How much braid to put on

[Chris338378]

I have a question, how much braided line do you put on your tip-ups?  I had one guy tell me 50 yards is plenty and another said to put on 100 because if the fish takes off on an angle the braid will feed out easier.  The tip-ups I have are the old style wood ones with the metal spools that are about 4 inches across or so.  Also how often do you change your braided line?  Thanks.

[ULking]

 I put 100yd on mine

[Chris338378]

I forgot to ask what color braid do you use, I've always used black. 

[ULking]

I use black or forrest green

[da man cave shack]

As much as it will hold amd I change mine every year before the season starts.

[Toxic fisher]

This is a good place to jump in was curious about the red braided line for tip ups, have seen a couple of guys use it didn't know if there were any advantages to it over the black or green? I also only have 50 yards per tip up and never had one run out on me. yet

[Chris338378]

I've never used any other color than black but have noticed that over the past few years some tip-ups are coming with tan braided line loaded on them.  I don't know if there is a advantage to red, or green over black but I think they would work as good as the other since they aren't very visible.

[Reel_Force]

I got a reel with 7 year ole 30# Power Pro on it. I use it for Stripers,Carp ... 2 year ago i went to the High School football field walked the line all out and reversed it back onto the reel - looked like it just came off the rack. Still catching 25# Stripers on it. That might give ya some idea how often to change it ... 

[rdhammah]

I may be wrong...wouldn't be the first or last time... but what difference does the color make as long as you use a leader?i I use a 4 foot mono leader and have no problem catching fish. If you think he fish will see the mono leader, use flouro.

[perchnut]

50 yards (or so) and a leader.  Have always used black, dont know why color would matter.  I dont change it too often......like, ahhhhh, really not too often.  But I do check it every year, just to make sure no weak spots. 

[stripernut]

I don't find that color matters to the fish, that is why I use a fluorocarbon leader... The one advantage to using a "colored braid" is that some times it is easier to see which way the fish is running, to help with hook set...

[pipeboy98]

I put 100 yards of 30 lb test braided gorilla fishing line on all of mine 5 years ago...and have yet to replace it.  I found that if you just take off 3-5 ft every season...this eliminates all of the broken lines issues.  I have never been spooled or lost a fish because of line breakage.  I love my braided line...especially for northern!

[Chris338378]

I didn't think the color of the braid would make much of a difference except for maybe the tan colored one so I thought I'd ask.  As for not changing the braided line, I'm guilty.  Ummmmm, well, actually mine has been on since 1996 and never changed.  I figured that maybe I should change it just to be safe before it bites me. 

[rdhammah]

I didn't think the color of the braid would make much of a difference except for maybe the tan colored one so I thought I'd ask.  As for not changing the braided line, I'm guilty.  Ummmmm, well, actually mine has been on since 1996 and never changed.  I figured that maybe I should change it just to be safe before it bites me. 

yeah, i'd say it's about time

[esox_xtm]

I've only ever put 50 yds. of Dacron on mine. I fish less than 20 FOW (usually) and have only been spooled twice. Once due to an extremely energetic  musky that got to within 2-3 turns before I could get her stopped and the other because I was simply inattentive and too late getting to the set.

My preference is a 36# dacron line. This is a good balance between capacity and line handling. Much thinner and the line gets messy on the ice and it becomes easier to cut your hands when dealing with a rambunctious fish. Even zippin' 36# cat cut rather quickly. Besides, with proper leaders, line size and color becomes less relevant. I see no advantage to spending more on any "super lines". My dacron lasts for years with proper care. Do steer clear of nylon line, it's stretchy and will rot if left wet for very long...........

Color? Take your pick.........I've fished black, white, green, green spot, tan and camo with nearly equal results.

Just my opinion based on my experiences........... ..user mileage may vary.

/m

[UFCreel]

100 yards is what i put on mine. Haven't changed it in years. As someone else said, cut off a few feet and  retie. But hey i do that after several fish anyhow.

[finlessbrown]

150 yards of 36lb dacron on mine. 50 yards may work for some guys but i sometimes fish 50' of water and walk to my jacks that are 10 feet to 100 yards away from me. that added with a fast moving fish, can use a lot of line by the time i get there

[Loudmouth879]

I just fill my spools to where i still have the ability to attach the hook to the spool without getting it in the line... that way I'll have enough when i get those double and triple flags that i seemed to get a lot last year when I fished Otisco

[jiml]

I fill my spools almost to the edge with dacron trolling line.  I ahve been using the same line on my tip ups for about 5 years......I start the season by cutting off the first 10-15 feet of it as the end of the line gets a little rubbed from us during the season.  I use 6 foot mono or floro leaders so color does not matter IMO......I use red white and blue flecked dacron so when I get a flag I can look in the hole and see how fast the spool is spinning.....solid color is harder to see if it is spinning.

[Chris338378]

Where do you get the red, white, and blue flecked dacron?

[addicted to ice fishing]

I have used a number of different colors of dacron line.  Only put 50 yards on, only been spooled twice, once by a 2 - 3 lb northern that was heading for parts unknown, and once by a muskrat, but that is a whole nother story.

Oh yeah, only change line every few years, I do frequently check for weak spots though.

[jiml]

Where do you get the red, white, and blue flecked dacron?

I got it at bass pro shops a few years ago.  It is not marketed as ice fishing line.....it is 50lb dacron trolling line designed for salt water trolling......but it works the bomb as Ice fishing line.

[ship of fools]

I got a reel with 7 year ole 30# Power Pro on it. I use it for Stripers,Carp ... 2 year ago i went to the High School football field walked the line all out and reversed it back onto the reel - looked like it just came off the rack. Still catching 25# Stripers on it. That might give ya some idea how often to change it ... 

or watching me catch 25 lb'rs