Frabill vs. Fishtrap

[spoofer]

 A friend of mine is looking for a 2 man pullover type shanty.  He can't decside which one is the best. The fishtrap was 5 bucks more.  The frabill had more headroom.  Please help him, he spent 2 hours sitting in them and came home empty handed.

[fogcutter]

I went thru about the same thing yesterday at Cabelas and I'm glad I purchased the fish trap.Head room is nice but I don't do alot of standing aroud in the shanty.It is also just right for the hook set! This is just my opinion. Hope it helps!
 8) FOG

[fisherman261]

I also had a hard time picking.  I went with the Fish Trap Guide.  The Frabill is 30 lbs. heavier and I didn't like the seats on the Frabill.  They didn't seem to have a very good base.  On the Fish Trap, the seats are very nice.  In my area the Frabill was $30 more, but the thing that turned me off the most was the weight.

Matt

[bushbunny]

I have a Frabill, and comparing it to everything else, I am glad that I have the Frabill.  Weight is not a problem, but construction!!!!

[HEADHUNTER]

Go with the guide! IMHO.....Frabill Shanties are way too expensive for what you get.

hdhntr

[PERCHPULLER]

I LOOKED AT BOTH AND GOT THE FISHTRAP VERY WELL BUILT I LIKE THE CANVAS ON THE TRAP IT SEEMS HEAVIER

[gov]

I agree with the other Fishtrap owners, more option's and a better fabric for the $$$$$$$$$$$$$. Good Luck

[HEADHUNTER]

I like the fact that this site doesnt delete posts.  If we were at the icefishingfirst.com message board and we were posting these messages, they all would have been deleted,

   <<< me

Except for the one person that posted pro-frabill message.   Their board admin even changed the wording of one of  my posts to plug a  frabill shanty.  Its like big brother I tell you
   

[BlackIce]

that site is sponsored by Frabill.  One of the moderators is on the box of the Ultra Lite (or whatever the smallest shanty is named).  The fact that we don't have such censorship here makes this the best ice fishing site there is.

[HEADHUNTER]

Matter of fact, it was the ultra lite we were talking about.  I saw one at Sportmart the day before I saw the post and responded by saying how expensive it was and how cheap it looked.  I thought I was being fair in my response.  Guess he didnt want the bad publicity,  makes sense as to why he deleted it, but to change my wording, he was trying to get my goat.

[emptyhanded]

I have a fishtrap -- very pleased -- cheaper and lighter

[PERCH_INC.]

Got the fishtrap guide last year love it!!

[HEADHUNTER]

Perch Inc,

Do you like the seating better than this years?  I have heard mixed reviews but I like this years.  Easier to look down the hole.


Hdhntr

[Iceshanty]

My policy is: If you say something to stupid or to vulgar, I just plain and simply delete it. About editing; I see this "post editing" going on, on other forums, this is wrong and will never happen at iceshanty.com.

-Scott

I like the fact that this site doesnt delete posts.  If we were at the icefishingfirst.com message board and we were posting these messages, they all would have been deleted,

   <<< me

Except for the one person that posted pro-frabill message.   Their board admin even changed the wording of one of  my posts to plug a  frabill shanty.  Its like big brother I tell you
   

[HEADHUNTER]

I Agree.  I honestly do not think I was being vulgar or stupid.  I just gave my opinion.  I think it went something like this.

"there is a saying that  you get what you pay for, however this is not the case with the ultra lite"

That post got deleted, I again posted and that is when he changed my wording.

[bart]

If there is anyone out there??? I like to get the Fish Guide, but I fish most of the time alone. I was trying to compare the Fish Pro weight and the weight of the Fish Guide with one seat removed. If the weight difference is close, the Guide would allow a second seat when my son or someone else tags along...

[havejigwilltravel]

i have 3 fishtraps. 1 fisht trap II that is semi-retired.i currenently use a pro.my wife uses a guide.the extra room in the pro is a big plus.never owned a frabill.

[bart]

havejigwilltravel, Do you have any idea how much one of the seats in the Guide weigh? I'm just wonder how much weight I could reduce the Guide by removing one seat?

[HEADHUNTER]

LOL...I havent posted to this thread since 03 and today I get an email saying there is a post!!!!!!

The seat weight I think is a non issue. It is significantly bigger though.  I have the guide and fish alone 75% of the time.  I am always inviting first timers or taking my kids now that they are 8 and 7. 

[Bean]

The seat assemblies weigh about 11 to 12 pounds each.  If you removed one of the seat assemblies it would bring the weight of the guide down to about 70 pounds. That's 17 pounds more than the pro, but you also get 16 more inches of width with that added weight.

[bart]

Bean, thanks for the info. 53lbs vs 70lbs? 16" more space? $100 more? I have a few more months to decide   Thanks again

[HEADHUNTER]

Bean, thanks for the info. 53lbs vs 70lbs? 16" more space? $100 more? I have a few more months to decide   Thanks again

Its alwyas nice to have the option to bring another along.

[bart]

HEADHUNTER, that's the way I'm leaning...

[Tomhusker]

 I have the Guide and removed one of the seat assemblies. I can really tell a difference in weight, but mostly it is the extra room I have. I moved the right side seat over to the left a bit, giving me more room on both sides. I can always move it back and put the other seat back in if needed. 

[zamboni]

I have a Scout, and have noticed that the seat assembly has the same swivel as standard boat seat swivels- I am definitely replacing that sad excuse for a seat with a boat seat.

[Sven936]

I bought a Frabill Ranger Solo.  The sled was a little deeper than the traps and the seat is like a lazy boy

The seat assembly however adds a lot of weight and the bottom is almost flat.  I put some delrin runners on her, it tows pretty easy now.

[emptyhanded]

I have a guide and removed one seat -- but what I did was centered the other seat for solo action

This makes one big solo hut -- I drilled new holes in the sled and can always go back to a two man for planned trips

[ice dawg]

I have a Frabill XL Twin and my ice fishing buddy has a Fishtrap Guide. His Guide has never been out of his truck as we always use my Frabill. I don't know if he doesn't like it or is afraid to put some wear on it or what. We always end up taking mine out on the ice. 

[tip-uptwo]

or is afraid to put some wear on it or what.

That's probably the reason 

I use the Guide as a one man. My brother tags along once in a while so the extra seat really helps. Price was never a factor when I was looking for a flip-over...If you want the best buy an Otter house or Fish-Trap  8)

[ice dawg]

I guess I told ya the wrong info. My buddy had a Yukon model. It may be made by Clam. I'm not sure. I have noticed one thing when I have been checking out different fishing forums. A lot of things depend on where you live when it comes to which equipment you buy. On some forums, if you don't own an Otter you ain't nothin. On others it iis Fishtrap models and other places it is Frabill. Don't for get Clam, Eskimo and a dozen others. I think they are all nice. Where I live, it is mostly small towns and you buy what the local baitshop is selling or you drive 100 miles to look at other brands. When I bought my flipover I had looked at the Frabill XLT and the Yukon and bought the one that I preferred and would make the same decision again today. Maybe I should ask my buddy why he prefers to fish out of my XLT, but I really don't care. A lot of the time when we go ice fishing we take two pickups. One pulls the dropdown shanty on wheels and the other pulls a trailer with the ATV on it. When it's time to use one of the portables, all we have to do is take one of them out of a pickup. Maybe I will have to insist that we use his one of these days and see what it is like.