Gear Roundup: New & Noteworthy Fishing Gear

Softbaits, ice houses, fillet knives, augers, rods, apparel, books and more!

April 03, 2024 By In-Fisherman Staff

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Comfort and Mobility

A Yetti ice house trailer on the ice. — yettioutdoors.com

Convenience, comfort, and mobility are standard Yetti fare in their Single-Axle 17-foot Hydraulic Lift Houses, offering spacious comfort in a design that’s easy to tow, settle into position, and maintain. Check floorplans and details, plus pricing for three 17-foot models and a new 21-footer at yettioutdoors.com.

Nessie

The Berkley PowerBait Nessie, voted Best New Softbait at the most recent ICAST show, is a soft-bodied glider, at 5, 7, and 9 inches, providing a bigger profile to start the visual process that attracts big bass, pike, and walleyes. Stabilizing fins keep the bait running true. The hinged body provides realistic action, and a range of colors allows anglers to match the hatch. Nessie is a slow sinker.

$7.99, $9.99, and $12.99, for 5-, 7-, and 9-inch models, respectively | purefishing.com

Heavy-Duty Knife

Studio photo of Rapala electric fillet knife. — $137.49 | scheels.com

The Rapala R12 Lithium Heavy Duty Fillet Knife delivers more torque, faster cutting, and 80 minutes of hard duty on a charge, in a design that’s easy to hold with less hand fatigue. An LED illuminates cuts with a 7.5-inch blade.

$137.49 | scheels.com

Mobility and Power

A man drilling a hole in the ice with a power auger. — $479.99 to $599.99 | scheels.com

E40 power augers from Eskimo deliver 40V of electric power in a series of augers weighing as little as 13.5 pounds. Workhorse power, mobility, and a variable-speed trigger deliver smooth cutting performance all day long, in 8- and 10-inch and steel and composite cutting options.

$479.99 to $599.99 | scheels.com

World-Class Rods

Studio photo of Fenwick fishing rod — $419.95 to $504.95 | purefishing.com

Fenwick World Class Freshwater rods are built to be the finest tools an angler can put into play for bass and walleyes, with 48 new casting and spinning rod lengths and actions covering every primary tactical approach. The rods are exquisitely light and supremely sensitive, built from 36- and 40-ton graphite with titanium guides and zirconia inserts. Rod handles offer full-length grips for the best blend of feel, balance, durability. And much more.

$419.95 to $504.95 | purefishing.com

Merino Base Hoody

Studio photo of Vertx MERINO WOOL BASE LAYER HOODY — $119.99 | vertx.com and thirtysevenfive.com

The Merino Base Layer Hoody by Vertx offers amazingly light and comfortable base construction, a marriage of superior Vertx garment design with unique 37.5 Technology. Fabrics with 37.5 Tech work with your natural microclimate to capture infrared energy, evaporating moisture to keep you cool, or reflecting it back to keep you warm. You’re fresh and dry all day long in clothing with anti-itch properties, exceptional breathability, and wrinkle resistance. Also check the Base Pants.

$119.99 | vertx.com and thirtysevenfive.com

Smoke on the Waterfront: The Northern Waters Smokehaus Cookbook, is a celebration of stories and traditions from Northern Waters Smokehaus in Duluth, Minnesota, bringing to life North Shore cuisine and Third Coast culture, with recipes ranging from smoked Lake Superior fish to Minnesota Pulled Pork. University of Minnesota Press, 208 pages, jacketed cloth.

$34.95 | upress.umn.edu

ChatterBait Elite

The Z-Man ChatterBait Elite EVO, voted Best New Hardbait at the most recent ICAST show, has Z-Man’s direct head-to-blade connection and hex-shaped ChatterBlade, along with a new hybrid molded split-grip and wire trailer keeper. The hook is a 5/0 heavy-duty needlepoint in black nickel. The baits have detailed painted heads and oversized 3D eyes, while stainless-steel blades are available in painted and glitter finishes. Comes in 3/8- and 1/2-ounce sizes in 12 color patterns.

$9.99 | scheels.com

The Crosby

Studio photo of Irish Setter Crosby boot — $229.99 | scheels.com

Ideal footwear for wheelhouse fishing, Irish Setter Crosby is lightweight and waterproof with a slip-resistant rubber diamond-tread outsole, and a comfy memory-foam footbed. The safety toe protects from auger blades and more.

$229.99 | scheels.com

Delta Float Suit

Studio photos of Icearmor Delta Floats parka and bibs — $229.99 bibs, $229.99 parka | scheels.com

The Icearmor by Clam Delta Float Parka and Bibs are designed with MotionFloat Technology to provide buoyancy assistance in the event of breaking through the ice. The soft-touch waterproof fabric is lined in heat-retentive long-nap. There are YKK 2-way zippers and Scotchlite reflective piping for safety in low-light conditions.

$229.99 bibs, $229.99 parka | scheels.com

In-Fisherman Classics: Muskie Mechanics and Why We Chase Muskies

Learn

In-Fisherman Classics: Muskie Mechanics and Why We Chase Muskies

Al Lindner talks about his early muskie memories and how to find and catch more muskies. Lots has changed over recent decades in the muskie world, how does this information measure up today?

Learn

In-Fisherman Storyline: Roadtrip Edition, The Jon Bondy Story

Learn

In-Fisherman Storyline: Roadtrip Edition, The Jon Bondy Story

There may not be a more fascinating guy than Jon Bondy—he changed muskie fishing forever by inventing a presentation and a bait that is a regularly utilized technique in all serious muskie anglers' arsenal. Plus, did you know he fished for bass professionally? What a story.

Learn

In-Fisherman Storyline: Front Porch Edition with Josh Douglas and Shawn Budiac at X2Power

Learn

In-Fisherman Storyline: Front Porch Edition with Josh Douglas and Shawn Budiac at X2Power

Staying powered up has never been easier thanks to the lithium battery revolution. Leading the way is X2Power. X2's very own Shawn Budiac joins us and talks with Minnesota pro bass angler and guide Josh Douglas. The goal is to simplify your battery needs and keep you on the water longer.

Learn

In-Fisherman Storyline Ep11 - Nexus Outdoors Owner Aaron Ambur

Learn

In-Fisherman Storyline Ep11 - Nexus Outdoors Owner Aaron Ambur

Aaron Ambur lives for his outdoor time, and that passion has trickled down into his family pursuits and professional objectives. He owns a number of fishing and hunting brands that you'll surely recognize, but the cool part is really learning about his level of passion for making products he truly believes in. When you have devoted outdoorsmen and women behind useful products, you can count on quality and application—and we learn about Aaron's story and how he got to where he's at today. A remarkable outdoorsman and businessman. 

Gear

The ALL-NEW Shimano Vanford A: The Measure in Performance

Gear

The ALL-NEW Shimano Vanford A: The Measure in Performance

Meeting an angler's demand for comfort and precise lure control, Shimano's MagnumLite series drives the evolution of fishing performance with the new Vanford A family of spinning reels. The MagnumLite's rotors are constructed from lightweight materials to minimize rotational resistance through a balanced wall thickness reduction, which also creates notable durability. A lighter rotor requires less force to start reeling and benefits anglers when they need to move the handle quickly to adjust to different fishing situations or to control the handle more directly to influence lure action. Featuring a reinforced structure with high-strength carbon fiber mixed into resin, the rotor and body will maximize sensitivity and operation. This CI4+ material also exhibits impressive rigidity under pressure when compared to general reinforced resin. Modern anglers who demand precise control every day they spend on the water will find plenty of benefits from the new Vanford A.

Destinations

In-Fisherman Classics: Road Hunting Big Manitoba Pike

Destinations

In-Fisherman Classics: Road Hunting Big Manitoba Pike

Al and James Lindner locate and catch huge Manitoba pike after locating them visually. Burning bucktails is a great presentation to trigger big pike into eating. During spring and fall, and water temps hit 50 degrees, big pike move shallow and feed heavily. This is a neat look back on how to locate and catch big northern pike. They also talk about water temperature tolerance and how it's important to pay attention to water temps. How does this info play to today's pike and muskie fishing efforts?

Learn

In-Fisherman Classics: Understanding Northern Pike Behavior in Warming Water

Learn

In-Fisherman Classics: Understanding Northern Pike Behavior in Warming Water

Dave Csanda discuss how pike attitude changes as the day wanes on and water temps increase. There are some tricks to catching pike as activity changes, but there's always a way to catch them when they are showing themselves. Does this insight still play in today's modern era of pike fishing?

Gear

In-Fisherman Classics: Muskie Mechanics and Why We Chase Muskies

Gear

In-Fisherman Classics: Muskie Mechanics and Why We Chase Muskies

Al Lindner talks about his early muskie memories and how to find and catch more muskies. Lots has changed over recent decades in the muskie world, how does this information measure up today?

Destinations

In-Fisherman Classics: The Perfect Muskie Spot

Destinations

In-Fisherman Classics: The Perfect Muskie Spot

The In-Fisherman crew talks about finding key structural elements that offer all the necessities to attract and hold baitfish, that in turn brings in the muskies. Muskies are known to take advantage of key spots, almost the exact same cast, time after time. Finding those spots used to be a bit more difficult, and trolling was a great option to understanding how the structure plays out. Nowadays, we have updated mapping and sonar options to shorten the learning curve. Good info that still holds true today? Let us know what you think below!

Learn

In-Fisherman TV: Ripping Big Rubber on Lake St. Clair with Spencer Berman

Learn

In-Fisherman TV: Ripping Big Rubber on Lake St. Clair with Spencer Berman

In-Fisherman TV host Thomas Allen nails a giant Lake St. Clair muskie on the figure 8 with Spencer Berman looking on. Ripping big rubber requires specialized equipment and focusing on the right water. Lake St. Clair is a huge place, and one of the finest muskie fisheries on the planet. This is a quick look at the process and a big 50-inicher.

Learn

In-Fisherman TV: Late Fall Trolling Tips for Lake of the Woods Muskies

Learn

In-Fisherman TV: Late Fall Trolling Tips for Lake of the Woods Muskies

There's little doubt that Lake of the Woods is one of the finest muskie fisheries in the world, and it offers an adventure of a lifetime. Spencer Caruso owns and operates Limitless Expeditions in association with Uncle Mark's Outpost near Big Narrows on legendary Lake of the Woods. Trolling up big fall muskies takes some specialized equipment, big forage-mimicking baits and understanding contours. The duo puts in the work and a few fish in the bag.

Learn

In-Fisherman Classics: Primetime Pike and Peak Periods

Learn

In-Fisherman Classics: Primetime Pike and Peak Periods

Al Lindner talks about focusing on the right time to target big northern pike. Shallow water northern pike are the pinnacle of the experience, but timing is key to finding and catching them. The In-Fisherman crew talks about when and where to focus your efforts to maximize you catch rates--pike movements are easier to predict than you might realize.