Basic Bottom Rig

Basic bottom rig. Just leader to hook w/o sinker

Everyone loves bottom rigs. It's easy to tie, cheap & effective. This is probably the first ever contraptions early humans use to catch fish with hook & line. I'll outline here some of the simplest ones that I've used and still using when the conditions call for bottom fishing.

Most fishing blogs, magazines & articles go in length to introduce bottom rigs that are complex to tie & may not be very effective. My personal preference when tying rigs is to follow the popular motto, K.I.S.S. that means, "Keep It Simple Stupid!". The reason to keep rigs simple is simply, fish have eyes, they also have lateral lines & other sensory organs that Humans do not possess. To survive in the wild or even in a paypond, fishes need to constantly be on the look out for dangers from predators & the ever annoying Anglers. YES!!! That's you & me. Fish are especially cautious in highly pressured waters (read: constant fishing activity) & so our watery friends becomes extra careful when approaching food, A.K.A. baits. Coarse fishing is all about presentation. Let's move on to the rigs.

Basic of the basic.

Have you heard the saying, "Hook, line, sinker"? Well, this is even simpler, it's just hook & line. That's it. Normally, most course fishing anglers would attach a small light sinker on the rig to get longer distance & more accurate bait placement when casting but this may not be necessary if you are fishing in the following conditions.

still water pond or lake with minimal current
heavy baits, eg. groundbait, dead bait, nuts or fruit baits
distance & accuracy is not a requirement

Two common baits that I use.

If your bait is heavy enough, the main line is light & the fish you are after is a bottom feeder, there is no need for a sinker. In fact, fishing with minimal tackles with just a hook & line is finesse fishing. Recommended in highly pressured waters. Normally for this rig, I use either bread or dedak (groundbait). You could also use this rig for Catfish fishing with chicken heart or gizzard.

Some modifications if necessary.

There may be times keeping things too simple is just not possible so we need to modify the rig to adapt to the situation.

Trace Wire/Thick Braided Leader

Trace Wire

If you are after toothy fishes or is aware of such fishes feeding at the bottom, eg. Pacu, Snakeheads & etc, you might want to add a short 5" of 15 to 20lb trace wire leader to avoid line being cut by their razor sharp tooth or else, a thick, 50 to 80lb braided line.

Keep the wire/braid line as short as possible, perhaps even below 3" length, enough just to avoid the line getting bitten. Tie an Albright knot to join with mainline followed by Snelling the hook with the wire/braid. I prefer not to use metal sleeve as this will give away the finesse of the rig. In fact, I always paint my wire black with a marker pen to reduce shine on the rig.

100% Fluorocarbon

100% Fluorocarbon Leader / Ultra Thin Monofilament

If waters is clear or the bottom is featureless, eg. sand bottom, I would advise to tie a 30 to 50cm of 100% Fluorocarbon leader to make leader less visible or near invisible. By far, the most finesse way to fish. Ultra thin, 4 to 6lb transparent monofilament line may be an alternative to 100% FC leaders but take note of it's low breaking strength.

Fishing Off the Bottom

Fishing off the bottom

The definition of fishing off the bottom is to present your bait slightly off the bottom but not completely static on the bed. This can be accomplished by adding some floating parts on the bait or select baits that can float. The objective is to add some buoyancy to your bait. This is necessary when the bed is muddy or completely covered with vegetation. Having your bait presented this way makes it easier for fish to find your bait. This is rather difficult to accomplish & will take some trial & error to get it right. One simple way is to do it is with fish pellets. Naturally, fish pellets are manufactured to float. By bunching enough pellets together with the correct size of pellet & hook weight, the bait would naturally rise & sink at the slightest water movement.

Additional info:

Fishing the basic bottom rig does have it's limitations. Since there are no sinker attached, it will take some skill casting to reach the desired distance as well as accurate placement of your bait but this compromise is worth the added finesse. For best results, use thin monofilament lines in the test range of 8 to 10lb.

Some fishes that I've caught with this rig.