Rig guide
Carolina Rig: How to Set It Up and When to Use It
A Carolina rig puts a sliding weight on the main line ahead of a swivel and a leader, so the soft plastic trails behind the weight instead of sitting against it. It is a bass rig for dragging open bottom such as points, flats and ledges.
To build one, thread a ½–¾ oz bullet or egg weight and a bead onto the main line, tie on a barrel swivel, then add 2–3 ft of leader and a worm hook with the plastic rigged weedless. Drag it slowly so the weight stays on the bottom. If you are pitching into heavy cover, use a Texas rig instead.
How a Carolina rig goes together
Original illustration of a Carolina rig. The weight slides on the main line and stops at the bead and swivel; the plastic follows on the leader. Not to scale.
Common starting points for bass. The sections below cover when to change each one.
- Weight. A bullet, egg or barrel weight: ½–¾ oz to start, ¼–1 oz overall. It takes the bait to the bottom and keeps you in touch with it. The line slides through it, so a bass that picks up the bait feels less resistance.
- Bead. Plastic, glass or metal, between the weight and the swivel. It protects the knot and clicks against the weight.
- Barrel swivel. Stops the weight and joins the main line to the leader.
- Leader. 2–3 ft of mono or fluorocarbon, often a little lighter than the main line, which makes it less visible. It lets the bait move apart from the weight.
- Hook and bait. An offset worm hook for slim plastics, or an extra-wide-gap (EWG) hook for bulky ones, with a lizard, worm, creature bait or craw. Rig it like a Texas rig, with the point just inside the plastic, so it comes over the bottom without snagging.
How to tie a Carolina rig
- Slide the weight onto the main line.
- Slide a bead on below it.
- Tie the main line to one eye of a barrel swivel.
- Tie the leader to the other eye.
- Tie the hook to the end of the leader and rig the soft plastic weedless, as for a Texas rig.
If you tie a Palomar knot, tie the leader to the swivel first, then the swivel to the main line, and add the hook last. The Knot Finder has the steps.
Size the hook to the plastic the same way as for a Texas rig; the bass hook size guide gives sizes by worm length. Carolina-rig anglers writing in Bassmaster and Outdoor Life, and Strike King's pro Shaw Grigsby, use 2/0 to 5/0 hooks on the lizards, creature baits and worms they drag on this rig.
Carolina rig or Texas rig?
Both rigs fish a weedless soft plastic behind a sliding weight. The difference is the leader. On a Texas rig, the weight sits right at the bait's head. On a Carolina rig, the swivel holds it back a leader's length away.
Scroll the table sideways to see every column.
| Carolina rig | Texas rig | |
|---|---|---|
| Weight position | Slides on the main line, stopped by a swivel 2–3 ft ahead of the bait | Slides on the line against the bait's head |
| Where it fits | Deeper, open structure: points, flats, ledges, humps | Shallow to deep, in any cover, including pitching and flipping into grass, bushes and docks |
| How it fishes | Long casts and slow drags that cover a lot of bottom | Dropped or worked through a specific piece of cover |
| Hookset | Reel down, then a long sweep of the rod to the side | Usually a firm, powerful hookset |
Bass soft-plastic rigs. Florida FWC lists both for weedless worms in its weedy lakes, but most guidance keeps the Carolina rig to cleaner bottom.
For a lighter version in shallow or clear water, use a split-shot rig. Pinch a split shot on the line 8–18 in above the hook, with no swivel or leader. The shot does not slide.
How heavy a weight and how long a leader?
Depth is the main thing that sets the weight. Go a little heavier if you can't feel the bottom, and a little lighter if you keep getting hung up.
Scroll the table sideways to see every column.
| Water depth | Weight | Published by |
|---|---|---|
| About 2 ft | ¼ oz | Field & Stream |
| 8–12 ft | ½ oz | Take Me Fishing |
| Deeper than 12 ft | ¾ oz | Take Me Fishing |
| 25 ft or more | 1 oz | Field & Stream |
Starting points from two sources, not one scale. Adjust until you can feel the bottom without snagging.
Many guides start the leader at 2–3 ft. A shorter leader gives you more control of the bait. Bassmaster's Greg Vinson shortens his to about 12 in in very shallow water, with a lighter weight. A longer leader lets the bait drift more slowly and naturally. Texas Parks and Wildlife's magazine says to go longer in clearer water or where the fish see a lot of anglers. In-Fisherman goes up to 7 ft for bass suspended off steep ledges.
The sources disagree about cold water and grass. In-Fisherman shortens the leader to 1½–3 ft when bass hold tight to structure in fall and winter. Strike King's Shaw Grigsby lengthens his to 4 ft in cold water and over submerged grass. Treat leader length as something to test, not a fixed rule.
How to fish a Carolina rig
- Make a long cast. A side-arm lob is easier, with the weight hanging about 2 ft below the rod tip and the bait several feet behind it.
- Leave the spool open until the weight reaches the bottom, then reel up the slack.
- Sweep the rod slowly to the side to drag the weight along the bottom. Reel up the slack as you bring the rod back, then sweep again.
- A bite often feels mushy rather than a sharp tap, because the fish is lifting the weight. Reel down until you feel it, then make a long, sweeping hookset to the side.
If the weight wedges in rock or wood, raise the rod tip and give it a short, sharp pop to hop it over.
Rod, reel and line
Take Me Fishing describes a typical Carolina-rig outfit as a medium-heavy rod around 6 ft 6 in with line in the 15 lb range. The bass pros quoted by Bassmaster, Strike King and Wired2Fish go longer, about 7 to 7 ft 6 in, medium-heavy to heavy. A long rod and a fast reel pick up more slack on the hookset when the bait is several feet behind the weight. Use an abrasion-resistant main line, because it drags across the bottom. Wired2Fish gives two examples: 15 lb mono with a 12 lb fluorocarbon leader, or 30 lb braid with a 10–15 lb fluorocarbon leader. The Setup Builder matches a rod, reel and line to bass and your technique.
Common Carolina rig problems
- Twisted line after a few casts. Use a good barrel swivel that turns freely, and one large enough not to jam inside the weight or bead.
- Constant snags. Go a little lighter. A cone-shaped weight comes through grass, rock and wood a little better than a barrel shape, and an egg weight is easy to pop over an obstruction.
- Can't feel the bottom. Go a little heavier.
- Damaged knot at the swivel. A bead cushions the knot. Tungsten weights break glass beads, so pair tungsten with a tungsten or metal bead. A rubber bobber stopper also protects the knot.
For line twist, wind knots and other faults that are not specific to this rig, see fishing setup problems.
Related guides
- Bass fishing gear and setupsTexas rig, drop shot and Ned rig, with outfits by technique.
- Split shot and sinker size chartBullet and egg weights by weight, and split shot for the lighter rig.
- Fish-finder rigThe same sliding-sinker idea with a bait hook, for surf, pier and inshore fishing.