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An interesting blurb about micros- v -conventional/oversized guides and icing from Mike McClelland on his first day of the classic

From the article:
"It was pretty frustrating," McClelland said. "From 10:30 on, I could make two or three casts. It was that way until the afternoon, then it wasn't a problem anymore."
McClelland tried rods with over-size guides and ones with micro guides.
"I had rods built specifically with bigger guides," he said. "But the ice forms bigger in those. I think the micro guides are better because you can wash the ice off in the water quicker."

Regards,
-Justin

Thank you Justin. Another myth blown away by real world experience.

_________________________________________
"Angling is extremely time consuming.
That's sort of the whole point." - Thomas McGuane

Good info. i was just debating on guide size for a rod that may be used for wintertime walleyes.
thanks steve

Would not a spray help with the ice ??

Bill - willierods.com

I've used Blakemore Reel Magic to slow down ice accumulation on rods, lines and reels for near 20 years now. Doesn't hurt paint, fishing gear, electronics or anything else in my boat.

In spite of this person's comments, I have many many comments from people who use fishing rods for ice fishing in freezing weather.

The overwhelming request is that no guide be smaller than a size 8 if the rod will be used outdoors.

Small guides icing over is NOT a myth in the real world of fishing in continuous freezing weather.

NONE of my clients have every wanted or used a guide or tip smaller than a size 8 outside in freezing weather.

I also have a bunch of clients who steel head fish.

Again, they request that no running guide or tip be smaller than a size 8 to reduce the times that the line freezes up in a guide.

I am glad that this person had decent luck with his rod or rods.

But, yes, small guides ice up at the same exact rate as large guides. But if 1/4 inch of ice forms on a guide that has a 1/4 inch hole in it, the hole will be shut.
But if 1/4 inch of ice forms on a guide that has a 1/2 inch hole in it, there will still be plenty of guide area that is not frozen for the line to pass through.

I believe that this is a very basic fact of the physical world.


Good luck
Roger

Roger,

Let's approximate our ice chunk as a cylinder, which isn't unreasonable. There is an ice blob that forms in the tip top and first few guides, plus a tail of ice leaving the rings. It's also true that there is 4 times as much ice per unit length in that 1/2" cylinder compared to the 1/4" cylinder. It's going to take 4 times as much heat to melt the ice in the 1/2" cylinder compared to the 1/4" cylinder. Depending on the conditions (air temp, duration of low temps, and casting dynamics of the lure fished), the smaller guide may be a better option, especially if the number of fishable complete casts is the same or similar between the ice locking up.

For ice fishing outside in temps below 25 degrees for extended periods, the larger guides are likely the better choice.

Joe

Joe,
But, it will also only take 1/4 the time with the smaller guides to freeze solid and lock the line in place.

If you have ever frozen with icing conditions, you will quickly understand the situation in real life.

But, if something works, by all means use it.

Small guides don't work at all for me when I am fishing in icing conditions, but they might work fine for someone else.

Maybe others have a "hot" hand - so to speak.

Be safe

REW

roger wilson Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> In spite of this person's comments, I have many
> many comments from people who use fishing rods for
> ice fishing in freezing weather.
>

> I am glad that this person had decent luck with
> his rod or rods.

>
> Good luck
> Roger

This "person" is Mike McClelland. He is in 14th place after day two of the Bassmaster Classic.

Roger, did you read the article? Here's a quote:

"I had rods built specifically with bigger guides," he said. "But the ice forms bigger in those. I think the micro guides are better because you can wash the ice off in the water quicker."

_________________________________________
"Angling is extremely time consuming.
That's sort of the whole point." - Thomas McGuane



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 02/24/2013 12:52AM by Chuck Mills.

Roger,

I have spent plenty of time fishing freezing conditions, but very little time ice fishing. In my experience icing isn't a major annoyance until air temps drop below the mid 20s. Once it hits the teens, it's a major pain. After some looking around, it appears air temps were in the mid to upper 20s (27 was the temp I saw) when they launched that day. At those temps, if the line stays moving it isn't as likely to lock down during the cast, and takes a little longer to lock onto the frames. It could very well be the case that the number of completed casts between the line locking up could be the same.

I wouldn't use small guides in all subfreezing conditions, but fishing at those temps for a couple hours, I wouldn't throw in the towel.

Like I said, I'm with you when fishing freezing conditions constantly, but there are times when fishing open water in the cold that guide size isn't as much of a hindrance. I believe that this instance is one of them.

Joe

Joe,
Of course your comments make perfect sense.

Also, if, when working these sorts of conditions, the spraying of the line with line conditioner really helps to minimize icing type conditions.

If, he was able to drop his rod tip in the water and have the ice disappear, the water was plenty warm to take care of the slight icing conditions of this contest.

I just glad that it all worked out well for the folks in the contest.

Be safe
Roger

My experience (bass fishing in michigan) has been similar to mcclellands. Especially with baitcasting gear. What i have found with my micro rods is that every 1 or 2 casts or so (air temp in the mid 20s to 30s) i need to rinse the top half in the water to clear it and make another cast.

What i have found is that the line guide on my baitcaster often freezes up well before the stripper (size 6 or 7). While larger guides may take longer to freeze, the weakest link is still (in this case) the line guide. I feel micros, while they do freeze up faster, also strip away most of the moisture before it makes it all the way back to the reel and line guide. Clearing ice from the tip end of the rod is infinitley easier than clearing ice from the line guide on the reel - which usually requires something that vaguely resembles a french kiss.

For spinning gear (or center pin) i can see this being less of an issue however, which is probably why the steelhead guys prefer larger guides.

Regards,
-Justin

MR. Mike McClelland voiced what Scott Sheets, Alex (with Hydro Wave), and myself found to be true and shared few years back concerning Micro guides and icing.

Logical would seem to think;
that Micro's would be more of a problem in icing situations, but practical experience has proven other wise!

Another advantage to Micro's in ice situations is the the smaller rings manage to wick most of the water off the line before it gets into the reel reducing icing in the reel

The very best solution to this problem is to stop fishing if the temperature falls below 70 degrees.

I am quite sure that if you follow this policy, you will NEVER have an icing problem with guides and rods of any size.

Be safe
Roger