Aside from color, these jigs might look extremely similar at first glance...

...but there's a few tiny details that can make a big difference when it comes to icing hardwater panfish, and the type of meat – or, uh, vegetarian option – you have on the business end of the presentation.

The VMC Tungsten Tubby Jig shines w/ live bait (euro larva, waxworms, etc).

The VMC Tungsten Mongo Jig excels w/ plastics.

These are the same jigs as pictured above, only shot from a different angle. The 1/16-oz Tungsten Mongo Jig (top) and a 1/16-oz Tungsten Tubby (bottom). Now it's probably a little easier to play the "spot the differences game," eh?

The Tungsten Tubby already has a VMC Power Gap hook – aka wider round gap compared to other micro jigs in equal sizes = increases your hookup percentage. Though it still has the shorter shank which is ideal for having a compact, inhale-able option when fishing "meat."

But if you prefer fishing plastics, I 10/10 recommend checking out the VMC Tungsten Mongo Jigs with X-long Power Gap hooks. They bumped-up the hook size on each compared to the Tungsten Tubby (1/16-oz: #8 hook, instead of #10...1/32-oz: #10 hook, instead of #12). Makes 'em fit plastics beautifully and less chance of fish just nipping at the tails 'n not getting a hook to their snoot.

Did you notice the slight difference in head shape? 👀 The Mongo's head has a flat bottom so that plastics sit flush.

Why is that such a big deal? 'Cuz if your plastic isn't perfectly straight, it's going to cause the bait to spin in a circle when you jig it. If you don't believe me, try it in your ice hole just a couple inches under the water before you drop down. That "spin of death" can stop fish right in their tracks and send 'em in the opposite direction.

Want another example that's often overlooked? Too bad I'm giving it to you anyway. 🤣

Both of these jigs have a 90-degree hook eye which helps to keep your jig in the perfect horizontal position. Of course it all depends on the day, the fish's mood, personal preference...but I tend to get more bites with tungsten that sits perfectly horizontal vs offset at a 45-degree angle.

Just one more minor detail to pay attention to when buying panfish tungsten based on your own personal preference. And little snippets that can go unnoticed on the ice, but may be the reason buddy is 5 fish up on you in the next hole over.

Of course you can make all this fishing schtuff as complicated or simple as you want...but paying attention to minor details can and will get you more bites when it matters.

I'm not trying to make you go out and spend a ton of money on more panfish jigs. Just spewing a few of the differences you might already have going on in that big box of tungsten you've already accumulated over the years. And if you are hitting the aisles to stock up, I'll apologize in advance for the "sticker shock" at check-out lol:

When you realize how much $$$ you've spent on fishing tackle:

No idea how I came across this one from @pups_pigs_projects, but I'm sure glad I did! He got an underwater camera for Christmas and decided to disguise it as a spearing decoy:

How cool is that? AMAZING work, dude! Hope you're quick on the spear.... 🤑

I've seen SO MANY reports this season of fish houses being broken into – or even the whole shack being stolen – all over local police blotters, FB posts, in the news, etc.

Soooo lame and makes me absolutely sick. How hard is it to keep grubby paws off other people's stuff?!

It's outrageous that you can't even leave an ice auger in your locked shack for the 12 hours that you go home before coming back out that same evening.

I've talked to numerous folks that say they even leave their wheelhouses unlocked just so that they don't have to replace the broken door if some jerk wants to come snoop around…'cuz if they want in, they're getting in either way.

What kind of a world do we live in where you can't respect others' stuff? It's really not that hard to just be a good human. 🤷‍♂️🤦‍♂️

Don't care who you are, we all go thru tough times: whether it's financially, physically, mentally, emotionally, you name it. But if you want something = work your dang butt off until you get it! Okay, okay...I'll try to relax now.... 😅

I shared a porta-potty fish house in the last Target Walleye, so it's only fitting that today I stumbled across one that's on the opposite end of that spectrum...Peter Michniewicz's limousine spotted on the Rainy River near Lake of the Woods:

Imagine pulling up next to that thing at the community hole:

That's ^ a comment under an Ice Fishing Minnesota FB group post of Alex Petrashov's bonus catch of the day. ⚠️ #PG13

Alex found that toy Lindy Glow Spoon inside his Happy Meal Lake of the Woods sauger. Some replacement glow sticks and you'll be back in business, dude! 😂

That spoon should be thankful it was recycled to a good home, because Alex doesn't let anything go to waste. Proof in the fact he takes the time to filet and cook-up the "wings" and even made perch-egg patties! Impressive:

Yesterday outta Lake Winnipesaukee by Ryan Scott Ashley. Fish weighed 12 lbs 8.48 oz and went 35" long. Big congrats!!!

Shout-out to TW fan Douglas H on hipping me to the catch!

Presented by the Brainerd Jaycees who also host the world's largest in-person ice fishing derby on MN's Gull Lake. First-ever event which will be open COUNTRY-wide to all ice fishing anglers.

Here's how/why it came about:

Like I said, this new virtual "America's Ice Fishing Tournament" will be open country-wide, so can't wait to see where all the fish submissions come from. Check out this crazy map from last year's virtual tourney that was in MN only:

Big move!

Congrats all!

Multi-species derby (costs just $10 to enter) that can be fished by any ice angler in the USA or Canada thru the FishDonkey app. There's a pile of different ways to win a chunk of the thousands of $$$ in Clam goodies up for grabs, plus you know one of these gems would lok striking in the (wo)man cave!

More info here.

Sad to see their PWS events go, but excited to hear team events coming back.

I've heard rumors for years that there's some giant crappies in Devils Lake, ND but hadn't really seen much hard evidence until Jason Mitchell got to setting the hook. Apparently there's not many (of course more than you'd think) but when you catch one it's going to be a biggun. Though J-Mitch definitely caught more than just 1 or 2 when he was out there late-ice 😳 looks like I've got a new one for my fishing bucket-list!

This video is specifically talking about Mille Lacs Lake in central MN...but the same tricks can apply to finding those hard-to-soft bottom transitions (aka "deer trails" on the bottom of the lake) on your local waters too:

That Humminbird FishSmart phone app is legit. Gets you HD LakeMaster maps right on your smartphone or tablet. Costs a little more $$$ as you purchase individual lakes or systems, but it's crazy detailed if you've got a favorite lake(s) you frequent.

Looks like we finally have some decent weather coming up this weekend, before dipping back into that nasty sub-zero stuff again. Guess it could be worse? 🤷‍♂️

Hahaha! That's Josh Clawson committing to hole-hopping on a day that started out at a balmy -38°F. 😳🥶⛄️🤣 Saw that pic and immediately had to meme-ify it. Those temps didn't stop him and the Fish Addictions crew from getting the job done on some hefty MN crappies – can check their YouTube video right here.

Man, I don't even know where to start 🤯 so I'm just gonna let your brain try to decipher all that's going on with this 8-striped blue perch @jthooker.outdoors caught in SD. #sheesh!

National Professional Anglers Assoc.