Standard/Favorite Lures usually rigged up

With ice shows coming up I got my rod boxes down the other day and it got me thinking about ice season, lures, etc. As time allows I’m planning to clean/lube the reels, tie new leaders, tie on new quick snaps/clips when applicable, etc. Knowing the that many of us have multiple of about every lure they put on shelves but use a finite amount of those we have confidence in, I started laying out the likely rob/reel/lure combinations. I like to have different options ready for perch, walleye, and truck fishing (longer rods). Below is what I came up with. How about you?

(Normal disclaimer that it varies with depth, water clarity, time of winter, region/state, etc. Also no need to note I have too many rig combos…working on it).

JT Panhandler: wonderbread or gold jig
TUCR QT: small leech flutter spoon
JT Golddigger: Buckshot rattle spoon bladed treble
TUCR Precison: Flutter spoon of some type
Custom Carbon: PK Spoon
Tucr Deadstick: jig
44in Shiver Stick: Rattle flyer bladed treble
FB Drench: Jig, baitfeeder reel
40in Lake Effect Pannie Rocker: small kastmaster

Homemade rod on JT Shiverstick blank #1 – Pink PK spoon, VMC Beaded/glow treble
Homemade rod on JT Shiverstick blank #2 – Rapala Slab Rap 4 Clown
Homemade Rod on JT Black Reign blank – Rapala Rippin Rap 4 Clown
Homemade Rod on Bass Khang Perch Blank – Pink Wonderbread Amped longshank tungsten, Minnow tail
JT Walleye Snare – Green Glow bead, Pink or Purple #6 hook, Paired with a Shiner

Those are my go to walleye setups, Also Have a half dozen Panfish Rods Rigged at all times.

Homemade Rod on Della Bay Tip dip blank #1 – Amped Jig, Wonderbread
Homemade Rod on Della Bay Tip dip blank #2 – Clam/CC Pinhead
Homemade Rod on Cut down JT Rogue blank, Spring bobber and Schooley – Amped Jig – Pink Wonder bread
Homemade Rod on Thorne Power Noodle blank – Amped Jig

For crappies, I always start with my TUCR Bullwhip and a pink VMC tungsten Bull fly. Lots of days I never need to change.
DT

Jigging and Ripping raps have been an enigma for me. I know they catch fish, watch people do it, try…no luck. Obviously operator error, try-try again.

Love the pinhead minnow, gotta get that on somewhere. Another rod??? That Perch Sweetheart is talked of highly…???

Try to keep on a variety of flutter spoons, darting lures, thin vertical spoons, jig…

Ekruger01: Late last year after the Nokomis video came out I started modding lures with bladed trebles, feather trebles, glow trebles…tipped with impulse minnow heads, clam minnow heads, some perch eyes from various companies. Can’t wait to use those lures this year.

acarroline wrote:

Ekruger01: Late last year after the Nokomis video came out I started modding lures with bladed trebles, feather trebles, glow trebles…tipped with impulse minnow heads, clam minnow heads, some <em class=”ido-tag-em”>perch eyes from various companies. Can’t wait to use those lures this year.

Corey Bechtold Got me started on modifying plastics and presentations years ago. Bladed trebles, beaded trebles, Plastics etc are a huge staple in my tackle box. Kind of like a double minnow setup facing opposite directions on a deadstick!

Rigged and ready to go is usually a soft plastic on a jig. Usually a Northland Bro’s bloodworm.

I would say that my favorites is rather broad. I know when I started, it was a select few lures. Northland Forage Minnow jig/spoon, Doodlebug spoon, Swedish Pimple, ACME Kastmaster. Then as I expand my lure box and tried different lures, I found I really like Northland Buckshot spoons, Lindy Rattl’n Flyer spoons, Rapala Jig’n Rap and Jig’n Shad Rap, Salmo Chubby Darter.

More recent years been doing really well on Kender’s T-Rip lure, Major Craft Jigpara tail spinner

My go to is always a Buckshot. Usually pink and white.

I wish Northland still made the creep worm. I’m running dangerously low on them but one of those and a minnow is tough to beat on a dead stick for any species. Some imitations out there but nothing like the original that I’ve found anyways.

1/16th ounce blue and white frostee spoon, tipped with either a crappie minnow head or euro larvae

walleyesforme wrote:

I wish Northland still made the creep worm. I’m running dangerously low on them but one of those and a minnow is tough to beat on a dead stick for any species. Some imitations out there but nothing like the original that I’ve found anyways.

I was wondering why I’ve had a tough time finding them. I’ve got a half dozen of them left and they’re about wore out.

Found some creep worms for sale on Ebay if you’d like to stock up.

What is the CW best for? Hook is biggish for pannies. Mostly a Walter thing?

We use them for everything. Walleyes and crappies love those things. I’m not sure about smaller crappies but the lakes we fish the crappies are usually pretty sizeable and have no problem slurping them up. I’m down to just a few left and they are beat up but I’ve been repainting them. I’ll have to check eBay. Never thought of that.

Glide Baits, Berkley Finisher, Marabou jig. I do everything I can to avoid live bait.

So many good options mentioned. In addition to what I mentioned before I gotta work in the frostee spoon, pinhead minnow, and Swedish pimple/dojigger. New appreciation for the frostee spoon after seeing the action on camera during a mille lacs trip a few years ago. That spinning on the lift and flutter on the fall is deadly.

Lindy/chubby darter is almost always on one rod

Ahhh…the Chubby Darter, yet another popular ice lure that I’ve tried and never caught a fish on. Appears to be a pattern of operator errors

For walleye rods, I usually have 2 rigged up, JT Goldigger with some Wonderbread colored Northland Buckshot and the TUCR Fusion with a 1/8oz Slender Spoon. I have other setups, these are just the 2 I generally start with

For Crappies and Gills, usually have the TUCR Precision Noodle and the JT Customs Rogue with a 4mm tungsten jig with a plastic, just different colors between the 2 setups. When I need to downsize I go to the DH Customs AL Dente with 3mm or non-tungsten jigs tipped with a spike or 2

Haha. I’ve caught quite a few nice eyes and pike on them. I’m sure the crappies would gobble up the smaller sizes too. I haven’t used the chubby darter as much as the lindy version(do they even still make them?).

I like them better than jigging raps and rippin raps. They don’t have that strong vibration(just a rattle) and they make BIG circles when you rip them hard. The fish even like them sitting still or barely moving sometimes. I’ve had walleyes chase them up halfway in 25 fow and hit them and even meet them halfway as they’re falling on the initial drop at that depth. They love ‘em!

acarroline wrote:

Ahhh…the Chubby Darter, yet another popular ice lure that I’ve tried and never caught a fish on. Appears to be a pattern of operator errors

Don’t worry I have never caught anything on those damn style baits either. I starting to think all these other guys are lying to us and they can’t catch anything with them either.

For me I have the Gold digger with a little heavier spoon, buckshot, rattlyn flyer, or others. The Tucr precision with something a little lighter on it macho minnow, custom jr tackle fond of pinks. Then the perch sweetheart with another smaller spoon of some sort. Also have a few other set ups from on older St Croix sticks set up with random other stuff.

For me:
Walleyes
-jt gold digger: purpledescent rattlemaster
-Elliot rippineyes: jiggin rap

Panfish
-tucr bullwhip:perch pinhead minnow
-2 cheaper noodle rods:gold and wonderbread jigs+plastic
-Elliot paragon: 1” hyper rattle

Have an evolution series 42” noodle too but that just stays in the box these days, much prefer the 36” bullwhip.

I did have the TUCR Bullwhip but preferred the Precision Noodle so I sold the Bullwhip. I wasnt a fan of how fast the transition was from the tip to the backbone on the Bullwhip. The Precision Noodle has a more moderate transition and I feel is better for bigger gills and crappies (just my opinion)

Lot of good options… Couple that I did not see on the list:

Crappie Rod: TUCR Bullwhip with a ACME hammered tungsten gold with either wax worms or minnow.

Walleye: Frostbite Smokeshow with some type of Frostbite Dinner Bell spoon.

Good luck to everyone this season I hope ice is here soon and it is a “normal” ice season.

Precision Noodle: 3mm Widow Maker jig with Eurolarva
Bullwhip: 4-5mm Widow Maker jig with Freedom Baits plastic
Fusion: Smallest Lindy Rattln Flyer Spoon or Perch Talker with the treble hook loaded with larva
Precision: Nearly always a red Rattln Flyer Spoon and minnow head
Power Precision: All over the board from spoon to minnow bait
Commander: I really like the Live Target Golden Shinner
Vulcan: A big spoon like a Pelican spoon, or a Lindy Glow Streak
Deadstick: #6 red hook and minnow.

I am really excited to try the Northland Tungsten spoons this year. Good luck all!
Dan

Buckshot orange glow with a minnow head or one waxworm

Custom 28″ Rod and a Venom Flutter Spoon in red, pretty much gets it done for me.

After not fishing nearly as much over the last year, I’m kind of looking forward to hardwater this year. I typically have a jig and plastic for panfish on a TUCR PN or Bullwhip, a small pinhead mino for larger panfish, and for walleye or bigger fish I’ll have a variety of flutter type spoons, jig and minnow, and rattle baits tied on to a TUCR Commander, Precision, or Vulcan.

Late to the convo, here’s what I’ve got rigged up for first ice:

TB 20” Sweetpea w/ indicator and schooley – 3mm wonderbread jig and blue wedgee

TB powernoodle w/ spooler elite – Gold Northland fat fry with black wedgee or smallest gold kastmaster

TB Panfish Sweetheart (my favorite walleye rod) – 1/16 oz jig and plastic (shhhhhhh)

TB Perch Sweetheart – 1/8 wonderbread rattle spoon

TB Walleye Sweetheart – Rippin Rap

TB Deadstick – ol’ split shot to a #6 octopus