SEA ANGLER November 14, 2011

Ragworms come from a large family of phylum annelids, many of which are polychaetes, or bristle worms. Now you know that let’s identify the ones that are important to sea anglers.

Here we are going to focus our attention on red ragworms, as opposed to the whites and others that anglers will come across. Biggest worm in the range is the spectacular king rag (nereis virens), the common red rag, (nereis diversicolor), and the harbour rag, (hediste diversicolor).

Starting with the biggest, king rag are usually about 30cm long but are known to reach up to a metre in length. If you look carefully at the head of the king rag you should be able to make out two pairs of eyes and four pairs of antennae. Anglers are more concerned about the reversible proboscis containing a very impressive set of pincers, which can give you a sharp nip if you are not careful. King rag are loners and it’s rare to find concentrated colonies of the really bigger specimens.

The common red rag grows to around 15cm and is more likely to be found in reasonably dense colonies in harbours and estuaries. These are the worms that are stocked by most tackle shops.

Harbour rag, also known as maddies or wrigglers, grow to around 8cm and are nearly always found in dense colonies. This worm lives in a vertical burrow and can reach quite high densities in sheltered estuaries where conditions are usually unsuitable for other species.

It is easily identified by a red dorsal blood vein, which runs down the centre of its body. It is an important food source for many species of estuarine wading birds.

Reproduction depends on the species. In most species the sexes are separate but there are a few that are both male and female (hermaphrodite). When they spawn the males change to a light green and the females to a dark bottle green.

The ragworm is both a scavenger and an efficient predator feeding on mud, detritus and plankton. When in hunting mode it can rapidly shoot out its powerful jaws to catch other softbodied animals.

They all inhabit much the same type of ground in sheltered harbours and estuaries and favour broken muddy and sandy ground.

They can also be found close to mussel beds and in some cases the king rag will live in very rocky ground where it is relatively protected and where it can grow to a very large size.

WHY NOT COLLECT YOUR OWN WORMS?

With a bit of planning you can gather your own ragworms for bait, but first you have to identify a broken muddy or sandy location where the ground is reasonably firm and well exposed during a big low tide.

Be careful in harbours where the mud can be thick black and oozy. If you wear Wellington boots you will get stuck and even wearing waders doesn’t mean you are safe from getting bogged down.

Search for rocks and stones, turning them over to find the holes and channels the worms make. If you are careful, quiet and turn the stone over quickly you should be able to grab the odd ragworm in your hand before it disappears down its burrow.

After turning over the rocks to find some tell-tale holes you should dig. If the ground is hard try a flat-tined potato fork that also offers less chance of cutting the worm in half.

Harbour rag can usually be found in the top 30cm of the ground and the bigger worms will be a bit deeper, up to 70cm in some cases. If there are lots of worms dig trench style working back along the trench to expose any worms. Normally it is necessary to have a good look around, find a suitable small area of ground before digging and then moving onto another spot.

Surface water often runs into the hole if the ground is very soft. If this happens use a spade using a small bucket to bale out the water.

You can dig a lot deeper and quicker with a spade. Your tools must be strong because they will be used as a lever just as much as a digging implement.

When exposing a worm try to lift it out of the hole with the next dig rather than trying to pull it out, which can break the worm. Try to vary where you dig as well. On big tides start at the furthest exposed point and leave the top of the beach for smaller tides.

You might find that the worms are easier to gather by digging right on the edge of the ebbing tide when the ground is still wet and the worms have yet to move deeper.

Worms seem to know when the tide is flooding and move upwards in anticipation of a supply of fresh seawater, in which case try digging right on the edge of the water line.

Warm weather usually brings the worms up to the surface, and very cold frosty weather will drive the worms a lot deeper in the mud.

Big king rag are dug individually. Foot pressure can often result in a spurt of water coming out of a hole and sometimes you will find bits of seaweed, that the worm has tried to take, sticking out of a hole.

Dig a small trench at the side of its burrow and then try to follow the hole as it twists and turns down through the ground. This is hard work but can produce some massive worms once you know what to look out for.

Washing your worms

When you have enough bait wash off your tools and then fill your main container with fresh seawater, rinsing the worms out thoroughly.

Separate the broken ones into your smaller baling bucket, which then fits inside the bigger bucket. If you leave whole and broken worms in the same container the water will quickly turn orange and on a warm day in a car boot the worms will die.

Back home the whole worms go into a bucket of clean seawater aerated by an air pump for a few hours; this gives the worms time to expel any mud that is still in their system.

Missed broken worms go into a separate shallow tray with containing a few millimetres of water, while whole worms that may be damaged go into a different tray. The good quality  hole worms go into other trays all covered by a few millimetres of water.

All the worms are stored in a fridge, which not only keeps them cool but also in the dark. Change the water twice a day to keep your worms healthy.

Quick tips

● When you go fishing keep bait parcels of newspaper, which helps to toughen them up, in a large bucket. If it’s a hot day put a small freezer block in the bucket.

● The size of the worms can make a difference to results. Small worms are more effective for catching small fish, large worms are best for specimen fish. Ask your tackle dealer for the size you need or request a mix of sizes.

● Can’t face handling a ragworm because of their pincers? Cut off the head with your scissors.

● Cocktail baits are deadly for lots of species. There are no rules that say you cannot mix two, three or more baits. Beware of masking the hook point though and use a hook size that suits the size of the bait.

● An excellent guide to what hook to use is to match the size and pattern to the bait being used. Long-shank hooks in size 1/0, 1 and 2 are best for worms and sandeels. Use short-shank hooks up to 3/0 for crabs and fish, with mediumshank hooks in size 6/0 suited to squid and live fish.

● Keep your bait out of the wind, rain and sun and it will retain its freshness longer. A cool box is as useful in the winter as in summer to keep bait fresh and alive.

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£2.99

What is the Cheb Rig?

The Cheb Rig or The Cheburashka Rig is something you may have heard of but aren’t really sure how it is different from other rigs that you’ve used in the past, for example, the Ned Rig or the Jika Rig. There are a number of reasons that you might want to consider using this rig, but before we get into why you might want to use it, let’s take a look at what it actually is.

Much like the Ned Rig, it is a great way to fish for perch – especially if you are not having much luck catching them. The reason for this is that the Cheb Rig is a brilliant technique for searching the water and can be fished quicker than the ned rig, therefore covering more water. It is also quite versatile due to being able to change the weight, hook size and pattern very quickly.

The key to success when fishing with the Cheb Rig, is having a range of Cheb weights. Whether you use an offset hook and fished weedless or a mounted straight hook, it’s the movement between the weight and the hook that make the lure look great in the water. 

The Cheb Rig is a unique pin and weight system that is perfect for a very effective bottom jiggling technique. It was developed in Russia has become popular in the UK and Europe. If you are moving around whilst fishing and encounter lots of different fishing situations and swims, then the Cheb Rig is ideal. The quick-release and change system lets you fish at different depths, in different conditions, all with multiple weight jig heads in a short session. 

The Rig

The rig isn’t anything too complicated. In fact, it is a basic, trace body that terminates in a clip. Add to this the Cheb weights and a hook that is suitable for whatever bait you are using to fish. A Finesse Worm hook is commonly used with the Cheb Rig, though you are also fine using an EWG Offset style hook as well. 

The Lure

Depending on what you are trying to fish with the Cheb Rig will influence the kind of lure you are using. We have listed a few baits that we like to use at the bottom of the page. Whatever bait you choose to use, a float stop can be extremely useful to keep the bait in place.

When to use the Cheb Rig

The Cheb Rig can be used at any time of year and can be especially useful if you find that you are stuck in a rut with your fishing and want to try something different or you need to search the fish out.

Advantages of the Cheb Rig

The Cheb Rig is one that comes with many advantages:

The weight is attached to the hook – unlike other rigs, namely the Texas Rig, the weight is actually attached to the hook. This means that you don’t get the same low pressure, running away bites that you can get with a Texas Rig. Instead, you get a firm bite. 

It’s easy to change the hook

It’s easy to change the weight

It’s weedless

You can change the weight, hook and bait to fish different species of fish as and when you need to.

The weight sits on the bottom, and the hook can move freely to the bait. It allows action on the bait just sitting in the flow.

How Do I Fish With it?

Fishing with the Cheb Rig is can be done in a fast or slow way, similar to fishing with the Ned Rig. Though when fishing slower you will need to be a little more patient with the Cheb rig, especially when fishing using buoyant baits. Once the weight hits the bottom, you need to let it sit for a second so that the bait has a chance to bob back up. Then using small taps and bounces, no more than six inches of movement along the bottom at a time before you let it sit. Make sure that each time you let the bait sit a little longer than you would with a Ned Rig to let the bait float back up again. 

If you are in doubt about how good the Cheb Rig looks in the water, watch it come back up to surface and glide it around a bit. 

Setting up the Cheb Rig

Tie a figure-eight loop at the top of the mainline. It’s a small loop, but it is strong enough for fishing the Cheb Rig, but most importantly it is small enough that you can easily pass the Cheb weight over the top of it. This is the method we use to make the Cheb even easier to swap around. However many other anglers just tie an improved clinch knot directly to the Cheb clip without using a loop. It’s entirely up to you. See the videos below if you are unsure about either knot.

To put the weight on the line, choose whatever Cheb weight that you want to use, and then take the pin out of the centre of the weight. Thread the loop through the centre of the weight, the hook the loop through the pin. Don’t put it back in the weight just yet, it’s time for the hook first. Take the hook you are fishing and thread it onto the clip. Once the hook and line are both hooked in place on the pin, pull the weight back down the line and slip the pin back into the centre of the weight. 

Not only is this set up really flexible, but it also saves on having to use an additional clip on this rig. It also makes it much easier to swap the hook and weight whenever you want to.

By pikezander

There are rigs and then there is the “Ronnie rig”. Some rigs stand the test of time and work year after year. Others are more transient in nature, their tangible benefits are the figment of a twisted mind, and they don’t offer any real advantage in terms of catching carp or being easy to tie!

This one, however, is very special. It’s a rig that’s been used successfully on the quiet for a few years now, being deployed as a tool pivotal in catching some phenomenal big carp from a number of waters. But now the word is out and everyone want’s to know how to tie this amazing rig

The Ronnie rig is easy to tie and offers the benefits of a super-consistent low pop-up presentation, fished the height of a hook and a swivel of off the lakebed, but without the issues of a naked hook eye that has the potential to snag in landing-net meshes (one of the main problems associated with the original 360-style rigs).

It offers all the advantages and awesome rig mechanics of the hinged stiff rig, but without the need to trying to fish it low to the lakebed, which isn’t the optimum arrangement. When it’s tied right, those of us that have used it extensively have pure unadulterated confidence in it because hook-pulls are almost non-existent. I can’t remember pulling out of a single fish with the Ronnie rig. 

Luckily, it’s amazingly simple to construct thanks to the use of a size 12 Covert Kwik-Lok Flexi Ring Swivel mounted on the eye of the hook. That, combined with a Gardner Mugga hook, offers a highly aggressive, fast-reacting presentation that is ruthless in the extreme!

It’s also extremely versatile. I always have a number of pre-prepared hook sections ready to go, and I tailor the hooklink material to suit the lakebed or the lead arrangement.  

That could mean a lead clip with a long, supple, skinned hooklink such as Ultra Skin in silt, or a helicopter-style arrangement and a Subterfuge fluorocarbon boom on clean sand and gravel.   

Personally, I think balancing it like a hinged stiff rig works best – so the hookbait is slow to sink. Why? If you overbalance the hook by moulding putty around the shrink tube, the hook has a tendency to lie over further and this inhibits it from twisting and turning as quickly as it could (the same drawback you get with a hinged stiff rig).

Realistically, mounting the swivel through the eye means you need to use a ‘nice’ sized hook, and the size 4 Mugga or Continental Mugga are both perfect. You know, some rigs work with some hooks better than others, and this is the one. The Mugga’s curved swept shank and 20-degree inturned eye complement and enhance the mechanics, lining up the shrink tube naturally in a way that gives maximum ‘twistiness’.

Variants of some rigs come and go, but the Ronnie rig is one that I know will stand the test of time. Like all presentations, it isn’t the panacea of all things riggy, but what it is is the best low pop-up rig that I have used. 

Now it’s time to show you how to tie this amazing rig so you can go out and use it for yourself!

HOW TO TIE

STEP 1) 

STEP 2)

 STEP 3)

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STEP 12)

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