Simple Tip-Up Leader Storage System
Do you ever find that your leaders end up getting kinked, twisted, or twirled from storage? Whether they end up in a box, buried in a bucket, or spun around the tip-up spool, leaders usually wind up unorganized and usually kinked or bent up. Here is our simple and inexpensive solution to keeping tip-up leaders straight and ready to rock.
What You'll Need
The materials are very simple and can be substituted for larger or smaller components as you see fit for your needs. As an ice fishing guide, I typically have a couple dozen leaders on me at any time. That said my leader tubes are a larger diameter at 1.5". The components again are super simple: an adequate sized section of PVC pipe (in this example 25" long by 1.5" diameter), a PVC end cap, a threaded PVC female end, a proper sized threaded cap to match the female end, and PVC cement.
Start by establishing a pipe length that will fit your leaders. In this case the tube is 25" long to accommodate a 24" fluorocarbon leader. Cap one end of the pipe with the PVC end cap and secure with the cement.
On the opposite end of the pipe, secure the threaded female end using the PVC cement.
At this point the tube is ready to rock. Make sure all the cement has set completely before putting your leaders in to make sure they don't end up glued to the inside of the tube (not speaking from experience...).
Now you can bling out your leader tube with some paint (Krylon Plastix works the best) and your favorite decals. It's simple, inexpensive, and a great way to keep your leaders straight and organized to save you time on the ice.
