tanner voeller wrote:

you wouldn’t happen to have an extra one of those knobs that hold the transducer to the pole? if so i would buy one from you!

Sorry, I do not.

I’m a fan. I bought two this season and have caught lots of fish on them. They are new favorite accessory.
My only complaint is the orange flag slips off the wire pretty easily.
I will try some super glue to see if that will make them stay put.
Haven’t tried the hole covers yet, but plan to get some.

This is not the classified forum, it’s the general ice fishing forum. If you’re trying to sell your gear this is not the forum for that.
My suggestion to check out the Finicky Fooler was in the vein of being helpful, in case the OP was unable to find an ifish Pro.

Walleyestudent Andy Cox wrote:

<div class=”d4p-bbt-quote-title”>eyeguy507 wrote:</div>

<div class=”d4p-bbt-quote-title”>Wharf Rat wrote:</div>
I bought one (Finicky Fooler) yesterday at Joe’s, but it was the last one on the hook so you might want to call first.

The OP was looking at the ifish pros. If you like your finicky we are happy for ya!

THANK YOU!!

The OP was in the process of buying the IFish Pro I was selling and the Finicky Fooler comments were a distraction.

Finicky Fooler may be a fine product, but as you said…the OP wanted an IFish Pro and he got what he wanted tonight.

I bought one (Finicky Fooler) yesterday at Joe’s, but it was the last one on the hook so you might want to call first.

I switched to the Finicky Fooler. Way easier to use, packs a lot smaller and is cheaper. Love it!

My son and I were up there last weekend on the north end and had no luck. The wind was from the SE making it really difficult to fish, so we went to the south end on Sunday. We caught several nice eyes, so the answer is yes. There’s good fishing on the south side.
We did not fish the west side, but we did fish off Hunter’s Point on the east side and only caught one fish. I guess it depends on conditions. Good luck out there. Hopefully the wind isn’t gusting for you like it was for us.

I’ll try this place. It’s right near my house but I didn’t think much of it. The name of the place is not very catchy, so I wrote it off as just another pizza joint.

One thing to note is the insurance policy is a separate cost from the rods. I did not add insurance to mine since I baby my stuff and have never broken any of the ones I’ve been using for years. With the G. Loomis rods I received a playing card that allows me a free replacement if I ever break one, no questions asked. I’ve never had to use one. I know they also offer a lifetime warranty on them. With the Edge rods I believe the warranty is additional cost. Still, the cost savings on the quality of these rods is worth it IMO.

I just picked this work light up from Menards. It’s rechargeable and packs flat. It weighs about three pounds so not crazy heavy and it’s really bright.
Run time is about 10 hours on low setting. Haven’t used it yet but I like the versatility so hopefully it works in a hub. If it doesn’t I will just use it in my garage when working since I needed one anyway. Should also be useful when setting up or tearing down in the dark.

https://www.fleetfarm.com/store/detail/powersmith-1800-lumen-green-rechargeable-led-work-light/0000000310258/3100?gclid=CjwKCAiA9efgBRAYEiwAUT-jtIxoPJRWH-pfXzAUDCoxG_ykJ1ClGdNqGBBiCh4XabVk1oX_SPIY_hoCQxgQAvD_BwE

Definitely on my bucket list.

Last year they had a lot of rods on the first day when I was there. I don’t recall any discounts but you save on shipping and you can check them out in person when making buying decisions. They also have their soft goods and other accessories there, which is nice.

Thanks for the link. Didn’t see that one.

Thanks for posting.
I was up there with a friend this weekend as well and concur that the bite was tough. Lots of small fish but very few eaters, and nothing over 17″ for us. Caught one nice pike at 29″.
We were first timers as well so it was a bit overwhelming at first. By the end of day two we felt a bit more confident and wished we could have stayed a couple more days to work things out. We did not sleep on the ice, so congrats on the nice one you caught during the night.

Thanks for all the good advice. I have always wanted to go to LOTW and that’s likely where we will go. Like any fishing it’s not always great, but that’s also part of the fun of it.

The reason people drive north for Walleye is not because they aren’t in metro lakes, but it’s much easier to catch them on the Walleye factories like Upper Red and Mille Lacs.
Minnetonka, White Bear, Bald Eagle and several other local lakes hold good populations of them, but due to higher pressure and much more varied structure in these lakes, the Wallys are a lot more work to catch.
Do the research, put in the work, and most importantly, put in the time, and you will be able to catch them.
You might find that going north to catch them is preferable in the end, but the hunt is also fun.

SW Eyes wrote:

Braid with a fluoro leader joined by a blood knot. There isn’t a stronger way to join two lines than with a blood knot. It can be difficult to join braid to a mono or fluoro, but once you get the knot down, it’s great.

I have tried the blood knot but have had problems with it. I know it my technique that is bad, but I lost fish from it coming apart so I went with the small swivel. I have not had any problems with the swivel. I do Palomar knots on both ends and they ware never coming loose.

On most of my reels I run an ice braid tied to a small SPRO swivel, with a 12 lb flourocarbon leader of around 24 inches tied to the other end of the swivel. The swivel is small enough to fit through the guides with no issues. If you don’t want to bother with that just run straight mono.
For tip ups, a plain hook or treble hook will work. Hook through the dorsal fin or tail hook. Tail hooking will create more commotion as the fish struggles to stay upright. When they are aggressively feeding this can be effective. When the bite is slower the dorsal fin method can be more effective.
Also, I usually run the bait about 6 inches off the bottom.
I have never had success with a quick strike rig. It’s too much presentation for eyes. Best for Pike I think.

Just got back from a trip up to Upper Red. Temps were -26 plus wind chill and we had our most productive trip ever. 5 man limit over two days. The bite was not hot and heavy but we chipped away and even moved around with portables after two nights in a wheel house rental. It never felt that cold to us, probably because we were catching fish.

Looks like fun. I’m heading up there next week. Hoping to have similar success!

suzuki wrote:

I can’t even imagine that lake being good fishing considering its location, reputation and nearby population density.

Yeah, it sucks bad. Please don’t waste your time.

Northern Lights Outdoors wrote:

I checked out the East side of the lake and found anywhere between 3-5 inches of ice. Fishing was fairly slow but had more success in 20+ feet.

Thanks for the report. I didn’t see anyone off Mahto beach on Sunday so I was not going to be the first one to test the ice. 3 inches is still a bit thin for me. I think I will wait until after this weekend’s deep freeze to thicken it up some more.

tindall wrote:

I have the hammer drill that is recommended with 5amp batts. Used in drill mode on #1. The first few tries had me worried it would destroy my drill.

It takes a while to get the hang of it so just keep practicing. It helps to keep the auger perfectly vertical and to not apply downward pressure to it. Just let the blades do the cutting. I stand with the drill at my chest and hold it very firmly to avoid twisting and chatter.
Also, I thought about using reverse to flush the hole but was worried the chuck might loosen and send the auger down the hole. Maybe I’ll give it a try next time.

tindall wrote:

I was suprised by the clunkyness of start/stop – it made some pretty angry noises, and I learned to feather the throttle quickly. My float also seemed to slide down a bit which made the plastic plate rattle.

Are you using the Milwaukee drill that’s recommended for it?
You need to make sure to set it in drill mode and at the lowest speed. Mine was clunky today until I switched it to the lower speed. Then it worked like a charm.

I have a pair of Baffin Wolf boots and I have been very happy with how my feet don’t get cold while wearing them, but I do find them to be bulky, which is not ideal for extensive walking. I usually just put them on when I get to the ice since driving in them is not safe. If there are really warm boot options without the bulk I would like to hear about them.

Which part of the lake did this happen at? I can’t tell from the picture.

They do not offer one as far as I know. I used to use a St. Croix rod with a spring bobber for pan fish but since I bought a TUCR Quick Tip I have never used the St. Croix rod. The QT is a great panfish rod. If you do order one the split grip is the way to go. You can both see and feel the bite this way. A really fun way to fish!

You will never go wrong buying a TUCR rod. The BW is an amazing rod. You will not regret it.

Buy some silicone tape at the hardware store. Works really well and does not leave adhesive residue. Can be removed and reused as well.
Clam Outdoors sells it in blue for about $10 at sporting goods stores but the same stuff can be bought for less at hardware and home improvement stores.

TUCR insert for $40
Otter XT Hideout for $390
Buch of other stuff that I couldn’t resist.

Thanks for the links to what I need. I will get them on order.
As to why I need them, I want to have my phone charging from the battery if I need more juice, and the security of a mount like this means I don’t have to worry about dropping my phone through the hole. Also, for Navionics, when hole hopping…
It’s all in theory at this point. Maybe I will find it’s not that useful after all but it’s in my nature to experiment with this kind of thing.