CONTENTS 4. Introduction
5. To Catch a Carp
6. Impeccable Presentation
7. Hook Choice
8-9. Hook Patterns
10-11. Hook Links
12-13. Lead Arrangements
14-15. Odds’n’Sods
16-17. The Bagging Rig
18-19. The Mighty Mag-aligner
20-21. Bottom Bait Rigs
22-23. Advanced Bottom Bait Rigs
24-25. Pop-up Rigs
26-27. Advanced Pop-up Rigs
28-29. Hinged Stiff and Chod Rigs
30-31. Zig Rigs
32-33. Off the top
34. Fish Welfare and Rig Safety INTRODUCTION 4
Sometimes all we need to catch point into the fish’s mouth, causing a carp is a keen eye, our rod and the instinctive ‘flight’ reaction to reel, a good line and a baited kick in. This is the bolt rig, and it hook. Carp ‘Close fishing up and can personal’ be exciting, has beenthought used provoking successfully used fishing and insometimes the edge down is right both for baffling!many years now to catch huge exciting and hugely rewarding. numbers of big carp from all around Every day is different. Some days thethe fish world. will feed with wild abandon, Whetheraggressively you rooting are lowering out all a the hook bait that we lay on their table, with the baitinevitable onto an outcome unseen beingfish ‘truffling’ fresh pictures in Built in our around photo collection, the basic a principle wet net aand silty an cloudaching of arm. coloured On other water, days or theyof can bolt approach rigs, there the aresame now baits a widewith layingthe utmost a bait caution, onto a marginalbriefly sneaking gravel ontovariety the feeding of terminal spots arrangementsfor a mouthful shelfof food spot before amongst vacating active the fish area. in the Because that ofoffer this usvariation, carper’s as the anglers ability we to clearcontinuously water of strive gravel to pit develop, , the rush hone of and fineevolve tune the the tactics way and that baits the inhooklink order adrenalinthat should as a you carp watch make the a mistakefish pick and inhaleand leadour hook-bait, react; how the opportunity the leader upis transformed you hook bait into or that the linefish twitch visiting is the bank.settles and in many cases the fantastic. These opportunities are overall effectiveness of the hook oftenThrow rare in variables to present such themselves, as the infinitely bait presentation wide variety ofand waters how it wereacts visit, andsuch if asthe meres, fisheries gravel that pits,you visitcanals lack and whenrivers a- eachfish swallowswith their the own bait. unique banktopographies; side cover the oreffect are of extremely different substrates on rig presentation; the size, busyvolume then and the spread fish of baitswill visit being the fed; Of the course, huge range it is bestof terminal to tailor tackle the edgesequipment less that frequently. is available One to thing all anglers; is wholeand finally rig to the the behaviour approach of youthe arecarp forthemselves, certain though; then ‘carp they fishing will sneak tackle andusing techniques’ and the can lake become bed youa hugely are intocomplex the and margins sometimes when daunting the bank subject. fishing on, we will look into the side disturbance is reduced (such specific benefits of the different asThere the is middle no substitute of the night). for getting Make outlead and arrangements experimenting in withgreater different detail notechniques bones of for it - yourself, watching and the if carp you are later lucky in even this booklet. getting the opportunity feedto watch in your carp lake feed is andthe fastestlearning way how best to tackle each different situation. toThe learn greater how successto catch andthem. confidence you gain, the more the sport fuels the desire to continue learning in an effort to unlock the secrets of successful carp Whenfishing. the disturbance pushes fish further out then the natural progressionThis rig booklet is the aims addition to offer of anglers a of all experience an insight into castingthe key weightareas ofplaced this bigonto puzzle the line - rigs and terminal tackle. to reach the fish, and as our rigs haveWithin evolved these this pages weight the has Gardner taken team will lead you through the basic onpresentations much greater we successfully significance. use for specific scenarios, and offer ideas for Whenadvanced it is tweaks combined and improvements with an ultra that you can easily incorporate into your sharpown rigs. hook Many it becomesof these suggestions an anchor will improve the rigs critical performance, pointand will to undoubtedly which the help hooklink you to enjoy will greater success during your time spent tighten,on the bank and side.ultimately pull the hook TO CATCH A CARP...
Sometimes all we need to catch weight has taken on much greater a carp is a keen eye, our rod and significance. When it is combined reel, a good line and a baited hook. with an ultra sharp hook it becomes ‘Close up and personal’ fishing an anchor point to which the hooklink in the edge is both exciting and will tighten, and ultimately pull the hugely rewarding. hook point into the fish’s mouth, causing the instinctive ‘flight’ reaction Whether you are lowering a hook bait to kick in. This is the bolt rig, and it onto an unseen fish ‘truffling’ in a silty has been used successfully for many cloud of coloured water, or laying a years now to catch huge numbers of bait onto a marginal gravel shelf spot big carp from all around the world. amongst active fish in the clear water a of gravel pit , the rush of adrenalin Built around the basic principle of bolt as you watch the fish pick up you rigs, there are now a wide variety of hook bait or the line twitch is fantastic. terminal arrangements that offer us These opportunities are often rare carpers the ability to fine tune the to present themselves, and if the way that the hooklink and lead react; fisheries that you visit lack bank side how the leader settles and in many cover or are extremely busy then the cases, the overall effectiveness of fish will visit the edges less frequently. the hook bait presentation and how it One thing is for certain though; they reacts when a fish swallows the bait. will sneak into the margins when the bank side disturbance is reduced Of course, it is best to tailor the (such as the middle of the night). whole rig to the approach you are Make no bones of it - watching the using and the lake bed you are carp feed in your lake is the fastest fishing on, we will look into way to learn how to catch them. the specific benefits of the different lead arrangements When the disturbance pushes in greater detail later in this fish further out then the natural booklet. progression is the addition
of a casting weight placed onto the line to reach the fish, and as our rigs have evolved this
5 IMPECCABLE PRESENTATION
Put in the simplest possible terms ‘presentation’ describes the way in BUCKING THE TREND which the hook bait and hooklink settle on the lake bed, and then the way in General principles in hook to bait size which the rig reacts when a carp engulfs aside, there are rig tweaks that allow you the hook bait with those thick rubbery to throw the rule book out of the window! lips. ‘Big hook’ rigs are devastatingly effective A good presentation will be untangled when combined with a pop up hook bait and allow the hook bait and hooklink to (see rigs section), as the weight of the settle in a manner that ensures that the hook is totally nullified by the buoyancy rig is inconspicuous to feeding fish. It will of the hookbait. This combination offers also allow the hook bait to move towards phenomenal hooking potential, and is a real the fishes mouth sufficiently so the hook big fish special! finishes in a position that the hooking mechanics can come into play. If this all Try combining a small pop up bait with a works not only will the carp be snared but large hook so that it sinks very slowly. This the hook hold will be strong and the majority is a really effective method when fished of fish hooked will end up in the bottom of over a particle feed approach, and offers your landing net. the subtlety of a bottom bait presentation, with the hooking potential of ‘the mighty A poor presentation will be obvious to the hook’. fish and will be easier for them to avoid, or will simply be ineffective. There are a lot A smaller hook can be incorporated, where of things that could go wrong (particularly the features in the lake allow, by increasing in weedy waters) and these problems can the length of the hair. If the fish have been be anything from the hooklink tangling heavily pressured (fished for by a lot of or failing to settle flush to the lake bed, anglers over a long period of time) then the rig being engulfed by silt or weed, or reducing the size of the hook is the first and simply the hook snaring on bottom debris, easiest way to make your hook bait appear restricting the hook baits movements and more natural. masking the all important hook point from doing its job.
With a little help and experience it is easy to construct terminal tackle and rigs that will allow you to fish effectively whatever the nature of the waters you are visiting. Whether you are fishing on a polished gravel spot, in deep silt, over chod or amongst ballooning clouds of silk weed there is always a rig that will suit your situation best, and we hope that this rig booklet will offer you a useful guide to mastering the wide range of terminal tackle arrangements needed to improve your presentation.
6 WHAT’S THE POINT? 7
HOOK CHOICE
Before we start looking at the use of individual patterns in the Gardner range, it’s worth considering the balance between the size of the hook and the bait. As a starting point most standard rigs for bottom baits will become unwieldy, and the presentation will suffer as a consequence if an overly large hook is used.
If you are a new recruit to the world of carp angling it’s good to think of this in terms of how you would present small baits such as maggots or sweetcorn. You would never think of mounting a couple of kernels of corn onto a great big size 8 hook, because most fish would think twice before sucking that lot in! The same principle can be applied to carp rigs.
Fining down will ensure that the presentation is more natural, and this will invariably fool more fish on waters that are regularly fished. Smaller hooks have a limit though, in that bigger fish and demanding environments may mean you need a larger hook to successfully land the fish.
A carp’s mouth is large, and if the venues you visit only receive slight angling pressure then the fish will be less aware of tackle and you Always remember one absolutely may get away with using larger hooks. This critical point - the one on your hook! makes the presentation less subtle, but the hooking potential of the rig will be increased. After reeling in or after a capture, carefully Only a little time and effort will show you if you check the hook point using an eye loupe, have got the balance right. like the Gardner ‘Eye’, to check for visible blunting or turning over of the hook points. Then use your finger nail to make sure the hook is razor sharp. If the hook slides on your nail it is blunt - so bin it.
The hook point not only controls the effectiveness of the initial pricking, but then ensures good penetration and a secure hook hold. YOU WILL HOOK AND LAND MORE FISH IF YOU FOLLOW THIS IMPORTANT RULE! HOOK PATTERNS
The Gardner Tackle hook range encompasses The Long Shank seven dedicated hook patterns. We believe Mugga hook has that between them they cater for virtually all proven to be a of the carp and specimen angler’s needs. t r e m e n d o u s l y successful pattern, All our hooks are manufactured using the best with big carp all quality high carbon steel, that has been forged and across Europe double tempered to offer the optimum balance falling foul of this between wire gauge (weight) and strength. Points superb Hook. are robust, chemically etched and seriously sharp –an absolutely essential element for rigs being Available in sizes 4 to 10, in either the Covert or used for any species. Black Nickel finish.
MUGGA HOOKS & CONTINENTAL MUGGA CHOD HOOKS HOOKS This is the perfect hook for use on Chod and For over a decade, this groundbreaking hook Hinged Stiff rigs. The 15° out-turned eye ensures design has given carp anglers superb hooking that the stiff Trip potential and unsurpassed hook holds thanks to Wire hooklink exits the combination of a super sharp straight point, a at the correct angle curved shank and so that the hook is an aggressively ideally positioned in-turned eye that for the super sharp enhances the straight point to rotation of the hook prick and take the moment the hold in the fish’s mouth. These hooks feature a hooklink tightens. strong forged wire, so that they will cope with the Simply awesome! most demanding big fish angling without risk of opening up under pressure. The Mugga is THE pattern of choice for numerous successful anglers, and can be used Currently available in sizes 4 to 8 (including a size with either pop-up or bottom bait presentations, 5), in the Covert finish. and works superbly with a wide range of hooklink materials. Now available - extra strong, heavier TALON TIP HOOKS wired ‘Continental Mugga Hooks’ for the most The original Gardner carp hook. The Talon Tip challenging angling situations and monster carp... pattern is super strong, and famed Mugga Hooks are vailable in sizes 2 to 12, in for offering rock either the Covert or Black Nickel finish. solid hook holds. This is thanks to Continental Mugga Hooks are available in sizes 2 the combination of to 10 (barbed only), in the Covert finish. a 5° in-turned eye, medium length LONG SHANK MUGGA HOOKS shank and sharp beaked point working together The long sweeping shank of this pattern makes it to offer phenomenal penetration. The beaked extremely difficult for fish to eject the hook bait once point is also naturally less likely to be turned over it has been inhaled. When used in conjunction whilst fishing over gravel. with a pop up or balanced bottom bait these hooks offer anglers the opportunity to experiment Currently available in sizes 2 to 12 (barbed and with advanced rigs, and are particularly suited for barbless), in both Covert and Black Nickel. use with the ruthlessly efficient 360° rig. *Size 2 only available in Black Nickel. 8 HOOK PATTERNS
WIDE GAPE TALON TIP HOOKS LONG SHANK INCIZOR HOOKS When Gardner decided to develop a Wide Gape This hook point that pattern, the design naturally evolved from the has been etched original Talon Tip – calling on the same strong onto the Long wire, beaked point and in-turned eye to ensure Shank Incizor hook the best possible is truly outstanding penetration without (even by Gardner increasing the standards), and lateral forces that makes this pattern could cause the stand out from similar patterns available! The hook to open out pattern excels as a pop up hook when a ‘Supa- during the early Shrink’ shrink tube kicker is added to the eye, stages of a battle. and has proven equally effective when combined with a knotless knotted monofilament (or The increased gape offers the benefit of increased Fluorocarbon) hook link and a simple snowman hooking power by allowing the hook point to be setup. It may be simple, but it’s also devastatingly set further away from the hook eye, and the hook effective. to grip deeper and even more strongly. Currently available in sizes 6 to 10, in Black Nickel. Currently available in sizes 2 to 10, in either the Covert and Black Nickel finish. *Size 2 only available in Black Nickel.
INCIZOR HOOKS There is a lot more to the Incizor pattern than is apparent at first glance. The long straight point is slightly angled in towards the shank, and ensures What colour do you see? - The unique that the hook penetrates superbly and then Covert stealth plating is adaptive to ambient gives extremely secure hook holds. The Incizor light. By mimicking the surrounding light is an amazingly conditions, Covert hooks blend in seamlessly versatile pattern with the that can be used environment like for a wide range no fish has ever of rigs, thanks seen before. largely to its straight eye. Whether in Does it work? combination with - Like all true a soft braid like Trickster Heavy, Fluorocarbon, i n n o v a t i o n s , monofilament or a skinned hook link this hook will Covert hooks do the job – admirably. have set a new benchmark in hook technology - improved Currently available in sizes 1 to 10, in either the camouflage, sharper & stronger points Covert or Black Nickel finish. and better performance than ever. To fully *Sizes 1 & 2 only available in Black Nickel. appreciate their unique finish, check them out at your local tackle shop and make up your own mind...
For more detailed information on the Gardner hook range visit www.gardnertackle.co.uk 9 HOOK LINKS
Effective balanced presentation relies the same refractive properties as water. upon the way a baited rig settles and how Different varieties of Fluorocarbon offer it behaves and reacts to fish sucking at different stiffnesses, and as such can the hooklink. All of these characteristics be used for many different advanced rig are affected by the material, length and applications. breaking strain of hook link used when constructing our end tackle. Monofilaments are a great alternative to braided hooklinks as they are less prone There is a huge variety available, enough to tangling, and hold the hook in a set to confuse even experienced anglers, let position in relation to the hooklink. This is alone those starting out in carp fishing, so an important consideration when designing we will offer a brief insight into the uses and rigs that have a greater chance of pricking benefits of the main varieties commonly the fish when they are being blown out used by carp and specialist anglers today. (anti-ejection rigs).
MONOFILAMENTS: Ignore monofilaments at your peril – if the COPOLY MER & FLUOROCARBON fish in your water have been caught over Often overlooked, monofilament hooklinks and over on a braid or skin then maybe it’s can range from a section of line taken from time to experiment. Small changes like this your fishing reel, through to specialised can make a big difference! hook links like our soft low memory HydroFlex, or our super stiff Trip-Wire (that BRAIDS is recommended for Chod Rigs and Hinged Uncoated braids offer unsurpassed Stiff rigs). They are easy to work with, and limpness that is said to give the hook bait a Copolymers offer exceptionally high knot freedom of movement that can fool fish into strength with most commonly used knots, thinking that the bait is a freebie. like the Grinner and Palomar knot.
Whether it is this effect, or simply that the supple nature of these materials feel different to monofilaments on the fishes lip, or that the hook is free to twist uninhibited ‘Monofilaments’ aren’t only nylon and and take hold more effectively in the fish’s copolymer; they can also be made from mouth is really uncertain. It’s probably a Fluorocarbon materials. In recent years mix of all these attributes that makes braid Fluorocarbons, like Mirage and Subterfuge, so effective. have become increasingly popular because of the weight of the line and the way that it The perfect hook link braid should sink becomes invisible when submerged. This flush to the lake bed, be smooth tothe is thanks to pure Fluorocarbon having touch and ultra limp, have a low diameter 10 HOOK LINKS and be nicely camouflaged against a The simplest bottom bait rigs, incorporating number of lake beds. Thanks to the a small stripped portion at the hook inclusion of Dyneema fibres in all Gardner end, have caught countless big fish all braids we are able to achieve remarkable around the world. However the scope for performance in both our soft Trickster and experimentation is almost endless. Simply tough Vigilante hooklink materials. by taking small sections of skin away you can dramatically alter the way in which the The subtlety that braids offer make them hook reacts when the bait is inhaled by a an extraordinarily effective hooklink option, feeding carp. and are the number one choice for many anglers. Especially for fishing with solid Suitable for almost any modern rig PVA bags or small hook baits, as we will including pop-up and bottom bait rigs, it see later in the rig booklet. is little wonder skins are probably used by more anglers than any other hooklink SKINS today. They are awesome! Skinned braided hooklinks are immensely popular and it’s not surprising when you consider the enormous variety of rigs that can be constructed using them.
They offer the angler the advantages of a soft braid that can be exposed by stripping the outer skin away, but without the tangles. The skin also helps the hooklink sink faster and makes the hooklink more robust as it offers the braided inner a little extra protection should the link come into contact with a submerged obstacle.
The colour and texture of the outer skins and braided inners varies between products, and within the Gardner Range you will find that the If you’re unsure Sly Skin and Disruption hooklinks are slightly stiffer than the Chod and Sink Skins. Apart how to start or from this the main difference is colours, with want to save time subtle variations between the types giving you try our ready tied the very best opportunity to match the lake rigs range. bed of the water where you are angling. 11 LEAD ARRANGEMENTS
The lead arrangements we use are now arrangement, but we would suggest that this is much more than simply a weight on the line. really only noticeable with leads over 3 ounces, Most of the time the combination of a sticky otherwise the lead can skip across the bottom sharp hook and the weight of the lead will be rather than act as an anchor point for the line to enough for the hook point to snare the fish pull through. and cause the fish to bolt off. The situation where a running rigs can cause The different lead systems allow us to tailor the problems is whilst fishing in weed or over way in which the rig is presented on the lake pronounced ‘bars’, where the lead running up bed, and how the rig will perform when a carp the line could potentially act as a snag point. picks up the hook bait. If you choose the wrong Apart from that, it is an under rated and under lead arrangement you could end up with the rig used lead arrangement. being dragged down into soft sediment or the fish could simply use the weight to shake the LEAD CLIP hook point out of their mouth! Hugely popular, lead clips are used by many anglers mainly because of the ability to swap Understanding how each one works, and how leads in the blink of an eye. Both the ‘original’ to get the most from them is vital to ensuring the Covert Lead Clip and the newer Multi-Clip best possible presentation. allow the angler to control the force required to discharge the lead by adjusting how far RUNNING LEADS the tail rubber is pushed onto the back of the The ‘simplest’ arrangement, the running lead, clip – essential functionality in thick weed, but offers some major benefits. Realistically, there is unnecessary in open water! still enough resistance to make the hook point nick the fish’s mouth. This is great if you are fishing near to snags, as bites tend to be less violent and you have more time to take control of the situation before the fish panics.
To make sure the lead discharges correctly the lead clip must hold onto the swivel. The Covert Lead Clip uses an internal ridge that grips the swivel eye, and is therefore very easy to use. You just pull the size 8 swivel back into the Another advantage of a running rig is on Lead Clip until it clicks into place. Job done! The heavily pressured venues where the fish are ‘pegged’ style of swivel retention is offered on accustomed to dealing with standard sized fixed the new Multi-Clip. It’s a little more fiddly, but the leads by using them to shake out hooks. The swivel is held in position with 100% reliability. movement between the rig and the lead makes it very hard for them to use the weight to get rid The Multi Clip is unique as it can also be set up in of the rig. a ‘leader safe’ form so that a leadcore leader can be used safely with a lead clip. Normal lead clips Bite indication with really heavy running do not allow the leader and hooklink to separate leads can be better than a semi fixed lead so a fish could potentially be left trailing a leader if 12 LEAD ARRANGEMENTS the mainline breaks. The Multi Clip arrangement INLINE LEADS really is safer for the fish and a real step forward A nice ‘clean’ spot on the lake bed is in rig safety. perfect for hook bait presentation, but it also makes it much easier for the fish to Thanks to the ability to change lead size and identify the terminal tackle and then deal shape, these lead clip systems can be used on with it if they make a mistake. This is when almost any type of lake bed. By lengthening the the high resistance of an inline shaped lead hooklink you can maintain good presentation really comes into its own.Both the Inline over light weed or silt, and on hard spots using Bolt Bomb, and the nose heavy Gardner a flat pear bomb will maximise the resistance, Flat Pear Inline bombs offer a rock steady getting the most from your bolt rig. anchor point for your rig, making it almost impossible for the carp to move the lead HELICOPTER RIGS around on a pivot point (the furthest point Due to the way these rigs fly they are fantastic from the lead swivel normally). for long range fishing. With the lead on the end of the line and the hooklink set a few inches above If you are fishing with a normal lead on a it, helicopter rigs offer excellent presentation on very clean hard spot the movement in a almost any type of lake bed. pendant arrangement means occasionally pricked fish can eject the hook bait before On hard lake beds the top bead is set just an the full weight of the lead is brought into inch away from the lead, sliding this further away play. to stop the hooklink being dragged into silt or weed. It’s the principle that the Chod rig is based Inline leads have proved devastating in on... and we all know how well that works! conjunction with a short braided hooklink when dropped out of bait boats with a couple of handfuls of particle. Of course they are just as effective when cast but then you have to be careful to watch that the rig doesn’t tangle. This problem is easily solved by adding on a small PVA bag, as the added weight of the PVA bag reduces tangling.
A word of warning, a poorly constructed Helicopter rig, whether tied using lead core, or a fused loop style leader, is dangerous! The golden rule is that in the event of the mainline breaking the top bead should be able to pull up off the leader allowing the hooklink and leader to separate. If your rig doesn’t do this then you need to change it. We recommend using a piece of Covert XT Silicone tubing with a Covert Safety Bead. These beads are made from Inline leads are also the first choice for solid a flexible rubber compound and have a tapered PVA bag rigs, and this method allows the inner bore specially designed for use on Helicopter rig to be presented perfectly– tangle free rigs. Almost any shaped pendant/swivel lead will and amongst a tempting pile of attractive work well with a helicopter rig. bait.
13 ODDS’N’SODS
There are simply loads of accessories CLIPS & LINKS that are pretty much essential Essentially used as a means of swapping for constructing a variety of lead over hooklinks, Speed Links, Easi Clips arrangements and rigs. and also Q Rings create a strong link that also act as a hinge that can help bait These ‘essentials’ range from swivels, clips presentation by allowing stiffer hooklinks and links through to beads, sleeves and to settle easier over lake beds that are tubing. All of these individual components scruffy or rocky (most lake beds!) have their part to play in our finished terminal tackle arrangements and will be TAIL RUBBERS & ANTI-TANGLE SLEEVES useful at some time or another for tailoring The tapered design of these components the presentation to suit any given situation. make them perfect for streamlining the Every little step you take to achieve the joints between rig components and best possible overall camouflage and therefore reducing the incidence of tangles. presentation is effort worth taking, as the The taper also makes them useful when overall effect of all those little details can trying to achieve the controlled release of make a big difference... inline leads as the shape can be used to control the level of resistance that the lead Here’s a quick look at some of the more creates before sliding away from the swivel commonly used accessories that fill up our – a well proven and highly effective way tackle boxes: of catching out fish that are shaking their heads in an effort to throw the hook when RIG RINGS initially pricked. Normally used for creating blow back rigs or mounting baits onto with D-Rigs. SINKING RIG TUBE By incorporating rig rings on a D, or Including a length of rig tube above a tail alternatively sliding on the shank of the rubber cuts down dramatically on tangles hook for mounting hook baits, the hook when used correctly. It also helps disguise is allowed to rotate more freely than a the mainline from pressured carp and conventional hair - which can potentially protects it from being damaged by snags inhibiting the hook from twisting as quickly or sharp obstacles. Let’s face it, tubing is as possible and taking the securest not a ‘trendy product’, but it is still utilised possible hook hold. by anglers that want to ensure good tangle Always make sure your rig rings are free presentation. Some anglers like finished in low glare Covert finish to reduce to break up the outline of the tubing by the chance of light glint. using permanent marker pens to improve camouflage. SWIVELS & FLEXI RING SWIVELS Popular sizes range from 8 to 12, and allow Our Covert Tungsten tubing offers ultimate junctions between mainline and hook links. weight and suppleness for pinning Some swivels have specially designed everything down, but when the going gets adaptations to allow for the quick change tough and the conditions are really extreme of hooklinks. Most lead clips are designed we still love the original Sinking Rig Tubing to fit the stronger, larger size 8 swivels that (that we have sold for years) with a blob are easily capable of handling any carp of Critical Mass moulded around the top. that swims! Some are adapted for quick Tough as old rope! and easy swapping of hooklinks like our Link Lok and Kwik Lok swivels
14 ODDS’N’SODS
0.5MM SILICONE colours, breaking strains and diameters One of the least conspicuous and most Gardner’s range of Plummet lead cores important items in the tackle box! It’s cover the full spectrum of uses, from our essential for creating neat rigs by aligning popular low diameter original Plummet hooklinks and hooks. The slightly thicker to the new ultra heavy colour sectioned walled XT version is perfect for use as Camo-Plummet. a stop for helicopter and chod rigs using leadcore, as the diameter works perfectly EYE LOUPES to create just enough grip to hold a safety Without a sticky sharp point most carp rigs bead in place during a cast, but will allow are much less effective. ‘The Eye’ offers the bead and hooklink to pull over the top in optimum magnification for anglers that the event of the mainline breaking. want to scrutinise the condition of their hook points. It’s also useful for checking TUNGSTEN PUTTY other small items that would otherwise be Still the most versatile means of precisely hard to see – perhaps checking swivels for counterbalancing buoyant hook baits, and burrs that may weaken knots. ideal for smearing on hooklinks to make sure they are where they need to be, RIG GLUE pinned down onto the bottom. It’s available Rig glue is recommended for securing in a variety of colours, but we like to create knots between different types of hooklink natural looking blends by mixing a couple materials, but is also damned useful for of colours together! If you want to be really bankside repairs! Accidents happen... fastidious with a little experiment you could even tailor different batches to suit your Did you know that you don’t need every own venue’s lake bed. Gardner Tackle’s single item of tackle that manufacturers Critical Mass is available in Grey, Green like Gardner Tackle sell to catch Carp. It’s and Brown and is exceptionally dense and true!!!... However, its well worth building up user friendly. a repertoire of rigs based on success and experience that you know you can rely on PVA in particular situations and using particular We know – its not a component, but it’s products you have confidence will not let one of those products that clearly crosses you down. That way, when you arrive at over into the world of rigs when it is used a venue and are faced with specific water to hold the lead in place on lead clips that conditions – perhaps thick weed or soupy have been trimmed back to offer the fastest silt - you will be able to put together a lead possible lead release when fishing on setup and hooking arrangement that you weedy waters, or simply to hold soft hairs know will work. To do this you need to have in place during the cast. Twisted hairs can a variety of terminal items to cover these cause hook pulls as they effect the way the eventualities and a bit of thought (and hook turns and ultimately the position the hopefully sources of information like this rig hook takes hold). booklet) will help you identify what it is you need to do the job right. LEAD CORE LEADER Since the early 90’s lead cores have been hugely popular as they offer for a number of reasons. They sink like a stone thanks to the high density inner, act as a buffer against snags and are vital to stop helicopter rigs causing any damage to the section of line. Available in a range of 15 THE BAGGING RIG (BARRY & BEN O’CONNOR) 16
in advance with the rig and bait inside them ready to go. Just snip off the leader and attach a pre-prepared one and you’re ready to go again!
The size of bag would be adjusted according to the distance I wanted to fish. The smaller and more densely packed the bag, the further the distance it can be cast.
My bag mix consists of Solid PVA bags can be a a mixture of small pellets and ground boilies. The smaller the size devastating method to use in of the individual ingredients the easier it carp fishing. is to compact the finished parcel of bait, removing the air from the bag and making it Although I would use them anywhere, they more streamlined so it casts further and with are especially good in weedy lakes as the greater accuracy. weight of the bag will flatten any weed it lands on and as the bag melts it leaves a small pile of bait with the hook bait sat enticingly in the middle of it. It’s probably the only rig presentation guaranteed not to tangle. Either adopt the roving approach and it’s a one bite at a time method or when you are putting a couple of bags on a clear spot in the weed and lightly spodding over the top of them, multiple catches can be had.
I normally use a 2oz Flat Pear Inline lead in PVA bags, increasing to a 3 or 4oz lead if greater distance is required. A four inch length of Trickster Heavy braid would be my chosen hook link, tied to a size 10 Covert Mugga hook. I’ve also successfully used coated hook links such as Sly Skin and Disruption in solid bags.
If venue rules allow it I would use Plummet Lead core Leaders when bag fishing. The big advantage being two or three bags can be prepared THE BAGGING RIG (BARRY & BEN O’CONNOR)
Place Cover with 1. hookbait in 2. half an the corner of inch of mix, the bag. position lead and cover with more mix.
Keep tapping If you use a 3. the bag 4. dry mix prick so the mix the PVA bag settles (add to allow air PVA friendly out. liquids now).
When the Trim off 5. bag is 6. excess tape. compressed twist the top and secure with PVA tape or string.
Compact The bottom 7. PVA bag mix, 8. of the PVA lick and fold bag should back corners look a little to create a like this, and streamlined it should be shape. filled tightly.
Once the ...the 9. excess 10. remaining around the PVA can be top has been licked and trimmed... stuck down around the tail rubber.
17 THE MAG-ALIGNER RIG (ALAN STAGG) 18
With really fine and small hook baits it is always important that you use a really supple hooklink, which is why I choose Trickster Heavy as my preferred hook length choice with this rig. It’s really soft and smooth and doesn’t inhibit the relatively small hook from doing its job, turning and pricking the fish as soon as the hookbait is inhaled. Maggot fishing can be a deadly tactic when trying to outwit carp Tightly woven Gardner Micro Mesh – mainly because they love eating PVA is absolutely essential when tying them! Maggot fishing is a method up PVA bags of maggot so they do not that is more commonly used in the wriggle through the holes and escape. cooler winter months, but it also has If you tie a tightly compressed bag of its place in the spring and summer maggots to the lead you can nick the months too. Several different rigs hookbait onto the PVA (being careful not can be used to successfully present to puncture any of the maggots inside) maggots, but in my opinion none and this effectively stops any tangles come close to the Mag-Aligner. and ensures the hookbait is surrounded by a visual and highly attractive patch The rig was devised by two hugely of freebies. successful big carp anglers who cleverly incorporated an Enterprise Tackle Mag- The Mag-Aligner is not only a Aligner grub slid over the eye of the devastating rig for carp, dedicated hook, creating a line aligner effect which specimen anglers need look no further ensures that the hook turns in the fish’s either, as this tactic has accounted for mouth making it a very efficient hooking specimen fish of all species on both mechanism. The Enterprise grub also lakes and rivers. helps disguise the hook.
A small Mugga hook really takes some beating when using this style of hooking arrangement. The curved shape of the hook helps to enhance the hooking mechanism and the straight point takes hold at the slightest opportunity. This pattern of hook also has the bonus of being available in our new Covert finish – a special camouflage plating. When combined with the sharpness of this pattern you have to look no further when using this rig. THE MAG-ALIGNER RIG (ALAN STAGG)
Tie a size 11 Using a 1. or 12 Mugga 2. sewing on with a needle knotless knot pierce the and ‘blob’ the rubber grub tag (optional). (orientation as shown)...
...and Push the 3. carefully 4. grub over the thread it onto hook eye, your hooklink. making sure the hooklink exits in line with the hook point.
Test it’s lined Either tie to a 5. up correctly 6. swivel or tie by gently a loop with drawing the a figure of 8 hoklink over (or 16) loop your finger. knot. The hook should flip over like this every time when it’s right.
For still water All thats 7. angling we 8. left to do is prefer a short hook on a hooklink so few maggots cut down and tie a anti-tangle micromesh sleeves so PVA bag of they’re not so maggots onto obtrusive. the flexi ring below the lead.
The finished 9. rig.
19 BOTTOM BAIT RIGS (NEIL WAYTE) 20
to shorten the hook link down to around 6 inches. When carp are feeding heavily on small items they tend to suck the hook bait back much further in their throat and I want to avoid the rig being bitten off by their pharyngeal throat teeth. If however, the bottom of the lake is silty or has a small amount of weed I will increase the length of the hook link so that the hook bait is not dragged into either the weed or silt. The HydroFlex hooklink For my fishing I like to keep my rigs as simple will then settle over any bottom as possible so therefore a lot of my fishing is debris giving you an excellent presentation. done using uncomplicated bottom baits and nylon hook links. Let’s face it, having caught One last little tip that I have used and kept quiet carp using these items for years so as the about for a while is for fishing single hook baits saying goes “if it ain’t broke don’t fix it”. in the colder months. When carp are feeding over beds of bait they are constantly sucking and All of my carp fishing these days is done using blowing food items in and out of their mouths, so the superb Mugga hooks in sizes from 10 up to a hook set downwards at an aggressive angle 6, and for hook link I love Hydroflex. Hydroflex has more chance of catching inside the mouth has a lovely matt green colour and is incredibly as it’s blown out. However, with a single bait the supple, but retains both good knot strength and a carp feeds by sucking just that one food item high level of abrasion resistance. back into its mouth. By going back to the old way of tying the hair to the hook, using a piece of very I tie my rigs up using the ever reliable knotless fine nylon tied off at the bend of the hook, the knot, using six turns around the shank of the hook hook is sucked in directly behind the boilie with before passing the tag end back through the eye. the point being directed downwards by the hair Combined with a Mugga hook this arrangement on the bend so that it will go much further into the gives a very aggressive angle for the hook to mouth and catch hold. Instead of being hooked catch inside the carp’s mouth. Personally, I do in the corner of the mouth the hook will be right like to tidy it up with a short length of green Supa- back in the mouth itself. Shrink tubing, just covering the length of the whipping on the shank extended past the eye of the hook. This helps keep the hook aligned to the hooklink, maximising the rigs hooking potential.
This rig will catch you plenty of fish and I would say that it will convert 90% of pick ups into hooked fish.
Two things that I do vary to suit various fishing situations are the length of the rig and the length of the hair. If I am using particles for hook bait or fake baits like Enterprise corn or tiger nuts I tend BOTTOM BAIT RIGS (NEIL WAYTE)
Start off Thread the 1. by tying a 2. hooklink small loop through the in the end of eye so that a length of the hair is on your chosen the outside of monofilament the hook... hooklink.
...and whip Pass the end 3. the hooklink 4. of the hooklink six times, through the being careful eye of the to rotate the hook so that material so it come out it sits on the on the inside closed side of of the eye the eye of the (important!) hook. and tighten down.
Adding a The 5. short section 6. finished rig of silicone - simple but tubing or devastatingly Supa Shrink effective. isn’t essential but tidies up the rig and aligns the hooklink and hookpoint.
Neil’s Winter Special, tied with a light nylon hair coming off the bend of the hook.
21 ADVANCED BOTTOM BAIT RIGS (LEWIS READ) 22
Zig foam works a treat and keeps the hookbait looking more like any freebies.
This is a great method whether you are using boilies or particles, summer or winter.
D-rigs can be tied with either Fluorocarbon or a copolymer, using a straight pointed hook - preferable a pattern with a straight eye or slightly out turned eye (either an Incizor The simple approach will nearly always or a Chod hook). With these catch you fish, but now and again we may materials the finished rig ends up very subtle come up against particularly tricky fish. In looking. This rig camouflage is enhanced reality they aren’t hard to hook because by using a slow sinking hookbait as it tends they are super intelligent - far from it in to settle over the hook - and what better fact! Normally it’s just because of the way camouflage can there be than that! the fish are feeding on the bait. Another tried and tested bottom bait rig tweak Quite often this can be because the carp are involves lengthening the hair, and trapping it keeping their mouths tight to the lake bed round to the bottom of the bend with a small and using the extendable top lip to carefully piece of silicon tubing. manipulate the bait under their over slung mouth where they carefully suck up the By changing the position of the hair the freebies sifting out bottom debris and anything mechanics of the rig changes dramatically, that feels unnatural. In fact most the time when and as long as the hook bait and the rig are fish are deemed to be tricky it is because they taken fully into the mouth, as soon as the are feeding tight to the lake bed in one way or hooklink tightens the combined action of the another. weight of the hook and the heavy hookbait turns the hook point down into the most secure One of the most consistent ways of hooking hooking zone – the middle of carps bottom lip. carp feeding like this is to mount a ‘balanced’ (slow sinking) hookbait on a D-rig.
The D-rig keeps the hookbait close to the eye of the hook – in a position that ensures the hook goes into the fish’s mouth even if it tentatively inhales hookbait. The added buoyancy added to the hookbait to make it ‘balanced’ can be achieved in a number of ways; from making or buying your own ‘wafters’ to using a snowman setup that incorporating either a small pop up, a piece of foam or a piece of plastic Enterprise sweetcorn. Alternatively drilling out the bait and plugging it with a piece of our highly buoyant ADVANCED BOTTOM BAIT RIGS (LEWIS READ)
Start off with Put on a 1. a knotless 2. small rig ring. knot - for D-rigged bottom baits and our chod rig about 9 turns is about right.
Create ‘D’ by Use a lighter 3. looping the 4. to carefully hair with the burn back rig ring back the tag to through the create a blob eye of the of melted hook. hooklink.
The D should We 5. look a little 6. recommend like this - a well tied small and figure of 8 neat and loop knot sitting straight for quick on the back attachment to of the shank swivels and of the hook. clips.
Always The finished 7. lubricate 8. rig. knots with saliva and bed down nicely making sure the knot is strong and secure.
23 POP-UP RIGS (MARTIN LEWIS) 24
Long sweeping curved shank hooks are not allowed on some waters, but a similar set up can be achieved using a Longshank Incizor and a small piece of Covert Supa-Shrink tubing creating the aggressive angle below the eye, or a short shank hook with a longer shrink tube ‘kicker’.
For a 25lb breaking strain braid, Vigilante has a fine diameter and nice brown colour, and For my own style of short ‘hit & run’ sessions, when viewed in the lake it with little or no preparation prior to the day, I simply blends in exceptionally well on the favour a ‘chuck it anywhere’ pop up rig! My bottom. I rub some Critical Mass putty up and favourite rig uses our 25Ib VIGILANTE as down the hooklink and put a couple of tiny blobs the hook link combined with the awesome of it on the link to ensure it settles down flush to Longshank Mugga hook. the lake bed. Being woven with pure Dyneema, Vigilante is incredibly strong for its diameter, but I have been using this combination successfully can retain a little buoyancy unless treated this fishing at a silty lake and it has served me well way. being cast just about anywhere at that venue! The pop up is tied on to a Covert 3mm Rig Finally, I incorporate an Anti-Tangle sleeve at the Ring running between two hook stops, so that I swivel and rig foam on the hook to help avoid can adjust the placing and size of bait. The stop any tangling on the cast, but for PVA bag fishing nearest the hook point is left fairly central for baits I simply shorten the hook link to around 4” and of 14mm or bigger, but is moved nearer the point dispense with the sleeve and dissolving rig foam. for smaller baits of 10-12mm or if I am using a grain of Enterprise corn. The rig has proven excellent for single hook bait fishing over all sorts of lakebeds and will perform There are two trains of thought on how much equally well fished over beds of bait and in PVA counterbalance weight should be used with pop bags too. ups, but as a rule I normally over-weight pop ups fished on gravel lake beds and finely balance hook baits fished over silt. The beauty of this set up is that even a small 10mm bait can effectively hide the big hook whilst retaining excellent bottom lip hookin. Drop one in the edge and you will see what I mean!
I sleeve the hook knot with a small piece of silicone tubing protruding about 5mm past the eye as this causes an already amazingly quick turning hook to be even more aggressive. You can test this by trying to move one across the palm of your hand. It will turn before moving showing that the rig is spot on! POP-UP RIGS (MARTIN LEWIS)
Start off by Trim off 1. attaching the 2. excess as the Long Shank hookbait will Mugga to be mounted the Vigilante on a rig ring, with a simple not a hair. knotless knot.
Push 1cm Thread the 3. of 0.5mm 4. first Covert silicone Hook Stop tubing up onto the over the eye hook, so that of the hook the widest as shown. end is facing up the shank.
Thread on a Create a loop 5. rig ring and 6. knot. We a second recommend hook stop as adding an shown here. extra twist to make the knot ‘figure of 16’ as this is stronger with braids.
With the extra Smear 7. twist it is a 8. Critical little trickier to Mass rig bed the knot putty down down. Take hooklink to your time as make it sink a stronger like a stone. knot is worth the effort.
The finished The finished 9. rig - just 10. rig. waiting for a pop up to be tied onto the rig ring.
25 ADVANCED POP-UP RIGS (LEWIS READ) 26
has been added onto the hook bait. How do you decide how fast your hookbait should sink and how high the pop up should be above the lake bed?
As a rough guide we recommend fishing pop ups that sink slowly over low weed and silt, using a slightly longer hooklink and with the pop up high enough to remain clearly visible and accessible to browsing carp. If you’re fishing on clean gravel, What constitutes an ‘advanced’ pop up rig? perhaps over lots of bait then a The relatively ‘simple‘ pop up rig detailed low pop up with counter weight only a few mm by Martin as his favourite rig is simple to from the hook and over weighted so that it sinks at construct, but thanks to the long curved the same rate as a freebie is a good starting point. shank hook he uses the mechanics are fairly This is because the fish will tend to feed more complex, and the final out come... well, it’s an aggressively, and with their mouths tight to the extremely effective fish catcher. lake bed, and the heavier pop up will be less likely to swirl around as the fish moves near the rig. The ‘advanced’ label really relates more to the combination of materials and how they are used It’s critical that your hook baits are good enough to in the rig’s construction, with the addition of a few maintain their buoyancy for the duration of the time tried and tested tweaks to get the most out of the they will be out in the water. If you’re fishing long rig. Tweaks worth considering would include using periods it’s important that you check that the pop a rig ring blow-back style trapping the hair to make up hook bait is still Ok when you reel it in. A great the finished rig react faster when a fish inhales, way of making really good pop ups, that maintain mouths or tries to eject your hookbait. With pop buoyancy, is to make them using your normal up rigs it is normally best to position the rig ring so base mix with a cork ball inside the boilie before that it traps the hair on the hook shank opposite it is rolled. There’s loads of information online on the barb (on barbless hooks this would be 2mm or how to do this and they really are the best! 3mm up from the point) as this will naturally keep the hookbait set correctly in relation to the bend of the hook.
Another easy tweak is the addition of a section of 0.5mm silicone or shrink tube over the hook eye. By extending the shank and holding the hook link so it is straighter to the shank with this tube, you are ensuring that the hook point is in the right position to catch hold as soon as the bait is sucked in as it will be less likely to droop over.
The last critical adjustments relate to the balancing and height of the pop-up. The balancing is how slowly the hook bait sinks when the counter weight ADVANCED POP-UP RIGS (LEWIS READ)
Start by Tie a small 1. stripping off 2. loop in the 12-15cm of end to retain your favourite the hair stop skinned when the rig hooklink, is finished. using the Gardner Stripper Tool.
Tie a small loop Thread the 3. in the end of the 4. rig ring on stripped section the hook and and add tie on secure with a an extra small knotless knot. rig ring (allow As it exits the a couple of eye the last mm over the turn of the diameter of the knot should bait you are be skinned. using).
Thread an Push the 5. 8mm section 6. tubing up of 0.5mm over the eye tube down of the hook the hooklink. so 2 or 3 mm are below the hooks eye...
Your hook Create a 7. should 8. hinge at the hopefully now height you look a little want to fish like this! the pop-up by stripping a small section of hooklink.
Mould some The finished 9. Critical Mass 10. rig. for the pop up counterweight on the hooklink just above the stripped section as shown.
27 HINGED STIFF LINKS & THE CHOD RIG (LEWIS READ) 28
The distance from the lead up to the top bead is critical, and adjusted depending on how scruffy the lake bed is where you are casting. In light debris and low weed the stop can be as little as 12 inches from the lead, but if the weed is several feet deep the bead should be right at the top of a long Plummet leader. If in doubt fish the top bead further away from the lead.
The development of specialist high To get the most out of the Chod memory hooklink materials like ‘Trip Wire’ rig you need to be careful how you set your revolutionised the use of early stiff rigs, bobbins. Always try to keep the line relatively and enabled the Hinged Stiff Rig to evolve slack, otherwise any added tension may pull from being a good rig into an AWESOME the hook link down into the debris. Bites with a one! Using Trip Wire enables a curve to be chod rig will often start out looking like a violent set into the hook section - meaning it will twitchy liner, as the fish hooks itself against always aggressively twist regardless of the the weight of the line and the Plummet leader direction the fish approaches the hookbait. acting against the anchor point of the lead. If This ultimately means more hooked fish the bobbin stays tight to the buzzer there’s are successfully put on the bank! normally a fish on the end...
With the hook bait mounted on a ‘D’ on the How do you choose which rig to use? If you back of the hook the rig becomes extremely know the spots are pretty clean, use a hinged hard for fish to deal with. Why? Well, the stiff link; but if the lake bed is predominantly pivot point stops the hook from turning during covered in weed, leaves or algae consider the ejection and keeps the hook point facing using the Chod rig as the presentation will be towards the fish’s bottom lip. Combined with much better and you can get your hook bait the curved hook section and a free turning in position with fewer casts. This is especially swivel the result is phenomenal! important if you are casting at showing fish.
The ‘classic’ Chod Rig uses the same hook section as the Hinged Stiff Rig, and is mounted onto a small flexi ring swivel that runs up and down an extended helicopter rig – moving freely up to a point set by the positioning of a small piece of 0.5mm silicone tubing and Covert Safety bead on the leadcore leader during the cast. As the lead flies through the air, and then drops through the water the chod rig stays up near the top bead and the hook bait settles gently down over any weed and leaves so the hook bait remains clearly visible to fish feeding in the area. HINGED STIFF LINKS & THE CHOD RIG (LEWIS READ)
Start off by Create a loop 1. threadng the 2. - the loop Trip Wire may need to through the be larger so eye of a you can whip Chod Hook it up the hook this way. shank.
When it When 3. comes to 4. tightening the drawing knot fully stop out excess the hook link material from being marked the knot pull by the eye the loose tag by drawing end first and the knot tight then the hook over the link side. end of your thumb.
Thread on a Trim excess 5. small Covert 6. material off rig ring and the tag and pass the tag blob back so end back you are left through the with a small eye of the neat D... hook.
...that should If you’re tying 7. look like this. 8. up a choddy Perfect! use a simple 3 turn blood knot with the tag blobbed to attach a size 12 Covert Flexi- ring swivel.
There are The hinged 9. various 10. stiff rig has the opinions Critical mass on how moulded at curved the the base of the end section hook section, should be, the Chod rig but we like it shown relies on just about like the Plummet this. leadcore to sink it. 29 ZIG RIGS (CARL ARCHER) 30
On waters that respond well to floating baits, a change from conventional floater controller tactics to long tail zigs fished amongst freebies can make a massive difference as the fish are unable to cope with the change in presentation. If the fish in your venue react positively to the sound of a spod landing in the water, it can be worth making a sloppy cloudy mix and spodding this over the zig rigs using a Pocket Rocket. The fish Throughout the year carp spend a lot of time come into the area excited by away from the lake bed, either swimming the spod landing and the cloud of food particles around sunbathing, or searching out mid suspended in the water, and will often take a mid water sources of natural food. They will water bait as soon as they see it! This method can happily feast on emerging insects like lead to multiple catches and some fast and furious Caddis and May Fly or filter feed in clouds of action. daphnia. These invertebrates make up a large proportion of the carp’s natural diet. Whatever type of venue you are targeting, your hooklink and hook need to be as small and light On many heavily stocked waters the fish even as possible, bearing in mind the size of fish you’re feed on freebies as they fall through the water! likely to encounter, and the presence of weed or No doubt this is down to competitive feeding, snags. This is simply because the fish are normally but some fish will have inevitably learnt that baits eyeball to eyeball with the hook and hookbait, so eaten mid water rarely have a hook attached to naturally keeping everything small and neat will be them and are safe. advantageous.
By observing when the tell-tale bubbling and In keeping with this scaling down, smaller hook activity associated with bottom feeding carp baits will also normally be more effective than ceases, or watching out for increased surface large ones, so rather than sticking on a 16mm activity when it’s warm, we can normally tell when boilie it’s worth using a trimmed down pop up the main feeding period down on the lake bed has boilie (trimmed as small as necessary to lift the come to an end. This is the time to switch your hook and hooklink), or better still, a tiny piece of attentions over to fishing with zigs. ultra buoyant Gardner Zig Rig foam. This foam is available in a wide range of colours, which is really Whether the Zig is fished with a really long useful as you will often find that on difficult days a hooklink so that the hook bait remains on or change of hook bait colour can lead to a quick bite. near the surface when the fish are up high in the water, or with a shorter link so that the bait is It’s important that the hook bait is mounted tight suspended straight up off a lead, the method can to the hook shank on a really short hair. That way be phenomenally effective at picking off bites from you are certain that when a fish mouths the bait, fish that you simply wouldn’t catch if you kept you the hook will always be in the perfect position to rods fishing conventionally down on the lake bed. nail the fish. ZIG RIGS (CARL ARCHER)
Start by tying 1. a 3mm loop and tying a size 12 Mugga hook on with a 6 turn whipping knot. It’s important to keep the overall hair about 5mm.
Cut off a small Cut a slice 2. section of Zig 3. through the Rig Foam. foam so that About 1cm is it’s split from ample as it’s so the centre bouyant. and finishes just short of the end as shown.
Push a Now pull the 4. baiting needle 5. foam onto the though the hair. It’s just outside of right if the the foam hook is pulled so it comes into the foam through at an before the angle down loop is out into the slice the other you have side. made.
Use a colour The hook 6. matched hair 7. bait should or dumbell look like stop to hold this, with the the foam in hook partially place. hidden by the foam.
Trim off the With the hair 8. edges - It 9. at this angle makes the the hook is hookbait look more likely to less ‘man stay wedged made’. inside the zig foam during the cast.
31 OFF THE TOP (CHRIS MALTBY) 32
and impressive strength to size ratio) are the size 10 Incizors. These are perfect for use with baits such as Enterprise’s pop up Tigernut’s or chum mixers or Mistral’s floaters.
When necessary I incorporate a Flatliner controller for additional casting weight as these come in three sizes they cover a variety of ranges. They are threaded onto the mainline and kept in position between two beads set I have spent untold hours floater fishing and using stop knots tied with our the following rig is the one that has proved power gum. The stop knots are tied with three successful for even the shyest of carp, even turns, and whilst this will not normally slip whilst those that have seen it all before. Floater casting at close to medium range, if fishing at long fishing requires finesse and your tackle can range I like to tie another, just above the first, for be adjusted accordingly, using light test curve security. rods such as the 2.25lb test curve model I favour, combined with a smaller reel than the The hooklink, that should ideally be around 5 usual ‘big pits’. feet, is attached with the ‘loop to loop’ method giving excellent knot strength. I prefer this to using When floater fishing on waters with prolific birdlife anything that adds extra knots or weight such as feeding freebies can be a problem! The bait swivels, rings etc (potential weak spots). attracts the wildfowl, which in turn prevents the carp from feeding confidently and competitively. Make up plenty of small mesh bags of mixers By chance I discovered a method that takes the in advance so as not to waste valuable ‘active birds longer to cotton onto and provides a way of feeding’ time on the bank. Simply thread your hook delivering freebies accurately and at a distance point in to the bait and thread it round to the back of that exceeds normal loose feed range. Using the shank. The mixer bag can then be nicked on. Gardner’s Wide Boy PVA mesh, I make up small There is no need to use hairs, bait bands or glue bags of mixers which can either be catapulted with the three hook baits I mentioned earlier. out or nicked onto the hook. Every cast presents freebies directly around the hookbait when the PVA dissolves.
The rig I use is based on 10lb HydroFlo mainline - as it is soft but very strong, abrasion resistant and reliable in the 0.28mm diameter. This is coupled with Gardner 10lb Zig Link which is clear and has a good level of stretch as the hook length. This stretch is important to protect hook holds on small hooks and buffers the movements of powerful fish. This stretch also makes for excellent knot strength.
The hooks I prefer (due to their straight point OFF THE TOP (CHRIS MALTBY)
Start off by Tie a loop 1. threading a 2. knot in the flatliner onto end of your your mainline mainline. with a safety Chris favours bead either a single side. overhand loop for this.
Cut off enought ...a 3 turn 3. 12Ib Power 4. stop knot is Gum to tie a ideal for fixing stop knot... the Flatliner controller in place.
When it is Repeat with 5. finished 6. another stop (leaving a knot beind small tag) the upper carefully bead to keep move the the contoller stop down in position to the loop and create a knot. bolt effect.
Tie on your Pull off a 7. favoured 8. generous 5 hook; Chris foot of your has gone chosen hook for a size link material. 10 Barbless Incizor and uses a reliable 4 turn grinner.
Tie a loop The finished 9. knot in the 10. rig with a soft end of your hookable hooklink and floater and a attach the two small Fishnet sections loop PVA bag of to loop. identical free offering. Now you’re ready to go.
33 THINKING ABOUT FISH WELFARE AND RIG SAFETY 34
So what exactly is a safe rig? To many welfare of the fish in a broader way. Details such anglers it is as simple as using a set up as wetting slings and mats before laying the that enables the fish to rid itself of the lead. fish on them are very important, as this stops Unfortunately not enough anglers consider the protective mucus layer being removed. how important it is not to risk fish being left This layer acts as a barrier protecting the fish trailing terminal tackle should the mainline from bacterial infections. Another consideration be cut on an underwater obstruction, or the is the time the fish is out of the water; before failure of a poorly tied knot! you lift the fish out of the water make sure that everything you need is at hand. It makes a big With a little thought it’s easy to achieve this level difference. of safety, even when using lead core leaders. By using a well constructed helicopter rig, or by Treat any sores or wounds with a tried and incorporating the new Gardner Multi-Clip in its tested carp care product like Gardner’s ‘Medic ’leader safe’ format (more information can be Plus’ – as these will help reduce the chance found in the lead arrangements section) you of the fish being infected and promote rapid can ensure that the hooklink separates from healing of any affected areas. the leader and avoids any chance of the fish being tethered on trailing tackle.
Fish welfare is much more than just considering rig safety though!
What about fishing near to snags or in thick weed? It is important that the tackle we use is adequate for the size of fish and the obstacles we are likely to encounter along the way. It really is simple. If you do not land a fish because of weed or snags you need to reconsider whether the critical positioning of your hook baits needs to be changed, moving them to a spot from which you can successfully land the fish you hook. The strength of your tackle may also need upgrading – changing to stronger lines and hooklinks and heavier gauge hooks. In really severe conditions even these measures might not be enough – in which case there is only one choice. Stop!
It’s our obligation as anglers to make sure that all the fish we catch are returned in pristine condition and we should also consider the