# Horrible luck with the Hair Rig



## LoneWolfNoPack

Hello fellow carp catchers. I tried using the hair rig for the first time today, with extremely poor luck. I traditionally have carp fished by attaching my bait directly to my hook, but recently decided I wanted to expand my carping knowledge and try something new.

So I ordered the equipment that I needed and headed out with some pre-tied hair rigs today. 

I went to a spot that I knew I would have plenty of action, in order to effectively try out the rig. Long story short, out of 10 or 12 fish that I had on, I only landed one of them. After that I switched over to places my bait directly on the hook, and immediately starting catching carp.

Can anyone help me please?! I really like the idea of the hair rig and by reading numerous posts for other carpers, it is obvious it is a choice rig for carp. 

The only thing I can think of that I may have been doing wrong is having too long of a "hair". How far away do you all usually leave between the hair rigged bait and the hook??

Do you ever glue the hair so it lies horizonally down the shank of the hook? I was wondering if maybe this would help to keep the bait and hook in line with each other rather than just letting them drift apart so to speak. 

Not sure if it matters or not, but I was using pop up boilies for bait.


Any and all advice is welcomed.


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## Goosehtr

There could be many things that are causing poor hookups.
I like my hook bait to be @1/4" or less from the bottom of the hook.
I will sometime use silicone tubing to keep the hair along the shank of the hook.
Just slip the silicone tube over the hook point and slide around to the shank. Then take your bait needle push it through the tube and hook the loop of your hair and pull it back through the tube.
Here is a picture of a hair rig with tubing. Not my picture one I found online.








When you tie the hair make sure that the hair lies along the back of the hook and not crossing over between the shank and the point, and always use a sharp hook.
Hope that helps.

Good Luck
Andy


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## LoneWolfNoPack

So is the tubing a neccesary part of the hair rig? What purpose does it serve? I did not have any of it on my rig, so that could possibly be the problem. Most of the fish I had on were on for about 10 seconds and then would get off. Not sure if they were hooked poorly or just was holding tightly to the bait with their mouth.


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## Goosehtr

No the tubing isn't needed if the rig is tied correctly, but it does keep the hair and hook bait out of the gap between the point and the shank.

What makes the hair rig so effective is that it takes advantage of how a carp feeds. The carp will suck up particles and then blow the waste back out. As it does this the hook catches in the lower lip causing the carp to bolt off setting the hook on itself. You really don't need a big hook set just steady pressure as you play the fish. If you are setting the hook you may be pulling the hook out of the carp's lip.

Good Luck
Andy


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## LoneWolfNoPack

Thanks for walking me through this Goose. Where can I get this tubing, as I feel it would be benificial? What kind to you use?


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## Goosehtr

You can buy it from just about any carp tackle supplier, but I get mine at Jo Anne Fabrics. It is back in the jewelry, beading area. You can get enough to last a life time for a couple bucks.

Good Luck
Andy


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## BanksideBandit

I tried the hair rig a couple times last year with no luck either...only missed a few. But this year I've done some more reading about it and I'm going to give it another try this year. Is there a place around the Columbus area to get the carp bait that you put on the rig? Or can I just chum with corn and use corn? And where can I get the little bait stoppers? I just cut up a piece of plastic last year into a handful of small sticks.


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## TimJC

You can use just about any bait on a hair rig, even sweetcorn and doughballs. A cheap bait for chumming and using as a hookbait is maize. Get a 50 pound bag of shelled whole corn, soak it in a bucket overnight (or longer), bring it to a boil and then let it cool. This softens up the corn, making it much more palatable and digestible.

If you are looking for boilies, the bait shown in the photo Andy posted, you will either have to order them online or make them yourself. I wouldn't advise moving to boilies if you are just starting out with the hair rig. Try a bait your are confident with first, and then make alternations after you have some faith in the hair rig. If you make too many changes you may get frustrated and unnecessarily think it is the hair rig.

As for the hair stops, I use the barbed type cable ties, but anything from a stick to blade of grass can work.


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## JSykes3

Can you cast with the hair rig? For some reason I have always thought that the bait would just fly off the end.


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## Goosehtr

JSykes3 said:


> Can you cast with the hair rig? For some reason I have always thought that the bait would just fly off the end.


Yes you can cast it just as you would any bait. The bait is held on the hair by a stop placed in the loop. The black plastic V is the stop.

Good Luck
Andy


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## carpslayer

if you want a good bait just use oats on a treble hook and they bite great.. 
Found a lot of carp in the black river in elyria. they say there are some at ladue and west branch but havent found any... you guys have any spots youd like to share?


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## SeanStone

carpslayer said:


> if you want a good bait just use oats on a treble hook and they bite great..
> Found a lot of carp in the black river in elyria. they say there are some at ladue and west branch but havent found any... you guys have any spots youd like to share?


Where are you located? 

I have said this a few times on here but I doubt people take it seriously...... but try to find a small lake, less than 250 acres, that you know has carp in it. Make sure it has atleast spots with 20' of water. 

Ready for my hypothesis: LOL

The reason I like these lakes is because they are pressured less by bow hunters, ODNR officials (shocking), and other fisherman who despise catching carp. Carp can easily take over lakes this small, and since carp feed on their own eggs, the population will tend to balance itself out. So at a point the carp population will consume most of its eggs mass, and others eggs, and will have relatively 0 population growth. The ones that do survive will be eaten by predators such as largemouth, catfish, etc. This will allow the fish to grow older and larger together, and will of course make for some great fishing. Once the carp begin to die off, egg survival rates will increase and the cycle will start over. All you have to do is find a lake that is at the end of this cycle and hold on. 

Larger lakes are just to big for carp populations to totally take over. IMO

On another note, try switching to a smaller j hook, (Sizes 4,6,8) rather than the trebles. Its easier on the fish and hold on better than trebles when fighting the fish. With a j hook you can burry the shank of the hook deeper than you could with a treble, simply because the design of the treble usually puts even pressure on all three points. I used to use trebles a few years ago, but I have since switched and I have had better success at landing fish. Just make sure you find a hook thats small and won't bend. I lost a couple nice fish a few weeks ago because my hooks straightened out.


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## TMartin

carpslayer said:


> if you want a good bait just use oats on a treble hook and they bite great..
> Found a lot of carp in the black river in elyria. they say there are some at ladue and west branch but havent found any... you guys have any spots youd like to share?


I fish at West branch an do pretty well. Here is a link to the thread http://www.ohiogamefishing.com/community/showthread.php?t=176757. i have been fishing Euro style for about 3 years now and really like it. as others have said you can cast with a hair rig.


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## JSykes3

Thanks Goosehtr and TMartin. What keeps the stop from flying out of the loop? The weight of the bait?


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## SeanStone

You press the bait back onto the stop.The loop that holds the stop also has a knot inline that helps to keep the bait from sliding toward the hook. Softer baits such as corn may move a little but not very much. Harder baits such as boilies you could almost use without a stop at all. The knot holds the bait tight enough to the line to stop it from moving. Then again it depends on the size of your bait needle.


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## TimJC

These are what I use for bait stops. You should be able to find them locally, but you can get the from carp tackle stores.


Slide it it into the end of the loop, and cut a small 'dumbbell' section to secure the bait.


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## JSykes3

Ok thanks. I think I'll make up a few with the stuff I have. I don't have the coated braid so I'll just use some regular braid.


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## zachxbass

I like to use size 6-8 gamakatsu octopus hooks... very sharp and strong

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## lakota

Keep at it. I started using them last year and at first I didnt have good results. Now They are all I use. I find that I get more hookups now and the hookups are more "violent" as they almost pull my rigs right into the water. I am getting into bigger carp too. I use sweet corn on the hair. I just nip a piece of a toothpick off and use that as a bait stop. I have used grass blades as bait stops too.


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## BuckeyeFishinNut

The purpose of a hair rig is that the carp will suck the bait in and when it tries to blow it out it gets stuck by the hook. The water is still pretty cool so the carp are still not real active, this is where the length of the hair is important. 

In cooler water I use a shorter hair and only a couple kernels of corn, in warmer water I will use a longer hair and 5-6 kernels of corn. The reason you were not having success could be that they were taking the bait and just playing around with it and never got the hook in their mouth. Which would explain why bait on a plain hook worked for you.


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