Best minnows to use on Mille Lacs?

I am going to Mille Lacs for the first time and was wondering if just fatheads will do or if someone recommends something else for minnows?

Thanks!

Believe it or not, early last season suckers ruled for several weeks.
Generally speaking, Shiners would be the top pick overall, then rainbows followed by fatheads.
Although sometimes as we know the “rules” are out the window…

How do creek chubs fare?

5″ suckers were all they wanted last week, would not hit a fat head at all.

+1 on the suckers

Sounds like my experiences are similar. I believe small suckers (5-7″) are the best for set-lines and tip-ups. You can buy a dozen and get to your spot with 11-12 still alive. Plus, they just get bit. Before I figured that out, I did a lot of very informal shiner vs rainbow vs fathead comparisons.

Shiners seem to produce the best of those three, if you can afford them and get them to the lake without dying. It seems like even the live ones are always on the verge of dying, and the little quivvers they make as they’re about to pass may be triggering these fish to bite. Plus they’re as shiny as a new nickel. They will just hang on the hook motionless sometimes though. It’s been a couple years since I last bought them.

Rainbows are the most active, along with suckers, and the most hardy. You can keep them in a bucket of water in the garage and they’ll still be good next week. Rainbows will swim all day long under a tip-up. These are normally my go-to for tip-ups on all other lakes: LOTW, URL, or local.

I can say without a shadow of a doubt that fatheads are the least useful. They’re useful for minnow heads only. Or feeding to the ferile cats in the forest behind my house.

Shiners have done better for me than suckers on Mille Lacs, however I would listen to the recent advice and have both.