Need comments on new portables

[herb]

Looking to buy a new portable and need your opinions(good and bad) about these models;

Frabil Ice Cruiser 200

Otter Small Cottage

Fish Trap Pro

Thank you much

[frozen toes]

I can only offer my opinion on 2 of the three.

Otter-Very well built and will last a long time. The fabric and sled are top quality. The downside is weight.

Fish Trap-Again, very good quality. They have plenty of room with the wide sled design and comes with a decent bench that the seat rests on.

I have a Fish Trap Scout and an Otter Magnum Lodge, so I am a little biased on what models I prefer I will however note that the Frabil shacks are also good quality nowdays.

[Captain B.R.K]

Herb- I'll comment on two- the fishtrap and otter series.

The otter series came out with square tubing, which is nice for support. The material for the house is fantastic and durable. What is nice with the sled is it is multi-purpose and built to last. The only downside is that they $$$ piece you to death with buying each piece seperate.

The Fishtrap series is nice as well. Typically a little shorter head room for a guy, but works. The Pro (I have an older model) has the built in cloth tray and swivel seat! The ice armor material they promote is of quality and is durable. The only disadvantage is the sled is built with lite material and over time, could wear out. BUT if you buy the runners for it, it will save on the sled.

One other thing to think about is the size and weight for each. I don't know if you are limited to space in a vehicle when traveling??!! Also you don't want to throw your back out everytime you need to move it.

[Wables]

I see a pattern here...I also have a Otter Lodge and Fish Trap Pro. Both are awesome! When I am by myself I use the Pro, when I have a guest I use the Lodge. That way the weight of the Otter is not an issue. The price isn't that bad if you build your own butt-bridges and solid tow hitch.

[anyfishwilldo]

Ive got a yukon, and the traps have very comfortable seats, and the great thing about the seats, is they dont cost extra. You also cant go wrong with the cust service from Clam. The zipper broke on my Yukon, so I called them, and a cust service rep actually brought a new tent with her on her way home, and I met up with her and swapped. They took care of their warranty within 24 hrs, and I should have been back fishing(wife was mad). They have me as a cust for life.

[RoadRunner]

You guys with the Otter Magnum Lodges -- When you fish 2 people in it are you able to use 2 holes each comfortably, or are your holes really close to each other. Or are you only fishing 1 hole each?

Just curious, thanks

[lumpy]

I've done two holes each in mine but it is pushing the limits a bit. I went from the small fish trap to the magnum, now am thinking that I like the creature comforts of the 'portable' trailier houses like the road king advertised on this site. Wondering how people like those and how much they really move around in them.

[Scenic]

Don’t over look the Polar houses. They have excellent products with super canvas and a high quality sled. There are some features that in the long run I feel are better then some out there. I like their round tubing design frames and they have extra canvas on the corners to protect them better and in other normal wear spots. I have been using their houses for a while now and I am very satisfied with them. Check them out.

Their customer service is excellent if you ever need anything too.

[wisconsinfish]

The otter's sled is definately more durable than the clam's sled. I have a small frabill. It's allright,fit's in the trunk of a car and only weights 30lbs, but no where near as comfy to fish from as the pro's and otter's.

[hanson]

Roadrunner-

I've got a Magnum Lodge and I'll fish 2 holes a piece all the time. I don't drill them in a straight line across the house but I stagger them. I usually sit on the left side and my left hole is farther out. This just happens to be my deadstick hole most of the time so I can just put my rod in the Otter holder on my left side. My right hole is then closer in. I'll do most of my jigging in this hole. The next hole is further out again and then the far right hole is back in closer to the tub.

In 30' of water, the lines will tangle on the bigger fish, especially the pout. Usually when someone gets something larger on, I'll crank up the other lines. Shallower water, I'm usually fine.

[herb]

I guess I should have added that I'm limited to what's available for me to look at and get into to get the feel of things. I live in southern Iowa and the choices of shacks down here is mighty slim do to being on the southern fringe of ice fishing opportunities. The polar shacks aren't even heard of by the stores here, so getting one to crawl into is out of the question. I won't order or buy anything that I can't look at or get into beforehand. If I'm lucky, I get to ice fish maybe 2 or 3 times a month and I ussually have to travel 3 to 4 hours to the north to do it. So wearing one out is not going to be foremost in my mind.

Hope this helps a bit. And thanks again guys.