Anybody else use windlass tip-ups? I love ’em for walleyes. I usually run a round jig with a backwards fat head. There have been times on Mille Lacs and LOTW when the windlass catches ALL of the fish. I don’t see people using them much. Of course they need extra tending to because of freeze-up issues, but…
Interested in what you guys think.
I can see using these on days above freezing but when it’s colder than freezing I hear the spool freezes up. Doesn’t sound like a good thing to me.
What do you do to prevent this, if anything?
I recently used windlass for 1 tip-up and 5 other regular tip-ups. I caught 5 northerns on the windlass and only 1 northern on the others combined!
The spool itself doesn’t freeze up, just the line can freeze in where enters the water. I kick snow into the hole to slow the process. You can cover the hole up with an old chunk of carpet with a slit cut into it, too.
Or there is this old-time trick: drill a hole adjacent (but connected to) to you main hole but only about 6 inches down; let the water run into this second partial hole. Burn some charcoal in a coffee can while it sits in the second hole. It keeps both holes clean. Really works.
You must be logged in to reply to this topic.
