Contents
Usually, everyone associates winter fishing with two things: an ice screw and a box. The box for ice fishing allows you to carry rods, accessories, caught fish in a compact and convenient way, and serves as a fisherman’s seat.
Fishing boxes: what are they for?
Fishing in winter is usually associated with a fishing box. No matter how they are called: button accordion, charaban, chest suitcase … The names came to us from Soviet times. Indeed, in those days, fishing boxes manufactured at enterprises were rather bulky. But it was much better than a simple bucket or a homemade folding chair!
Seat
The fishing box serves as the angler’s seat. It is no secret that a sitting person is less cooled by a cold wind than standing. The fishing line will freeze less if the fisherman is sitting and the fishing rod is at the very hole. And the legs get tired when walking for a long time.
Everything is at hand
Carrying a separate bag for fishing tackle is quite difficult. On the body and so five kilograms of clothes and shoes, the ice drill has weight. The box combines a convenient storage for fishing rods, where they do not get confused and are always at hand.
For fish
Caught fish must be stored somewhere. If the perches roll on the ice, they will be easily pecked by crows.
Or other fishermen will notice and chop off from all sides. A fish in a box is the smartest thing you can think of. There it does not crumple, inaccessible to birds and animals darting across the ice.
Many have a built-in design that allows you to put fish in there unnoticed by others. And some boxes can be used as a live bait kan.
For thermos and sandwiches, raincoat
A thermos with hot tea and sandwiches are a must for winter fishing. Or even a second thermos of hot food. Without lunch, fishing will not last long, because the angler loses a lot of calories in winter. Yes, and warm tea helps to warm hands and throat in severe frost.
And even a glass thermos is unlikely to break in a box. In winter it can rain, you will need a raincoat. Where to put it? In a box is the best solution.
Convenient in transport, compact in the trunk
Not everyone goes fishing by car. Many travel by bus, train, subway. Therefore, you need something that does not interfere with others too much. The box will come in very handy.
Yes, and you can sit on it in the vestibule of the train, if all the seats are occupied. And in the trunk of a car, your gear will not hang out, bouncing on potholes. The box can be placed and put down.
Both winter and summer
A good fishing box can serve not only in winter. Even for summer fishing, many take it to stack tackle and bait. It is even used as a bucket for kneading, kana for live bait fish and fry. Of course, he will lose in terms of efficiency to sitboxes and platforms, but in terms of price and versatility, he has no equal.
Requirements for a fishing box
In order for it to perform its functions, it must meet certain requirements. There are few of them:
- Strength
- Ease
- Transportability
- Ease of use
- Hygienic
- Price
Durability is an important requirement. It not only has to withstand the weight of the fisherman, but also the weight of the fisherman who fell on him, and not with a soft spot, but with an auger from the drill. This is very likely, because the ice is usually slippery.
Also, the material of the box should not be pierced by accidental contact with the drill knives. It also should not be too deformed, otherwise the fishing rods in it may break, and the glass thermos may break.
The lightness of the box is in the first place for those who go fishing on foot.
The fisherman drills many holes a day, constantly walks. If, at the same time, a heavy accordion pulls your shoulder and neck, you will immediately want to throw it away and the pleasure of fishing will deteriorate. It is also an important quality for older people.
The transportability of a box is a broad concept. It includes the ability to install additional skids, the ability to carry it on your shoulder or in your hand, the ability to hang it on the brace of an ice drill and carry them both over your shoulder, the ability to put it in a trough across, fit in the trunk of a car, put it in a closet in a small apartment, fit under a seat on the bus so that it does not interfere with anyone, do not cling when you make your way through bushes and snowdrifts, etc.
Ease of use implies that the box should perform its functions well. It should be comfortable to sit on it, put fish into it through a special hole.
Hygiene for a box implies that it should not mold, deteriorate, or absorb odors. It is unlikely that a fisherman’s wife will tolerate something that smells like fish in the pantry or on the balcony.
It must be remembered that often the angler forgets to wash the box immediately after fishing. The smell should not be absorbed, the box should be easily washed from dirt, fish mucus, bait, nozzles, soil, food debris that accidentally got on its surface.
In addition, the box should not corrode, fade in the sun and emit odors.
The price is important for the angler. High-quality clothing, the cost of the trip to a large extent affect the budget of the entire fishing trip. Often there is not much money left for the box, and I want it to be at least not useless for them.
Many anglers do not go out fishing so often in winter and do not want to invest too much in gear, and people’s income has not been growing in recent years.
Material
Most practical drawers are made of the following materials: foam plastic, solid plastic and aluminum alloy.
Penka
Foamed plastic boxes are produced by Helios, Rapala, and some others. They are quite durable, and, importantly, they perfectly retain heat and cold.
For example, frozen fish in them will remain frozen even in the car. This is important, because if the stove is turned on with blowing throughout the cabin, and there is a box next to it, the fish can go bad in a few hours of driving.
In addition, the foam plastic box will be convenient for the angler. It will not be cold, you can safely take it with your bare hand in the cold, sit on it and not be afraid of rheumatism. It has a sufficient thickness, and even it is impossible to specially pierce it with a drill.
Unfortunately, a quality box of this type is expensive. And they are often faked using low-quality material. A fake box will not keep its shape, will fade and deform over the summer if it is left in the sun, and will actively absorb odors and dirt.
Plastic
If the budget is limited, it is better to pay attention to boxes made of solid plastic. Almost all companies make them, but A-Elita and Salmo are the most famous in Russia. They make good boxes available to all anglers.
Their distinguishing feature is a large selection of additional accessories, the ability to put a handle or a belt, the ability to use them as kans for live bait, hang a pocket for fishing rods, a thick outer bag for fish and live bait, fix a polyethylene bag in the hole for caught fish, put a table for baits on the side , choose an option with additional containers in the lid for tackle, etc. This is the most common type of boxes, there really is plenty to choose from.
The disadvantage of a plastic box is insufficient durability, sometimes strength. As a rule, all plastics have the property of fluidity and do not resist abrasion too much.
In this regard, locks and latches on plastic boxes become unusable with frequent use. Often they have to be replaced, redone. The repair of these boxes is quite difficult, as the fasteners are held in plastic and make it heavier. In severe frost, plastic can crack from a strong impact.
Metal
The same cannot be said for aluminum boxes. Old Soviet fishing, more modern ones made of aluminum, which are made by Tonar and some other manufacturers, are distinguished by the highest strength, durability, and maintainability.
On most of them you can hang additional accessories. They can be easily washed and even cleaned with a pemolux type cleaner. In addition, they are easy to upgrade, because the fasteners and rivets in aluminum hold well, the holes usually do not become loose during operation.
The disadvantage of aluminum boxes is a large mass. They are significantly heavier than all the others, especially large boxes with a volume of 20, 30 liters or more. Some crates leak water over time.
Seam and riveted connections become loose, you need to be prepared for the fact that an aluminum box will not work as a kana for live bait fish, and if there is water on the ice, sometimes you have to drain it from at the end of fishing.
Another disadvantage is that it is cold. For example, if a fisherman has arthritis, and he takes it with his hand in a frost of -30 degrees without a mitten, then a shot of pain in the hand is guaranteed.
Homemade boxes
It is immediately worth noting what the box should not be made of. The tree should be excluded. A wooden box seems light at first glance and the most inexpensive. But after standing for a couple of hours in the water, it becomes an unbearable weight.
Ice gets stuck on it and doesn’t clean off very well. And then it all melts and becomes a puddle in the trunk, under the bus seat, etc. Fish slime and smells impregnate it tightly. In terms of weight, it is even inferior to aluminum boxes.
Bucket
The simplest homemade box is a bucket with a lid. You should choose a metal galvanized bucket or a special pail bucket. Milk pails have increased wall thickness.
Construction and garbage cans are not suitable for this purpose, they are too fragile. A lid is made on the bucket – it is simply cut out of a piece of foam with a shoulder so that it does not fall through. The shoulder is reinforced with wire along the perimeter from punching, inserting it into the groove squeezed out by the side of the bucket.
You can make a hole on the side to put the fish in there unnoticed. In general, you can take just a bucket with you for fishing and sit on it without a lid.
From the freezer
The second version of a homemade box is from the freezer of an old refrigerator. It is made of aluminum, has sufficient thickness, stiffeners. The freezer is carefully removed, trying not to damage it, cut off from the top to the desired height and wrap the side into a double fold, reinforcing it with the inserted wire.
A cover is made on top of it – it can be cut out of foam. Attach a belt or handle, make a hole for the caught fish if necessary. Tackle boxes are attached to the bottom of the lid.
It turns out quite inexpensive and practical, and besides, the design of such a product is spectacular, futuristic.
From the canister
Made from an old gas canister. Plastic canisters are not suitable due to low strength. The manufacturing process is similar to a box from a freezer, only at the same time the canister must be thoroughly washed so that there are no smells of gasoline, solarium and solvents that were previously in it.
How to choose
For fishing you need a practical box. When choosing, you should pay attention to strength, squeeze it diagonally. Pay attention to the thickness – for solid plastic, the thickness should be at least 2.5 mm.
It is necessary to inspect the box for the presence of sprues, overburden. If they are, it means that the quality of plastic latches will not be up to par. For foam boxes, you can try pushing it with your fingernail. She shouldn’t push through. Aluminum boxes must be assembled well, rivets must have whole heads without defects.
The seat must be warm. Conventional insulation is often not enough. The author, for example, glued a piece of building foam on all the boxes.
Dimensions are an important detail. Don’t go for big volumes. Usually a bucket of fish is the biggest maximum you can catch in your life.
Fishing rods should fit into the box, the thermos standing tall. He himself must be placed in the trough, if it is intended to be used. Usually they are placed across, and an ice screw is hooked to the box with a bend. If you have a car, you need to keep in mind the dimensions of the trunk, what else they plan to put there.
The equipment should be in order – the removable pockets are well fastened, the latches and covers normally fall into place, the lid slams tightly, the removable boxes do not move out, the sled falls into place without backlash and effort.
It is worth making a choice whether it will have a hard handle, or a shoulder strap, whether it has straps, like a backpack. It is easier to wade through the forest and bushes to the reservoir with a backpack-box.
A hard handle is good when the angler uses the box as a bait kan – it will always be difficult to carry fifteen liters of water on the shoulder, and the belt will freeze over in the snow porridge on the ice. The shoulder strap is a classic, the most versatile, but not always the best.
Where to get
The easiest way is to buy from a fishing store. You can come up, see what you like, evaluate the quality. Ask for advice from the seller. The second way is in the online store. The quality will greatly depend on the choice of store: aliexpress is a pure lottery.
Do not think that all boxes are made in China and resold under different brands here, this is not so. Tonar, for example, has its own production base and patented technologies. Another way is to buy from the hands. You should be careful here, because there will be no refunds upon purchase. However, the online store is also unlikely to be.
The last method is worth considering in more detail. They often sell old Soviet products from the hands. Of course, they are very large, and not all anglers will be satisfied with this. But they have one important detail: you can put a sled on them, and a regular mount is provided for them in the lower part. It makes no sense to buy without a sled.
With a sled, this will be a partial replacement for the trough. At the purchased box, the belt should be replaced with a more modern one, since the linen one constantly freezes over and absorbs water, and in general it is too heavy and weighs a lot when swollen.
When buying modern boxes from your hands, you should look at the seller. For example, does he have any other ads on Avito and which ones. You can often find just resellers. They buy low-quality products and then try to sell them on an ad so as not to be held responsible.
Sometimes you can find a product that is sold on an ad for two to three times more expensive than in an online store, especially in small provincial towns. It is worth checking the price from other sources, and if possible, buy where it is cheaper. It is possible to purchase a product that is out of order, but this is only revealed upon careful inspection.
The best option is when a person needs money or wants to get rid of an old thing. In this case, you can buy a good thing for a reasonable price, the seller and the buyer will be satisfied.
You can buy a good box if the owner for some reason decided to buy another model, or decided not to go on winter fishing anymore, received a box as an inheritance and he doesn’t need it, etc.
Do you always need a box
Anglers don’t always go fishing with him. The author, for example, catches with a lure and a balancer while standing, using a square shoulder bag bought through an acquaintance in the Russian Post. It includes a thermos with lunch, and caught fish, and a raincoat.
If you want to sit on the ice, there is a thick piece of foam in the bag, you get it and take a break for rest and tea. Even if there is water on the ice, a thickness of 7.5 cm is enough. The scoop is attached to the belt on a rope of the required length, it is never lost and is always at hand, and is removed into the bag during long journeys.
You can use not a bag, but walk with a backpack – so the spine gets less tired. An active search for fish does not always imply the presence of additional cargo.
On mormyshka, however, a box is usually needed. It allows you to sit comfortably, waiting for a bite, and keep the nod closer to the water. You also need to take it with you when fishing with a float, without frequent drilling and changing holes.
It is convenient to have it when fishing in a tent, if there are additional burbot vents. You can put the battery in an insulated container, and go check them at night or early in the morning, and also carry all the necessary gear: a hook, a nozzle, a scoop, etc.
There is a tendency to catch from the knees. Very thick knee pads made of glued foam are used, the padding is of sufficient thickness. On the latter, you can both catch from your knees and sit, you can make it from a piece of foam – it will be cheaper, and you can also use it instead of a sled.
When moving in the wind, however, it will interfere and hang out, it is better to somehow attach it to the angler’s back. The author caught with such a thing, then cut it off so that it was smaller and fit in a bag, it is used only when you need to sit. A similar kneeling position is used in fishing competitions.
If the box is not in use, additional care is required for fish and gear. At the same competitions, a bucket is often used, on which home-made sewn travel bags with pockets for fishing rods, boxes with mormyshkas, etc. are hung.
Sometimes they use building products with boxes at the top for hardware. They may well serve as a substitute for fishing, you can even sit on them, but they are not so comfortable, convenient and versatile.
Still, it’s quite difficult to carry a lot of things in your hands, you can lose them on the ice, and the box eliminates these problems, gives comfort and is necessary for an amateur fisherman who went out to breathe winter air on a weekend and relax.