HOW TO MAKE A SIMPLE SURF RIG USING A PRE-MADE GANG HOOK!

Our man Dan is going to answer one of the questions he gets a fair bit here at Getaway Outdoors Balcatta. Dan is going to make a simple surf rig using a pre-made gang hook.

Here is Dan's run-down on how to prepare this rig, but for a quick overview check out the YouTube video below:

This is a pretty simple rig that I use to target tailor, mulloway, snapper and small sharks etc. I am using S.W Lab 4/0 Gang Hook and about 40cm of 55lb Schneider Mono Leader to make a paternoster Rig. Tie a basic blood knot on the very end eyelet of the gang hook twisting it up about 6-7 times then through the bottom of the loop and back up through the top of the knot, pull the tag end and add a bit of saliva as lubrication to help prevent burning, then synch it all down nice and neat before cutting off the tag end. That's the first part of the rig done.

Next grab a Harbor or Shogun 3 way swivel. I recommend tying the rig off to the side rather than downward. With the same blood knot again tie the rig to the side swivel.

I have used a bulk spool of 60lb Jarvis Walker mono line for the sinker line. This line is a bit cheaper so you don't have to worry too much about getting snagged and losing it. You will want to cut this a little longer than your hook trace. This allows it to aid with your casting and avoid getting tangled with your hook as shorter traces tend to wind up on each other. I recommend running this about 80cm long and with the same blood knot, tie this to the bottom of the 3 way swivel.

Now that you have your hook trace off to the side and your sinker line straight down, it is now time to add the sinker. There are a few options with sinkers. There are traditional star sinkers which are quite popular, but for my stock standard tailor fishing rig, I tend to reach for the Grapnel sinker as they tent not to roll as much and have a unique hook to aid with your casting. I like to open the legs of the grapnel sinker a little bit and then tie it to the sinker trace end coming off the bottom of the 3 way swivel using the same blood knot. I recommend running a bit of leader from the top of the 3 way swivel as a shorter trace around 30cm of 55lb leader to the rod, just in case you are fishing around rocks to prevent snags. 

Once you have baited up and are ready to cast, hook the end of your gang hook trace to the hook on the Grapnel Sinker ready for casting. This will give you maximum distance and once the sinker hits the floor the hooks pop apart and the rig is ready to work its magic. Tight lines!

Dan is using 55lb Schneider Mono Leader, S.W Lab 4/0 Gang Hooks, Habor 3 Way Crane Swivel, 60lb Jarvis Walker bulk Mono Line and 4oz Grapnel Sinker.

If you have any questions feel free to drop a comment below or pop in and see the team here at Getaway Outdoors Balcatta!