As the fall season winds down and winter approaches, ice anglers know the month of October is when new ice fishing gear hits the market. Today we will be taking a lot at some of the notable, new products from Clam Outdoors for the 2023 ice fishing season.
Clam Shelters
Clam is one of the leading manufacturers of portable ice shelters. Last season they came out with the XT versions of their fish trap style shelter, which added a taller front to the shelter allowing easy entrance. These come in the standard edition and Ice Team edition. The difference is the Ice Team editions come with a light bar, travel cover and battery bracket. These models have not changed since last seasons upgrades.
The biggest improvement is featured on Clam’s X-Series hub shelters. The Max Entry Door, a full-sized door, will be a welcomed upgrade over the triangular doors of past models. This makes entry and exits much easier with Clam’s hub style shelters. Included with the purchase of the Ice Team series hub shelters is the new Aurora Light System. This durable lighting system connects to the poles of the hub shelter and provides 900 lumens of light powered off of a standard flasher battery. It also features 3 levels of adjustability to give the angler the perfect amount of lighting. These shelters come with a 3-year warranty.
Ice Reels
Spooler Elite Inline Reel
One of the most underrated ice fishing reels on the market is the Spooler Elite inline reel. If you want the zero-spin effect that inline reels provide, but don’t want to deal with the line tangling and other negatives inline reels tend to have, the Spooler Elite is for you. What sets it apart from other inline reels is the line guide and it’s 2:3:1 drag system. While reeling in a fish, once you let go of the reel, the adjustable drag takes over keeping adjustable tension on the fish.
This year Clam has given the Spooler Elite a makeover, with two new colors, and a larger reel foot and knob. The reels are ambidextrous reels as well. One thing to keep in mind is there’s no straight drop feature on the Spooler Elite. You have to strip the line off the reel. If that is a feature you are looking for, this isn’t the inline reel for you.
Misago, Predator, and Bravo Spinning Reels
New this year, the Misago, Predator, and Bravo spinning reels have taken center stage in Clam’s reel arsenal. Hitting the shelves at three different price points, anglers will be able to find a dependable spinning reel at the price point they are looking for. The top tier Misago is Clams new flagship reel. Priced at $89.99 this graphite bodied reel features a 9+1 ball bearing system making this one of the smoother reels on the ice fishing market (I can attest to this as I have had my hands on these). It also includes a multi-disk, Teflon drag system, and comes pre-greased with low temperature grease.
The mid-priced Predator reel hits the shelves at $49.99 and is aimed at the angler targeting bigger game fish. It boasts a larger spool than typical ice reels allowing for more line, a 5+1 ball bearing system, SF Drag System allowing for added smoothness when battling large fish, and an oversized EVA knob handle.
The Bravo is Clam’s prototypical ice reel. Extremely affordable at $29.99 it allows any angler to have a dependable reel. The Bravo includes the SF Drag System that is also featured on the Predator reel, a 3+1 bearing system and a 5:2:1 gear ratio. The Bravo and Predator reels also have the ever popular one touch, folding reel handles.
New Clam Pro Tackle Lures
Clam Pro Tackle has been pumping out quality lures over the past 5 years like the Drop Kick Jig, Pinhead Mino and Tikka Mino. This year they have expanded on the success of the Tikka Mino and released the Tikka Flash. This lure takes the traditional Tikka Mino body but removes the tail fin and tail and nose hooks and replaces them with a Colorado blade. This blade was instrumental in making the Pinhead Mino spoon so deadly. The added flash and vibration of the blade paired with the still present gliding action of the Tikka Mino body, makes the Tikka Flash a killer for crappies and walleye. It comes in 1/32, 1/16th, and 3/32nd oz sized and comes in all standard Clam colors.
The second lure Clam has added to their ice tackle lineup is the Rattlin’ PT Spoon. This is an upgraded version of the standard Rattlin’ Blade Spoon that has been a favorite of Clam buyers for years. Using the new zinc alloy also used in the Tikka Mino and Pinhead Pro, added details and texture make the Rattlin’ PT Spoon more natural looking and its glass Pyrex rattle chamber provides a louder rattle. It also includes a painted Gaff Treble hook. The zinc alloy lure is more environmentally friendly than lead based lures as well. The new Rattlin’ PT Spoon comes in 1/16th, 1/8th, and 1/4 oz sizes and is offered in 12 different colors.
Predator Tip Up
The Predator Tip Up might be generating the most buzz out of the new products from Clam this season. The Predator is the latest in a series of rod-style tip ups, allowing anglers to fight fish on rod and reel instead of handlining. Ice anglers have made it known that they enjoy these style of tip ups over the past few years. Clam’s new version can be used as an automatic hook setter, or a standard rod-style tip up in states that do not allow mechanical hook setting.
It boasts adjustable settings to accommodate different rod lengths and has adjustable power settings for a wide variety of bites from trophy pike to panfish. The hook setting application also has adjustable settings for the bite trigger and hook set power. Clam recommends using fiberglass rods with the automatic hook setting application for the Predator Tip Up.
Ice Armor Outerwear
Delta Float Suit
Clam’s Ice Armor line of ice fishing outerwear has been around forever, and there are many models of float and non-float suits to choose from for male, female, and youth anglers. This year they introduced the Delta Float Suit. This suit combines the safety of a float suit with the comfort and dexterity of a non-float suit. The Delta Suit features Clam’s patented Motion Float Technology, a soft, long nap fleece inner lining, and a soft, waterproof outer shell. This was designed to be one of the most comfortable float suits on the market and Clam has succeeded in doing so. This suit comes in Small to 5 XL sizes and in two colors, drab green/black and full black.
Vertex Glove
The new flagship glove in the Ice Armor lineup is the Vertex. This all-around glove provides a waterproof, impressively warm glove for its size and dexterity. Clam incorporated the eVent membrane that has made Blackfish Gear rain suits so popular and also has a comfortable, warm, inner wool lining. This is a glove you will be able to wear while fishing or traveling across the lake to the fishing grounds. The Vertex glove comes in Small to 2 XL sizes.
