Fish-Hawk.Net

I'm looking to buy a good spinning reel for one of my ice rods, just wondering what you folks like. I have a couple St.Croix ice rods but the st.croix reels that come on them are junk. I have always used the reels that came with the rods and believe it or not I have caught so many fish with them the gears are worn out . Should I be looking for a micro reel?

I have a preference for the Accucast from HT, I have 5 of them now and have never been let down. they are made just for the ice, a unique feature is the extended shaft to wear with heavy gloves or mitts. the body and bail are tilted up toward the first guide. Look them up on the HT site. I paid about $30 for mine at Cdn Tire in Kingston a couple of years ago, first I just bought one but after landing a 12lb Splake on Dog Lake I hussled out and bought more.

I can second that selection.....I setup 4 rods with those reels last year and they are a great reel for the price.....the up angled reel specifically designed for an ice rod was a nice move......

RJ

right on lads, I will check them out

I have an HT AND a Northern Air Big Ice by South Bend.

Not a big fan of the South Bend. It rolls back and is quite heavy for an ice fishing rod.

The HT is FAR superior.

Take it for what its worth from a guy who ice fishes very little (at this point!)

Craig

Hey great post Nips I was thinking of doing a ice reel post for the same reason. I have been looking at some 500 shimano sedona but was also thinking of changing to a baitcaster style which I heard reduces line twists. Without hijacking Nips post do folks have an opinion on styles of reels pro's and cons?

The Okuma IT10 is a nice small reel.CTC has them for$37.00.

riverdog wrote:Hey great post Nips I was thinking of doing a ice reel post for the same reason. I have been looking at some 500 shimano sedona but was also thinking of changing to a baitcaster style which I heard reduces line twists. Without hijacking Nips post do folks have an opinion on styles of reels pro's and cons?

The biggest key to making it a quality combo is balance....you'll be hard pressed to get a balanced outfit using any baitcaster....

I've never had any issues with line twist while ice fishing Mark.....when using a spoon to jig I'll either use a small snap swivel or a barrel swivel above where my fluro lead joins my braid...

RJ

RJ wrote:

riverdog wrote:Hey great post Nips I was thinking of doing a ice reel post for the same reason. I have been looking at some 500 shimano sedona but was also thinking of changing to a baitcaster style which I heard reduces line twists. Without hijacking Nips post do folks have an opinion on styles of reels pro's and cons?

The biggest key to making it a quality combo is balance....you'll be hard pressed to get a balanced outfit using any baitcaster....

I've never had any issues with line twist while ice fishing Mark.....when using a spoon to jig I'll either use a small snap swivel or a barrel swivel above where my fluro lead joins my braid...

RJ

Do you use ice braid or reg braid?

Back to the original poster... I usually use lower end shimanos like siennas.

JZ wrote:
Do you use ice braid or reg braid?

I only run braid on my Laker/Walleye setup. Last year I played around with Fireline Ice and Power Pro Ice....I'd think regular braid would be fine if you were always in a portable or hardtop shack....

Mono or straight fluro on my other setups....

RJ

Don't forget about a smooth drag. This is usually something you cannot determine until you have line on the reel, which means you've already bought it.
Any comments on drag with these reels?

Maple

They drag served me well on some nice quality lakers and BOQ walleye....

I have both the 4BB and the 6BB model.

RJ

RJ wrote:

JZ wrote:
Do you use ice braid or reg braid?

I only run braid on my Laker/Walleye setup. Last year I played around with Fireline Ice and Power Pro Ice....I'd think regular braid would be fine if you were always in a portable or hardtop shack....

Mono or straight fluro on my other setups....

RJ

Im a power pro guy through and through, but last year i used the fireline ice 2lb on my walleye rod and slayed them. I like the fireline over the power pro when it comes to ice line. And like RJ said no line twist when you use a small swivel with a short sectin of floro as a leader material. I was fishing walleye in 60fow with 2 lb test and was outcatching my friends 10 X 1 who were using standard ice mono. The sensitivity in that line is amazing, but when it comes to the soft water season, cant beat the power pro, it simply last longer. You can have the same spool on your rod all year long with the power pro, not with the fireline.

A couple years ago i bought a couple of Berkley LR100`s when I was up north. they felt real nice. I did fish quite a bit with em... but only 2 winters worth and already they are starting lots of signs of failures, and are very lose. I took pretty good care them as I wanted them to last. I'm not very impressed with them and wouldn't recommend em. My buddy has a cheap shakespeare reel and it seems to work well the drag is decent. maybe you could look into those.

Chuck,

The accucast reel series is top notch for the price . We have them in stock and sell out quick once ice arrives !