Top Tips for Fishing a Chod Rig

The chod rig in carp fishing has increased in popularity over the years and for many very good reasons. 

I often see the chod rig defined as a big carp rig that is backed up by the number of monster carp that have been caught using this method of carp fishing.

The chod rig is also described as a cast anywhere method, which is very eye-catching for many carp anglers.

I have also seen carp anglers proposed the question ‘if you had to pick one carp rig to fish with, what would it be?’ You guessed it, they chose the chod rig.

In this article, I am going to explain what the chod rig is, the huge number of benefits and much more.

What is a chod rig?

The term ‘chod’ is used to describe the debris found at the bottom of a lake. This debris could be leaves falling in autumn, weedy areas etc.

The chod rig is designed to catch carp in these types of conditions by presenting a pop-up bait on top of the debris. 

The majority of the carp lakes I have fished over the years tend to have larges areas that contain weedy spots and other types of debris, making the chod rig very appealing.

Chod Rig Explained

As you cast your mainline out, the lead attached to the end sinks to the bottom and the chod rig flies back up the leader or mainline (depending on how you set up the chod rig). 

The mainline will have two beads, top (which is fairly solid) and bottom (which has a bit of movement), in which the chod rig sits in between. This allows the chod rig to move when you cast out and when you are playing the fish.

The chod rig, which is balanced (we’ll get to this later), slowly sinks and nestles on top of whatever it comes into contact with, this could be weed or chod.

The chod rig is perfectly presented in almost any situation with minimal disturbance.

The chod rig is set up in a way that the hook is in a prime position to hook a carp and is difficult for a carp to eject once hooked. This is mainly achieved by the curved nature of the hooklink in conjunction with a chod style hook.

Who Invented the Chod Rig?

The chod rig was invented by Frank Warwick and developed further by Nigel Sharp and took the carp world by storm, with many angling publications featuring the chod rig with heavy praise indeed!

The Benefits of the Chod Rig

• The chod rig can be fished in almost any situation
• If the lake bed contains weedy areas or silt that are difficult to present a traditional bolt rig over, the chod rig is your answer
• You don’t need to get the marker rod out and cause lots of disturbance, potentially spooking any carp in your swim
• The chod rig is often used to cast to showing fish, which frequently leads to quick bites
• The chod rig is difficult for carp to deal with due to the nature of the hook position and pop-up hook bait
• The chod rig doesn’t tangle, giving you confidence your hook bait is nicely presented
• The chod rig is renowned for catch lots of carp and often very big carp.

Downsides to a Chod Rig

Nothing in life is perfect and so we need to discuss the negative points with chod rigs. In my opinion, these are small and certainly don’t put me off using a chod rig compared to the benefits we have already spoken about

A chod rig can be tricky to tie, so I recommend ready-tied to begin just until you get more comfortable with this style of carp fishing

A chod rig needs to be set up just right to maximise the potential. Once you get this right, you will catch carp

If you fish over extreme debris such as a fallen branch, this could affect the presentation. I have found this is uncommon.

Types of Chod Rig

There is a couple of versions of the chod rig I see often. The standard approach using a leadcore leader or the ‘naked’ chod which is fished using a fluorocarbon mainline.

These are very similar and I tend to use the ‘naked’ approach. Many venues ban leadcore completely, so do check, and I also find the fluorocarbon is less visible in most situations.

Beginner Chod Rig Tips

As I touched upon earlier, the chod rig can be tricky to tie correctly. So based on that, I would suggest you start using ready-tied chod rigs. I am a big fan of Korda and would highly recommend their chod rigs.

Once you get used to fishing with chod rigs and have found a setup that works for you, you could look at creating your own.

What Do I Need For a Chod rig? Chod Rig Setup

If you want to have a go at creating your own, you need the following chod rig kit.

Chod Filament

Chod Hooks

Generic Rig Rings

Generic Rig Swivels

Putty

How do you attach a boilie to a chod rig? - Bait Floss

Bright Pop-ups

Have a look at Korda’s guide on how to tie a chod rig, this are clear and concise http://www.korda.co.uk/howto/rigs/chod-rig/ 

Chod Rig Top Tips 

Make small adjustments to your chod rig until you get it right. This could be adjusting the curve in the chod filament, the size of the hook, the position or type of bead that hold the chod rig on the mainline. Keep adjusting until you started catching carp.

Use high-quality and very buoyant pop-up baits. I am a big fan of Mainline and have caught many carp over the years with their bait range. I particularly like their high-viz pop-up range which is perfect for chod rigs. I can leave these out in the lake for hours with confidence.

You must ensure you balance your pop-up to ensure the entire chod rig sinks very slowly in the water. Attach some rig putty around the swivel and test this by dropping the rig in the margins. This technique improves the hook hold when a carp takes your bait and should ensure you land more carp that take an interest. Cork-ball pop-ups are a great option if you can get hold of them.

Can you fish a chod rig on a tight line?

Don’t fish chod rigs with tight lines as this can affect the presentation, aim for slacklines to allow the mainline to sink into the weedy or chod lake bottom.

When fishing with chod rigs I like to spread out a selection of boilie free offerings around the area I am fishing. This is a very simple and effective tip to get carp feeding in your swim.

How Long Should a Chod Rig Be?

If you do tie your own chod rigs, try to keep the hooklink as short a possible, I feel this allows the chod rig mechanics to work to their best capabilities.

Chod Rig Summary

Chod rigs are versatile and when set up correctly, can catch you many carp. Many anglers see the chod rig as a big carp rig and it is easy to see why.

I urged anyone to try and chod rig on your next session, if you are not confident try the ready-tied rigs from the like of Korda.

You won’t be disappointed.

What do you think about the chod rig?

Leave me a comment, I look forward to reading them.

Images were taken from - http://www.korda.co.uk/