice fishing?
Thanks in advance.
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