Carp Fishing Tackle: What You Need

Carp fishing has long been established in Europe but it is now slowly catching on in the rest of the world. One of the most important things that you need when fishing carp is carp fishing tackle. It’s important to have good carp fishing tackle so that you can sink that elusive catch that all anglers are after. There are certain basics you will need when you start fishing for carp just as there are differences between freshwater and seawater fishing equipment, there is specialist equipment for fishing carp.

The Hair Rig

The hair rig is probably the most basic of all carp fishing tackle. It is a very simple idea that involves putting a ‘hair’ or piece of string on the hook to dangle the bait from. While you can easily buy this kind of rig from a carp fishing tackle shop, you can also make your own hair rig at home for very little money. It’s not a complicated process and you can try your hand at it, though if all else fails then you can buy inexpensive rigs.

The idea of using a hair rig in carp fishing tackle is to allow the bait to be separate from the hook. This has several advantages, the first is that the bait is able to seem more natural, rather than being rigidly hooked in place in the water. You are more likely to catch carp with this kind of carp fishing tackle.

This kind of carp fishing tackle is constructed by putting a piece of tubing on the shank of the hook. You can either use shrink tubing or rubber tubing, if you are using shrink tubing use boiling water to shrink it rather than a hairdryer or a naked flame.

The hair is basically a piece of string and the best kind to use is unwaxed dental floss. The bait should be about a quarter of an inch away from the bend of the hook. So adjust the length of the string based on this figure. You will also need a pop up ring to finish your homemade carp fishing tackle.

To keep your bait buoyant you can use cork or foam. Keeping the bait buoyant is important to prevent the hook from catching on any debris at the bottom of the lake you are fishing at. There is more freedom with this type of carp fishing tackle as you don’t have to worry about the direction that the carp takes as compared with heavy bait.