Flasher Rig Fishing: Easy As.
Whatever your background or experience is in fishing; it’s hard to deny that the humble flasher rig is one of the most effective fishing techniques around.
For absolute simplicity, they really can’t be beat. You can tie them yourself with some basic materials, but if you’re going for ease, flasher rigs are cheap enough and easy enough to buy pre-made from almost any retailer that stocks the most basic of fishing supplies. You don’t need a special rod or reel, all you need is bait*, sinkers, and a basic bait fishing rod of suitable weight.
*even bait is optional here. Flasher rigs can work without bait, but bait always helps!
For those who are new to fishing, or want a family-friendly method for a day on the water - the flasher rig is a great place to start.
What is a Flasher Rig?
In it’s most simple form, a flasher rig is a standard dropper rig with some extra attraction.
Most flasher rigs are comprised of a swivel attachment to your main line, a length of leader material with 1-3 circle or beak/suicide hooks, flash & shimmer fibres, and a swivel with sinker clip at the bottom. Some pre-tied flasher rigs, including our Hyper Flash range, have additional lumo beads for some extra attraction in low light.
As you can see here, they’re a pretty simple design… and that’s the beauty about them. Flasher rigs deliver easy & reliable fishing. They don’t require much skill or knowledge to use effectively, and they’re exciting enough for beginners without getting overloaded with technical details and special techniques.
Flasher rigs have a well-earned and timeless reputation for being highly effective against bottom-dwelling species such as Snapper, Bluenose, Tarakihi, Gurnard etc.
WHAT MAKES A GOOD FLASHER RIG?
As you can guess, not all flasher rigs are created equally, and as such, they vary in price. The good news, however, is that they’re never expensive.
You can probably pick up a pre-tied rig at your nearest dairy or convenience store for dirt cheap, but as with everything you get what you pay for. The cheaper the rig, the lower quality the components will be - any of which could be the point of failure when a bigger fish takes your bait. A good flasher rig should have all of the components outlined in the diagram above.
Unless you love the feeling of crushing disappointment you should always buy your pre-tied flasher rigs from a reputable brand. A few extra dollars is a small price to pay for reliability and less risk of a dropped monster fish. The BKK Hyper Flash range uses our ever-popular Heavy Circle and Octopus Beak hooks, so they’re as good as it gets for reliability and performance.
When we were developing the Hyper Flash, we wanted to improve on the designs already on the market. BKK is about innovation, so our take on the common flasher rig had to be innovative.
What makes the Hyper Flash range better?
Extra large sinker clip to accommodate larger sinkers (incl. surfcasting sizes)
High-strength BKK components to handle bigger fish and more force when casting.
BKK Heavy Circle and Octopus Bait Hooks for reliable performance.
Included foam storage card for easy storage and reuse.
ALL the components. Including top + bottom swivels and a large sinker clip.
HOW TO USE A FLASHER RIG
If you haven’t figured it out already, the key thing with flasher rigs is that they’re easy to use.
Assuming you’re in an area that’s known to hold fish, a flasher rig will almost certainly get a bite.
Here are the basics:
Once you’ve got your rig clipped onto your line and sinker clipped on, bait the hooks with a small cube of bait. Make sure that the hook point is exposed.
Drop the rig over the side and wait for a bite.
If you’re using a rig with circle hooks - DO NOT STRIKE. Allow the fish to run, then gently apply some pressure to allow the circle hook to roll nicely into the fish’s mouth.
If you’re using a beak/suicide hook version - STRIKE. This will set the hook point deep and fast.
That’s about it. As we said, they’re super simple to use.
We won’t go into detail about the best areas to target with flasher rigs - that’s a whole topic in itself. But in general, if there’s fish around that can be caught using bait, they will be caught on a flasher rig.
