Zig Rig Explenation

[zebs]

Can someone please explain what a Zig Rig is and what is it used for..is it for fishing off the bottom over Weed and is it constructed like a Chod Rig but half way up a leader or similar Please can someone explain the rig i'm confused...zebs

[Tom]

A zig rig can be used for fishing over deep weed but mainly for situations where the carp are cruising at mid depth where a floating bait will be too high up and a bottom bait too low, basically it consists of a pop-up on a long hooklength finished in a swivel and an inline lead. You could have the popup several feet off the bottom of the lakebed using this rig. One practise i've found that works quite well for casting a zig rig and avoiding tangles is to use my cooking saucepan and coil the hooklength up in it before casting out, that way it unwinds as you swing the rod forward for the cast.

The only real disadvantage i can think of it that it can sometimes be problematic if the bait used isnt buoyant enough to come through when fished over some thick weed.

[zebs]

Couldn't you have a running chod rig, How can i explain this instead of having the chod on the bottom make it the same stiff same length about 6 inches or less on a swivell , baited to an pop up or double so it was extra bouyant then it could rest on a stopper bead and When cast in it would slide up the leader to whatever depth you liked, It would be a running chod, would that work or have i baffled you..L.O.L ....zebs...

[Tom]

I think i get where you're going with that

The only problem i can think of is that due to the design of the chod rig having the lead directly coupled to the leader and the popup able to slide up you'd end up lifting a large section of your main line in the water which might spook a few off, with the zig rig it's a bit like a semi running rig with an inline so your main line is (hopefully) pinned down with just the hooklength raising up. I can definately see some potential from that idea of yours though. Although its kind of doing the oposite i could see with some modification it could make a great surface fishing rig by having the chod rig but a swivel higher up like you suggested a controller float could be attached and a semi-fixed running clip used to attach the hooklength with either the popup or some bread idea being in the event of a main line breakage, the semi fixed clip would give an allow the fish to leave just attached to the hooklength rather than the controller and the lead, also having the lead there would prevent the bait from drifting about too much as is quite often the case with surface fishing rigs

[zebs]

I read in a magazine (again), some guy was using a controller float mid depth with a fixed lead on the bottom and he had some big Carp, i've got the article if you like...zebs

[Tom]

that'd be great, post some info about the rig they were using and i'll have a go at making it

[zebs]

I'll look it up and post it a.s.a.p......zebs

[CARPCRUNCHER]

i use an "adjustable" zig. running lead on the main line to a fox predator sub float, then a swivel with (X) amount of drennan double strength as a long hooklength and a light but strong and very sharp hook, an play the fish very lightly.

hope this helps.

[MarkeR]

i had a couple on the zig yesterday afternoon, its a cracking rig in the right circumstances, i had them going on top yesterday but the birdlife was a pain, the zig with a bait fished 1ft under the surface in 4ft of water was the answer, i just kept feeding biscuits and waited for the rod to rip off

[Gemo]

The Zig-Rig a simple method for fishing bait mid water that has accounted for many large carp.
The Zig-Rig allows a buoyant bait to be fished from the lakebed (legered) at any set depth from a couple of inches above the lakebed right up to the water’s surface. This allows the angler to be able to present the hook bait at the depth at which the carp are either cruising or more importantly feeding.
The Zig-Rig can be used in many situations where hook bait presentation at certain depths is critical, like on the surface during hot weather, or as another example, just above light weed where normal hook bait may become hidden within the weed. Other uses may be sub-surface where carp maybe cruising, say a couple of feet below the surface, or even sub-surface where wildfowl may become a nuisance.
My preferred Zig-Rig setup is a 8lb Drennan double stretch mono hook length tied to a buffer bead setup in a running rig style,, which is fished on the lakebed (legered) and setup with a bite-alarm and indicator as you would normally.
The Zig-Rig is a tremendous rig which is very easy to setup however it is often overlooked in the carping fraternity. Despite this the rig is not without its problems. Casting out a Zig-Rig with a short hook length of a couple of feet isn’t too much of a problem, however casting a hook length of 12ft or more can be a real problem. There are various different ways in which to cast out such a long hook length I prefer to lay the hook length in a line behind me as I prepare to cast out, some people prefer to coil up the hook link in a bucket which is carefully place on the bank-side, behind me, before casting out. The hook length unravels during the cast leaving the bucket cleanly on the bank side


What you will need


1. Korda size 10 or 12 Wide gape hooks or equivalents



2. Small Korda Pear swivel lead
3. Korda Size 8 swivel
4. Korda shok bead
5. Korda safe zone anti tangle sleeve



6. Gardner PVA foam nuggets



7. Drennan double strength hook lenght braking strain to suit the lake conditions



8. Size 4 pole elastice to act as a line marker

Method
Step 1



Cut enough hook length for the depth or rig you want to make and tie a small loop in the end for the bait. make sure the loop is smaller than the size of the pop up bait you intend to use.

Step 2



Form a normal knotless knot making sure the hair is a short as possible. The bait needs to be postioned as close as possible to the back of the hook.


Step 3




Using a fine baiting needle, thread your chosen pop up onto the hair. You can see how close the bait is the the shank of the hook.

Step 4




Thread the Korda Safe zone anti tangle sleeve onto the hook length and then using a palomar knot tie the Korda size 8 swivel to the hooklenght.

Step 5



Slide the Korda swivel pear lead onto your mainline.

Step 6

Now slide the Korda Shok bead on to the main line as well.

Step 7



Tie the main line to the Korda size 8 swivel and pull the swivel into the bead the lead/ hook length setup should now look like this. Note how the Korda Safe zone anti tangle sleeve holds the hook length away from the lead minimising tangles and protecting the hook length.

Step 8

Cut a nugget of Gardner PVA foam in half.



With one halve of the PVA nugget cut it 3/4 of the way through.

Step 9



Now place the hook and the pop up into the slot cut in the Gardner PVA nugget. Wet the slot and close the nugget around the hook.
This ensures the rig casts well without tangling and the PVA give extra bouyancy to the pop up for a few moments after the cast.




Light actioned carp rods preferably with a through action (players rod) are the required to cushion the the hook hold plus the very light hook lenght.
Make sure your reel line is not to heavy a breaking strain and is in balance with the breaking strain of the hook lenght, as to high a breaking strain will cause you to loose lots of fish.

Roll on the long hot summer days when the carp are feeding in the upper layers of the water, totally ignoring you bottom baits. Get on the Zigs and start catchting those huge summer carp.