Tip Up techniques?

[Undertow]

Im heading out this weekend granting ice is safe. I plan to fish a small lake that supposedly has some pike. I want to set up a few tip ups but Ive never used one. My dad has a bunch but he never uses them. Any tips for using them for pike like bait. Should I go get sucker minnows or can I just use a bluegill or something I catch. Dead bait right. How about rigging, I was thinking quick strike rig. How about structure of depth for pike. This small lake is about thirty feet deep max and in the summer the entire shore is covered with lillypaps and all kinds of weeds. Then it drops off. Should I put them in the shallows or in the deep. Any tips would be appreciated.
Undertow

[StStutz]

Rigging: use some heavy mono for a leader, i prefer 20-30lbs or some kind of braided superline. Use approx. 4-5' leader then a smaller size treble hook. Place a decent size splitshot about 2' from hook.

Location: Try to find decent drop-off if possible, if not find some water over 10 feet or so. Find the depth and set your bait 3-4 feet off bottom. Any kind of structure/weeds is a plus, as long as your bait doesn't get wrapped up in the weeds.

Bait: I suggest using live bait, and use Golden Shiners over sucker minnows. You can use smaller bluegills if you can catch a handful of them without much trouble.

Hope this helps.

[kype138]

The few private lakes that I fish with tip-ups during the winter have a huge crop of shiners and bluegill, and I still do best with smelt from Farmer Jack.
Make sure to get the ones that are fresh (in the seafood case, not frozen).
80% of the time, they're rancid and unfit for the frying pan, but those seem to work best. I use them on both regular and jigging tip-ups, and they have outfished live shiners and suckers 5 to 1. I don't know why, but the results speak for themselves.

Tight lines
Kype

[kype138]

Also, keep the smelt in ziplock bags in your pocket - if they freeze, they don't sink.

[Ruff Rider]

Until I figure out where the fish are at or what they want on a particular day, I usually start out with a tip up in deeper water about 2-4 foot off bottom, and one in shallower water near a weed line(in 7-10 fow) about halfway between the ice and the bottom. I personally like golden shiners over suckers because I like to rough up a few scales near their tail to add a little extra flash.
Hope this helps and good luck
Adam

[Undertow]

We use to use smelt for catfish bait probably over ten years ago but anyways we would go dipping and bring back a cooler full and freeze them. Well there's still some in my freezer from over ten years ago. Think they would work or have they just been in there two long. They probably would work for catfish but I think pike might be a little more picky.
Undertow

[Justin_04]

I just use 20 or 25 pound Tip-Up line you can find in most stores. Then I tie a metal leader on with a #4(I think) trebel hook with a small rubber core sinker just above the leader. I use either suckers or goldenshiners. I have caught a few of my biggest pike on GOlden Shiners but suckers work good and last longer. I like to find between 4 and 10 fow and usually set it about half way down. If you are getting no hits go around and move them up or down. The movement will help them. Also, don't be afraid to drill new holes to use.

[Can't Touch This]

Mine is actually just spooled with 8lb mono. I was thinking of spooling it with braided line then having about a 6' flourocarbon leader at the end. I don't lose too many pike with 8lb mono, but, probably a bit more than with say a steel leader. However, i get a lot more hits now, i would deffinently advise against a steal leader.

I bait it wth ususally a big emerald shiner or a golden shiner. Sometimes though, like the pike i just caught on Kent, when the emeralds aren't hitting i will put on a chub and sometimes that will produce. I use a smaller treble too. The hook set is the key thing, which is why i ususally use smaller baits because you can set the hook almost right away(i ususally do it after they go on a big run). The bigger baits though you would want to wait for them to eat it a little.

[Quakmaster316]

I run my tip ups for pike about a foot under the ice. Everything sounds good but i would use a stinger hook also and get blood red treble hooks
good luck

[don]

If your using live shiners/sucker,try trimming about half of the tail off. It makes the bait struggle to swim, which sometimes can create more interest than a bait just casually finning away.

[Ausable Junkie]

Unless ur going for gator-size pike, i would go with 8-10# mono tied to the
treble hook. Steel leaders are good when you've got big bait (5-6" chub)
and ur shootin for the big ones. I catch alot of 18"-30" pike on my walleye
rigs that have 6-8# mono on the ends. It just takes a lil finesse after the
hookset.

Ur hand needs to be the drag system that you'd normally have on a reel.
After a few fish (and some WILL break the line) you'll get familiar with
how tight to squeeze the line as the pike makes his run. Its not uncommon
for a good pike to make 4-6 runs before you can get his head to the top
of the hole.

Steel leaders make 'em easy to haul in once you've got them hooked, BUT mono will save you from the frequent "spit out" that happens when the pike
feels that wire in his mouth.

[StumpJumper]

We use to use smelt for catfish bait probably over ten years ago but anyways we would go dipping and bring back a cooler full and freeze them. Well there's still some in my freezer from over ten years ago. Think they would work or have they just been in there two long. They probably would work for catfish but I think pike might be a little more picky.
Undertow

Smelt is the best pike bait hands down, and pike aren't picky at all.

I can back that up too.

For instance last saturday, my tip-up 6 FOW dead smelt, 4 other tip-ups rigged with shiners spaced 30 yds apart from mine, all alond the same weed bed, same depth of water rigged with live sucker minnows.

My tip-up 1-30" Northern and another lost at the hole.

The other 4 tip-ups 0-0 runs.

Yeah if it was a one time thing I would call it coincidence but it's the same thing all the time.

You'll catch pike on just about anything, but smelt have the strongest fish smell there is and I think that has alot to do with it. Kinda like sharks smelling blood in the water.