tip-up fishing help

[mmclain6101]

I have used a tip-up a few times with little success, any tips that might help would help out greatly. will fish for pike and eyes or whatever will bite. How to set it up (braided line to the hook or leader), hook/lure, bait, depth?

Thanks

[buckhunter21]

For pike I would use braided line around 30 or 40 pound test will be plenty (dont use spiderwire or you will have some nasty cuts). Then use a heavy duty leader at least a foot long. I like to use a big treble hook with a spinner on it to make it legal, with a big dead smelt for bait. You can also use live bait too but have had better luck with the dead bait, ive even heard of guys catching them on hot dogs! A quick strike rig also works very well with either a sucker or a dead smelt and most people like those better becasue theres less chance of fish swallowing too deep because you set the hook right away. For pike keep it suspended off the bottom about 3 feet if you are in shallower water you really cant have it too high as long as its a few feet below the ice. Ive had tip ups out in 30 feet before where I put it half way down and had good luck.

For walleye you can either use braided line with a mono leader or just all mono. Then pretty much just set it up like you would a rattle reel about 6 inches to a foot off the bottom.

[Slade247]

I use tip ups all the time and haven't had the best success either. I mostly try for northern and one thing I think I was messing up was setting it too deep all the time. I started getting more northern when I started setting them at diff. depths and some were not deep at all. I have caught northern just setting the tip up just under the ice not too far at all. I am no expert and am still trying to figure tip up fishing out as well but hope this tip helps. Good luck.

[thedeadsea]

I use 17-20 lb mono for general purpose tip ups or 30 lb mono with a leader in lakes with very large pike.

With 17# plus mono you do not need a leader if you check for nicks and retie as necessary on eater sized pike.

A treble with a blade or a large single hook with a cisco is my bait of choice.

As mentioned, stagger pike tip ups from just below the ice to just above the bottom.

One other thing to consider is that as a general rule, pike seem to go into a funk in mid winter and are not nearly as a agressive as they are after first ice. They will start getting very hungry come early February though season close as the females are preparing for the spawn.

I usually try to run two jig rods for eyes but have caught them on tip ups. 8-12 lb mono with a small hook though the minnows back about 6" above the bottom. Use the lighter setting on the tip up.

[TurnUpTheFishing]

Are you just not having luck on tipups but having luck at the same time with other presentations? Or no luck period?

Braid is expensive get yourself regualar cheap tipup line in 15-25lb test.

When pike fishing I tie a piece of 17# flourocarbon onto the main tipup line then tie my quick strike rig to that. I much prefer big shiners but they are nearly impossible to find these days so suckers is what I use. Bait depths varies, but if their are weeds present make sure your not in them but im sure you knew that.

for walleyes usually Ill tie a 3' piece of 6-8# fluoro with a single hook to match my bait size, usually shiners. Set 12-18" off the bottom.

If Im fishing structure such as a hump or rocks for eyes during the day Im may have the tipup set in the deep water off structure hoping to pick one off or pick one up late in the afternoon as they start moving in. before primetime Ill usually move the tipup to the shallowest spot on the structure I want to fish to avoid spooking fish but still covering more of the area.

[shizzy]

what size treble are you guys using and how are you hooking the minnow?

[FishNovice101]

Also, would you use a steel leader? That's what I have used, summer and winter.

[thehawk]

For pike i myself swear by the shiners and the bigger the better! A few years ago you could find the big 4 to 5" shiners and today the 3 inchers are hard to find. I use them because most lakes I fish in the winter have nice largemouth bass populations as well and I have never caught a bucket mouth on a sucker. They will hit the shiner hard! I like the quick strike rig too. No guessing, just set the hook. Plus it is easier for kids. I am taking my wife (reluctantly) & my 4 & 5 year old out tip up fishin this afternoon. I like to use the camera down there pike fishin shallow as well. it is a hoot to see a nice pike come in and smack the big minnow. I have had all my kids out this winter doing that and you should see the looks on their faces when a nice pike comes in or a big bass. very cool.

[TurnUpTheFishing]

I have different hooks and quickstrike rigs, I pick the size I think best matches my minnow size. I usually hook them right behind the dorsal fin.

[CAMAN]

SIMPLE! SIMPLE! SIMPLE!

I use regular cheap braided tip-up line with a 10' leader of 20lb Power Pro tied to that a small size 1 Owner Mosquito hook and a rubber core sinker about 1 foot from the hook if needed.

With this setup I cannot ever remember a bite-off because of it and most of the time with a small hook like that, the damage to the fish is minimal and the possibility of release is much greater.

I usually setup about a foot or two below the ice and work down if there is no action.

Most of the time I use just cheap medium or large suckers but, if I know ahead of time that the fish are only hitting on something like shiners I will spend the extra money to get them, but it is rare.

I will setup and let everything soak for 10-15 minutes then go around and raise the tip-up and minnow out of the water to stimulate it and make sure it is still alive and on the hook. I will continue doing that every 10-15 minutes.

One quick tip if the bite has died down or never even started up, if you have a snowmobile on hand, after 30 minutes or so of inactivity take the snowmobile and zip a couple circles around the tip-ups and you will be surprised but there is a good chance the flags will start flying shortly after. I've even waved a couple snowmobilers over to me if I didn't have one on hand. They usually come over, really appologetic thinking you're going to yell at them, until you tell them what you want them to do. They shrug their shoulders and take off doing circles thinking I'm nuts, until they start seeing flags pop, then their jaws drop and start asking how I did that.

Another tip is DON'T allow the minnows to touch the freezing air for any length of time except for hooking them and putting them in the hole. They will be much more lively and last longer if you make sure they stay healthy.

Also clipping the tail on the minnows helps prevent minnow tripped flags and they wriggle around a lot more attracting more fish.

[walleyemaniac]

I have tip-ups but don't use them much. What are these quickstrike rigs you're talking about?

[thedeadsea]

It is a set of two hooks connected with wire leader, either a single and a treble or two trebles with a bead to make it a "lure". One hook (normally the single) goes into the minnow's mouth and the other along the back. That way, you can set the hook right away on the fish as one or the other will be in contact with the fish's mouth.

[buckhunter21]

I have tip-ups but don't use them much. What are these quickstrike rigs you're talking about?

http://www.musky.com/Features/resource/qs2.JPG

Thats what they look like, there are a few articles online that show you how to make them or you can buy them at some stores. They just make it so you can set the hook right away instead of waiting for the fish to swallow the bait more which is alot better for the fish then having a hook down its throat.

[wbliceman]

i use a tip up when im hole hopping.. i have a 6 foot mono leader i think its 8lb test and I just have a single colored hook, much like you would put on a lindy rig in the summer. I have caught multiple pike on it with no problems and some of my biggest eyes as well... usually tip it with a shiner but this year i have gone to fatheads cause of cost. i cant afford 7$ a dozen

[mmclain6101]

How shallow is to shallow for norhterns? We plan to set up four tip ups this weekend and will stager them from shallow to deep waters along a break line. So what is to shallow?

[MJ1657]

I have caught some this year in 3 fow. I put the minnow just below the ice.

[WIFisher]

Any time im fishing pike which is usually in 12 feet or less i will always put one of my tipups 1-2' under the ice and the other about halfways down. Whichever one you start getting fish on turn your attention to that depth.. Its tough with just 2 lines though so i recommend getting some friends together so you can get a good spread goin and find a pattern. I like to start in anywhere from 4-12' of water depending on the clarity and where the weedline is. Clearer the lake the deeper i go..

Good luck

Ryan

[buckhunter21]

I like to keep my bait above the weeds and at least a foot or 2 below the ice so 6 feet is usually as shallow as I will go and 12 is about all the deeper I will go but it depends on the lake, some lake ive had good luck out in 30FOW.