Ice buster bobber help

[crappieseeker]

I need help with the set up of an ice buster bobber. I can't believe that I am asking this question, but I just do not think I had it attatched correctly last year.

I put a slip bobber tie at the depth that I wanted to fish and clipped the bobber above that. My question is, do I need to trim the bobber so that the red clip is under the water and just a portion of the yellow is above or should the whole bobber be resting in the water. Then when a fish takes the bait it pulls everything down. It seems to me that the fish would feel to much resistance that way.

Thanks again for all your help. I am new at this and last year I was skunked at URL. I want to catch fish.

[Walleyeguy31]

Clip the bobber below the knot.

Of course, above if you wanna give him tons of line.

[ozzie]

well first slip tie then the bead then attach your bobber with jig tied to the end with whatever weight you are using between the jig and the bobber.. send the jig down the hole and see where your bobber sits...do this with bait on jig also. I like to keep just a little yellow above the water so I will pinch the bobber at that spot and cut the rest off. After a few trips you will have bobbers made for all your jig weights!!! Maybe there is a better way but this works wonders for me!!!! Good Luck

[crappieseeker]

Thanks.

Do you use a bobber with a weighted jig or do you deadstick. Ozzie, you said you had weight between you jig and bobber, are you talking a floating jig?

Thanks again.

[maj330]

I thought the genius of these was that they didn't need the bead. All of the beads on my original slip bobbers iced up. With these, the bobber clip resides uner the stop not below the water surface. I usually trim the bobber so that the lure is supported with about 1/2 to 1 inch of bobber above the water line. Seems to work pretty well like this but I am sure there are better ways to use them.

[ozzie]

no i use weighted jigs or even plain hooks.. some situations will call for lighter tackle but even so i always like to put a small split shot about a foot from my jig just to keep the bobber away but i guess it is not needed. I also like the split shot to get to my depth a little faster when the crappies are there i like to feed them before they leave!!!

[gspman]

You needn't be using a bead with an ice buster, it's designed so you don't need one. One less thing to freeze onto the line.

[ozzie]

maybe you don't need the bead but i have never had a prob with using the bead...but then again i guess i only use a bobber in the house where it is warm. If i am worried about freezin i guess i dont really use a bobber just jig and watch the graph

[grip-em+rip-em]

bobber goes under the slip knot. the red part should be in the water and trim the yellow part to match the weight of your jig. the less "yellow part" above the water the less tension or resistance the fish will feel. more hookups!!!!

[metrojoe]

I've never used a bead either. As posted above you want the bobber floating neutral. Once you have you depth set, drop your jig down and then trim off the bobber just above/or right at the water line. If the red portion of the bobber is above water your using to big a bobber or to small a jig. Switch to a smaller bobber or add a sinker or two.

[CrappieJohn]

These floats need no bead. To adjust the float, you want to take off enough yellow foam to just float the whole rig. If you end up with 1/4 to 1/2 inch above the watermark you are set up with a very sensitive float.

[ozzie]

well then SKIP THE BEAD if you want to!! I just have always put one on so the tie doesn't go through the slit on the bobber but it must not so there you go.. I learned something new....

[federline]

No bead, bobber below the knot, drop your baited rig into the water, pinch it off just above the waterline.

Here's a new twist for you all - try fishing with "a little bit too much" bobber pinched off, so that you jig drops super duper slow, or the bobber is just just below the surface, rising and falling. Give you rod a super mini jig twitch to send it back up and slooooooowly back down. This was deadly on crappies and bluegills last year when I tried it.

Gawd I love ice busters!

[Scenic]

Also don't forget to take a toothpick or something like that and poke a hole in the end of your Ice Busters. You can then slide in a light stick for a great lighted bobber.

[Bruce Mosher]

Federline is right! I've fished many times when my bobber is cut off enough so that the whole rig very slowly sinks. Crappies and Bluegills love it. And as far as the Bead problem - Don't use The BEAD. I designed the Ice Buster Bobber with a slotted hole that is in reality the bead. A plastic bead has too small of a hole. The fishing line has to much friction going thru a plastic bead so A slotted hole made more sense to me. Now your fishing line will zip thru the bobber more quickly. Have Fun, Bruce Mosher

[icehousebob]

Hey Bruce, my brother-in-law in SoDak showed me another way to use ice busters. We were fishing northerns and he stuck the ice buster in the slush ice from the auger so he could see it from a distance and stuck the rod handle in the slush also, with the bail open. When a fish bit, it would yank the bobber down the hole and when you saw it missing, you went over, closed the bail, and set the hook. This was end of the season fishing when it wasn't cold enough to freeze the holes shut between fish. I always prefer to fight a fish on a rod rather than hand lining on a tip up, so this system works for me.

[coldmark]

Bail open or closed when using Ice Busters on a deadstick setup?