Barbel Rigs.

I was watching a guy fish for barbel and his rig was as follows:

Main line through to a snap swivel, on the line he had a running snap swivel and a shock bead, in his hand he had 3 braided hooklengths with loops on at the top.

He explained the theory behind it and it made sense:

The running swivel could be used for weights or empty if freelining, the snap swivel at the end was for the hook lengths, he had 3 hooklengths all baited up ready so when an empty hook returned he could swap hooklength quickly and then bait up the empty one.
If things werent going according to plan he said he could have different baits or hook sizes on the waiting rigs.

I understood everything that he said but thought that the snap swivel connected to hooklength would give quite easily or even straighten.

Is there a breaking strain for snap swivels?

Has anyone else heard of this rig and tackle set up?

Would it have been beneficial to put tubing over the snap swivels to prevent tangles?

Where does anyone think the weak point of the rig would be in the event of a snag being hooked?


My main question for this thread is:

What are peoples prefered rigs for barbel fishing and why? (i can cope with technical explanations!)

Many thanks.

I use the above described rig, and have done for some time,only difference is that I dont use snap swivels,I use normal swivels with clip links..one of the advantages is that you will never have a tethered fish ...in the event of a break either the sinker, or feeder will slide off the main line.There is no question re the strength of the clips, I use 15lb main line (Nylon, not Braid )on the Ribble, and when snagged in the rocks, the line has gone before the swivel or clip link. I allways use a hooklink about 3 - 5 lbs test less than the main line,and on the main line where it is tied to the clip link, I use about 2 inches of rig tube which acts as a stand off ,the hooklink hangs proud of the lead or feeder.I dont pretend that this is a new thing,I also use it uptiding when Boat Fishing, although the main line and end tackle are beefed up a Bit.
I First saw it used by a charter Boat Skipper... John Rawle, in the Thames Estuary some 20 Years go...he virtually invented Uptding, and is responsible for several tried and tested rigs which transfer from sea to freshwater.

i too use a veriation on the above rig,i too use quickclips rather than snap link swivels i use inline gripper leads and a buffer bead that partially covers the quick clip,my hooklinks terminate in a swivell which i can pull up through Pva bags filled with micro pellets (3mm-8mm)and a 16-22mm halibut pellet on a hair.the swivel simply (quickly)attaches to the quick clip for bait changes ect,this way i can feed close to my hook & have several rigs avaiable for emergencys.

I use much the same except that I use a version of the John Roberts feeder boom with about a 1" length of rig tube. I don't bother with a link swivel as I always have several hooklinks (on a short piece of braid) already tied. I set the tail length of the rig using a Drennan ledger stop. If I feel the need to change a hook its a simple matter of cutting the main line and tying on a new hook link _ a job of seconds.