The edge for in the edge oli davies

NASH KNOWHOW

NASH KNOWHOW

GET THE EDGE FOR IN THE

When you spend any amount of time watching carp feeding and picking up rigs, you quickly realise that they get away with it an awful lot! That means either picking the hookbait up but not taking the rig in, picking it up, sussing it and ejecting it, or actually pricking themselves but managing to dislodge the hook.

This has nothing to do with how sharp your hook is, so don’t believe the hype. They will do it with hooks out of the packet or those sharpened to a needle like point. To a degree it isn’t down to any particular rig either in my experience; I have experimented with many, although some are more efficient than others.

As a result of many hours spent observing carp and how they react to rigs and bait I have 2 rigs that I use in the edge, and two combinations of hook bait: One of these is the trusty multi rig – either fished with a hi vis or low vis pop-up. The other is a short bottom bait rig – again either fished with a high vis or low vis sinking hook bait. Which one of these four potential arrangements works on the day depends very much on the individual carp, their mood and how aggressively they are feeding. There are days when something visible will get you a quick bite, and often from the biggest fish. However, on other days if they can see and identify the hook bait as being unusual or suspicious they will feed around it but deliberately avoid picking it up. The opposite can happen with a bait that they cannot see, and I have watched in frustration as they feed randomly all around my subtle hook bait and not pick it up simply because they accidently miss it.

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By Oli Davies

So my real life rig experimentation, which is based on what I have seen with my own eyes not what I am guessing is going on out in the pond, has led me to gradually refine my bottom bait rig to the point where I am as happy as I can be. That means that on average 3 out of 4 times that a fish feeding with reasonable gusto picks it up I will hook it. Note that I mention the intensity of feeding, as that is also very important in how any rig performs. If you can get them feeding well, then your rig will perform far better than if a fish is just picking up the odd bait.

The first thing you will notice about the rig is the length. It is short!

This is vitally important, as the sooner the lead is brought into play the more likely that the hook will find a proper purchase. I like the distance from lead to hook to be no more than 4 inches, but often I will tie one even shorter particularly if I can see the fish are moving very slowly. The rig being too long is probably the biggest mistake I see anglers making. You will catch them still, but you will also get done A LOT! I use a coated braid, stripping the hair and ensuring that there is a hinge below the hook eye to allow plenty of movement.

EDGE The second important factor is the size of the hook. The rig may be short but I prefer a big hook, usually a size 4. A big bit of metal is far harder to deal with than a tiny little one, especially with big carp. It’s worth mentioning that often I am hooking them in tight spots and you have to be able to hold on and stop the fish in it’s tracks, so a big hook offers two advantages over a small one; It’s harder to eject, and less likely to pull out in the fight. There are two patterns I prefer to use, either a Fang Twister or the even more aggressive Fang X. Both the inturned eye of the Twister and the swept shank of the X mean in my experience it isn’t necessary to add a kicker over the eye to get the hook to turn.

Hair length is also a big factor in how effective your rig is. A short hair can sometimes work well with shy feeding fish, but hook holds tend to be precarious when they are not taking the rig right into their mouths. Combine too short a hair and too long a link and more often than not the hook will be in the scissors, where it is prone to tearing out. My bottom bait rig always features a long hair, sometimes almost the length of the rig itself. I favour a small hookbait, and my favourite arrangement is to double up – either 2 10mm boilies or 2 tigers or peanuts. A double bait behaves

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NASH KNOWHOW

NASH KNOWHOW differently to a single, and again I believe that it is harder to eject perhaps due to it behaving a little more randomly than a single boilie or nut. Hook holds tend to be well back in the bottom of the mouth, as that is where the hook ends up as the fish suck the baits right back to the throat on the long hair.

“The rig being too long is probably the biggest mistake I see anglers making…”

A Flat Square fished drop-off style is my preferred lead arrangement. It’s inconspicuous and very effective.

Low vis or high vis?

A Double Ring Swivel is great for drop-off inline leads, and allows the hook link to sit totally flat on the lakebed.

I go to great lengths to pin down and hide the line.

As a result I very rarely suffer hook pulls (touches wood). I fish As a result I very rarely suffer hook pulls (touches wood). I fish a small piece of silicone to trap the hair on the bend blowback style. I have also tried it naked and KD style, but from my observations neither are particularly effective with this rig. However, importantly I don’t want the tubing to be blown back if a fish ejects the rig. Then the rig is not fishing as effectively as it should be and if another fish picks it up the presentation is compromised.

My lead arrangement is always inline and fished drop off style. Inline leads offer FAR better hooking potential than lead clips or helicopter setups, particularly with slow moving fish. Combine that with a short hook link and there can be very little movement before the lead is brought into play. I fish the lead so it comes off only when it touches an obstruction such as weed. This prevents potential hook pulls. If I am fishing under a canopy where the branches touch the water I will set the lead not to come off easily. With the lead still attached the fish tends to stay down in the water. If the lead comes off they will come up to the surface and this can cause problems in this situation. It is important to assess each spot as you come across it and fine tune your set up accordingly to give you the best chance of landing the fish.

Finally, and I have already touched on this, but the way you bait is important. If you can create an intense feeding reaction then you are half way towards getting a bite. Smaller particles such as crumbed or flaked boilie, hemp and particles, and small pellets are the best baits for this type of trap.

You only need a very small quantity too – too large and too visible a bed of bait in the edge can repel the carp initially. Larger baits such as whole boiles and nuts simply don’t keep the fish rooting around and repeatedly returning to the spot either, so don’t forget to unlock the latent potential in your bait by crushing it up!

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Cut an 8 inch (20cm) length of 25lb Combilink.

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Carefully remove half the coating using the stripper tool.

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Tie an overhand knot to form a small hair loop.

A second knot to stops the second boilie from sliding down the hair.

Slide on a piece of 1mm Blow Out Tube. With a size 5 hook the tube is not meant to move, this ensures the rig remains fishing effectively even after an ejection.

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Push a size 5 Fang X through the tube positioning it so the hair exits just above the top of the point.

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Secure the hook with an 8 turn knotless knot.

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Thread 2 10mm boilies onto the hair. Note the separation.

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Tie an overhand loop to attach the rig to the swivel.

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