Tip-Up Setup

[Team Otter]

Welcome aboard!

[GatorBait]

Man, gotten some great advice from all you. Thanks Much. I rigged up a couple tip ups with a few mentioned strategies along with a few circle hooks this year.

Making a sign now that says "Notice: Circle Hook Attached, Do Not Set Hook"

[Bjjams]

Quote:

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Welcome aboard!

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Thanks, I've enjoyed this web site for a few years and finally decided to join in the action.

[Team Otter]

Be careful. It's addicting.

[tunrevir]

One thing to think about when fishing tip ups for walleyes is to fill the spool full just like you would with a spinning reel, as this creates less drag as the line comes off the spool. I see alot of guys that have 1/4-3/8ths of an inch of spool showing which is fine if the fish are aggressive but you want the smoothest release with the least amount of tension for those light biters. Ever have them trip your tip up and run a few feet and drop it? Might be too much drag. Todays the day! Go get em!

Tunrevir~

[Steve Foss]

I always fill my spools up, too. The drag thing.

If you're fishing water with a day bite, the leader material may have to be lighter weight line and/or fluoro. In my experience, clear lakes rarely have solid day bites for 'eyes, and at night you don't need to worry much about line transparency, even on clear water lakes.

I DO worry about line memory and stiffness, however, so I rarely use heavier than 12-lb line on tip-ups for 'eyes. I have a couple set up with 12-lb Trilene XL, a couple more set up with 10 lb XL. XL is limp. I also use a bare hook with a small bead above it, and one or two split shot above the hook, distance, like Northlander said, depending on how active the 'eyes like their minnow. I have not used circle hooks for tip-up 'eyes, though I've used them for years with great success for catfishing.

I prefer a larger minnow over a smaller one. Say a three- or four-inch chub over a two-incher. Larger minnow, larger thump, easier for the 'eyes to locate and target. If they want a less agressive minnow, I'll pinch off the tail with a nail clipper so that larger minnow can thump all it wants without being able to swim all over the place or trip a lightly set tip-up.

I've caught 14-inch 'eyes on 6-inch suckers with wire quick-strike rigs when I was aiming for pike, just more evidence that 'eyes aren't always as finicky as we make them out to be.

Larger minnow also discourages perch and rock bass on waters where they can be pesky. Though perch tend to shut down right at dark, because they have poor low-light vision and they are a primary walleye prey.