CHODS FOR GODS
by
Don Low
Hi, my name is Don Low. I am a UK expat based in Massachusetts. I have been living in the US for over 6 years now, and carp fishing for well over 20. I wanted to share a few words about my favorite popup rig. The Chod rig.
Invented by Frank Warrick, and publicized by well-known anglers like Nigel Sharpe, Terry Hearn, and more recently Jim Shelley, the chod rig has been around for a long time. I remember first seeing a hook on a stiff piece of aggressively curved mono on a Matt Hayes video many years ago and thinking to myself “how is that ever going to work?”. It went against everything I had previously learnt or used in terms of rigs.
These days it has literally transformed the way I approach carp fishing in very weedy, soft or rocky strata, or at long distance. I now use popups far more than I did when I first started carp fishing, and this is my rig of choice unless there is good reason not to use it.
Chod rigs have a reputation as being for lazy or inexperience carp anglers. Guys that cast out without due thought and attention to where they are fishing. This is an unfair judgement of the rig in my book. After all, you can’t catch what’s not there. Location of the fish and watercraft remains top priority. Just because the chod rig allows you to fish effectively in areas that would be difficult to fish with other rigs and allows you to cast out with confidence without having to use a lead and marker to find a clear spot, doesn’t make it a method for “noddies”. In fact, it makes it deadly in the right situation.
Why Do I Love This Rig?
The “Choddy” has all the properties I could ask from a rig. It never tangles, its mega efficient at hooking fish, and I can use it on almost any spot.
The design of the set up ensures that once the lead hits the bottom of the pond, the rig sits pretty over any weed or debris. This means I can be confident that the rig is presented with minimal casting to find a suitable spot. I can also cast at showing fish with very little disturbance, so it’s a stealthy approach.
The rig itself very quickly spins, irrespective of which direction it is approached from, to place the point of the hook in the ideal location to prick a carp in the bottom lip. At times I have had the hook go through the lip twice. They are that efficient at hooking a fish!
When Wouldn’t I Use it?
Pop-ups in general are not ideal on super clean spots, like gravel. They are just a little too blatant and unnatural looking. Chod rigs should not be fished on a tight line as it leads to the bait being suspended much higher in the water column, due to the angle of the line from the lead to the rod tip. Because of this I wouldn’t choose this rig for running water.
In the above cases, I would use a standard bottom bait or wafter on a semi stiff coated or simple supple braided hair rig with a lead clip or in-line set up. There will also be situations where the amount of weed would make fishing with anything other than a surface or free lined bait pointless.
What’s Wrong with the Ronnie?
Nothing! It’s a brilliant rig for cleaner spots or low-lying weed. But a Ronnie rig is usually tied on a stiff boom section, which means it won’t always sit and present perfectily over deep weed or silt, or on rocky lake beds.
The Rig Mechanics
The principal of the chod rig is simple. A short hook-link of stiff material with a hook at one end and a swivel at the other, slides along a length of leader between two anchor points, typically beads. One end of the leader is tied to your reel line. The other has a lead attached.
What this allows the rig to do is present a popup over weed or on top of slit. The lead hits the lake bed, the hook-link travels up leader to the top bead and then settles gently on the soft bottom, under the weight of the leader. You may need some additional counterweight around the swivel on the hook-link, depending on the buoyancy of your popup. A small amount of tungsten putty wrapped around that swivel works perfectly.
The top bead (i.e. the one closest to the reel line) can be positioned where needed to ensure that the hooklink travels far enough up the leader to not get pulled into any debris. Care should be taken though. You want the hook-link to come into contact with one of the beads fast enough to help set the hook once the carp has taken the popup and been pricked. Often the bites will be twitchy at first as the carp shakes it’s head and then the it will steam off once that hook sets. This is another benefit of the rig. The lack of lead above the rig means you get early feedback of a pickup.
Hook Link & Hooks
There are multiple companies that make suitable chod rig hook-link material. They all have two things in common. First, they are very stiff. Second, they have high memory and keep the form you shape them into. This form, which is a sweeping curve created by rubbing the hook-link between thumb and finger to create friction heat, may be retained more effectively by steaming the rig once its completed. How aggressive a curve the hook-link should be formed into is personal choice. It certainly needs some curve to it. I tend to go for a fairly vicious version but not so curved that it creates a “C” shape.
My personal choice of material is Korda Mouthtrap in 25lbs, mostly because it was the brand I used first, and I don’t see any reason to change when it’s never let me down.
The length of the hook-link section can be anywhere from 1 inch right up to 4 inches. It will depend on how high the weed or how deep the slit is. I usually tie them short, at 1.5 - 2 inches, but I always have a selection in my rig wallet.
Chod hooks must have an out turned eye. This prevents making the hook sit at right angles to the hook-link creating a smooth progressive curve and ensures the gape of the hook is maintained. There are both straight point and beaked point versions of these hooks. I’m not sure it makes any difference but have always used beaked points myself. I use ESP Cyrogen hooks for all my fishing, but there are many brands that make good versions.
To attach your pop-up, you can use a bait screw or a mini hook swivel. You will also need a size 11 ring swivel to be attached at the opposite end of the hook-link to the hook to finish the rig. I like to crimp the hook-link on to the swivel rather than use a knot. This gives you maximum control on the length of the rig. I can’t vouch for it being effective with other brands of hook-link material but with the Korda stuff its very reliable.
Leader Choice or Perhaps Naked
Leader material can be lead core, lead free woven leader, fluorocarbon leader, or if your using mono reel line you can opt to not use any leader. This is known as the naked chod.
I find that lead free woven leader works best for me. Its very heavy, very supple, and very abrasion resistant. My second choice would be fluorocarbon if the lakebed has very dense weed or the water is very clear. The fluro is not a heavy as the lead free, so it sits on dense weed better without sinking too deep into sit. It’s a personal choice though.
It’s important to ensure that the top bead can move up the leader and over the knot that joins it to the reel line when under pressure. With lead free I use a spliced loop. With fluro I use an Albright knot. This makes the rig safe if you are unlucky enough to snap off. The hooklink comes free of the leader and a carp should then be able to spit the hook.
The leader can be any length you want, but I would suggest a minimum of 4 feet. That gives you scope to fish the chod in a wide range of situations and gives the leader enough weight to counterbalance the popup.
My Version of the Chod Rig
The chod rig is awesome, but it does have one issue. Once a carp is attached and the fight begins the hook-link will hit the bottom bead and travel all the way to the lead.
Using the lightest lead you can get away with is the generally accepted best practice. Not only does this prevent the lead going to deep into the weed or silt that you will be fishing over, but more importantly having a heavy lead swinging around very close to the hook can lead to a hook pull. There are various chod sleeves or other sections of soft tubing that can be used to create some separation of the lead from the hook-link, but I have a different approach.
I didn’t invent this. It’s been well documented by various anglers. What I do is create a break in the leader. Instead of a lead at the end of my leader, I tie a quick clip. I can then attach a small section of addition spliced loop leader, between 6 - 12 inches, and the lead to the clip. The quick clip acts as a static bottom bead ensuring the carp feels the full bolt effect and preventing the hook-link from traveling all the way to the lead. I use a heli-bead over the clip to protect the leader at that point. I can change the length of the small section of leader to suit the situation and depending on how high the weed or how deep the slit is. A softer lake bed or deeper weed I just use a longer section. I can also use these same leaders as a helicopter set-up by putting the lead weight directly on the clip and using a bottom bait rig. I like to travel with as little gear as possible and this cuts back on the number of leaders I need to bring with me.
Thanks for taking the time to read this, I hope it helps your fishing game in some small way…
Don