nicksingleton

hard question to answer as a size 8 of one brand might be a size 10 in another but generally as small as you can reasonably get away with as a compromise between strength and finess,sorry cant be of much more help

Make sure your hook is needle sharp then your lead size wont be in question so much,and, it is only one lost fish,if the problem persists then try a few changes

Try a water pump,works every time

Rig tubing has different functions 1:-as an anti tangle device and as such never needs to be much longer than your rig.and if you are using monofilament hooklenths then you may not need it at all,therby reducing the amount of "stuff" around your end rig. 2:-lead sleeves 3. protection against damage from snags/gravel bars etc here are some reasons to take into account when using tubing,remember every fishing situation is different and every rig should be tied to be the most appropriate for that set of circumstances ,

outdated is not the term i would use,as you could say monofilament hooklinks are ancient they can still out fish both types of rig when used under the right sets of circumstances.The trick is to find out what is most popular on you water and try something completely different on one of your rods,see how you get on.Even try side hooking boilies if everyone is using hair rigs.If fish come across the same types of rigs all the time then they figure out a way to deal with it,so try and do the opposite of the crowd/or what is most popular in the angling mags etc.hope this is of some use

sounds like a d-rig combi link,the ring is attached so it slides on a loop easily,so when the bait is ejected it is this which moves first sliding along the loop,leaving the hook to follow last.This is designed to make the hook find a hold more easily,the 2" braid is to help give the end a more natural appearance,being supple it has an easier more natural range of movement at the end,the stiffer monofilament part was designed to give the hook better anti eject qualities.this rig was used where braided hooklinks were the norm,whilst being very supple,the carp could eject them with just as much ease. hope this is of some help

"i was only something like 6lbs" How big was the carp then It must have been like david and goliath if you needed two rod's. But stranger thing's have happened at sea :

well use this to your advantage,find the next best rig to use,because after some time the carp will adapt,maybe even tilting down slightly so the shrink tube pushes against the bed and releasing a lightly pricked fish,without any indication of a pick up.so if you adapt a rig to hook them better while they are doing this you will be one step ahead of the rest,use it when everybody's results start declining and your results will pick up.

yeah chris there was an article in the Advanced carp magazine for march which show's philBunyan with a tank test kit for his rigs.hope this is of some help [/img]

How do the mechanic's of this rig increase your chances of a run,over the standard d-rig,i just cant see it. what can you achieve on this rig that is any different action wise than a standard hair rig with silicone tubing holding the boilie tight to the first bend on the hook,other than overcomplicating it because; the hair goes through the middle of your boily not allowing it to slide very well if at all; so it just holds the boily in one position?Just a question,to provoke a more analytical approach to your rigs,which in turn will make you the thinking angler,and more successful in the long run,cheers, not having a go just move the silicone up tighter!!

How do the mechanic's of this rig increase your chances of a run,over the standard d-rig,i just cant see it. what can you achieve on this rig that is any different action wise than a standard hair rig with silicone tubing holding the boilie tight to the first bend on the hook,other than overcomplicating it because; the hair goes through the middle of your boily not allowing it to slide very well if at all; so it just holds the boily in one position?Just a question,to provoke a more analytical approach to your rigs,which in turn will make you the thinking angler,and more successful in the long run,cheers, not having a go

I cant see any need for the rig tubing on the hook bend,this is a hinderence.and the boily could be tied with a normal hair but short and tight to the upper end of the shank to achieve the same effect without the need to over complicate

watch out for the end hair twisting around the hook,if using a pop up might cause the hook to sit at an unnatural angle,worth a try,keep up the innovation!