Windlass Tipups

[TogueHunter]

I started to use the Ice Jigging Buddy Wind tip-up,it comes with its own hole cover and no springs and a real simply design.(Very smooth release)Takes just seconds to set up.Hole covers are a solar type that are not 100% but they do work. They also have outfished my other tip-ups when conditions are right.Check it out at WWW.tipup.net

Thanks for the tip Hunter, I'm a sucker for new gadgets!   

[TogueHunter]

Looks like they had it going with some kind of an electric motor on the video (it even jigged to the beat of the music that was playing) 
I have a question for you... Just how sensitive is the flag when it's blowing in the wind?   

[hunter17]

Looks like they had it going with some kind of an electric motor on the video (it even jigged to the beat of the music that was playing) 
I have a question for you... Just how sensitive is the flag when it's blowing in the wind?   

The flag is made of a stiff material,I think it might be something like duck tape.There is a notch cut out to put flag spring into.Also a tension adjustment for large minnows.It releases after the spool turns to free spool.I like the two cork idea that covers all three points since I use treble hooks.Tired of poking myself when I reach for my tip-ups. My nine year old son had no problem setting it up and caught a 12 inch trout on it.

[fishermen50]

I made 2 wind tipups and hope to work the bugs out by next ice fishing season.
I know they are not expensive but had to try my hand at it.  Always the challenge
in making your own fishing equipment, as seeing it work or sometimes fail.

[TogueHunter]

I made 2 wind tipups and hope to work the bugs out by next ice fishing season.
I know they are not expensive but had to try my hand at it.  Always the challenge
in making your own fishing equipment, as seeing it work or sometimes fail.

Your own design?  Or are you taking one of the other brands and making it better?
If you come up with a new design that really works well, look into getting a patent for it!

[BrattleShack]

 Maybe the guys at Hi-Tech (or Al Lindner himself possibly?) read the ice shanty posts, and will see my ideas and incorporate them into the Windlass II TipUp, and pay me  royalties for my design ideas!  (Hey a fellow can dream can't he?)   

I'm working on a home-made model and am trying to get a production line going by next ice.  Partly because I'm sick of all the "made in China" stickers on my gear, partly because I'm a mechanical engineer between jobs and need to tinker.  I'll post what I come up with.  The hard part is navigating around the existing patents.

[fishermen50]

My tipup has worked flawlessly the past couple winters.  I used a casting reel and parts from a crappie pole.  Wish  I could figuer out how to post a picture.

[Doop]

I like them.   HOWEVER.....if you buy one....make sure you take all of the line off and actually TIE the line to the spool.  We bought 6 of them this past winter....lost 2 fish because they spooled us....come to find out...the line was not secured to the spool.   

[northernnyice]

They are pretty cool i have 2. They are a pain in the but to pick up in the cold though IMO. One also cracked when i removed it from the ice next to the hole:( but i like not having to take the tipup out of the hole, i like them for walleye.

[toddyrotten]

I have one I bought at a garage sale over the summer for a buck. Can't wait to try it out. Sounds like there is a learning curve with these, but I'm up for the challenge.

[dkfry]

I have two of the Windlass tipups I used for the past two sesons. They are not perfect but they work well for me. The included screws are junk, I made all new stainless hardware for mine. The spools are brittle, buy extra or make new ones out of the proper plastic or aluminum.

I read through previous posts and it seems some are having issues with tripping. I suspect some of the tripping issues are from plain braided tipup line. I use 25lb plastic coated mason line on mine. The plastic line is coilly but its manageable. The plastic coating bites the flag and helps to lift it to trip the flag. You have to make shure the line pulls off the spool the right direction or it will never trip the flag.

[big-brother]

You have to make shure the line pulls off the spool the right direction or it will never trip the flag.

Very important info.Although it seems logical to spool these up clockwise you need to spool them COUNTERCLOCKWISE(CRANK THE SPOOL TOWARDS YOU:LINE COMES OFF THE TOP) otherwise the flag will never trip.

[kiltman]

I like mine. It takes a little getting used as far as setting them up, but, they are deadly with dead bait.
The modifications listed earlier are needed and I just put some old fashioned  black friction tape on my flag stem. Worked with plain or coated tip-up line.

tight lines

[icejunky]

It takes a little getting used to

Mine is growing on me, it seems more and more ice time each season.

[Jimbuck]

What brands are you guys using for windlass? All I know of are the HT's.

[Oldfart]

Could not stand the tangles tossed it!

6 of mine are in the dump right now!

[Bender]

I like them.   HOWEVER.....if you buy one....make sure you take all of the line off and actually TIE the line to the spool.  We bought 6 of them this past winter....lost 2 fish because they spooled us....come to find out...the line was not secured to the spool.   

Thanks for the great tip! I got two recently and after reading this I checked and on both the line was not tied to the spool. That would have ruined a day of fishing real quick.

I tried them for the first time yesterday and while it wasn't too windy there was an occasional breeze. Mine didn't seem to rock at all, even after bending the blades up to almost 90 degrees. Are there modifications to help this or does it take a strong wind? 

[sparker]

I set mine so the arm is down with dead bait on bottom when the wind blows it lifts it a little. Arm is up for live bait to keep the bait active. No need to BENDER 90.

[d3]

6 of mine are in the dump right now!

You should have at least tried to sell them instead of throwing out 6 good traps   

The other windlass tilts that were not tied at the end I went to there site and it said sold out and they were only $12.95 was that correct as some of these post were from 2008 - mid 2009 then it opened up again a little bit fo rthis ice season.  Thank you in advace for any info.

[Flag!!Man]

Thanks for the great tip! I got two recently and after reading this I checked and on both the line was not tied to the spool. That would have ruined a day of fishing real quick.

I tried them for the first time yesterday and while it wasn't too windy there was an occasional breeze. Mine didn't seem to rock at all, even after bending the blades up to almost 90 degrees. Are there modifications to help this or does it take a strong wind?  

Bend your springs a little,, they are new and stiff,, be careful not to overstretch though


After experimenting with windlass tip ups I have tripled my catch rates...  Extremely effective on Neutral / Negative fish using dead bait.   Also have found them to keep live bait livelier.  They take alot of patience and I have even found ways to modify them to reduce tangle.  Take the bolt / wing nut off and put the wing nut on opposite side of spool; line burning off the spool likes to hang up on the wing nut.  Use the bigger spools, they sell them seperate if you have ones with the smaller spool.  Longer bolts can be bought at a hardware store, then cut to size, if needed.  

I never sit when Ice fishing, On very cold or snowy days;;  unless I'm jigging.   I constantly tend to "My Rigs"  (Windlass Tip Ups). It's work, but, it produces... 

[Flag!!Man]

I bought one last year near the end of the season.  It took a little while to learn how to set it up and to point it into the wind and bend up one of the fins to get the best action.  I've gotten 3 flags and one rainbow on it, and will always haul it out when the wind is right.
I made a modification to the flag that helps it to trip more consistently... I glued a 1/2" strip of sandpaper to the flag shaft where it slips under the spool.  This gives the flag a gripping action against the line and it won't false trip or have such a hair-trigger as the original smooth spring steel.

Nice!! Gotta try that

[emtorn]

6 of mine are in the dump right now!

Next time you get frustrated with some of your gear, let me know.  I will give you my address and will pay for you to ship it to me instead of throwing it in the dump.

[AtlBraves12]

NJ Piker or TogueHunter:
I like the sounds of your modifications to the windlass tipups. I love mine but don't like a few things about them but your modifications might be what I need to do so they work... more flawlessly. I have 6... 2 with the small spools and the other 4 have the large spools. I hate the plastic wing nuts. I had problems with the flags tripping so a couple years ago I wrapped some rough athletic tape around the end of the flag... however, the sandpaper sounds like a great idea so I am going to do that. If you could maybe take a picture of some of the modifications you did that would be great... I'm more of a visual guy; hard for me to follow some of your modifications. Thanks

[AtlBraves12]

also, what do people like to use for line markers on the windlass tipups? I have used the little bobbers and had problems with them popping off when they hit the bottom of the ice. I have used bobber stops and they work for a little while but are a pain when moving from 10' to 30'. Split shots are probably the best I've tried but they tend to pop off every once in a while. I think I'm going to put vinyl-coated tip up line on all my windlass tip-ups this year. If its really cold out the 30# mason braid ices up too much and the jigging action is lost a little bit... any help/tips are appreciated. Thanks

[AtlBraves12]

haha... sorry for loading up the forum with a bunch of questions but how does everyone store their windlass tipups. I usually just store them in a 5-gallon pail but they get tangled every once in a while. Any alternate storage options would be appreciated. Thanks... I'm done asking questions now 

[gaudetskie]

haha... sorry for loading up the forum with a bunch of questions but how does everyone store their windlass tipups. I usually just store them in a 5-gallon pail but they get tangled every once in a while. Any alternate storage options would be appreciated. Thanks... I'm done asking questions now 

In the junk bucket with the other gear that I find to be more of a pain than it's worth.

[AtlBraves12]

In the junk bucket with the other gear that I find to be more of a pain than it's worth.

  I love my windlass tipups... they outcatch all my other tipups combined. They work especially well in ND since it's so flat around here and MN is always sucking and MT is always blowing... or something like that.
Honestly, though if you know what you are doing and there is a 10-15mph breeze... they work better than any other tipup for walleyes. Guaranteed. If there is no wind, however, I leave them at home. They are worthless.

[gaudetskie]

In fairness, I didn't put a lot of time into making them work. I don't usually do a whole lot of tip-up fishing to start with, then the unit wouldn't stay set up right. (they need a few more nylon washers, and maybe a tension washer for the spool) Finally I stopped taking it along and threw it in said "junk bucket." Maybe down the road I'll put some work into it and make it work right, I just like the simplicity of my beaver dams.