What line?

[MBL]

Just bought a new berkley heritage ice combo medium weight. I'm fairly new to ice fishing and want to try for some pike. What should I put on it for line?

[1bluZebec]

I would get some 10lb mono and a 6" leader to be assured you don't loose any hooks to one of these toothy snot rockets?the problem with leaders is I think they somtimes deter fish at last minute if dead sticking or jigging. I usually just tie strait to the hook or a snap swivel and take my chances because I'm usually on the trigger waiting to set the hook with a finger on my line. The braid with allow you to feel the littlest nibble with no stretch while mono won't allow you to feel as good and it with have a little stretch to it making hooksets slower. Also mono tends to collect ice easy and have Line memory quit bad compared to braid. Try them both for yourself. Also there is plain fluorocarbon for twice the price of the other two. At the pinnacle of line is fluorocarbon leader material that has best characteristics to take on the nasty mouth of a pike.

[RavYak]

I will be using powerpro ice-tec line on all my reels this winter.

15 lb for pike(I would use 20 or 30 but they don't make it...)
10 lb for walleye
8 lb for trout.

I then tie a fluorocarbon leader on.

30-40 lb for pike(20 lb if using cheap lures or fishing for smaller pike)
20 lb for lakers and walleye if worried about pike
8 lb for trout, perch and walleye if not worried about pike

The 8 lb I use is just fluoro line not leader material. The 20 and 40 lb fluoro I use is leader material. There is a difference and if fishing for pike or worried about pike then make sure you use the leader material. The larger leader sizes will seem overkill but they are for abrasion resistance.

I don't like anything under 8 lb as I find it too fragile and I hate breaking off on fish. If you want a smaller size leader for trout or perch I would use fluoro tippet material, 8 lb fluoro tippet isn't cheap but is nearly the same size as 4 lb regular fluoro/mono line.

Fluoro is used for a leader material because it is invisible unlike mono and because it also has a much higher abrasion resistance(then both mono and braid). If you use mono or braid line and don't want to use fluoro for a leader will have to use a steel leader if fishing for pike.

Edit: Oh and I like to cut my leaders long around 5 to 6 feet. That lets me cut them down as necessary and also leaves the visible line up higher in the water column.

[MBL]

Thanks for the tips. Much appreciated

[Kim473]

For pike on a rod, I would go with 12 lb fire ice. My pike rigs are set up with 12 lb braid and I use a steel leader for pike. Wallies is 6 - 8 lb mono. Perch, whites and trout is 4 - 6 lb mono and a very light drag.

I have One rod set up with 4 lb and another with 6 lb and the tip ups with 12 lb braid. This pretty well covers most fishing for me in the winter months.

For me, Most lost pike and walleye are caused by the line draging against the ice around the hole and the line breaks or sharp pike teeth.

[The Fisherman Guy]

Good on you for getting into hard water Northern Pike fishing, it is a lot of fun, and some of the biggest Pike are caught through the ice every year. Your medium action kit will catch you Pike, but you will be under gunned when you hook a large fish. Consider a larger reel and heavy action rod.

I guide anglers for Northern Pike, and in my experience - monofilament or fluorocarbon main line will fail, resulting in lost fish and gear. Even if running a leader, the edge of the hole will cause considerable abrasion under the right conditions. Use heavy braided line for your main line.

Here's a few choices to consider:

Berkley Big Game Braid in 30 or 50lb
Spiderwire Ultracast Invisibraid in 30, 40 or 50lb

It may seem like overkill, but Pike aren't that sensitive to line visibility, and you don't want to lose a large fish due to equipment failure. Be sure to use good quality terminal tackle, cheap swivels and snap swivels will pull apart. Use a Palomar knot for all braided line knots to terminal tackle or hooks to ensure great knot strength.

Definitely use a leader if you are targeting Pike, and you will land more fish. Depending on how deep I am fishing, I will run a 16" - 24" leader. Personally, I have run both fluorocarbon leader material and wire leaders. I find that both work and both have their own set of advantages and disadvantages, however wire is cheaper and stronger.

Good luck and tight lines.

[RavYak]

If you are going to use a wire leader at least do it right and use a titanium leader.

Expensive but just give it a try and thank me later.

[The Fisherman Guy]

If you are going to use a wire leader at least do it right and use a titanium leader.

Expensive but just give it a try and thank me later.

What benefits does Ti have over conventional wire?

[RavYak]

What benefits does Ti have over conventional wire?

Steel bends and gets kinked within minutes affecting presentation of many lures.

A single titanium leader can literally last you years and still operate like new as long as you use good line(and retie as necessary).

If using a titanium leader I like to use stronger line though to avoid loosing the leader to snags. That is why I use 30/40 lb main line in the summer. This summer I didn't lose or have to throw out a single leader(except one day using a buddies setup which had bad line) and I caught probably 300+ pike on that leader. With a steel leader you are usually ready to throw it out after the first couple fish you catch...

[The Fisherman Guy]

For the record, I don't recall mentioning steel.

Good luck this season chasing Northern Pike MBL, there's some useful information in this thread to get you started.

[cube]

Good on you for getting into hard water Northern Pike fishing, it is a lot of fun, and some of the biggest Pike are caught through the ice every year. Your medium action kit will catch you Pike, but you will be under gunned when you hook a large fish. Consider a larger reel and heavy action rod.

I guide anglers for Northern Pike, and in my experience - monofilament or fluorocarbon main line will fail, resulting in lost fish and gear. Even if running a leader, the edge of the hole will cause considerable abrasion under the right conditions. Use heavy braided line for your main line.

Here's a few choices to consider:

Berkley Big Game Braid in 30 or 50lb
Spiderwire Ultracast Invisibraid in 30, 40 or 50lb

It may seem like overkill, but Pike aren't that sensitive to line visibility, and you don't want to lose a large fish due to equipment failure. Be sure to use good quality terminal tackle, cheap swivels and snap swivels will pull apart. Use a Palomar knot for all braided line knots to terminal tackle or hooks to ensure great knot strength.

Definitely use a leader if you are targeting Pike, and you will land more fish. Depending on how deep I am fishing, I will run a 16" - 24" leader. Personally, I have run both fluorocarbon leader material and wire leaders. I find that both work and both have their own set of advantages and disadvantages, however wire is cheaper and stronger.

Good luck and tight lines.

X2

For ice fishing though I prefer Fireline (or some other fused spectra) instead of braid. Same material but I find the fused lines absorb less water and have less of a freeze up problem.


Like RavYak wrote if your going to use wire, Titanium is great.
If using Flouro make sure it's flouro LEADER material and probably at least 80-100 lb test.

Have a great season

[EZM]

X3 on using fluorocarbon LEADER material versus fluorocarbon line ....... the best product out there for toothy critters.

All of my heavier ice fishing set ups use a heavy braided main line with a heavy fluorocarbon leader and have had zero issues.

The lighter outfits are simple light mono (and a prayer that a pike doesn't fly in and smash it !!!!) but works great for perch and whites.

[MBL]

Thanks everybody for all the good info. Last year was my first year that I tried ice fishing and only went for stocked trout. I've been reading and searching this forum for over two years now but I thought it would be easier to ask. I live about two hours from a lake that has pike so I hope to get out a couple times this year. It's all new to me and every time is a learning experience. The reel says 4-8 pound test would the bigger braids be a problem? I don't plan on getting any monsters my first couple times but you never know! Thanks everyone for all the replies. Good luck this winter.

[RavYak]

The bigger line won't be a problem.

Those ratings if you want to call it that are more for capacity reasons(larger mono line wouldn't get enough capacity on the reel) and to give you an idea of the drag capability(in other words don't spool it with 50 lb braid and go try to catch a sturgeon).

Using it for your standard fishing won't be an issue. Just make sure you are using an appropriate sized reel for whatever your fishing for(don't use the 10 dollar ice reels for big pike/lake trout for example).

[Flieguy]

I use 6lb mono for trout/perch/walleye

and 15lb for pike with a 50lb fluoro leader instead of wire.

I'd go 10 or 12 if you only have one combo for everything

[Legend Boats]

Depending on Lake clarity I was go with braid as my main line with a fluorocarbon leader. Check out Power-Pro Ice-Tec line. It’s available up to 15LB. test. I would go with a 12-15lb. fluoro leader about 5-8ft long. But if your getting bit off, it might be a great idea to go completely braid.
Cheers Henry

[The Fish King]

I use 10 or 12lb crystal fireline with steel leaders for pike. 10 pound braid is super tough and can handle fish considerably larger. I use flourocarbon leaders when fishing for walleye but pike dont seem to mind the leader.
4lb fireline for perch, whitefish and trout.