How to tie a sunk float paternoster rig for specimen perch fishing

Big perch have enjoyed a massive resurgence over the last decade and can now be found in many UK fisheries.

Perch grow large on a diet of small fish and large invertebrates and this rig is designed to present small fish and lobworms off the bottom in a tangle-free set-up that’s easy to adjust and can be fished in swims of differing depths. Treat it like any other leger rig and use an alarm and bobbin to indicate bites.

GET THE BEST BITE ALARMS FOR PERCH FISHING BY TAKING A LOOK AT OUR GUIDES.

By adjusting the distance between the lead and the foam ball, the depth that the bait is fished off the bottom can be adjusted. Remember that the bait popper will be about half the distance off bottom in relation to the distance between lead and popper because of the angle of the line.

Since the bait is presented off bottom this is the ideal rig to fish over areas of light weed that might otherwise mask the bait and make presentation problematic. By keeping the distance between the popper and the swivel twice the length of the hooklength, tangles cannot occur.

On snaggy venues, the rig can be made even safer by tying in a short weak link of 4lb line just above the lead. Should the lead become snagged this will snap first, so only the weight will be lost.

This rig works equally well in stillwaters and rivers, but when using fish baits be sure that there are no pike present because you should always use a wire trace in venues containing pike to avoid bite-offs.

GET MORE SPECIMEN PERCH FISHING TIPS IN THIS EXPERT ADVICE ARTICLE.

HOW TO TIE A SUNK FLOAT PATERNOSTER RIG

YOU WILL NEED

HOW TO TIE IT!

1 - Thread a Rig Stop on to the mainline and position it about 1.5m from the end of the line.

2 - Thread on a micro rig swivel and another rig stop. Leave a small gap between the stops.

3 - Trap a foam bait popper between two rig stops one metre above the end of the line.

4 - Next, tie on a small 1.5oz flat pear lead to the end of the mainline.

5 - Tie a size 10 Specimen hook to a 30cm length of 6lb fluorocarbon.

6 - Tie the end of the hooklength to the micro rig swivel. The hooklength should be about 15cm.

This page is a free example of the amazing content Angling Times Members get every single week. Becoming an Angling Times Member gives you access to award-winning magazine content, member rewards, our back issue archives, bonus content and more! Join our fishing community and find out more today!