I want to ice fish. I have alot of questions...

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Bowhunting Brian
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Re: I want to ice fish. I have alot of questions...

Unread postby Bowhunting Brian » Mon Dec 22, 2014 9:47 am

Green weeds for most panfish. Sandy bottom I do well for perch.

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Re: I want to ice fish. I have alot of questions...

Unread postby Edcyclopedia » Mon Dec 22, 2014 9:52 am

Any pics of your fish?
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Spysar
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Re: I want to ice fish. I have alot of questions...

Unread postby Spysar » Mon Dec 22, 2014 9:52 am

I guess I suck. I never ever used a vexilar or anything....then again I don't catch that much.

I can't believe some would rather not fish at all without the device. Maybe I need one?
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Re: I want to ice fish. I have alot of questions...

Unread postby bigwoodsmn » Mon Dec 22, 2014 12:12 pm

It just really increases your odds... You know exactly where your lure is. You can pick on the active bigger fish, by keeping your lure above the smaller ones (when fishing panfish/crappies). You don't spend time in unproductive water (empty screen, time to move). You can tell when they're glued to bottom and yet still get some of them to bite (walleyes/saugers) ...You can tell when they're going to hit so you're ready... fish racing up to your lure always hit. You can tell when to slow down your presentation... like when a fish moves in and stares at your lure... Plus you get to stare at a spinning green/yellow/red dial all day and see it in your dreams that night. Models like the FL18 have Bottom Lock and are great for fishing in a boat... they can adjust and compensate for up to 6 foot waves...

[glow=red]Edit[/glow]: here are two examples with pics just to kind of point out what I mean about the flasher:

We kept some big panfish (threw back 3x as many) ... the pattern was (and often is) biggest fish and crappies were at the top of the school. Soon we were only targeting those instead of getting robbed or reeling up tiny fish from the middle of the pack nearer to the bottom.

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These trout in Blue Mesa Reservior in CO... were at 6 feet under the ice though the depth it was 12 feet deep there. We had the Vexilar and knew where the fish were in the water column and we were the only people catching any fish in that 100 yard stretch. I'm not saying you couldn't set some slip floats at varying depths... because of course you could. They just provide realtime info.

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Up on Lake of the Woods in MN you can even rent them for $25 for the day.

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Last edited by bigwoodsmn on Mon Dec 22, 2014 12:35 pm, edited 2 times in total.
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Crazinamatese
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Re: I want to ice fish. I have alot of questions...

Unread postby Crazinamatese » Mon Dec 22, 2014 12:25 pm

I have my eyes on this device. Works similar to a vexilar flasher except it has a vertical screen. http://www.rapala.com/marcum/fish-finde ... rcum-sonar
The price is decent so this maybe the one I would start out with. I been researching all kinds of reviews and videos on how these things work. Looks like fun when you can see how the fish react to your bait and have depth reading all at the same time.
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Re: I want to ice fish. I have alot of questions...

Unread postby bigwoodsmn » Mon Dec 22, 2014 12:43 pm

Crazinamatese wrote:I have my eyes on this device. Works similar to a vexilar flasher except it has a vertical screen. http://www.rapala.com/marcum/fish-finde ... rcum-sonar
The price is decent so this maybe the one I would start out with. I been researching all kinds of reviews and videos on how these things work. Looks like fun when you can see how the fish react to your bait and have depth reading all at the same time.


Something like that is all you would need to get started and it would make a huge difference. The other models, you can tell when a fish is on the outside of your cone and moving toward your lure because its color and size changes as the signal gets stronger and closer to directly underneath you. Also, the newer flashers (after the FL "8".... e.g. the updated "8" the "12" the "18" the "21", "22" ) have "Auto Zoom" (only some have Bottom Lock the "18" and "22" etc.),... Auto Zoom amplifies the marks in the bottom 6 feet of the water column, which is handy for walleye fishing, to really differentiate between the marks. You can tell which fish you've already tried to catch... and then move your lure and fish a different fish to see if that one is active. Anywho... worth every penny. My Vexilar practically broke the bank when I got it at $350... and a second one for my wife (she'd end up using mine before I got one for her)...same price. However, I'm really shocked at the price of the Marcums. The one I looked at was $700. I'd have to look at the features to understand the differences.
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Re: I want to ice fish. I have alot of questions...

Unread postby Crazinamatese » Mon Dec 22, 2014 12:53 pm

Looking at your pics; thats impressive bigwoodsmn. :shock: I could catch about that many mid-summer on certain lakes in an hour, but Im finding out ice fishing requires little bit of work and strategy, which Im ready to learn to get good at it. Those Marcum flashers are ridiculous expensive. I probably won't own one ever. :lol: On a side note, Looks like some warm temps are moving in next week which is not going to help the ice. The ice was 8 inches yesterday. Some of the other lakes in the area were anywhere between 5-9 inches. I have to keep my eyes on that. Hoping for a cold January. :shifty:
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Re: I want to ice fish. I have alot of questions...

Unread postby Crazinamatese » Mon Dec 22, 2014 1:01 pm

That showdown troller seems to have the bare minimum of what I need. The only thing Im concerned about it is the 6 AA batteries it runs on. Not sure if it is waterproof or the cold air messes with it. There is an adapter that you can buy seperately that has a device heater and battery pack for about $50. I been also looking at Lowrance fish finders. There is one I seen on a youtube video of the Lowrance X67c. I did a search on it and there is really no info or price listing on it.
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Re: I want to ice fish. I have alot of questions...

Unread postby BassBoysLLP » Mon Dec 22, 2014 1:06 pm

I remember having this argument with a buddy about 10 years ago. He argued that a Vexilar gave no clear advantage in less than 8 feet of water so we had a fish off. After 2 hours on the ice, I had my 25 fish limit and he had three. Same bait, line size, etc. Vexilar allows you to place your bait in the perfect spot in the water column and gives you a clear insight on fish behavior.

My buddy picked up a Vexilar later that year.

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Re: I want to ice fish. I have alot of questions...

Unread postby bigwoodsmn » Mon Dec 22, 2014 1:16 pm

Crazinamatese wrote:Looking at your pics; thats impressive bigwoodsmn. :shock: I could catch about that many mid-summer on certain lakes in an hour, but Im finding out ice fishing requires little bit of work and strategy, which Im ready to learn to get good at it. Those Marcum flashers are ridiculous expensive. I probably won't own one ever. :lol: On a side note, Looks like some warm temps are moving in next week which is not going to help the ice. The ice was 8 inches yesterday. Some of the other lakes in the area were anywhere between 5-9 inches. I have to keep my eyes on that. Hoping for a cold January. :shifty:


Thanks...I'm going to do more spearing this year. I'm a much bigger open water guy. But I think about bucks the whole time I'm fishing. I'm cutting back fishing in May to scout marsh. I was just thinking how awesome these handhelds you pointed out would be in a canoe. So I started looking up videos. One of my buddies is a Marcum rep (same ball team in college) and the other is a Vexilar rep (bought me :orcs-cheers: in college).
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Hodag Hunter
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Re: I want to ice fish. I have alot of questions...

Unread postby Hodag Hunter » Mon Dec 22, 2014 11:04 pm

BassBoysLLP wrote:I remember having this argument with a buddy about 10 years ago. He argued that a Vexilar gave no clear advantage in less than 8 feet of water so we had a fish off. After 2 hours on the ice, I had my 25 fish limit and he had three. Same bait, line size, etc. Vexilar allows you to place your bait in the perfect spot in the water column and gives you a clear insight on fish behavior.

My buddy picked up a Vexilar later that year.

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Electronics surely do help.....I agree with that but I wouldn't miss a day from fishing if I didn't own one.

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Bowhunting Brian
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Re: I want to ice fish. I have alot of questions...

Unread postby Bowhunting Brian » Tue Dec 23, 2014 1:47 am

Hodag Hunter wrote:
BassBoysLLP wrote:I remember having this argument with a buddy about 10 years ago. He argued that a Vexilar gave no clear advantage in less than 8 feet of water so we had a fish off. After 2 hours on the ice, I had my 25 fish limit and he had three. Same bait, line size, etc. Vexilar allows you to place your bait in the perfect spot in the water column and gives you a clear insight on fish behavior.

My buddy picked up a Vexilar later that year.

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Electronics surely do help.....I agree with that but I wouldn't miss a day from fishing if I didn't own one.

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I think they are a must. you can find fish, find water depth, weeds, you can watch your lure working, you can adjust your presentation based on what your seeing the fish do on the screen. I have a vexilar and an aqua view. I'll never fish without the vexilar. the aqua is fun and does help, but I can fish without it.
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Re: I want to ice fish. I have alot of questions...

Unread postby whitetail007 » Tue Dec 23, 2014 2:25 am

never owned a vex and probably never will. I like to tip-up fish most of the time, unless the gills are biting then ill jig. I cant sit and stare at my pole all day for a few fish, it needs to be fast action for me or the pole stays in the bucket.
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Spysar
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Re: I want to ice fish. I have alot of questions...

Unread postby Spysar » Tue Dec 23, 2014 2:32 am

Holy crap Bigwoodsman!

I been ice fishing all my life, and I'm learning just as much as Crazinamatese!

I need to up my game.
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Re: I want to ice fish. I have alot of questions...

Unread postby BassBoysLLP » Tue Dec 23, 2014 2:37 am

Hodag Hunter wrote:
BassBoysLLP wrote:I remember having this argument with a buddy about 10 years ago. He argued that a Vexilar gave no clear advantage in less than 8 feet of water so we had a fish off. After 2 hours on the ice, I had my 25 fish limit and he had three. Same bait, line size, etc. Vexilar allows you to place your bait in the perfect spot in the water column and gives you a clear insight on fish behavior.

My buddy picked up a Vexilar later that year.

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Electronics surely do help.....I agree with that but I wouldn't miss a day from fishing if I didn't own one.

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I'm surely not missing an entire day. Just the time to drive back home and pick it up. :doh: :lol:


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