Ice Rods

Just curious what others use out there for ice rods…. by species. I have a few… but am looking to collect a few more. Currently, I am down to two after tossing one last year and another went in the drink following a northern through the hole. My main walleye rod is a St Croix Premier ice rod. Not sure of the other… though it appears to be the perfect pan rod as I had offers of $50+ last winter. EXTREMELY sensitive… no need for the spring on that one. Will have to pull it out and see what it is. Don’t do much panfishing… and had it for about 5 years.

So, what do you consider the “best” ice rods out there?

For me it is the St.Croix Legend ice rods with those interchangeable spring bobbers. I started using one last year towards the end of the season and fell in love.

Agree with James 100%, they make a nice rod, and a good spring bobber makes a world of difference. Ice fishing is only 60 days away….tops….

Not that I ice fish much but here are my choices:
St. Croix
Thorne Brothers Sweet Heart Rods
Pick one of those and you are ready for ice.

Thorne Bros, or the legends, hands down…

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For me it is the St.Croix Legend ice rods with those interchangeable spring bobbers. I started using one last year towards the end of the season and fell in love.

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I’m looking at your next favorite ice rod James. It’ll be going home with you this week.

C’MON ICE!!!!!!!!

James,

I have to agree that those Legend rods look like nice sticks! Couple questions for you… First, if you could only have a limited number of rods (two or three) of these legends to cover all species… which would you choose (between the Legend ice models). Second question… I see that the have different springs available… and it also looks like they are adjustable. Can you put a medium spring on a Lite or Ultra Lite rod? Or vice versa… a Lite spring on a medium rod?

Dean got you too, eh?

I didn’t want to buy it but he talked me into trying it. After a couple days out in South Dakota I told him it wouldn’t be coming back to the resort any time soon.

I have your new 5ft St. Croix blank hole hopping/jigging rod.

If I didn’t already have 12 ice rods, I’d own a couple or 6 of those St. Croix ice rods.

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James,

I have to agree that those Legend rods look like nice sticks! Couple questions for you… First, if you could only have a limited number of rods (two or three) of these legends to cover all species… which would you choose (between the Legend ice models). Second question… I see that the have different springs available… and it also looks like they are adjustable. Can you put a medium spring on a Lite or Ultra Lite rod? Or vice versa… a Lite spring on a medium rod?

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The springs fit any of the models so you can swap them around as you see fit which makes this a super versatile system.

Pick up a Light and a Medium Heavy and an assortment of springs and you’ll be able to adjust and fine tune to meet any situation.

Last year I used their MH spring bobber on a medium action rod with 1/8 go-devils and smacked the perch and walleye around on LOTW. That same rod was awesome on pannies with a light action spring substituted for the H-Heavy action spring used on the perch / walleyes.

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I have your new 5ft St. Croix blank hole hopping/jigging rod.

If I didn’t already have 12 ice rods, I’d own a couple or 6 of those St. Croix ice rods.

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Ah! Gotcha. I misunderstood. I thought I was running one of those Croix rods from Everts down to you when I swing in on thursday.

Cool deal. Those long rods are too much fun on shallow fish. Thanks buddy.

I will jump in on the Thorne Bros. bandwagon. Hands down the best rods and service out there. The sensitivity is great and I love them for perch and walleyes. For panfish, I take a whole different approach. A $10 noodle rod and a $1 spring bobber. She isn’t pretty, but I bet a few IDA guys can attest to its effectiveness. I have watched that spring bobber for hundreds of hours, so I know when something isn’t right and then its time to bury the hooks. I think most of the other dozen or so rods I have are Premieres and Shakespeares. I rarely fish alone, so I try to keep enough for a few people.

I like the Nature Vision Genz Sticks myself, although theres no doubt the thorne bros are probaly the best.

Thorne rods are the best ice rods hands down. Their ground graphite blanks are exclusively sold to them only. They are each handmade by Pat Smith. Dave, stop in and talk to Pat, hes one of the best ice anglers in the country..

I havent used a Thorne brothers rod yet nor a Scott Mitchell rod but i heard that both are very good.

I do own a SC Legend rod and love it for panfish. Im going to try to find a MH spring before the season this year so i can use heavier jigs with it and still have great sensitivity. I would stay away from Ugly Sticks unless you are deadsticking; just dont have the sensitivity. Southbend Blizzard rods are cheap and suprisingly very sensitive. SC Premiere is a very nice rod as well.

No doubt that there are a handfull of choices when it comes to high end ice rods .One thing I found interesting last year with the Legend Ice Rods,is when people took them on a demo,it never came back!With the interchangable springbobber system,people realized they didnt need to buy as many rods as they thought they would.That helped to offset price concerns for many!

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I havent used a Thorne brothers rod yet nor a Scott Mitchell rod but i heard that both are very good.

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After using the Mitchell rods last winter, I can attest to the hype you’ve been hearing. These rods are built with quality in mind and the sensitivity is incredible. There are several new models coming out this year including a Spring Bobber rod and a Meat Stick rod, both should make a big splash with the hard water freaks.

Chad

Thorne Bros. sweetheart ice rods.

The best Ive used.

I agree that Pat Smith is one of the best.

Ask for himand he’ll help you out.

As for Pat making all the ice rods?

Don’t let the guys in the rod shop hear you say that.

– Thorne Bros Perch Sweetheart rod (either 28″ or 32″) might just be the best ice fishing rod ever made. Worth every penny!

– Running a close second to the Thorne rods are the Jason Mitchell series of rods IMO. The 28″ Walleye has a feel that is pretty close to a Thorne Perch Sweetheart. They aren’t quite Thorne rods but the price is going to be appealing to more people as well.

– The only thing good about the St Croix Legend rods are the Spring Bobbers. Thats it. I have a few and you cannot make me fish another spring bobber, but I really can’t stand the rods. The blanks don’t have much backbone, the rods need more guides, I have no control over the rod, the rod wobbles back and forth when fighting a fish, etc, etc. These rods are notorious for breaking tips as well. I would expect a more quality rod for $50 and the fact they have St Croix’s name on them. Its a catch 22, best spring bobber in the business on an average rod that you pay a premium price for.

Can you use a St Croix spring bobber on a sweetheart?

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C’MON ICE!!!!!!!!

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Blue…I thought you were a hard core bass man? I like to see you coming around to the hard water…

Ted

Never replied to the original post. I like the St. Croix rods with the spring bobbers, but find it difficult to take care of the rod when traveling to and from the ice fishing spots. I guess I am a little rougher on the equipment than the normal person. I started fishing with a $10 pole from gander where the line ran through the shaft and out throught a spring. That is extremely slick. The only problem I continually experienced was when it got a little cold, my line would freeze in the rod. Definitely like the St. Croix…just pack it in it’s container I bought it in every time to and from the ice. The bottom line for me is the spring bobber. Time and time again, especially with the crappies, you can watch the spring bobber actually raise up while you are holding it steady, set the hook, and know you have a crappie on the line. I am still a novice at this game, but the spring bobber has really helped me more than any one rod has. jmo. Ted

I have had a dozen or so of the Legends and gave most to friends of mine to keep and use. The rest I kept to let friends use when they come fishing with me. I am not even sure what to make of the new 17″ version of the Legend. Definitely not happy with the reel seat version.

Hands down I would rather tightline than use a spring bobber. That or sight fish! The rods I use the most for panfish are the St Croix Avid UL rods and the Thorne Bros Power Noodles. I had mine built with larger outdoor eyes, and without the flo. paint on the tip. The paint really kills the action of the rod and without it is a true noodle rod. For sight fishing the TB Sweet Pea is probably the best rod on the market, at 16 inches the rod is perfect. For heavier perch jigs I have a couple of Avid Med lights.

I use 28 and 32″ Avids for walleye, 26″ (med) and 36″ Genz original Lightning Rods (Great Lake walleye rods)Med Heavies and some 40″ rods I glued together myself. For jiggin pike and lakers I’ve got a 36″ TB Pro Plus casting rod. Sweet rod, also a fiberglass model.

Some of the guys I know will have some of the Jason Mitchell rods at the NAIFC in December and I plan to see them for myself then. Bud Faynor helped design the tight line rod (see website and rods) and I should be able to fish with a couple while prefishing.

Frabill Makes a great line of ice rods that are often overlooked. The panfish popper is really cheap, but great quality for your money. I don’t know about the st. Croix spring bobbers, but just as bone mover described, I can see everything with this spring bobber..Sensive rods..I haven’t tried a new sensive but the ones from a few years back are a real good rod. Last winter I bought an alpine. This is basically frabill’s version of the HT ice blues rods…Let me tell you it is my new favorite rod. at 30″ long wtih good backbone, yet a very noodle like action to the tip, i use this rod exclusively for small jigging spoons when fishing for crappies. No need for a spring bobber, the rod actually lifts just like a spring bobber when you get a strike. I couldn’t be happier with that product. I think this year I’m going to dive in to some better quality gear…at least replace some of my REAL crappy stuff..but I’m still not real convinced that these expensive rods will make a difference in my performance. Once you adapt to a rod and you know what a bite feels/looks like on it, you have all you need.

They’re all great rods depending on how much you want to spend and how much time you spend on the ice or water. However, my theory might different than one expects or thinks. If you don’t fish a lot, all the more reason to spend more money on a high quality rod to make each bite and time on the ice or water count IMO! With that said, I’d have to agree on the Thorne Bros. rods and St. Croixs. The J. Mitchel rods seem to be a decent rod for the money. The best advice I can give is to go to the stores and check them out and compare. and when you compare be sure to have some line with you to actuall load them up and FEEL the action. Even tie a jig to see what your looking for…

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C’MON ICE!!!!!!!!

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Blue…I thought you were a hard core bass man? I like to see you coming around to the hard water…

Ted

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Hey now…….I’m a man for all seasons. I have just as much Ice Tackle as I do Bass Tackle. I just don’t get to use the ice tackle that much.

c’mon ice!!!!

the ice blues rod by HT is by far my favorite ice rod, i am a big jigging spoon guy in the winter months and i have yet to find a rod that matches it, except fot the frabill alpine rod.

Has anyone ever tried taking a rod blank and making their own ice rod???I’m kinda thinking about taking a Gloomis blank and making a rod for myself…

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except fot the frabill alpine rod.

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lol

yeah they are basically the same thing aren’t they

I’ve been making ice rods for 5 years now, including a copy of the Legend Elite complete with their spring bobber and a solid carbon blank but using a wood handle and reel seat. It’s virtually the same as building a long rod with fewer guides.