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Carp Fishing Tips: How to tie an ‘Off the top’ Surface Rig
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Written by Chris Maltby
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Friday, 05 October 2012 10:22
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Fishing on the surface requires just as much skill as fishing on the bottom; location, feeding and bait presentation being paramount. Fishing pressure is a key factor, along with angling in favourable conditions. Taking time to watch the behaviour of surface feeding carp then working out how to outwit them is one of my great pleasures in fishing.
I have spent untold hours floater fishing and the following rig is the one that has proved successful for even the shyest of carp, even those that have seen it all before. Floater fishing requires finesse and your tackle can be adjusted accordingly, using light test curve rods such as the 2.25lb test curve model I favour, combined with a smaller reel than the usual ‘big pits'. When floater fishing on waters with prolific birdlife feeding freebies can be a problem! The bait attracts the wildfowl, which in turn prevents the carp from feeding confidently and competitively. By chance I discovered a method that takes the birds longer to cotton onto and provides a way of delivering freebies accurately and at a distance that exceeds normal loose feed range. Using Gardner's Wide Boy PVA mesh, I make up small bags of mixers which can either be catapulted out or nicked onto the hook. Every cast presents freebies directly around the hookbait when the PVA dissolves.
What you'll need...
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 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 using stop knots tied with our power gum. The stop knots are tied with three turns, and whilst this will not normally slip whilst casting at close to medium range, if fishing at long range I like to tie another, just above the first, for security. The hooklink, that should ideally be around 5 feet, is attached with the 'loop to loop' method giving excellent knot strength. I prefer this to using anything that adds extra knots or weight such as swivels, rings etc (potential weak spots). Make up plenty of small mesh bags of mixers in advance so as not to waste valuable 'active feeding' time on the bank. Simply thread your hook point in to the bait and thread it round to the back of the shank. The mixer bag can then be nicked on. There is no need to use hairs, bait bands or glue with the three hook baits I mentioned earlier.
1. Start off by threading a flatliner onto your mainline with a safety bead either side
2. Tie a loop knot in the end of your mainline. Chris favours a single overhand loop for this
3. Cut off enought12Ib Power Gum to tie a stop knot..
4. ... a 3 turn stop knot is ideal for fixing the Flatliner controller in place
5. When it is finished (leaving a small tag) carefully move the stop down to the loop knot
6. Repeat with another stop knot behind the upper bead to keep the controller in position and create a bolt effect
7. Tie on your favoured hook; Chris has gone for a size 10 Barbless Incizor and uses a reliable 4 turn grinner
8. Pull off a generous 5 foot of your chosen hook link material
9. Tie a loop knot in the end of your hooklink and attach the two sections loop to loop
10. The finished rig with a soft hookable floater and a small Fishnet PVA bag of identical free offering. Now you're ready to go!
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