If you’ve tried to make a major purchase in 2021, you’ve been affected by the global supply chain slowdown. Materials are backordered, shipping is slow, containers held up; there are seemingly more reasons than ever these days for why you can’t get at what you’re looking to own.
As an ice angler, there are several tools that can aid in your fishing success. Very few, however, are as effective as an underwater camera. The information provided to an angler from the use of an underwater fishing camera not only accelerates one’s learning curve but will ultimately, put more fish on the ice.
No one can deny how much the sealed lead-acid (SLA) 12v battery has had an impact on ice fishing. This battery has been the dominant player in the game and has been used extensively for decades in flashers, digital units and camera systems throughout the ice belt.
Though there is a slightly higher cost of entry to MarCum for putting these batteries in as standard options, the benefits of Lithium battery technology are many. For most anglers, the weight savings alone are enough to switch out their old Sealed Lead Acid (SLA) batteries, with new Lithium versions weighing less than half of their predecessors. You’ve also got longer run-times, even from batteries with similar amperage output that are not Lithium. That means you can fish for durations numbering days, not hours, with anglers often only re-charging their batteries after a long weekend of use.
While the idea of finding your ice-spots in a boat isn’t a novel one, serious ice anglers should make this a priority this season. No doubt, it’s easier to drive around and scan structure for fish now vs. doing it one ice auger hole at a time come November and December. Advances in electronics make it easier now than ever, such that you can map new water and mark spots with GPS/Sonar combos like the MarCum MX-7GPS.
The first step in your pre-season routine should be checking your batteries. Most flasher failures on the ice are caused by a bad battery.
Leaves are gone from the trees, and that’s your green light to grab your MarCum flasher or digital system from the garage and get ready for the ice-fishing season.
The first step in your pre-season routine should be checking your batteries. Most flasher failures on the ice are caused by a bad battery, so now’s the time to inspect your MarCum’s power source. “You could be kicking yourself later if you don’t take a minute to check everything out now,” says ICE FORCE Pro-Staffer, Joel Nelson. “Nothing will wreck a good day of fishing faster than a bad battery, because there’s nothing you can do about it out on the ice.”
Organization and preparation are critical elements to success on the ice. Without them you may be stuck repairing or replacing rather than actually fishing. Most of us are limited to specific windows for fishing, so make sure you can capitalize on those periods by having your gear ready and in working order. Winter conditions are hard on gear, so doing your due diligence is important.
Two decades ago, MarCum released its first underwater video camera with a monitor for fishing, giving eyes below the surface to an entire generation of anglers. Their world has been forever changed because of it, from the way modern ice anglers fish to the equipment they use, underwater viewing has shaped the evolution of the sport. While the systems themselves have also evolved through the years, the one thing that remains consistent over time is the amount of information anglers glean when seeing underwater for the first time. These MarCum underwater cameras can be used for ice fishing, freshwater, and saltwater fishing.
Press Release – New Hope, MN (9/29/21) – Marcum Technologies, the undisputed leader in ice-fishing-specific sonar and cameras, takes tech to the next level. Their long-held principle is that features are useless unless they help an angler catch fish, and that can be seen throughout decades of innovation. Patented technology like moveable zoom that led to angler’s ability to target fish anywhere in the water column was the first ping heard round the world among the ice sonar community. They followed it up with additional advancements to help distinguish echoes from noise in an interference rejection system so advanced, it’s also patented.
Press Release – New Hope, MN (10/22/20) – Two decades ago, MarCum released its first underwater viewing system, giving eyes below the surface to an entire generation of anglers. Their world has been forever changed because of it, from the way modern ice anglers’ fish to the equipment they use, underwater viewing has shaped the evolution of the sport. While the systems themselves have also evolved through the years, the one thing that remains consistent over time is the amount of information anglers glean when seeing underwater for the first time.
