Author Topic: Weight on the bottom???  (Read 3686 times)

Offline Iceassin

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Weight on the bottom???
« on: Oct 17, 2020, 03:44 PM »
Going to experiment...I think. Tie a 3 way swivel on the main line. Off the "center", attach my wire leader ( usually use 13# which is quite thin and light) and a treble. Off the bottom of 3 way, attach a 2',3',4 'etc. length of line ( however deep I want to fish) with a half ounce bell sinker on the end. So here's my thought:

With the weight on the bottom,  there is less stress on the minnow allowing it to stay more active, longer. Only downside I see is minnow getting leader wrapped around main line...or not. Any thoughts or experiences to share?
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Offline RapShack

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Re: Weight on the bottom???
« Reply #1 on: Oct 17, 2020, 05:45 PM »


With the weight on the bottom,  there is less stress on the minnow allowing it to stay more active, longer.

No.  Either way the minnow doesn't bear any of the load of the weight.  I've used a similar setup with the weight on a slider but only for heavy current, other than that it's just extra crap to get tangled up.  If you want your bait to be more active go around to your tipups every 10 to 15 minutes and lift them up a foot or so and drop them back down.
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Offline TheCrappieFisherman

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Re: Weight on the bottom???
« Reply #2 on: Oct 17, 2020, 10:36 PM »
So kinda like a drop shot rig with live bait?  Except you're using a 3 way. With the leader and treble coming off the main line perpendicular,  wouldn't the minnow be hooked and hanging at a weird angle?  I'd think this adds to the weight the fish feels. If a fish picks up the minnow and swims away it also has to pick up the weight off the bottom.  More likely for it to spit the bait? 

Half ounce is a lot of weight.  During the summer drop shotting for bass off the boat, we will use anywhere from an 1/8 ounce to 1/4 in deeper water. Use a lot of 3/16 ounce.

Offline Iceassin

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Re: Weight on the bottom???
« Reply #3 on: Oct 18, 2020, 05:45 AM »
I guess it is a drop shot, isn't it? Lol. Anyway, when I said weight on "bottom", I meant bottom of the lake. So in theory, the minnow would be bearing none of the weight as I hope to have a little slack in the line between the weight and swivel/dropper line allowing it to swim free with no resistance. Maybe 1/2 oz. would be a bit much. Dunno. Not sure if the difference between a 1/4 and 1/2 would matter to the pike though. I can see the minnow getting the dropper/leader wrapped around the main line though. I might try one tip up this way and see what happens. Thanks for the input fellas.
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Offline rdhammah

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Re: Weight on the bottom???
« Reply #4 on: Oct 18, 2020, 08:30 AM »
using a 3-way, I can see the bait getting tangled up with the leader for the weight when the bait rests and hangs straight down

Offline TheCrappieFisherman

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Re: Weight on the bottom???
« Reply #5 on: Oct 18, 2020, 12:52 PM »
I agree the minnow will be able to swim freely and won't have much resistance. I guess in my experience running tip ups for pike, often times the fish will run 10,20, 30 feet before I get to the flag or if next to it I purposely let them run for a quick minute to make sure the bait is fully in the mouth.  The pike would pick up the weightless minnow but then feel the weight on the bottom when it starts to run. If its heavy enough and dragging on the bottom I could see the pike dropping the bait.

It's an interesting idea and would be curious to hear how it works. I haven't had any issues running a typical tip up rig with a sliding sinker several feet above the minnow so have never thought of changing it up. 

Offline SirCranksalot

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Re: Weight on the bottom???
« Reply #6 on: Oct 18, 2020, 03:37 PM »
Why not use a palomar knot and leave a long tag end for the dropshot?
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Offline RyanW

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Re: Weight on the bottom???
« Reply #7 on: Oct 18, 2020, 09:02 PM »
I guess I’m confused on why you’d want to use the weight at all except for in current like RapShack said. Why would you assume it creates less stress? If anything, it’s just a tether and the minnow is only allowed to swim the radius of your leader. Are you trying to get to bottom quicker or trying to keep the minnow in a certain area? It takes very little resistance for pike to spit your bait. Frozen stuck line is more than enough for that let alone a 1/2 oz weight.

My experience with any situation I thought a 3-way swivel would work wonders it just proved to be a terrible concept.

Also, what makes you think a lively minnow is what the pike wants? Maybe it wants a slow almost “paralyzed” minnow so it can take its time to stalk it. Most of your bigger pike tend to do that. Most of your bigger pike have also been around the block a time or two and know that spent energy with no reward makes for a bad winter so they will bypass a more active bait and let the hammer handles waste energy for a tiny meal. Of course, this depends a lot on your fishery and the pike population in. Just food for thought.
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Offline DR.SPECKLER

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Re: Weight on the bottom???
« Reply #8 on: Oct 19, 2020, 06:21 AM »
Well if this rig is for pike its not needed.in my experience pike are almost always suspended and i rarely have my bait set at anything over 10ft even in 25ft of water.alot of times i dont even have any sinker on my rigs.

Offline Iceassin

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Re: Weight on the bottom???
« Reply #9 on: Oct 19, 2020, 06:39 AM »
Well if this rig is for pike its not needed.in my experience pike are almost always suspended and i rarely have my bait set at anything over 10ft even in 25ft of water.alot of times i dont even have any sinker on my rigs.

So no sinker Doc? Do you just let the minnow itself make its way down the water column?
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Offline hardwater diehard

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Re: Weight on the bottom???
« Reply #10 on: Oct 19, 2020, 06:59 AM »
Although I dont have Pike in my waters ..but my recent knowledge lends me to believe Pike love dead and smelly bait and I would hang it vertically . There cousin the Pickerel only like live bait in my area ..



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Offline DR.SPECKLER

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Re: Weight on the bottom???
« Reply #11 on: Oct 19, 2020, 07:08 AM »
So no sinker Doc? Do you just let the minnow itself make its way down the water column?
if im in 10ft or less no sinker.let the minnow swim wherever on its own.even if its swimming 3 ft down a pike will grab it because they tend to ambush from below.if im in 20ft i will put the smallest shot i can to get it down a bit.keep the minnow as natural as it can be with a hook in its back.

Offline DR.SPECKLER

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Re: Weight on the bottom???
« Reply #12 on: Oct 19, 2020, 07:11 AM »
Although I dont have Pike in my waters ..but my recent knowledge lends me to believe Pike love dead and smelly bait and I would hang it vertically . There cousin the Pickerel only like live bait in my area ..



pike are super predators but are also opportunistic.but i catch way more pike on lively golden shiners than i do dead bait.i cant stand when my minnows die off in the bucket.i save them in case i run out of live but most times they get tossed out for the birds to eat.lol

Offline DR.SPECKLER

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Re: Weight on the bottom???
« Reply #13 on: Oct 19, 2020, 07:15 AM »
Mike i could see your rig working like instead of a 3 way tie it like a lake michigan perch rig.maybe with 2 minnows even,but i would think that rig would work better for bottom hugging walleye more than pike.thicker short lead lines coming of mainline keeps minnows from tangling up.

Offline Smelt 63

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Re: Weight on the bottom???
« Reply #14 on: Oct 31, 2020, 08:00 PM »
Here is a way I do mine with the wait on bottom.   Do you know how to tie a bobber stop knot. But when you tie it live the long end on top going to your spool. So you can make this as long as you want for the hook to be away from mane line. and tie on the hook. take the end  through eyelet and make a loop and take the tag end through the loop 6/8 times and hold the tag end and pull the line tight to the hook.  On the main line when tighten the stopper line. Pull it as tight as you want it if not to tight you cane slide it up and down.

Offline Knife2sharp

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Re: Weight on the bottom???
« Reply #15 on: Jan 15, 2021, 02:50 PM »
I've watched many a sucker on shiner on camera, no need to raise them a foot to initiate activity, just an inch will get them swimming frantically.  I think the high raises puts a bit more stress on them and they don't respond nearly as much with just a short pull on the line.
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Offline krispcritter

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Re: Weight on the bottom???
« Reply #16 on: Jan 15, 2021, 04:20 PM »
Not knowing how to use them when I first went ice fishing, off my tip ups I had a 1/2 ounce sinker directly to the tip up line, and 3 plastic bear paw snelled hook connectors on the line about a foot apart. I caught perch no problems. Some times even doubles by the time I got to the flag. Still rig this way sometimes except that the sinker as you are doing is on mono or floro.
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