Every ice angler owns one spoon they trust more than the rest. For thousands of walleye and panfish chasers, that spoon is the VMC Tingler. It looks odd in the palm. It is thin, curved, and lighter than you expect. Then you drop it down a hole and watch it swim, and the odd shape…
Ice anglers argue about rods, augers, and flashers all winter long. They rarely argue about the Buck-Shot Rattle Spoon. This little noisemaker from Northland Fishing Tackle has lived in Midwest tackle boxes since the 1990s, and it still shows up in almost every “must have” ice lure list. I spent three winters fishing it on…
Ice fishing gear changes fast. Plastic bases get cheaper. Electronics get smarter. Yet one wooden stick keeps showing up on frozen lakes across Wisconsin, Minnesota, and Michigan every single winter. The Beaver Dam Original Tip Up debuted more than 50 years ago, and anglers still buy it at four times the price of a budget…
Ice fishing rewards patience, but frozen holes test it. You drill, you set, you wait, and then slush locks your line in place. The Frabill Pro Thermal Tip-Up promises a fix. It covers the whole hole, traps heat, and keeps your spool turning when the air sits well below zero. I fished this tip up…
Ice anglers love a reel that keeps the jig honest. The Frabill Straight Line 371 promised exactly that when it landed at ICAST 2014, and plenty of hardwater fans still clip one to a rod today. It was one of the first inline ice reels built around fast retrieve speed instead of slow freefall. More…
Ice fishing rewards anglers who see what happens below the hole. A flasher turns guesswork into a live picture of your jig, the bottom, and every fish that swims through. The MarCum M1 has carried that job for budget minded anglers for years, and plenty of people still ask whether it holds up in 2026….
Ice fishing rewards anglers who can see what happens under the hole. A flasher gives you that view in real time. The Vexilar FLX-28 has held the top spot in Vexilar’s lineup for years, and it still shows up in more shacks than almost any other sonar unit. But the market has changed. Live imaging…
Ice anglers argue about a lot of things. Augers, shelters, line brands. But mention the 13 Fishing Tickle Stick in a bait shop, and heads turn. This little rod built a cult following on one strange feature: a flat tip that shows you bites instead of just letting you feel them. I have fished a…
Cold wind cuts across a frozen lake at 20 miles per hour. Your fingers go numb. Your coffee turns to slush. This is the moment an ice shelter earns its price tag, or fails you completely. The Eskimo Outbreak 450XD promises 75 square feet of warm, wind blocked fishing space that pops up in about…
Ice fishing rewards speed. The faster your bait reaches a fish you just marked on the sonar, the better your odds. That single idea explains why the 13 Fishing Black Betty FreeFall Ghost keeps selling season after season. It drops your jig with one hand, stops it on command, and puts you in contact with…