Just bought a Killzone Hunting Igloo-XL

[pHisH_mOnOpOlY]

Well thought I would chime in. Bought a new KillZone Igloo-XL 4 man shelter and I love it. Can't imagine having just the 2 man as I love the room of the 4 man (which might be a little tight with 3 people).

What steered me towards the KillZone was the 4 larger windows (which I put on inside my home when I set it up when I first received it and have not had any problems with) on all sides so you can see your tipups. It does only have 1 door (I wound recommend putting the door away from the wind...), but thats fine for me. And it is made of 600 D Poly much like the Clams.

The way I found best to set it up (and have done so in 25+mph winds by myself) is to point one corner into the wind (so that two sides will be into the wind, not just one) and then I use a old hand drill with a 1/4" drill bit and pre-drill that first windward corner. Once pre-drilled I install that anchor and then proceed to follow the same procedure on the two common corners with those two sides. I have yet to bother to put all for corners in. After I install all three corners, I then put two anchors in to secure the windward hubs to. With the lines attached to the hubs on the windward sides, I then pop the roof up, followed by the two leeward sides, and then the windward sides which I promptly secure to the anchors. Then its fishing time. One spot where I fish, I can pull in the parking lot, walk out about 1300-1500 feet, setup the shelter and be fishing all within 20 minutes.

Two things I found to help with the anchors is to pre-drill with a long 1/4" bit, or you will be there all day trying to start those by hand. Even with an old-school hand drill it only takes a matter of seconds to drill the hole and you don't have to worry about a dead battery. The other thing being that I put 1.5-2" of 1/4" marine fuel line (had it around and its thick) onto the shaft of the anchors so that you don't have to screw the anchors all the way in till the handle, which is kind of awkward, and this allows you to tighten the skirt right to the ice.

I think the biggest thing with any hub style shanty in common sense... they are big, and they are light (which is exactly why I bought it), so it NEEDS to be properly anchored (windward hubs need to be anchored). I still believe they are the best bang for your buck. You do need to realize that if your fishing style is hoping from hole to hole, you are not going to want to set this thing up and down a million times.

Pics to come soon

[Freedom1]

I bought the 4 man Killzone just after Xmas and I love mine as well. Not to sound like a advertisement but the first time out it was -23 and we were just fine in the shelter with just a Big Buddy Heater going for 2 of us. The room it has is great for 2 guys (not fished with 3 yet) and allows room for all your fishing tools and you can stand up and stretch if needed with plenty of headroom. I too am very happy with it. I have not had to anchor it down yet, but it is very easy to hole hop and move around and set it up again quickly.

My 2 girls (5 & 8) love it to. The first night I set it up in the basement and they "camped" in it all night.

[mhines]

I too have one of these and love it!! Its my first shack, but IMO its the best bang for the buck out there. It's a little tricky the first couple of times getting it into the bag, but after you figure it out, i can set it up/take it down in about 10 min.

[fisherdog19]

Do yourself a favor and find yourself a set of Ice Angel ice anchors. Just drill a hole 6-10" deep with your auger and you're set, no pre-drilling or using a hand drill to set the anchors in.

[quijibo]

I waited a little too long to get one, the price has gone up about twenty five bucks in the last week. I just clicked on a Google ad on this site that advertised them for the old price, no luck. Oh well.

Adam

[ChknChkn]

I've got a Clam BaseCamp.....love it.

I used the screw in ice anchors last year....pretty time consuming. This year, started pre-drilling with a small hand drill, which was much easier, but still pretty slow.

Came up with a much easier & faster system for anchoring the corners. Got some 4 inch lag screws (with washers), take a hammer and whack the lag screw a couple times to start it. Then I use a Speed Handle with a socket on it....buzzes the screws in in no time flat! Slicker than owl snot.......still use 2 ice anchors for tiedowns on the 2 sides that face the wind (I point a corner into the wind also).

Here's a pic of the speed handle I use.....lag screws/washers go into a Crown Royal bag (hmmm...wonder how I came up with an empty bag?), and everything fits into the BaseCamp bag.