Tackle Tuesday... Fox Zig Aligna

This entry was posted on 6th August, 2013

Tackle Tuesday

Fox Zig Aligna Kit

When chatting with Angling Direct Norwich shop manager Andy Flint, I asked him for one product, one product that had been selling well and that he thought was extremely relevant for the time of year, he replied with… ‘Fox Zig Aligna Kit’

For most anglers the Zig rig is a relatively new rig in the world of Carp fishing, but since it’s major arrival on the scene around five or so years ago, the rig has accounted for numerous big fish. As anglers started to latch on to the rig, so did the tackle manufacturers, as they realised there was a large gap in the market for a whole host of zig related products.

A vast range of special zig rig hooks, mono and baits are all now readily available, with the likes of Nash and Fox at the forefront of innovation.

The Zig Rig

A - Use a length of tubing over the swivel as this will prevent tangles. B - Fluorocarbon line is best for this rig, but clear mono will also catch you fish. C - Use large  buoyancy foam/pop-ups to suspend the bait well off the bottom. D - In mild water conditions, a bait presented at mid-water will gain you more takes. E - Use a gripper-style lead to hold the bottom securely

For those who don’t know, the Zig Rig is basically a normal carp rig, BUT you fish a long hook length and a popped up bait/artificial bait, straight off the lead. The hook length can vary anything from 1ft to however deep the lake is! The rig allows you to search the water column to try and find fish that may be grazing in mid water, primarily a summer tactic when the fish cruise the surface layers, it can also be equally productive in the colder months.

As you can imagine if you are fishing an 8ft hooklength, the pick up from the fish can be very different to when your fishing a 6inch hooklength right next to a 3oz lead! So many of the takes can often be a little twitchy and the amount of missed runs can be expected to be a little higher, than if fishing standard bottom baits. However, this may all change now, not because of a special hook, but because of an innovative product from Fox, known as the ‘Zig Aligna’.

These innovative new range of Zig Aligna’s are set to change the way that anglers fish with Zig Rigs forever. Based on our Line Aligna Adaptor, which was developed for pop-up and bottom bait fishing, the new Zig Aligna is constructed from a softer, more buoyant plastic and features a unique moulded loop on the back. By using the loading tool supplied in the Zig Aligna Kit you can simply insert your chosen colour of foam into the loop on the back of the Aligna and trim it to your preferred size to create the ultimate hookbait. The loop grips the foam extremely tightly meaning it will not come off even on the biggest of casts.

 Benefits of the Zig Aligna

• Better Hookholds and anti-eject properties - Creates a much wider gape than a standard knotless knot or Zig Bug style hook (no fluff or foam impeding hook point penetration), for much better hooking potential.

• Better Hooking Potential - The Aligna allows your hookbait to sit centralised at all times, a downside with a knotless knot on light mono is that the Hair naturally wants to sit off to one side, which can lead to poor hook holds.

• Stronger more reliable knots can be used - Allows you to attach your hook to your hooklink with a Palomar or Grinner Knot rather than a Knotless Knot, which are much stronger and also prevents the eye of your hook from rubbing on and weakening the hooklink when playing a fish.

• Far greater value for money - Should your hookpoint turn over you can simply slide the Aligna up your hooklink and attach a new hook – with Zig Bug style hookbaits once the point has gone they have to be thrown away, which can get very expensive.

• Very versatile – You can mix and match the colours of foam and Zig Aligna to create a whole host of hookbait colour options until you find the combo that works the best on any given day.

• Very Quick and Easy – Changing of your hookbait is very quick to do and swapping hookbaits is also very fast thanks to the unique loading tool.

• Imitate Shape of Emerging Larvae – Most Zig Bug style hookbaits imitate creatures that live out of the water, which is a pretty pointless imitation as they are not natural! The shape of the Zig Aligna combined with a foam insert very much replicates the shape of a nymph with a thin curved body and a big head.

• Hi-Vis Colour Options – The red and yellow options allow you to create hi-viz hookbaits when single hookbait fishing or spodding a slop over the top – especially effective when using a spod mix that contains red maggots and sweetcorn.

Products Available:

Zig Aligna Kit • 3 lengths of Zig Aligna HD Foam – 1 x red, 1 x yellow and 1 x black • 6 Zig Aligna Sleeves– 2 x red, 2 x yellow and 2 x black • 1 x Loading Tool

Zig Aligna Sleeves • Available in Red, Yellow or Black • 8 Zig Aligna Sleeves per packet

Zig Aligna HD Foam • Available in Red, Yellow or Black • 3 lengths of foam per packet

 Buy The Fox Zig Aligna Products Here!

How to set up the Fox Zig Aligna...