NEW GUY. WHAT LINE?

[FISHNUT1]

some of you may know this will be my first year ice fishing but have been fishing open water for 30+ years....

what is a good line for ice fishing? I will be fishing for panfish...

[sandhillguy]

I use anywhere from 2lb to 4lb test in either a flouro or mono, more often 2lb. Also a very sensitive rod with a fast tip that progresses into a good backbone is a thumbs up!!

[DakotaAngler]

I dislike how fluorocarbon spools onto reels, so I use monofilament as the main line on all my ice reels. The only exception is I use Fireline on my walleye reels.

On my panfish inline reels, I use 2# or 3# mono, direct tying to jigs. On my panfish spinning reels, I use 3# mono with a short one-foot 2# fluoro leader attached with a micro-swivel. On my perch spinning reels, I bump it up to 4# mono plus a 4# fluoro leader.

Berkley Trilene Micro Ice Line is the standard monofilament. I also really like Northland Bionic Ice Fishing Line monofilament. Compared with the Trilene, I actually think the Bionic spools better, ties better, kinks less, and has less memory. It is also less expensive. The only downside is that it is more difficult to find.

[Showdown56]

some of you may know this will be my first year ice fishing but have been fishing open water for 30+ years....

what is a good line for ice fishing? I will be fishing for panfish...

Fill the bottom half of your ice reel spool with the lightest MONOFILIMENT line from your open water reel.  Then add 2/4 lb Fluorocarbon line (pick a brand, what I like is "subjective"!  HA!) to that "backing" line.

Best knot to tie?  Make a loop in the backing line, consider it the same as a "jig/hook eye" and tie your most comfortable knot.  Slide the new knot down (but not FIRM) and then tie the new line to the "eye" that line is passing through- the same way.  WET the lines/knots before tightening.  "Wet" is IMPORTANT!  Some lines (mono/braid) absorb water, some (fluoro) do NOT.  That fluoro needs wet because it may get "hot" when cinching, making it "fragile".

This "suggestion" is because you said you are "new" to ice fishing, and because you will soon be HOOKED on ice fishing and need to save some $$$$ NOW for all the stuff you will thimk you need "down the line'!  HA!

[FISHNUT1]

Fill the bottom half of your ice reel spool with the lightest MONOFILIMENT line from your open water reel.  Then add 2/4 lb Fluorocarbon line (pick a brand, what I like is "subjective"!  HA!) to that "backing" line.

Best knot to tie?  Make a loop in the backing line, consider it the same as a "jig/hook eye" and tie your most comfortable knot.  Slide the new knot down (but not FIRM) and then tie the new line to the "eye" that line is passing through- the same way.  WET the lines/knots before tightening.  "Wet" is IMPORTANT!  Some lines (mono/braid) absorb water, some (fluoro) do NOT.  That fluoro needs wet because it may get "hot" when cinching, making it "fragile".

This "suggestion" is because you said you are "new" to ice fishing, and because you will soon be HOOKED on ice fishing and need to save some $$$$ NOW for all the stuff you will thimk you need "down the line'!  HA!

im one step ahead of you, I already filled the ice reels I bought with some 8lb test that I bought and did not like. ive always put some sort of backing on my baitcasters so I can fill more spools for less money or if I don't use backing I fill the spool with whatever line im using and when it gets low I pull the line off the spool and put backing on it equal to how low the spool is and then take the opposite end of the line I pulled off the spool and re-use it, no sense in throwing out line that has never even been wet... as for ice line im gonna try both mono and fluro and see wich I like better, I use braid,mono and fluro open water fishing and I like all of them for different presentations but have no clue what will work for me to jig with through the ice. how come nobody has mentioned braid for ice fishing? sure is a lot of it on the market. and this seems silly but do any of you think line color has any advantages or disadvantages for ice fishing? I know for open water fishing it does for me but this being my first (almost first.. caught a gill on about 3 inches of ice a couple weeks ago) attempt ice fishing i don't know, although i assume open water and ice fishing are very similar but very different from each other.... and as for the stuff i think i need, according to the warden i already have waaaay too much fishing gear as it is and just cant get why all the gear i have is not enough or why it will not work for ice fishing,and i gotta give it to her,she's right i'll never use half of the stuff i have but i gotta have it!! lol! needless to say she's not thrilled. if she knew what ive spent with my secret stash money on gear I'd be living in my clam on the bank somewhere waiting to use all of it....

[Showdown56]

As you have found from your active open water experiences, there are lines available for many different applications.

I used your "first year" ice fisher, and one "fishing for panfish" comments as a reference to my recommendations- for the BEST success opportunity for a "newby"!

Fluorocarbon Line is as "invisible" as you can get.  It doesn't absorb water, meaning less build up of "ice crystals" above and below the waterline like a braid or mono are known for.  Most new icers are sitting on a bucket "in the open" where iced lines can be a royal pain!  Even in my Otter, mono can pull a deposit to my top guide!  VERY LITTLE stretch, helping you recognize light hits with a matching rod/lure set-up.

As for the "warden", I DO have a 2-man Otter Wild I'd loan you if needed, and a  Buddy Heater as well.  Worked good for me when I made the mistake of comparing my fishing expenses with the racks of shoes in her closet... 

 

[FISHNUT1]

As you have found from your active open water experiences, there are lines available for many different applications.

I used your "first year" ice fisher, and one "fishing for panfish" comments as a reference to my recommendations- for the BEST success opportunity for a "newby"!

Fluorocarbon Line is as "invisible" as you can get.  It doesn't absorb water, meaning less build up of "ice crystals" above and below the waterline like a braid or mono are known for.  Most new icers are sitting on a bucket "in the open" where iced lines can be a royal pain!  Even in my Otter, mono can pull a deposit to my top guide!  VERY LITTLE stretch, helping you recognize light hits with a matching rod/lure set-up.

As for the "warden", I DO have a 2-man Otter Wild I'd loan you if needed, and a  Buddy Heater as well.  Worked good for me when I made the mistake of comparing my fishing expenses with the racks of shoes in her closet... 


lmao! yeah... I know not to go down that road! EVER!! lol!!   I wont be sitting on a bucket in the open unless its very nice outside, I don't do the cold and that's probably most of the reason ive never ice fished. I have a buddy heater and a clam hut/shelter/flip hut?? not sure what you would call it but a few weeks ago when it was -20 windchill I took it out side with the heater and it got warm enough to sit inside with jeans and a sweatshirt... ive already got more ice gear than I know what to do with so im pretty sure im hooked already!!! gonna be in trouble soon when my vexilar shows up at the door that's replacing my HB 55 off my boat that well, lets just say it grew legs and walked away... anywho, yeah I cant wait to come home from work and get the "look" from her :-) hopefully her "look" will help the water freeze up faster lol!
 

[Sharkbait]

as a seasoned Iceman.. I am always open to new tricks and tips.what are some of the advantages to using backing on your reels instead of filling your reel with the mono or fluorocarbon that you were going to use for fishing I don't know about your guyses reels but mine don't hold all that much. Just wondering

[Showdown56]

Low and no stretch lines like fluoro and braid (especially) have a tendency to "spin" on the spool unlike mono which will "lock down" when the loop and knot are "stretched tight"!

One could use a piece of double stick tape (been there, done that!) but mono works GREAT, is usually on hand - not to mention even on those small spools, one rarely lf ever sees the bottom third of the line on the spool.

Plus, I am a tight-wad and can't imagine wasting expensive line when I can use a cheaper mono that I likely took off a reel I re-spooled! 

Edit to add:  Most ice reels have a smaller diameter spool because, as a rule, they are spooled with much "thinner" line!

[FISHNUT1]

Low and no stretch lines like fluoro and braid (especially) have a tendency to "spin" on the spool unlike mono which will "lock down" when the loop and knot are "stretched tight"!

One could use a piece of double stick tape (been there, done that!) but mono works GREAT, is usually on hand - not to mention even on those small spools, one rarely lf ever sees the bottom third of the line on the spool.

Plus, I am a tight-wad and can't imagine wasting expensive line when I can use a cheaper mono that I likely took off a reel I re-spooled! 

Edit to add:  Most ice reels have a smaller diameter spool because, as a rule, they are spooled with much "thinner" line!

agreed...some people are tight-wads and some spend their money like drunken sailors (no offense to any navy guys, a figure of speech my grandpa used a lot. he was in the navy during the big one) on leave, ive been guilty of both but when I take it off the spool and turn it around and respool with the same line its a matter of being taught when I was little that you don't waste anything and for sure not good never been wet fishing line regardless of the cost....

now when I fill a spool with braid I tie it through 2 of the port holes they drill out to reduce weight and haven't had it slip or spin yet then when it gets low I use backing and turn the braid around....  I was thinking about why ice reels have such small capacity spools and I figured it was more to do with the fact that even if your fishing 60ft of water that's only 20yds of line to get you to the bottom so if you have 40 yds on your reel that should be waaay more than enough line to get the job done... but I could be wrong but it makes sense to me......

[whitetips]

Lots of different types of lines and each can be the perfect line for different fishing situations.  That is the case for open-water fishing and for ice-fishing too.

So, do not know if this will help, but you might want to check it out, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WPz6La6U6n0.

For ice-fishing, for panfish, I am using a lot of fluorocarbon, some monofilament although less and less of that in recent years.  In deep water, I would consider some of the "super-lines" to be a viable choice too.

Yes, I put "filler" line on all my reels and then top them off with the high-quality line I choose.  A person only really fishes with several dozen feet of line, hardly ever will you need all the line on a spool when fishing in Nebraska waters.  By filling the spool with whatever cheap line I have on hand, I need a lot less quality line when it is time to replace it.  By they way, I am replacing monofilament or fluorocarbon frequently, depending on use.

My $0.02-worth,

Daryl B.