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Whether or not you’re a beginner to the game of ice fishing or a seasoned angler, everyone wants that one ice fishing rod to deal with a number of species. These versatile ice rods are delicate sufficient for sunfish, crappies, perch, and small trout, whereas being highly effective sufficient for the occasional bass and hopefully scores of small-to-midsize “eater” walleye.
I put a number of of the perfect ice fishing rods to the check all through my residence state’s exhausting water season. After thorough testing, listed below are my picks for versatile ice rods that may deal with a wide range of species and strategies.
Testing the Finest Ice Fishing Rods
With the assistance of my buddies and youngsters, all the ice rods have been examined for a number of months on multi-species waters starting from metropolitan fisheries to the lakes of West-Central and Northern Minnesota.
I additionally talked with the producers, a number of the designers, skilled anglers, and ice fishing guides who use these rods each day.
All rods have been outfitted with a Daiwa QG 750 spinning reel and every reel was spooled with Sufix Elite 4-pound monofilament. For panfish, we used Northland Fishing Deal with Tungsten Mud Bugs and Tungsten Gill Getters in addition to Customized Jigs & Spins Tungsten Chekai Jigs. Every was rigged with a micro-plastic and normally one or two Euro larvae to supply some bite-inducing scent. For perch and walleyes, we fished an assortment of spoons tipped with a minnow-head or a chandelier or wax worms or larvae. Fishing an assortment of baits and lures for a number of fish species helped us discern every rod’s strengths and weaknesses.
What follows is a information that will help you select that go-to, do-everything ice fishing rod. Consider me, every product that follows has distinctive options and deserves; it’s only a matter of sorting by way of them to find out the perfect stick for the place and the way you fish.
The Finest Ice Fishing Rods: Evaluations and Suggestions
Finest Total: St. Croix Customized Ice (CCI) Perch Seeker
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Professionals
- Designed and manufactured in Park Falls, Wisconsin, USA
- 32-inch rod size for fishing inside or exterior bigger moveable shelters or exhausting homes
- Delicate and powerful rod
- Inexperienced tip part helps you see bites whereas jigging or useless sticking
Key Options
- Rod Size: 32 inches
- Medium-light energy, extra-fast motion
- TCG (tubular carbon and glass) clean materials
- Inexperienced tip part for wonderful chunk detection
- Double-duty as jigging or deadstick rod
- MSRP: $150
Personally, I personal 5 St. Croix Customized Ice “Perch Seeker” ice rods and have spent two full exhausting water seasons fishing them. Previous to the acquisition, I did numerous analysis for that one rod that does all of it, and that is the place that analysis led me.
Don’t let the identify “Perch Seeker” idiot you. These rods are good for lots greater than perch fishing.
I’ve caught crappies, bluegills, walleyes, bass, and even small- to mid-sized northern pike on this rod with none bother. And, in fact, the Perch Seeker is a superb jumbo perch stick, if not the perfect one I’ve ever fished.
When focusing on a multi-species fishery—particularly these spots like weed edges the place you may catch absolutely anything—that is the rod mannequin I like to recommend my household and associates use.
The St. Croix Customized Ice line (CCI) provides a sequence of technique-specific rods with excessive efficiency blanks and supplies particular to every of the 16 fashions. Throughout the household, there are 5 distinct clean platforms in strong and tubular configurations, every engineered particularly for ice rods and geared up with premium-grade parts. Whereas my favourite is the Perch Seeker, all of them are high quality ice rods.
Finest Combo: CLAM Outside Katana Combo
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Professionals
- Reasonably priced
- Designed to be as gentle as doable whereas nonetheless in a position to deal with fish
- Simple-to-grip rod deal with, even when moist
- Line flows seamlessly by way of guides
Cons
- Reel attachment bands generally tend to come back unfastened
Key Options (Rod)
- Rod Size: 28 inches
- Medium-light energy, quick motion
- Outsized fly guides and stripper information
Key Options (Reel)
- 6 + 1 ball bearings
- 4.8:1 gear ratio
- Holds 100 yards of 4 lb. monofilament line
- Combo MSRP: $89.99
I used to be instantly impressed with the standard of this ice combo from CLAM Outside. The very first thing you discover while you choose it up is its cheesy, gentle Tsuka deal with, which supplies a cushty and safe grip.
In keeping with CLAM, the Katana sequence was designed and constructed to supply extra anglers a strong graphite rod with sufficient finesse to fish smaller species but additionally deal with larger fish.
The reel isn’t a bit of junk, both—like what you discover on numerous ice fishing rod combos. The reel incorporates a light-weight body, clean 6+1 ball bearing system, and really succesful, proprietary SF Drag System. I had no points preventing fish with this reel. The drag was clean and saved the fish buttoned till topside.
On the worth (and high quality), the Clam Katana is certainly an awesome possibility if it is advisable to buy a number of multi-species ice rods for household and associates.
Finest Stability: JT Outside Merchandise Shiver Stick
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Professionals
- Hand-built in Farmington, Minnesota, USA
- Light-weight and intensely balanced
- Chilly-weather (-30 rated) rebounding titanium line guides
- Accessible in a number of deal with choices
Key Options
- Rod Size: 32 inches
- Medium-light energy, extra-fast motion
- Strong carbon clean
- Cut up-Grip Deal with
- MSRP: $120
After speaking with JT Outside proprietor, Joe Bricko, he stated he sells extra 32-inch Shiver Sticks as multi-species rods than the rest in his in depth line of ice rods. Particularly for fishing exterior, he recommends the Positive-Grip deal with, which stays cheesy and straightforward to deal with when moist. And the 32-inch is ideal for fishing in exhausting homes, bigger portables, and undoubtedly exterior hole-hopping.
Designed and engineered as the proper rod for ice anglers focusing on walleyes and perch, it additionally interprets nicely to panfish, which we found throughout our testing. Mixed with a Daiwa 750 reel, it’s tremendous gentle and likewise completely balanced.
The strong carbon clean options rebounding titanium guides, which forestall breakage in chilly temps and when stowed with different rods in instances or inside a 5-gallon bucket.. I discovered the rod delicate sufficient to detect slab crappie or perch upward-inhaling a bait. Its quick-responding quick motion additionally put steel within the maws of walleyes, instantly. These traits make the Shiver Stick probably the greatest ice fishing rods.
Most Delicate: Tuned Up Customized Rods FUSION
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Professionals
- Hand-built in Coon Rapids, Minnesota, USA
- Provided in straight-grip or split-grip
- Cork or EVA deal with choices
Cons
- Some anglers may not favor the softer tip
Key Options
- Rod Lengths Accessible: 28, 30, 32, 34, and 36 inches
- Medium-power, light-action
- Carbon-fiber, graphite clean
- Slower motion in tip transitions to strong spine
- MSRP: $139.99
My first expertise with Tuned Up Customized Rods was virtually 10 years in the past, throughout these preliminary years when proprietor and rod-builder John Burback was constructing highly-specialized panfish rods for a number of skilled ice anglers. A decade later, John and his increasing crew are nonetheless at it, and Tuned Up Customized Rods now provides all the things from ice panfish rods to heavy-duty lake trout sticks, in addition to open-water rods.
After I requested what his hottest multi-purpose rod was, he was fast to answer the 32-inch FUSION. On his professional advice, that’s what I examined.
The Tuned Up Customized FUSION works nicely for panfish, jumbo perch, and walleye anglers. It incorporates a strong carbon-fiber clean for many sensitivity and really feel. The tip of the rod has a slower motion than most Tuned Up Customized rods, however it transitions to the spine step by step, permitting the fish extra time to get the bait into its mouth. There’s loads of energy within the spine to land fish of all sizes.
Finest For Greater Fish: Thorne Bros. Perch Sweetheart
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Professionals
- Reasonably priced customized rod
- Hand-built in Blaine, Minnesota
- Quite a few information varieties obtainable
- Quite a few deal with configurations obtainable
- Handles huge fish with ease
Cons
- Not perfect for gentle lures. It’s finest for 1/8 ounce spoons or and heavy tungsten jigs for panfish
Key Options
- Rod Size: 32 inches
- Medium-light energy, fast-action
- 6-inch full cork, Tennessee-style deal with (different choices avail.)
- Recoil guides
- MSRP: $99.99
The Perch Sweetheart was conceived as the proper ice stick for jumbo perch, which options the identical ultra-fast tapers because the Panfish Sweetheart and Walleye Sweetheart however with an motion that falls between the 2.
However it’s much more than a perch rod. The fellows within the Thorne rod store says it’s considered one of their hottest walleye ice rods for 1/8-ounce spoons and when fishing heavier tungsten jigs for large panfish. As their web site says, “To place it merely; for those who can solely deliver one rod for each species, you deliver this one.”
The Perch Sweetheart is out there in quite a few deal with and information choices, and so they’re additionally glad that will help you construct precisely what you need for those who don’t discover the choices on their web site.
I went with the 32-inch Outdoors mannequin with Fuji guides and a 6-inch full-cork Tennessee-style deal with. The rod does all the things it purports to and I discovered it nice for large crappies, perch, and walleyes. It’s an excellent all-around ice stick and has the stones to land larger walleyes, too, which I discovered on Lake Winnibigoshish earlier this season.
Find out how to Select the Finest Ice Fishing Rod
Very first thing you must take into account is rod size. Will you be fishing exterior or inside a transportable or exhausting home? Personally, I’ve by no means had too many difficulties with a 32-inch rod in any of those eventualities and take into account it an all-around good size. However, if quarters are cramped, you would possibly wish to measurement right down to a 28- to 30-inch rod.
Subsequent, most multi-purpose ice rods ought to fall within the medium-light to medium-power designations. As nicely, extra-fast or quick actions are advisable. Additionally take into account your most popular grip materials and magnificence when selecting a rod as a result of it must be comfy sufficient to carry all day lengthy.
FAQs
When you can actually go cheaper, costs for a high quality multi-purpose ice rod vary anyplace from $80 to $150. However keep in mind: You get what you pay for, particularly with ice fishing rods.
For probably the most half, you’ll wish to follow measurement 500 or 750 spinning reels, which don’t weigh a lot, maintain sufficient line, and provide good drag techniques for many multi-species fishing. We used the affordably-priced Daiwa QG 750 for our testing, though there are additionally high quality reels obtainable from Shimano, Pflueger, Okuma, and Abu Garcia. For deadstick or set-line functions, you might wish to take into account the Okuma Ceymar CBF-500, which incorporates a distinctive bait feeding system that enables anglers to disengage their spinning reel spool and permit their bait (and the fish) to run freely earlier than partaking the drag lever and preventing the fish at regular drag stress.
For our jigging testing we used 4-pound Sufix Elite monofilament, an appropriate line-test power for many multi-species forays. We’ve landed 5- to 8-pound pike and walleyes on 4-pound check with the drag set a bit of unfastened. Fished as deadsticks, we alternated between 6-pound Maxima Chameleon and 5-pound CLAM Frost monofilament (made by Sunline).
The good factor about monofilament is it resists freezing up when used exterior in sub-zero circumstances; secondly, it provides stretch to permit bigger fish extra play and fewer alternative for hooks to unsecure whereas preventing them; lastly, monofilament is cheap, is available in a wide range of colours to match water readability circumstances and is simple to handle and tie.
When you can go the time-tested route of attaching your reel to rod handles with electrical tape, we’ve found a greater resolution in JT Outside’ Positive Grip Reel Tape, which stays gentle and cheesy even in sub-zero circumstances. Not like electrical tape, it’s not slippery within the palm.
Fishing old skool, it’s nonetheless exhausting to beat setting your rod on the highest of a 5-gallon bucket with a easy rubber band on the high of the deal with, by way of which you loop the road loosely with the bail open. That approach a fish grabs the bait, pulls the road loop out of the rubber band and also you allow them to run till it’s time to set the hook.
However there are different techniques on the market—and we’ve tried all of them. HT Enterprises’ Carry N’ Hook Rod Holder is one cheap possibility, which folds up properly for straightforward storage. And there’s JT Outside’ Rod Holder that folds up like an accordion and permits numerous rod angle orientations for sticks between 28- and 42-inches. What we’ve found with tremendous finesse bites is orienting the holder, so the rod sits completely horizontal can yield extra impartial to destructive fish.
Ultimate Ideas on the Finest Ice Fishing Rods
Whereas there are anglers who carry a number of instances of rods on the ice, you actually solely want one high quality multi-purpose ice fishing rod. One of the best multi-purpose ice fishing rods will enhance your whole fishing expertise by limiting the quantity of substances it is advisable to deliver with you. With a few of these fashions, you would possibly wish to buy two—one as a jigging rod and one as a deadstick.
In the event you’re excited by including one (or a number of) of the perfect ice fishing rods to your arsenal, take a look at considered one of these high choices.