Wnybassman's Tip-Downs

[the Wizard]

Been thinking of the reels, ht or some company makes 1:1 gear ratio reels that are small, Anyone ever try the reel to have a drag system???
Some nice work there gentlemen!!!!!!!

The reels we use have an adjuster nut and I leave mine just a little tight so if I get a walleye or pike he can take a little line, it cuts down on break offs and has worked for me, I've been using mine for about 10 years.
 If you use tongue & groove pine for the up right[stand part] the groove is perfect for your balance notch.
  Also if you cut the bottom of the stand part with a 10 degree angle so it leans toward the water the wind doesn't blow them over[hinge on long point side, away from the water].

[wnybassman]

Also if you cut the bottom of the stand part with a 10 degree angle so it leans toward the water the wind doesn't blow them over

I couldn't tell from the picture of yours if it had an angle cut or not, but it made sense to me to put a 10 degree (coincidence, eh!) on mine as well.

[MACHINIST]

wnybassman could you give me a couple of dimensions I think I am going to build a couple of tip downs this weekend to get me thru the thaw.

[FrozenJig]

That's some fine craftsmanship fella's.  I received a similar design from a friend and have had great success with perch, crappie and even a few largemouth's. Your time spent will have great rewards. Best of luck & tight lines 

[fishincrazy]

Great set up.  they will work great.

[wnybassman]

wnybassman could you give me a couple of dimensions I think I am going to build a couple of tip downs this weekend to get me thru the thaw.

I used a 5/8" dowel cut to 20" for the rod.  The base portion is a 1x6 cut to 13" long.  The riser portion is a 1x4 cut to 8" with a 10 degree bevel on the bottom to make it stay upright better.

[MACHINIST]

Thanks I am going to make some on saturday and maybe use them on sunday at black lake.

[FingerLakesFisher]

I am not so sure why some of you would want different reels?  Remember even if they have reels on them they are still supposed to be hand lines, so after you set the hook and feel the fish, it needs to be pulled up by hand.  Other wise if you have five out and are jigging you would be over the limit. 

[IceGeek]

I have reels on mine because it's easy to store line on and wind it up...I alwasy hand line mine though, because with the setup I have it's easier.  As far as counting them as  jigging poles are concerned...slammer tip-ups are legal with a reel and rod to fight the fish.  I believe they now say (DEC) you are allowed "five signaling devices" which includes the tip-downs or tip-ups or a combination thereof. Somewhere there is a thread that was posted recently here on the NY board that say this....looked but I can't find it.

[crappieloo]

We went through this stuff last year. IceGeek is correct. All of our tip-downs have reels on them AND we use them to fight fish. We have had guys checked with thier '' 5 signaling devices'' with no problems as long as your name and address is on them.

[FingerLakesFisher]

That is not what I was trying to say. All I was getting at was why would you need drag, etc...? I agree it is easier to set up and take in the line at the end of the day.  But, You shouldn't be bringing up the fish with the reel.  That is all I am getting at.  LOVE TIP-DOWNS.  Rarely use tip-ups anymore.  Own about twenty tip-downs.

[crappieloo]

Mine have drags on them to protect  the line if a big fish takes the bait. Also some of mine use fiberglass rods to protect the line. Its just way easier to reel up a fish in the dark,rather than having line all over the ice. When 2 or 3 go off at the same time its easier too.
Nothing wrong with handlining them up, but i like reeling them.

[billybono]

mine are identical to wny,s...i dont use a reel on mine however.....i prefer just to hand over hand the fish up...also i painted mine florecent green on the base and florecent orange on the dowel, for better visability. i prefer to jig and rarley ever use them.....dink perch can be super annoying on em


             billybono

[utes]

Well guys, thanks for the idea.  Just thought I'd post these pictures of the one I got done today - actually I made up 6 of of them.  Only thing different is I put a different type of reel on with a drag, used brass for all hardware including the eye screws in the dowl.  I used steel for the pivet point in the dowl as I thought wood would swell and dry out and eventually splinter/crack.  Can't wait to try them out but first I'm going to stain them and put a couple coats of polyerathane.  Stay on top.  Utes

[IceGeek]

Nice looking tip-down UTES...I'm sure your wife appreciates them on the bed too!   

[utes]

Ice Geek
LOL - I wouldn't dare put in on our bed - thats the guest bedroom or my new best friend's (Cooper) - Just got him yesterday

[oakorchardfishking]

COOPER looks like a true friend already, sitting nice and close to his dad! many years of unconditional love and friendship right there! dogs are the best!!!

I noticed on the tipdowns, you said you had made 6 of them!
not sure if you are aware or not, so i thought i would just throw you a heads up....
you can only use 5 of them at one time!
You can have 5 of any combination of UPS/DOWNS along with your jig rods!
you may have made extra for another reason or a friend or fishing companion, but i just wanted to warn you incase you were unsure! 

[utes]

Thanks Oak, I was aware of that but i figured i'd make some extra's for my fishing buddies or even put a couple on ebay and see what happens.I'm gonna make up about 20 more seeing that I got the materials to do it. Gonna try and look at some more first to get different ideas. Thanks and as always, Stay On Top, Utes

[IceGeek]

Congratulations on the dog!  I sure he won't mind if you put some ice fishing gearon his bed every now and then!

[the Wizard]

You got the right idea UTES!  Thats funny , when I first started making tip-downs , I tried one of those same reels[ still have it] but after using them you might want to go with a larger size, they take forever to reel up your line if you are using them for perch in 30' of water,  And Oak , you should have an extra or two rigged because if you are into the fish heavy and break your line or a reel its faster to switch than to retie              [ especially if your hands are cold].    NICE Job, I hope you guys have as much fun with yours as I have had with mine.

[wnybassman]

Nice looking tip-downs Utes!

[utes]

Thanks WNYbassman(they look alot like yours, LOL) I'm gonna add the stain and poly tonight. and thanks for the advice Wizard. I think I might make the dowl a tad longer on the next set along with some bigger reels like the wazard said. I had these reels laying around so i figured i'd use'em up .Wizard, guess it's not much different than reeling in my tip up's during/after the day though. I will take your advice though and put some larger reels on the next set. I like your idea about having a couple ready to go just in case of break offs too. When the bite is hot i'd rather get it back in quick in-stead of messing around with tieing a new one up. Thanks and Stay On top, Utes

[TaterSalad]

wnybassman and utes

bassman,  How do you keep yours from folding up while you're using it? 

Utes, I see that you cut your vertical piece at an angle.  Was this to keep yours from folding while in use?

Do you try to balance the rod so there is almost no resistance felt by the fish?

Both styles look great.  Thanks for sharing.

[wnybassman]

I cut a 10 degree bevel on the bottom of the vertical piece so it leans towards the hole a tad.  This keeps everything upright very well.   I did notice during my trial run at Silver the last time, that once the wind picked up I had to have them on a certain side of the hole so they didn't topple.

I spent a good deal of time balancing the set-up when mounting the reel.  I have a couple ideas to re-balance while in the field if necessary, but it seems moving my rubberband stopper for adding or subtracting sensitivity works for now.

[IcePirate]

 

 Hey Utes awesome tip-downs , here's my design , I just used scrap wood and whatever spray paint that I had left over . I bought oak dowels , reels and 40lb cloth line , it cost me about $40 for a set of 5 . It's beneficial to use the heavy cloth line with a mono leader , easy handling and it doesn't tangle easily when pulling fish up by hand , and you can see it on the ice . I send a 1/2 oz sinker right to the bottom with a couple of hooks/minnows  off the leader , then set pole at desired angle , most fish will pull down when they bite(Perch & Walleye) , exception is the Crappie , so I believe the way you are using the rubber band on your TD's for that application would be better if your not so to speak "tightlining" to the bottom . I know both way work , it's whatever your into , good luck !

[crappieloo]

Icepirate, i tried to explain those a while back we call them ''Onieda rigs''. They balance on the ''other end'' and are use for bottem feeders like eyes and perch. My neighbors dad made some many years ago and they are designed for deep (35 TO 40FT) water and a hot bite. When a school comes through you have to get the bait back down real fast. Thats why the 1/2 oz. sinker is used.
I'm glad that you are useing them ''the other way''.
They are slick for deep eyes and perch. Also if you use a 1 foot leader off of your ''tightline'' don't be suprised to pull up a walleye at the END of the day. It has happened. 1 tip-down with no action all day and its time to leave and there was a walleye on it.
Sorry for the long post
Tight lines
crappieloo

[ol crawdad]

one of mine, in action:

not fancy like some of the great ones I see posted here, but very affective...
I made it with stuff I had laying around; old tip-up, old pole tip, etc...