Is nylon best?
Why should I use a nylon hooklink over, say, braid, coated or stiff material? Big fish angler Mark Bryant answers your top rig-related questions
In an age of braid and suppleness there is a lot to be said for nylon hooklinks. They are cheap, easy to tie and perform very well on most lakebeds. One of the best attributes that doesn’t get aired too often is the feel. If you were to run a braided hooklink over your lips you would feel the sensation. Try the same with nylon and there is a marked decrease in the sensitivity. You can bet the carp who are super sensitive at touch and feel can feel a braided hooklink almost every time, where nylon gives them another problem to deal with.
This very simple product has the added benefit of being very inconspicuous underwater, especially the clear variety. This can blend to most if not all backgrounds. Simple. Breaking strains of 12-18lb can also give you a degree of stiffness that can help push a balanced hookbait away from the rig and in my experience the straighter the hooklink the quicker the lead comes into play resulting in more hooked fish to pick-up ratio. With regards to length I would recommend as short as possible: four- to six-inches if the lakebed is firm but longer if there is debris. Nylon tends to lie over obstacles making it a truly universal product.