SEYMOUR

[vt icehunter]

I haven't had much experience with jigging and would like to try jigging for lakers. Does anyone have any suggestions on what to use for lures (size and color). Is it best to fish the lure bare or add some bait? Any help will be greatly appreciated. Thanks

[fishingidjit]

Large white airplane jigs, large (1 oz) white Spro bucktail jigs  and large Swedish pimples are my favorites Start jigging just off the bottom and work your way up the water column slowly trying to get hits or use a fish finder to find them and fish that depth. good luck !   

[Fish Wayniac]

Im no pro but I did get my biggest laker jigging , its my avitar. I think it was a buck tail jig. The big airplane jigs work. Sweedish pimples silver and gold. Tip the hook with piece of cut bait.Start bouncing the lure off the bottom and raise up and doen . I dont own a flasher like a vexlar but they help. Goodluck!

[tench]

With a vexilar you can trigger more bites. They like you to keep it away from them and they'll hit on the pause or sometimes during a big rip. You can't out-reel them and they're usually more than willing to chase your bait up a ways.

[Icemanvt]

Swedish pimples tipped with smelt

[vt icehunter]

Thanks for all the advice! I have just ordered some of the lures that you have suggested. Ill let you know how I make out. As of yet, I don't have a flasher but I have been looking at purchasing one. Any suggestions on which make and model that best suits a beginner. It gets pretty confusing, there alot of them out there.

[tench]

I got a Marcum vx-1P last year. Same features as a Vexilar FL-8 but it has a bottom zoom button. Wicked easy to use, works up to 160 feet deep. I've personally used mine in water from 5 feet to 100 feet deep, works great. Around $300 bucks.

[thebigwiggle]

All these lures the guys are suggesting here are great, but one lure you might want to use that i used allot on champlain when i jigged for lakers was a big white tube jig, like you would use in the summer time for Bass. The tube jig has very slow fall rate and falls in a circular motion which look like a dying smelt or bait fish in the water. also like the other guys said here , make sure you work the entire water column because you never know where the lakers might hit . i have caught lakers right next to bottom , 10 feet off bottom and 5 feet down below the ice.
Good Luck

[pikeaddict]

When using a tube I don't put the jig head all the way in the tube, instead I cheat it back between 1/2 to 3/4.  It makes the tube glide a lot more and slows down the rate that it falls.

[vt icehunter]

I got a Marcum vx-1P last year. Same features as a Vexilar FL-8 but it has a bottom zoom button. Wicked easy to use, works up to 160 feet deep. I've personally used mine in water from 5 feet to 100 feet deep, works great. Around $300 bucks.

If you don't mind me asking where did you get your Marcum?

[Crayfish2]

Well, how about a gold tungsten jig with a motor oil colored Maki for a laker setup?  My son was jigging for smelt on Willoughby Saturday and hooked into a 20" laker with this tiny jig.  He did a great job of not horsing it in (I was worried that the hook might straighten out more than anything else).  30mins later we got it on the ice!  He was quite excited, to say the least.  He had only been jigging for about 2-3 mins when the laker hit.  The laker was completely full of smelt, so he probably figured he only had room for another tiny morsel!

[shiveringjoe]

Well, how about a gold tungsten jig with a motor oil colored Maki for a laker setup?  My son was jigging for smelt on Willoughby Saturday and hooked into a 20" laker with this tiny jig.  He did a great job of not horsing it in (I was worried that the hook might straighten out more than anything else).  30mins later we got it on the ice!  He was quite excited, to say the least.  He had only been jigging for about 2-3 mins when the laker hit.  The laker was completely full of smelt, so he probably figured he only had room for another tiny morsel!

Congrats to your son!  He knows how to pose for a good fish picture too. 

[vt icehunter]

Yes, congrats to your son! That's one happy boy right there!

[fishingidjit]

  nice fish and great grin !

[thebigwiggle]

congrats  always warms my heart to see the younger generation "Ice Fishing"

[Crayfish2]

Thanks, guys ... it was awesome!  Neither of us had ever caught a laker jigging before, let alone on something made for panfish!  We had setup about 8 tipups and stopped to get the shanty up so he could get out of the wind (it was HOWLING on Saturday!!!).  I went back out to put out more tipups when I heard him hollering inside the shanty, "Daddy!!!  I've got something BIG!".  It really made the trip, especially since it was the only keeper we got all weekend between Willoughby and Seymour.

[RipSomeLips22]

Were you on seymore when you set up the 8 tip ups, and also were hand jigging?

[tench]

If you don't mind me asking where did you get your Marcum?

I got it at Dick's last year

[Crayfish2]

Were you on seymore when you set up the 8 tip ups, and also were hand jigging?

No, like I said, that was on Willoughby.  Thanks for trying to keep me honest, though.   

[ScreaminReels]

Great Fish...Good job gettin it to the hole lil cray. Couple years back while fishing with my Dad I caught a salmon while catching smelt on Willoughby. I was 45