hub style ice house vs sled style ice house. this is for a paper .

[robert aldrich]

I am working on a paper on hub style ice house vs sled style ice house. What are arguments surrounding this controversy. My stance is for the hub style.

[Pooh]

what are you looking for hear just which one i would buy and use, or why i think one is better than the other?

[LightningBG]

Pros and cons....(IMO)

Sled-

Pros: Dont have to carry other seats, everything fits inside, grab it and go.

Cons: If you dont have a truck or a sizable SUV or a trailer, you aren't bringing it anywhere.

Hub-

Pros: Will fit in a car, can stash it under a bed, will fit in a dorm room or apartment, if you're driving on the lake, you don't need to bring a sled

Cons: May have to bring a sled anyways if you're walking out, have to bring along chairs, might take slightly longer to set up.

I'm sure some others can add more.

[amateurfishing]

very good thread and i also would like to hear opinions. i have 1 man eskimo quick flip but am in market for something bigger to take my 2 small boys with. was originally thinking of larger quick flip with bench style seat to make it easier for us 2 or 3 ppl. neighbor last nite said he would only do pop up next time round cause much better canvas and lite. to me personally i like to park & walk round on lake within 50 yard radius of truck and can haul everything in sled, i think very seldom is weather good enuff where u could drive on ice but warm enuff to not need shelter or windbreak. imo....but im all new at this with my first year.

[jwmiller33]

If you are taking a snowmobile out several miles (like on LOTW for example), it's hard to beat having the sled/flip over style portable with a towbar and cover. The fact that you can put all your gear in it is the biggest difference. How would you carry all your gear out on your snowmobile without a sled? (auger, flashers, buckets, minnows, heater, etc). Having good built in chairs that have back support is another big plus (i.e. not having to haul out seperate chairs with your hub or sit on a bucket all day). The sled style also gives you the option of personalization/custimazation with built in compartments that fit your heater, rods, bait bucket and flasher perfectly which makes being mobile much easier. It is also much easier to be mobile and move around to different spots much more when you have a flip over/sled style portable

If you want something that you can throw in your car, the hub style is the way to go. If are the type of fisherman who just walks or drives out to fish, than a hub style might be more for you. But as I have learned over the years, the best fishing spots are off the beaten path, and simply aren't accessable by walking or driving and you need a snowmobile to get to

Like I said, the biggest difference to me is the ability to haul all your gear, built in comfortable chairs with back support and the ability to be more mobile. Set up time is a big factor too. It takes a lot less time for me to set up my flip over than it does for a hub, but to each his own

I also think sled/flip over style shacks are warmer than hubs, but that isn't an issue with a good heater. I have found you don't have to shovel/bank your house in as much when you have a flip over/sled style than you do with a hub.

[missioncontrol26]

I was doing a lot of research the past two years on whether or not I wanted a hub style vs. flipover sled style.

I ended up getting a 8X6 hub style house and then purchased an otter sled package that included a medium sled, tow-bar, cover and runners.

I purchased all of that for much less then buying one of the larger flipover sleds that would give me similar area as the 8X6 hub.

My theory behind doing this is if I decide I don't want the hub style and wish to go to a flipover style I will purchse a canvas craft otter skin and attach that to the sled and then I would have a flipover.

Just my opinion on why I went with the Hub over the flip over.

[NELS-BELLS]

I have both. I use the flip over fish house the most, because I like to drill a bunch of holes and hole hop to stay on the fish. With a hub you aren't going to move as often, if at all.

The flip over type has less room for multiple people. I have a 6 X 12 hub and I can fish 4 people in that comfortably, although it doesn't get as warm as my flip over house.

My 6 X 12 hub costs half as much as my 2 person Otter.

Nels

[fish2morrow]

I came across the same issue. Thanks for the tips. I would like to buy a flip over just because it seems more convenient and easier to move around with. As of the moment they have not yet made a flip over that would fit 6+ people. I guess I'll be stuck with a hub for the time being.

[robert aldrich]

the price played a big part in my buy of the hub ice house. it costed less then a sled style.if i looked compaired two eskimo ice houses.

2 person hub:$129.99. 2 person sled:$289.99

[pulleye16]

hub: A hub is lighter (good for one person to handle, but at the same time can handle a companion if needed), cheaper then a flip (however, a sled and chairs should be purchased but you are still saving a bundle), more room and comfort then a flip, more versitle (long hikes cause of weight,smaller for vehicles and storage, can use as a "base" camp).

Flip: Easy to use, all equipment in there, VERY VERY good for run-and-gun type fishing. Trailer/truck/or suv required for most. A partner to help load and unload for most.

tidbits: HUB is not limited to only calm days. I've had mine out in extremly windy days more then once. Hubs "may" have a shorter life, need to see how they hold up, some hub cables are actually failing in less then a year.

IMO a one man flip paired with a hub is a perfect match!

[robert aldrich]

i have a frabill bucket seat that i got for 10$. i fit my small sled in my hub ice house. next winter i am going to make a small chair bed to use when i go ice fishing at my grandmas cabin on round lake near grand rapids.

[fishinfey8]

Here are a few bullet points for ya robert.

-Eskimo hub can double as a spear-shack.

-During rough ice conditions, pulling a sled can be very slow going and hard on equipment.

- Some hub style houses have poor ventilation.

- Hub style houses are relatively new so there are a lot of quality issues with some manufacturers.

- Hub style houses are very hard to put up in windy conditions by yourself.

Side note: I just built a rack on my wheeler that holds everything that used to be in the sled. Everything has a place making it super efficient, and since it rides on the wheeler's suspension, I can drive faster and not ruin any equipment. I'll bet now I'm probably pretty darn close to being as portable as a flip-over (it would be fun to test it out and see).

In the end, you can't go wrong with either. They both get you out on the ice and allow you to have fun and catch fish. I do like those comfy chairs in the flip-overs though!

[robert aldrich]

in my two years of starting back ice fishing. i had to use a flip up style ice house that my friend let me used and one of the problems with the flip up is when you get it set up you can be blown like a sailboat across the ice. i just got my hub style two weeks ago and i used it on lake winona. the first day no wind easy set up. the second day 40 mphw and easy set up. i can see why most people prefer the sled style ice house.the hub is nice because it is backpack style and that leaves room in the sled for a ice auger, pole holder, flaser, pole carrying case with poles, chair,lights,and lure box.

side note: i can even bring a small foldable table,lunch and dinner. next year i am going ice fishing at my grandmas cabin on round lake near grand rapids mn.

[slipperybob]

I fish solo and when I want to get very comfy, I will bring out the lounge chair and just kick back. Now if I can only set my flasher on a ram mount arm so I can really kick my head back...

[robert aldrich]

oh ya, its great fishing alone.

[dougger222]

Got a few flips, suit case, and hub style houses.

Flip over all the way. All have their place in ice fishing however. As far as everyday use the flip is the way to go.

Hub style houses have basicly replaced suit case houses. I like suit case houses because they have a floor.

What is better than all the above? Hole jumping without a house.

[robert aldrich]

my stance is for the hub style ice house. started my paper and here is the intro for a argumentitve paper i made for the paper:

In the sport of ice fishing a contervirsty rages on between ice fishermen; who has hub style ice houses and those who have the sled style ice houses. I am one of the ice fishermen who have the hub style ice house. When I moved up to Duluth Minnesota from Winona Minnesota I made a friend who went ice fishing every year and had two clam ice houses. I first had to get ice fishing poles and some lures, so I could go ice fishing. I used his sled style ice for until Friday of March 2011 before spring break. I had saw a hub style ice house in a marine general catalog and my dad was up, so we went to the store to get my 2 man Eskimo hub ice house that I got to use over spring break. I posted that I go a hub style ice house on hotspot outdoors which I go on every day and I got a response that said why didn’t you get a sled style so I decide to make a topic for the web site: hub style ice house vs sled style ice houses. I found out that I hit a hot spot of action so I decided to make it my topic for my paper. The invention of the hub and sled style ice houses made a big impact in the sport of ice fishing because it made the permanent ice house not that popular because the permanent ice houses stay on one lake and in one place on the lake. The hub and sled style ice house makes you able to move around more on the lake plus transfer to other lakes around the area where you can travel. The hub style ice house is better than the sled style ice house because of the hauling style, set up, warmth, and climate.

[jwmiller33]

Hey Robert, if you want to send me a PM with your email, I'd be more than happy to help you out with some proofreading. When I was in school I always benefited from having another set of eyes read over my papers before I handed them in. Nice work with your rough draft tho, looks like you are on the right path

[Northlander]

Great offer Miller! I could use that with some of my posts at times.

[dougger222]

If your budget is limited then yes a hub style house is the way to go. If your budget allows for more than a sled/flip over house is better.

For example back in 06 purchased the X2 at Cebelas as a showroom assembled model. It was the last one they had on hand so had to dish out close to $800 for it after tax. Could buy a lot of hub style houses for $800.

You know, come to think of it haven't used the hub style house in quite a while.

[Ed Carlson]

Robert your paper may also benefit from some "Back History" on where the Hub style ice shakes originally came from.

FYI: They came from the world of electrical construction and field phone line maintenance. They were then and still are commonly used as portable protective work stations by field telecommunications and electrical contracting technicians. The hub shacks were seen by some forward thinking sportsman as a logical portable shelter unit to be adapted for use for ice fisherman. From there they quickly grew into the field hunting blind market and now into the camping sporting market.

Another little known fact of the modern portable shacks we all use now is they too were also originally a conceptional adaptation of the same type of portable job site utility shelter and evolved from the world of electrical contracting to the ice. All ideas have origins, for these it was from work to play.

Very often the lessons learned in the sport fishing world today get back engineered to the field of work as improved shelter systems for the man on the job. So it would appear the concept and it's learned contributions on the ice has come full circle back to the job site.