Sonic Ice Hopper

[Sullymon]

Just ordered a Sonic-Ice-Hopper (flasher bracket and bucket combo for hole hopping).  Can't wait to try it out, mounting my Vex FL-18 to it.  I really like to whole idea ever since I saw the setup last year, especially since I'll be able to carry my bucket of fish and flasher in one hand. Not only that, my flasher has always slid around next to the hole ... problem solved. I'll have to give a full review and reporrt back after I break it in. Watch out panfish!  I'm a commin' for ya!

[walleye tattoo]

It is the only way to go in my opinion I have a three gall bucked inside the six gal three round tip ups fit in the top for ease of carrying the battery and small tackle bag in the bottom.A small box can be screwed to the cross brace to get at terminal tackle.Punch holes first or drag the auger with you and you are set to go.

[craigthor]

I ordered one as well, now to figure out how to use it in conjunction with the Glide Lite sled for an all in one fishing machine. Anyone have pictures of theres setup?

[walleye tattoo]

The glide lite would be the hot set up for walking in, I just bought a Vexilar jacket and bibs
that should take care of the need for a shack most times.

[Sullymon]

I ordered one as well, now to figure out how to use it in conjunction with the Glide Lite sled for an all in one fishing machine. Anyone have pictures of theres setup?

FedEx dude just delivered it ... gotta set it up and snap a pic.  I like the idea of the Glide Light sled instead of the Jetsled.  Anybody have some pics of thier setup I'd love to see them too!

[craigthor]

The glide lite would be the hot set up for walking in, I just bought a Vexilar jacket and bibs
that should take care of the need for a shack most times.

I got the Frabill SnoSuit so I figure my shack days will be very limited this season.

[craigthor]

FedEx dude just delivered it ... gotta set it up and snap a pic.  I like the idea of the Glide Light sled instead of the Jetsled.  Anybody have some pics of thier setup I'd love to see them too!

They said mine should be here Saturday if all goes well!

[Sullymon]

Just finished the wiring harness ... had a few extras from my flasher I wanted to keep like the battery meter and a power toggle switch (shut down between holes) and another toggle switch that controls the UV LEDs I mounted in the front for lure charging and night fishing. Here's the new rig:

[Sullymon]

Here's a pic of the UV light bar ... it actually fluoresces my line at night so I can see my line.

[craigthor]

Did you go with the SP or XL model on yours? Also could you snap a picture of where the wires run out and how far past the lower bucket rim the Ice Hopper hangs? I may have to modify it slightly to work with my Glide Lite.

Craig

[Sullymon]

The XL ... I'm actually only 5'7" and it fits me perfect.  There's a hole just underneath the lower rim of the bucket where the leads pull through for the battery.  I'll snap another pic of the wiring for you.

I noticed how high the profile is for the Glide-lite sled and thought ..."Wonder if the Ice Hopper frame would clear that?"  One solution might be to cut the bottom (a few inches) of a spare bucket, turn it upside down and use it to "jack up" the Sonic Ice Hopper rig so it clears the rim. How many inches do you have between the top to the bottom inside of the Glide-lite? 

I'll have another pic to follow for the wiring (after today's ice fishing of course).

[craigthor]

I'm thinking I will have to jack it up. I have a 6g frabill sit and fish and it goes from the bottom all the way to the rim on the bucket nicely. Guess I won't know for sure till it arrives. Also though about making a bracket so that it will just mount to the side of the glide lite but figure I need to see it in person before I get to carried away. Good luck out fishing I'm home sick can't wait to get back out to work.

Craig

[Sullymon]

craigthor ... what is the measured distance from the top of the Glide-Lite to the bottom inside?  For the Sonic Ice Hopper, I have a distance of 11 3/4" from the bottom (floor) to just under the bottom of the frame.  If your Glide-Lite measures more than that, it should be pretty easy to mount something inside the sled so it jacks the bucket up enough for clearance. If you have less then you're good to go.  One other question ... where do you put your auger?

The Sonic Ice Hopper comes with a pre-drilled hole just underneath the rim of the bottom (6 gal) bucket.  It also comes with an extension wire that hooks into your battery, then runs through the hole and hooks into the flasher (power harness).  If you look closely at the pic below, you can see a black and red wire coming out of the bucket between the frame rails.  All the wires after that point are covered with automotive sheathing that I put on so you can't really ree anything.  Basically the power comes out of the bucket, feeds 2 toggle switches, one for the flasher power and battery meter, and another for the UV LED light bar.

Hope that helps ... since I just got it, I plan on doing some more custom modifications to suit my needs.  I plan on putting a holder for small scissors and forceps as well, and a spot for my ice scoop.  Used the S.I.H. yesterday and it was everything I had hoped for and then some ... just awsome.

[Sullymon]

Here's the underside wiring ... I plan on redoing the wiring so everthing's neater.  Since I just got the S.I.H., instead of doing any wiring initially, I just took the entire harness off of my flasher and tucked the wires as best as I could temporarily.  It will look much better after I shorten up the wiring harness.

[walleye tattoo]

You want the rig portable so you can stash the the vexilar and bracket in the bucket
for transport and not get banged around.

[craigthor]

With a couple modifications to both buckets I don't have to worry about clearance with the Glide Lite. I will update with some pictures in the next few days after I get it all finished, hoping to get most of it cleaned up tomorrow wiring wise. Nothing a few drill bits, some connectors and shrink wrap won't take care of. Also still waiting for my Lure Lightning to arrive so I can wire that in as well.

This is going to make one super portable fishing rig once I get done I may not even get my flip over out at all!

Craig

[Sullymon]

I was thinking since I still have my JetSled Jr. ... why not modify that and use it instead of my big JetSled.  It would be much smaller and more compact.  All I need in it is a spot for my Sonic Ice Hopper bucket, my 7" Lazer auger with 36v Bosch drill and adaptor, a rod holder in the back, and my tackle bag ... a "runnin'-n-gunnin' machine" for sure.  Plenty of room so I can leave the bracket in place on the bucket instead of removing it each time (fits nice and tight).  Hmmmmmmm ... (the gears are turning for sure).  Like you said, nothing some connectors, shrink wrap, and wire won't take care of.  How much was the Lure Lighting, $30?

Will give an update ... Craigthor I'd love to see a pic ...

[craigthor]

I was thinking since I still have my JetSled Jr. ... why not modify that and use it instead of my big JetSled.  It would be much smaller and more compact.  All I need in it is a spot for my Sonic Ice Hopper bucket, my 7" Lazer auger with 36v Bosch drill and adaptor, a rod holder in the back, and my tackle bag ... a "runnin'-n-gunnin' machine" for sure.  Plenty of room so I can leave the bracket in place on the bucket instead of removing it each time (fits nice and tight).  Hmmmmmmm ... (the gears are turning for sure).  Like you said, nothing some connectors, shrink wrap, and wire won't take care of.  How much was the Lure Lighting, $30?

Will give an update ... Craigthor I'd love to see a pic ...

I started my own thread with several pictures all setup and ready to go, now for hte wife to get home so I can load it up and test it out!

[walleye tattoo]

The thing I have found is narrow can be a pain falling over.
Think about putting short skies as  outriggers. It may be just me, but every time I have had to pull my sled in it was over logs a ditch or through a swamp maybe just me.

[Sullymon]

For longer trecks to and from the lake I have been putting the hopper over my tackle bag and use a small bungy, that really seems to keep it in place.  Another solution might be to cut the bottom 4-6 inches off of an old bucket and silicone it to the bottom of your Jetsled.  Then just put the whole system right inside that for a tight fit and you're ready to rock.

[Pogowi]

Where can you get the UV bar?  i like  idea and would like to add that to my ice hopper.  Thanks

[Sullymon]

After using the new Sonic Ice Hopper for a few weeks now, I've made some minor changes.  I rewired the whole thing and added 2 more UV light bars.  I've found you can never have enough UV light at night, or during low-light conditions for seeing my line and keeping lures fully "charged". Also moved the mount for my forceps and scissors as well, and I bought a new lifetime scoop (awesome by the way) and cut a small notch in the top for the handle to latch on to. I went to Radioshack and purchased a "project box" which is a small 2"x3"x1" black box used for all the wiring and toggle switches, that mounts neatly under the battery meter. This will make it very easy to make any further modifications in the future, as well as making charging easier as well. Here it is:

[Sullymon]

A close up of the "box" used to re-wire:

[Sullymon]

Here is a pic of the UV lights ... had a tough time trying to capture how this looks in person with my small compact camera, but you can see how the UV lights make the line look fluorescent orange as if it was glowing ... very easy to see your line move the slightest at night on a light bite.  Also has enough ambient UV light to see with and not spook anything. Looks even better at night on the ice!

[richstick]

LOVE the UV light bar -where did you get it?

[Sullymon]

You can find them on Ebay for around $6 shipped.  Mine is the 12v type designed for many purposes, the advertiser suggested using them on motorcycles or cars for effects.

Originally I just wanted one to charge glow lures, something small I could mount on my flasher that was true UV.  Since then, I mounted my Vex on my S.I.H. and the light bar was perfect for it, so I added 2 more for extra light. Now I can fish at night and see my line, hole, and flasher without using any other light source that "blinds" my natural ability to see at night. I'll have to make a video of it in action ... it's pretty cool, and VERY useful, especially if you are a "line-watcher" like I am (think walleye and crappie @ night).

Only certainty lines will fluoresce under UV light, such as fluorocarbons and certain co-polymer lines like Sufix Magic Ice in neon-orange, Sufix Seige, Berkley Transition, Trilene 100% Fluorocarbon, and Lake Fork Fluorohybrid FH ... you get the idea. You just have to put it under UV to find out what works.

[one last cast]

sullymon is the little black box waterproof?

[Sullymon]

sullymon is the little black box waterproof?

Not when I got it ... water resistant maybe, waterproof, no. It is now though, I used marine grade silicone on seams and anywhere any wire holes are.  Not really necessary though since it's 12v low-voltage and all connections are soldered together and shrink tubing used.  When you buy a flasher the wires are far from waterproof except the head unit itself and the battery meter.

Any screws used are stainless, even the four screws that came with the box were replaced with stainless screws, along with the 2 machine screws that mount the box and battery meter the the S.I.H..

The red toggle switch is for the main power ... feeds lights, battery meter, and flasher, I use that one to cut power in between holes, also provides less wear and tear on the head unit power knob.  The white toggle switch is for the UV light bars only.  I also added two quick connectors behind the black box so I wouldn't have to disconnect anything in order to charge the battery.

[one last cast]

thanks for the info, great set up!

[Cotacatchers]

cool unit , nice mods . i do appreciate the info.