Martin Bowler’s Top Tips #18 – Create An Anchor Point

In many situations, there is no point in overcomplicating rigs, but there is one key feature to my barbel rigs and that is the use of an anchor point. 

Martin’s favoured barbel rig using a uni-link swivel covered in putty, tied to a short section of supple braid.

My go-to barbel rig for most conditions consists of a fluorocarbon hooklink attached to a Uni-Link Swivel and short section of supple braid to which I attach the hook. The key component to finish off the rig is an anchor point, in this case, a blob of putty moulded around the swivel. This not only holds the final few inches to the bottom, but it also helps to ensure the hook is pulled down when a barbel picks up the bait ensuring a good hook hold.

Split shot pinched directly onto the hooklink to create an anchor point.

When I am fishing in floodwater conditions, I will fish Tungsten Loaded all the way through to the hook and instead of using putty, I will simply pinch on a large shot. Also, during floodwater conditions, I will opt to fish a much longer hooklink with 4-5ft being a good starting point as it would be impossible to use a backlead in these conditions. The long hooklink not only reduces the chances of a barbel flanking the taught mono that is coming up from the lead. But, it also ensures that any debris caught up around the lead does not mask the hook.