For me there is nothing better than watching carp feed within a few feet of the bank, seeing how individual fish feed differently. The intimacy of seeing a big, black shape hovering over your hook bait and getting the bite from a target carp is such an incredible feeling.

CREATE YOUR OWN IN THE EDGE RIG
16 EASY STEPS

Take off a length of the 25lb Tungskin

Strip a few inches of the coating off

Form a figure of 8 knot to create a loop

Drill out a tiger nut most of the way through

Plug the nut with some cork and trim it off

Use a small bait drill to make a hole in the cork

I use a straight point, straight eyed hook for nearly all of my fishing for a number of reasons. They are extremely strong, sharp and that straight point helps it go in easily too.

I fish this with a balanced tiger nut and to do that, I simply drill the inner core of it and plug it with some cork. This will sit on the lakebed, but sit upright to cover the hook and act like a freebie.

Then thread the bait on to the hair

Cut off a small piece of silicone

I like Tungskin and have done for the past seven-years, as it’s extremely strong and sinks like a brick. I then have a small, Tungsten dropper at the end of the coating, before it breaks to the inner skin and then the hook. That dropper helps pull that hook point down when the fish picks up the bait.

That small bit of flexible material allows plenty of movement, before coming to the shrink tube, which is there to help the hook flip round. Even when you make the rig, it is constantly trying to catch hold of your skin, which is a sure sign that it is an efficient rig.

Take a size 6 Straight eyed hook

Thread it on the silicone and then the hook link through the eye

Form a knotless knot and add some shrink tubing

Steam it down to create an aggresive angle

Add a Tungsten dropper bead, which will add some weight near the hook

You want it around a cm away from the tubing

Steam the bead and it will grip nicely to the hook link

The finished rig, simple but the downfall to lots of big carp

The spots that I fish in the margins have often been baited and prepped over a period of time. This is done with small food items, baited tightly on to a spot and with that, the fish are not moving far for each mouthful of bait. The way you are feeding the spot will often dictate the rig that you fish, and, in this scenario, it is with a short, 5-inch hook link.

I fish this set up with an inline lead, which I believe is the best system to hook carp when they are feeding tight over smaller food items. I have spent hours watching carp feed close in and over the years of observing and tweaking things, this is the most effective arrangement that I have ever used.

LATEST ARTICLES

Thinking Caps – September

In this latest instalment of Thinking Caps, we ask Jonny Fletcher, Mitch Hammonds and Lewis Read how their autumn approach differs from other seasons.

Evolution Of D-Rig Hookbaits

Scotty K gives an in-depth talk on how he's experimented with D-rig hookbaits over the years - alongside a step by step on how he presents his pop-ups.