A piece of advice... what's your best tip?

[slabslayer]

What's one of your bet tips you can pass on to fellow ice fishermen to cut down the learning curve for either newbies or veterans?  I'd love to hear some, here's one of mine:

If you can afford to, carry 3 rods with you, especially when panfishing. Prerig them with different colors, profiles and sizes. This way you can change presentations very quickly, and gives you different options.  It sucks retying tiny panfish jigs with numb fingers.    Sometimes you have to, but the 3 rods gives you flexibility and options. It's easier to grab another combo than to change lures all the time. Also mix up your bait, try maggots, waxies, even shrimp until you find out what they want. Same with color, mix it up, I've seen days when they inhale a red/white lure and ignore the same lure in green/chartreuse. Experiment until you get em!

[snowcone]

if your fairly new and your gear is unfamiliar, try it out before you go out  set up your things just like your on the ice..get stuff cold friendly with your fingers. arrange stuff so it works for you in the cold,,

[Ntoiceman36]

And always remember you can only use so much gear at once ,pack accordingly to the trip you are going on,excessive gear only gets in your way,gets tangled and gives you a headache,oh and if you already have two shantys you dont use a third probably isnt needed!

[slabslayer]

Sounds like a confession!

[ratherbefishing]

Let the fish tell you when it's too much. Start bigger and be aggressive, if it's too much scale back. Start wirh your presentation as it's the most readily altered. Then start to play with sizes. Finally, if there are fish present and the still won't bite, tweak your color or profile.

Change one thing at a time. This will allow you to isolate what was or was not effective.

I hope this is helpful!

[Luvztaphish]

In the off season don't forget your electronics .  At the end of the season make sure you fully charge you batteries and again halfway through ,and at the start of the ice season . Flasherr,cameras and everything run by batteries . This way when. you try to use them they will work .

[Banker]

Don't let open water scare you away. Use your ice tackle year round, fish don't know the difference what works on ice works year round.

[deerslayern]

If u r unfamilular with a drink, try to hit it up multiple times a year in a boat and try to find thier pattern. Most of the times it works. Even though its cold in november or december, when u find them they will be there after first ice.
       Also take a camera to find and pinpoint humps,reefs  dropoffs etc.

[g]

The best tip I can give is to buy some type of electronics to use. That way you at least know if fish are there or you need to relocate. You can't catch what isn't there.

[HardWater Junkie]

I agree with g. The 2 most important things are a flasher and a gps. The flasher to find the fish and a gps to mark the spot so you can go back and catch them again. The gps makes it easy to get back on the fish fast when you have already found them. Its a lot easier then lining up with a crooked tree on 1 bank and a rock on the other bank. I could never seem to find that same tree and rock to line up with the get back on the same spot.

[Minnowhead]

Talk to a divorce lawyer BEFORE you get married!  Ooops, I see it now...ice fishing advice. I was way off.

[Banker]

Use this soft plastic it is like crack for fish and humans
http://www.khangbrolures.com/

[HardWater Junkie]

Thanks for the info. There ice stingers are the same as Custom Jigs n Spins wedgee. I think I will stick with the CJS wedgee for that style plastics.