This pop-up presentation was invented by Martin Clark, he calls it his secret snake rig. Although, I do prefer to call it the "Z" carp fishing rig because it sits on the bottom in a position that looks like a letter Z which has turned on its side.
The snake rig is a complex carp rig design that is best suited to fishing for carp in weedy waters. However, due to the complexity of this rig, I have found it best to present it close to a weed bed, rather than IN weed itself, or amongst the small clear patches in between weed beds. It will not look out of place amongst clear patches of weed, but on gravel bars, or in very clear areas this fishing rig will stand out like a sore thumb!
The rig set up works on the principle that the hook link can increase its length. If a carp sucks at the bait, it will extend to three times its folded length. The hook bait is set by a counter-balanced weight using wire from leadcore leader. This secret rig system provides potential for more carp runs and improved hook holds.
In Martin Clark's book (strictly carp) he describes how to construct his snake rig creation. He did keep these carp rigs as a secret for years, well done Martin, for creating such a brilliantly, but complicated carp rig! I normally believe in keeping most carp rigs simple and uncomplicated, but sometimes we need something different to help fool those wise, big carp. A complex carp rig like the snake set up can really help to catch them out. Again, well done Martin for revealing your secret carp fishing rigs for us all to use!
The Snake Carp Fishing Rig in Detail
This rig folds in on itself and acts like a snake ready to pounce!
The snake rig can also rotate and twist around so it doesn't matter which angle a carp approaches the bait.
Can use putty on wire to fine-tune the balance.
A close up of the coiled wire used to counterbalance the snake rig. Once it is the correct weight and balanced right, you can shrink tube over the lead wire so there's less chance of the braid catching it and causing a tangle.
Use like this to cause the pop-up hook bait to push away from the higher pop-up.
You can fine-tune the counterbalance using putty over the wire coils. This means you can adjust the height of the hook by adding more, or less putty. Although, I do prefer to position the hook bait just under the big pop-up bait.
Using 2 different baits allows this carp rig to become more visible to any passing carp in swim. With supple braid as a hook link, it will fold in a way that the hook bait and hook will hide underneath the bigger boilie. I have used slightly stiffer material which helps hold the hook away from the bigger pop-up bait. Martin also claims that he uses small pieces of rig foam on the hook, and sometimes he has used NO bait on the hook and still caught big carp with this secret rig!
You can use varying lengths of the snake rig. I prefer to use the long ones in weed beds.
HOW TO MAKE THE SECRET SNAKE CARP RIG!
2 baits for increased visibility!
How to Make the Snake Carp Rig
Follow the picture instructions below on how to make the snake carp rig. The original rig created by Martin Clark can be seen in his carp fishing book "strictly carp", which is available from major online carp fishing tackle shops.
Martin uses a very supple hook link material so that the hook bait stays close to the "safe" pop-up boilie. I have used a slightly stiffer material, only because it would show up clearly for the photos, but I actually found when taking these pictures, that it actually helps hold the hook bait away from the bigger pop-up (see photos below) so it may decrease its potential for tangles! I may well keep this Z carp rig for future fishing sessions.
Attach the "safe" pop-up boilie to the loose rig ring on the hooklink. The "safe" bait is usually a bright colour and quite large, this is so it can potentially attract carp from a distance away. Martin doesn't tend to use a pop-up on the actual hook, he uses rig foam or fake particle baits. These are much smaller and they do help hide the hook and bait underneath the "safe" pop-up. Here I have used two different pop ups just to illustrate the carp rig clearly.
The "safe" pop up bait should be free to move up the hook link material.
Whip some lead wire from leadcore leader onto the hook link material. you only need to get it close, then it can be adjusted by adding a little putty if too light, or uncoiling a little to cut off if too heavy. I usually shrink tube the wire after balancing in order to eliminate chances of link catching the braid.
Tie a pop-up boilie on the hair using bait floss. I like to use a smaller bait the the "safe" pop up, I also prefer to use a colour which matches the lake bed so it is less visible to the carp. they see the big boilie, then suck at it, and that's when the small hook bait extends into the carp's mouth and BANG!
Think about what length you wish to fish with. It needs to be about 3 times longer than the height you want the hook bait to pop up. I found that you can set the height of the big boilie and control how high you wish the hook bait to be. It can be positioned just under the "safe" pop-up, or much lower down.
I like to test the strength of all my carp fishing rigs before using them to catch big carp. Although, you shouldn't test them with your fingers like in the picture above!!
Checking the buoyancy of the snake carp rig in water. Add rig putty weight to the coiled wire to position the height of the hook bait.
The snake carp rig in sat perfect in the water. notice how my slightly stiffer material helps hold the hook out away from the "safe" boilie?
I like to use PVA tape at various position to hold the whole rig together for casting. PVA foam is also used on the hook, and folded around the rig ring! It may take a few attempts to get used to preparing the snake rig for casting. It also helps if you stick to casting the rig short distances.
The Over weighted Pop-Up Rig
This is a simple, but very effective rig for catching carp. It catches carp out because of the buoyancy of the pop up, the bait flies into a carp's mouth very easily. The other good point about this carp rig comes from the weight of the shot, it pulls the hook downwards when inside a fish's mouth, this means the point of the hook can be in contact with the bottom of the lip quickly.
At point "A" in the picture above, the coated braid is not stripped as it leaves the eye of the hook. This causes the hook to turn quicker because the hook link leaves at the right angle. It almost gives it that line-aligner effect.
Creating an Over weighted Pop-Up Rig
The coated braid is stripped just enough for a hair to be tied. Strip back the coated braid enough for the hair, then position the end of the stripped section at the eye of the hook, and start whipping a knotless knot to trap the coated braid. This should cause the whole rig to feel stiff. In other words, the hook and hooklink together should feel robust and not feel limp by the eye of the hook.
On this rig I don't use a piece of tube or rig ring on the shank of the hook, I prefer to give the hook freedom to drop and grab hold quickly. I like to place the shot just after the bend of the hook but not too far away or it that may allow it to swing around the hook during casting. In any case, you want to PVA foam it up before casting to hold the vulnerable bits together!
Once the rig is tied you must test it in water to make sure it presents the bait properly. In the picture above, you can see the shot is not quite heavy enough to pull the pop up down onto the gravel bottom. The weight of the shot will need to be heavier.
NB. That cloud coming out of the pop up and going down towards the shot is just the flavour and attractants leaking out of the bait. It lasts for a few minutes. The picture has not been digitally altered in any way!
The picture above shows the correct way I present an over-weighted pop up bait. The shot is now weighted just enough to sink the pop up, but the rig is still buoyant enough to catch out a wary carp feeding in the area. I prefer it when the rig sinks slower than normal but not too slow, I want the hook to drop quick enough when inside a carp's mouth.
As a last touch, I sometimes colour the hair to match the bottom of the lake bed!
Try this over-weighted pop-up rig presentation if you're getting tons of little bleeps. I think you'll be surprised at how effective this carp rig can be. Let us know if you catch a big carp using this, or any of our rigs!
