How to Make an Ice Fishing Pole

Fishing through the ice is one of the best experiences an angler can have, but it can be a bit expensive. Making your own, easy-to-handle ice fishing pole is quick, simple and affordable--leaving you extra cash for bait, jigs and other equipment.

Difficulty: Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• 12-inch dowel rod
• Drill (optional)
• 1 small eye screw
• 2 shouldered dresser hooks
• Electrical tape
• Light fishing line
• Rubber band

Building your own ice fishing rod

1. Choosing the right dowel rod is the most difficult part of the process. Select one about 12 inches long. The diameter is up to you. Choose one that fits your hand comfortably, because you'll be holding your rod for hours and sometimes jigging it up and down.

2. Drill pilot holes in the rod for three screws or twist the screws into place. The eye screw will be turned into the outer edge of the dowel rod, near the very tip. Use an eye screw that will tighten into your dowel rod without protruding on the other side. The shouldered dresser hooks, which look like the letter "L" with a screw-style bottom, should go about five inches from the bottom of the rod. They should face away from each other, creating a bracket you can wind your fishing line around when it's not deployed in the water. Leave enough room at the bottom of the rod to hold onto while fishing.

3. Wrap the grip area of the rod with black tape. Make sure to wrap the bottom of the pole several times, creating a "stop" at the very bottom. This will help you hold onto the rod better when you set the hook. Run fishing line through the eye hole and wrap it around the bracket created with the dresser hooks. Do this until you've nearly filled the entire bracket. Slide a rubber band over the bottom of the rod to secure the free end of the fishing line when it is not in use.

Tips & Warnings

• This pole is designed for hand-over-hand use. Set your depth, use a bobber and hold the line against the pole when you are jigging. When the fish hits, set the hook with your hands, jerking upward in a quick motion, or continue to hold the line against the rod and set the hook. Pull the fish in hand-over-hand. Reset your line after a fish is caught.
• This rod is meant for catching panfish (perch, bluegill, sunfish, crappie), but also can be used for larger fish, such as walleye and northern pike.

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