tip-ups for pike. Rigging them up

A buddy of mine asked me how I have my tip-ups rigged and maintained.

So, I thought I would share what I do for metro-ice pike fishing and tip-up rigging.

Pretty basic and if others have any tips, please add in!!!

I use HT Enterprise tip-up line in 30lb test.

I also just use the Southbend fine wire leaders with the ball-bearing swivel. My opinion the ball bearing swivel is important because the sucker/shiner is going to be swimming round-n-round all day long. 12″ wire leader is more than enough and a person can get away with a 9″.

I know some people use mono leaders and claim good luck with them and that it makes a difference.

Leader is tied directly the line using a polymer knot.

I just use a heavier split shot sinker pinched right above the knot, about an inch or two.

If your sinker is too far up, it allows the bait more room to swim around with less weight restriction.
TRUST ME ON THIS!!!!!! I watch a couple of pike on the aqua-view a few years back. We had a real lively sucker. The pike couldn’t catch him…..They would swim up and try and grab the sucker, but he kept dodging them in the “close quarters”. All because the weight was about a foot up the line……giving the sucker about 2′ of free line to roam around.

Us the tiny “tip-up line marker” bobbers. A guy sees these in the tackle shops. They look like a bobber you would use for stunted metro panfish. These line markers are critical. It tells you if you get a short run or a false flag if you didn’t see the flag trip.

As for hook size. I’m not big on the “gauky” quick-strike rigs. Most of the time, I’m using a single hook. Most of the time I’m using a size 2 in the metro lakes, since most of the shiners and suckers used are under 8″.

For maintenance, lubrication, tension adjusting:
Take the lock-nut off the top of the tip-up rod. A lock-nut is the type of nut with a plastic insert. This keeps the nut from moving around for your tension adjustment. Once the nut is off, slide off the spring too. And the spool assembly with the rod/threads will slide out the bottom. Lube up this rod with the grease. Grease it like you would if you were to put a thin layer of peanut butter on a sandwich. Too much and it will squeeze out, which is not big deal, but messy. But also, if you put too much in, it can get “sticky” and cause drag in cold weather.

When putting it back together, adjust the lock nut on top of the spring (this is your spool tension). Just like adjusting a bait-caster reel for casting. Too tight and no line spins out. Too loose and you get serious back lash.

Basically, adjust it just to the point where a fish can easily pull off line.

If it is too loose, the back lash is going to cause you to loose fish non-stop. Just like casting and you get backlash on a reel and the spool locks up.

So, if un sure, I would side towards “too tight” than “too loose”.

I think that about covers it. Probably should have posted this in November!

Any other comments or did I miss anything?

Gary~
Thanks for sharing that knowledge..
I have not been much of a tip up person I do own one or two but always seem to stay jigging.
Now after reading your set up procedures I think I am going to try out a tip up this weekend.. Thanks..

Tip ups for pike, I never use steel leaders.. pike, muskies, whatever.

#20 Trilene Big game minimum for a leader, #30-#40 is better. I try to keep my leader about 12″ long. I attatch it to the plastic coated tip up line with a barrel swivel, and I put an egg sinker of choice(proper for bait size) before the swivel. My bite ratio is terrible on steel leaders compared to mono, and more steel leaders have failed on me that I ever want to count. I have never had heavy mono fail unless it was due to my neglegence.. like not retieing after 20 fish.

No quick strike rigs for me on tip ups… I’m not getting intot hat discussion. I think they tear fish up too often. A single hook the proper size for the bait, or 1 size larger than needed works fine. This is usually #2 – #3/0 depending on the bait size.

I have used circle hooks some for tip up fishing and had positive results. 95% of the time the hook was in the corner of the mouth. I still have the most confidence in the standard Octopus hook because I have not fished circles extensively enough under tip ups yet.

Thanks David, How did you guys end up doing on Calhoun a few weekends ago when you put out to open invite?

I, too, use the steel leader. I have practiced both ways and not found a difference at all. In fact, some days I have split between using a steel leader on one tip up, and some strong mono on another. I have not found any advantage to the mono… And due to the size of the Pike in the lakes I fish, I switched completely over to the wire leader. I have that attached to 30# HT tip-up line, and a #2 gold or red hook.

Gary, I also have to agree with you on the split-shot set. I set mine RIGHT ABOVE the leader. Not up any higher. Especially when you are fishing a more shallow lake… if you are only down 4 feet, the bait almost has enough leverage to swim back up your hole. lol

Dave, sounds like we use the same rig..I use the plastic coated tip up line and attach heavy mono with a barrel swivel…always had great luck but lost a hog at the hole this weekend at the mono broke…I had him at the hole and could see he had the hook down and the teeth were on the mono…so im not sure if i should try a steel leader or stick to the mono?? It was like slow motion when he went back down the whole so I started 2nd guessing my set up…rat

OK;
“Why” use a mono leader?

Do you think the black steel leader scares some fish?

I am with Gary on this one. I always you my homemade Quick Strike rigs which are made of coated steel leader material and two large treble hooks. With that I have a small barrel singer that is able to slide up and down the line. That sinker sites just about the quick strike rig, about 4 inches above the bait.

I spend a lot of time over the winter targeting trophy pike and I can tell you I would never use any kind of mono line in my systems. To much room for error when you add mono to the sysytem. I prefer 40lb black ice line because it has some stretch for fighting the fish but not to much. To that I slip a barrel sinker on the line and then the quick strike. That is it

I pretty much strictly use a Fluorocarbon leader thats atleast 20lb and haven’t ever had any problems with bite offs with the average fish that we catch on a lake around my area that shall remain nameless is 38″. I think the mono makes a huge difference with older bigger (possibly wiser) fish. Normally use about a 4 foot section tied with a barrel swivel and a good size mojo weight about a foot up from the hook. In darker water or low light conditions, I’ll run a small orange or chartreuse blade above the weight just to give a little flash.

No mono for pike here. I hate leaving hooks in their mouths….And pike hate shiny blades of a QS rig.
When I run my tips ups it is either a leader or quick strike rig for pike. I use 30-50# tip up line and then have a snap swivel tied to the end of that. From there I can put a quick strike rig on. I also can switch over to some pre-tied mono/fluoro leaders for walleyes when I want to make the switch. Barrel swivel on one end and the hook on the other. Quick and simple.
I don’t use the small bobbers as markers. I use bobber stop knots. Put one right below where the line touches the reel and if you want, another one 5′ up the line or so. Then when you go check your flag, you will have an idea of how much line is gone.

i agree with all of the above, but one little thing. for a line marker I use the smallest splitshot I have with. I used the tiny bobbers once and lost a monster up on LOTW when the fish ran and because of the bobber broke my 30# line right there in my hand. it took of so fast that there was nothing I could do at all to try and avoid in now I seldome use a line marker at all.
just my .02