Tip-up questions?

[Guest]

I havedon't have much experience with the concept of using tip-ups. I have read a few articles about them and when i do use them i put a big fathead or shiner on and leave it a foot or so off the bottom. I this the best way to us the tip-up?
I know that everything is different for different fish so i will ask specifically about notherns and muskies. is live healthy bait best or is dead bait? i don't have much confidence i guess about using a dead sucker or something and just leaving it lay on the bottom for a pike to pick up. I think i would get more pout than anything, but any info telling me different would help if that is the best way to use the tip-ups.
Also where should i set them up? Shallow or deep? points? dropoffs? flats?
I just put them up somewhere close so i can see them and i figure some type of fish is likely going to swim by and maybe take a swip at it.
I would like to catch a few fish using tipups and would appreciate any info. Thanks

[Guest]

poppin' crappies,
i usually put my tip ups in about 12 feet of water and down about 7 1/2 feet. i have had better results about half way off of the bottom than close to the bottom. i would only do it last year when we were fishing 6-8 feet. i have had more luck with the deeper water and i have gotten bigger fish. i usually use shiners or suckers but if the fatheads are big enough i guess it doesnt matter. dead or alive i think really changes day to day. i catch em on both. i would suggest live though. you should just go out and expirement with different depths and you should find the fish.my hotspot this year is probably gone this year because my cousin called and i think my ice house is falling through coon lake. hope this helps.

Danny

[This message has been edited by drogers9317 (edited 01-09-2003).]

[David Swenson]

For tip-up fishing pike I have found dead bait (ciscoes or smelt) on the bottom works best (especially for trophy pike). Weed edges, entrances to shallow bays, or rocky points are the best spots. Walleye spots can also be good trophy pike spots (20 ft of water) when dead bait fishing. If action is what you want then light northern or pike suckers are best in and around the weed beds for smaller pike. Suspend the bait about half up from the bottom with a plain hook on your tip-up line.

As for muskies, they are live bait feeders. You will need to use big suckers in the same areas I mentioned for trophy pike. The sucker will need to be suspended off the bottom.

Make sure when fishing dead bait or live suckers to use a quick strike rig and a steel leader. Never let the fish swallow the bait. With a quick strike you can set the hook as soon as they take the bait limiting harm to the fish if you plan to release it.

Practice CPR with big pike or muskies.

David Swenson
http://muskieguide.homestead.com/

[Bushwacker]

I have had much better results, numbers wise, by putting the bait no more than seven feet under the ice no matter how deep it is. If its shallow water I go half way down. This usually gives you action, and I think that is the best part of tip-ups. I do agree that the big dogs hang on the bottom though. When you look at a pike or muskie, they spend the majority of the time looking up, just because of the location of there eyes. Good luck and keep an eye on the flags.

[Guest]

In my experiences a visible weed edge between 8 and 14 is best using live suckers. And i like to set up a few along the edges at various distances off the bottom. i set one at about a foot and half all the way up to 4 feet off the bottom depending on the depth. From there experiment with what works. try using some small suckers on the weedlines thats always produced the most action for me. Good luck,
Aaron.

[Guest]

I have a couple questions about these dead bait rigs that people have talked about. I have saved a few shinners that have died on me that are up to six inches long and i froze them for dead bait rigs for tipups. Is this worth the trouble or not? if so then how do i rig them up and where should i fish them. Laying on the bottom? suspended? I just dont know if i have faith in a dead bait just sitting there and not getting anything but carp or something.

[David Swenson]

Poppin Crappies,

Big shiners would work fine for dead bait rigs. As for were to fish, weed edges, entrances to bays, or points and reefs on the main lake. All I do is using a quick strike rig is lay the bait right on the bottom. I will use a 3/8 oz. slip sinker for weight and a 6" to 12" steel leader.

I have had fishing trips were I had to kill all the suckers I bought because the pike would not chase a live minnow. My largest pike is a 23 lber caught on dead bait in February on a rocky main lake point. Pike are way more adaptable than a lot of fresh water fish, that is why they are found all over the Northern Hemisphere. That is why they will eat anything live or dead.

Live bait fishing may bring more action for small pike, but the big ones prefer it dead. As with anything new, you have to give it a chance. Going out one or two times and having no luck is no reason to quit trying it. I think once you get the hang of dead bait fishing you will catch bigger pike.

David Swenson
http://muskieguide.homestead.com/