S5E5 - Buying a used Portable Ice Shack

Jeff and Jason discuss buying a used portable ice shack.  You can often find something really good for a fraction of the price of a new shack. 

 

Current Events

The St. Paul Ice Fishing Show is this weekend. This is the big one! https://bit.ly/3EaEZup  

Minnesota Record 55LB Muskie caught in Mille Lacs Lake https://bit.ly/3dbEsMW What a monster of a fish.

 

Listener News

Seth E reported four inches of ice reported near Alexandria MN.  Also sent along a nice picture of a pike and a sunny.

 

Sam D asked about some intel on Kabetogama lake.  This is a lake near the Canadian border of Minnesota near Voyagers national park in St. Louis county.  This lake is 25K acres and is one of the big ten lakes in Minnesota.  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kabetogama_Lake Tons of structure.  Jason gave some very general information about fishing the windward side, or find the mid lake humps bars and transitions.  In reality we need to ask our listeners for help on this one.

 

Andrew Checked in from Minnedosa Manitoba Canada.  They have 8.5 inches of meh ice.  Hard sided shacks reported.  They had the dreaded snow then ice. 

 

JoePete sent an email about our bands to put your reel on the rod. So you are using a total of four bands. He said to double them up or use zip ties!  And zip ties have a lot of utility. As we digress you should always carry a role of duct take and zip ties in your car.  That and a small tool kit you can just about fix anything. 

 

Other Current Events

• Monofiliment turns 70, and still has a place in our world.  Both Jeff and Jason use mono all the time. 
• Spinner Blades naming in outdoor news by Joe Fellegy, also the author of classic Minnesota fishing stories
• Fact Check Alert, North Woods Dave may have gotten out ice fishing this past weekend.  
• Girl of 1000 lakes had a video about going in a float suit https://bit.ly/3ly3lXO 
• Outdoor news had a great write up of some of the best ice fishing lakes in Minnesota and the outlook for each. Make sure to subscribe and check it out.

  Gear Coffin Minnow https://bit.ly/3G7wMaS 

The coffin minnow is a new Northland tackle lure spoon out this year.  Its a top weighted spoon that would be used to bang off the bottom of the lake to attract fish.  

  The "Brad Hawthorn way" to fish, as he talked about on youttube  https://bit.ly/3xWwfWC 

Use 6lb floral for line, a very small swivel https://amzn.to/3pjVzBG  and a leader and a fast snap https://amzn.to/3xSKL1s .  The swivel gets rid of the line twist and the fast snap lets you switch your lure really fast.  I am trying this out this year, rigging two of my rods in this way.

   Jointed Pin Head Minnow https://amzn.to/3DzsO9z 

Ordered a few of these to try out, Jason has had some good success with these lures in the past.

Colors - UV Green, UV Pink, Gold 

  Reel Size

Get a Bigger size reels to reduce line twist.  Get the 30 size instead of the 10, 20 or 25 size.  

  Digger Ice Angels - https://amzn.to/32ZMnv1 

Want to try these out to anchor my hub shack quicker.  I have wanted to try these for a few years.

  Beaver Dam Tip Ups https://amzn.to/3rA3T39 

 Jason got some artic fisherman beaver dam tip ups for $22 a piece, they were from the 80s.  

  Fire House R-Tek Tip Up  https://amzn.to/3GcZ6Zz 

This is what I carry in my ice bag all the time. It works and is very portable.  

  Pro Pod Cast Tip

Most pod cast apps have settings where to speed up and remove white space.  This allows you to listen to more podcasts!   But a good thing you cannot filter meaningless content because there would not be much left of our show.

  Topic - Buying a Used Portable Ice Shack

When you look at the new stuff it is really good, but it can get expensive.  We walk through a checklist of what to look for when buying a used ice shack.  This is for the buyers and sellers to.  Maybe you want to upgrade and it can be a great way to get rid of your old one so you can put the money toward the new shack.

  Where to look?

Start with Facebook marketplace, Craigslist and some local shoppers.  If you are looking for something specific try a in search of (ISO) and let people come to you with there shack they have sitting around.  Try different search terms such as Ice Shack of Clam Shack or Fishing Shack. 

  Categories   Suitcase style

These will be the cheapest ones, you can get one for under 100 bucks.

  Hub

This is the next cheapest ones.  They are not as desirable as flip over shacks but are still worth looking at.

  Flip over

These are going to be the most expensive but you can still find good deals.

  Thermal Ice Shacks

You are going to pay more for thermal, get a good condition non-thermal shack and put some reflextex in it.  

  What to look for in a hub shack

Check out the zippers, if they are shot don't buy it.  Mouse holes can be patched, you can find some good deals if you find one with a few mouse holes.  You can fix poles, but you are better off finding one with all the poles working. Pay attention to where the tie downs are.  There are three generations of tie downs.  Tie downs in the skirt of the shack. Second generation had the tie downs on the inside of the shack.  The third generation has guy lines on the outside of the shack and you skip the skirt.   Windows will crack, and don't worry about them. Just get some packing tape and fix them.  If you can find one with a door that goes to the floor buy it, they are really nice.  Some advantages of hubs are the size and weight.  They are not mobile but they are portable.  If you have a bunch of people to fish with get a hub shack. 

  Smell

Make sure you can deal with the smell of the shack, they can get really stinky.  

  Suitcase Style

If you like having a floor get a suitcase style shack.  They can be less than a 100 dollars that works great.  Look at the hinges that they work. Make sure the poles are all there and that they work.  Make sure all the connectors are included with the shack.  Does Clam still make a suitcase style shack?  We find a really old one that has a exoskeleton where the poles are on the outside.   

  Flip over Shack

For one or two people the flip over shack is what you want.  Jeff thinks the canvas is the most important, but Jason disagrees that the tub is key to a flip over.   Make sure the poles and connectors are in good shape, they can be hard to find.  It can help to check on the manufactures website to see if parts are still available.  Seats are not usually great, but you can always improve these in the future.  Make sure to not buy to big of one.  If you are hand pulling it don't get a huge one. 

 

Legend

Jeff tells a legend of a suite case style shack he got off of a shopper website with a sketchy propane heater.