Step by step
How to fish it
- Take 3 to 4 feet of 30 to 40 lb mono as your rig body
- Tie a swivel at the top and a clip or swivel at the bottom for your weight
- Tie two snoods of 8 to 12 lb mono at intervals using blood loops or dropper knots
- Keep snoods short (6 to 10 inches) to reduce tangles
- Add size 1 or 1/0 Aberdeen hooks to each snood
- Bait both hooks, cast, and fish static or with occasional short retrieves
Tackle
Gear you need
- Rig body: 30 to 40 lb clear or fluorescent mono
- Snoods: 8 to 12 lb mono, lighter than the rig body
- Hooks: size 1 or 1/0 fine wire Aberdeen for whiting and dabs
- Weight: 3 to 5oz depending on tide
Kit
Kit picks for two-hook flapper
Researched for Irish shore conditions on Wicklow marks. Where we have fished an item ourselves, we say so. Links go to Amazon.ie; skip anything you already carry.
Flapper rigs 2/0 (6 pack)
Pre-tied two-hook flappers for whiting and small codling from Wicklow beaches and pier walls.
View on AmazonPhoxinus Aberdeen hooks 1/0
Fine wire Aberdeens for small ragworm baits on flapper snoods. Size 1/0 suits whiting and dab.
View on AmazonPlain bomb leads mixed pack
3 to 5oz bombs for calm-night flapper fishing when grip wires are not needed.
View on AmazonHooklink mono 12lb
Bulk mono for tying flapper snoods. Snoods are consumables on winter whiting sessions; buy the big spool.
View on AmazonBlack Diamond Astro 300 headlamp
The flapper is a night rig from October to March. A proper headlamp is not optional on a dark shingle beach.
View on AmazonBuilding a full setup from scratch? See the complete gear guide.
Conditions
When to use it
Night sessions from October to March for whiting and dabs. Any time of year for dogfish. Mixed species sessions from beaches and pier walls.
Local knowledge
On the Wicklow coast
The two-hook flapper is the standard rig at every Wicklow shore match. In World Championship sessions at Greystones South Beach, teams fish three-hook versions with small ragworm baits for whiting. The long casting ability it gives in calm, clear conditions is a key advantage.
