Effective Pop Up Carp Rig

The carp rig shown below is similar to this pop-up fishing rig, except I used a bigger pop-up bait, and over weighted it under the swivel so it pulls the hook point down as a carp pulls up after taking the bait.

Pop up rigs work well mainly because of the buoyancy in the bait. As a carp takes it into its mouth, the pop up still tries to float to the top inside the mouth because it is still filled with water (you can notice this if you've ever tried to swallow an essential oil capsule with water, it floats to the roof of the mouth and makes it much harder to swallow, compare it to a normal multi-vitamin tablet which easily goes to the back of the throat because it sinks). It is partly this principle that makes pop-ups hard to eject. The pop up hits the roof of a carp's mouth when it tries to blow it back out, this causes the hook bait to stay in the mouth for longer, eventually the point penetrates the flesh and you get a hook hold. Obviously, this is not the only way pop-ups work as it depends on the way a carp feeds!

The reason I developed this carp fishing rig is to use the weight to hook the fish. The extra weight easily sinks the pop up but, it still pops up the length of the stiff link (about 2 inches shown below). When a carp takes the bait into its mouth by mouthing or nose-diving down onto it, the weight anchors the bait in place and the point penetrates the flesh when the carp up-ends back to a vertical position. This is an advanced pop up rig and as a result, it will depend on what strain of carp and how they feed to determine if this rig will work best or not on your specific lake. Some carp will suck food into the mouth from a short distance, while other strains will mouth, or move down onto food. The latter carp strains are best suited to this type of pop-up rig!

It may be best to use this heavier type of pop-up rig when there is more fish in the swim. It will hold its position on the bottom even if carp waft their fins near it. A critically balanced pop-up rig will float and bounce around from carp movements, this would make the hook bait behave strangely to carp.

Picture showing carp rig for larger pop-ups

I placed a small flying back lead onto the stiff vertical line underneath the swivel. This was then covered over with a rubber bead to buffer the swivel so it can still move freely.

Picture showing parts of the pop up rig

Again this has a rig ring at the bottom so heavy putty can be used to increase the weight, if it is needed.

How the pop up bait moves on the hook

In the picture above and below, you can see the freedom of movement this carp rig gives. The pop up above can be kept separate and away from the point of the hook so it is exposed and ready for grabbing a hold.