How to Set the Fish Finder Rig for Surf Fishing?

When it comes to surf fishing, simplicity is key.

Landing more fish from shore is not correlated with how fancy your gear is and how complicated the techniques you try. Instead, simple techniques and basic equipment seem always to produce the best results. This applies to your tackle, your baits, and lures, but also, to your rigs.

This explains why simple and minimalist rigs are the most recommended for surf fishing. And rest assured here, these simple rigs are not only recommended for their ease of use but also because they provide the most catches.

One of those rigs and the one I decided to write about today is the Fish Finder Rig.

In this article, we will learn how to set up the fish finder rig for surf fishing? What makes it a great line configuration on the beach? and when it’s the right/wrong time to use it from shore.

So without further ado, let’s dive in.

What is the fish finder rig?

The fish finder rig is a line configuration for surf fishing, widely known for its simplicity, efficiency, and appeal to fish.

It is fair to think of the fish finder rig as the saltwater version of the Carolina rig, which is quite popular among freshwater anglers.

As I said, one of the advantages of the fish finder rig is that it is quite easy to use and does not require a lot of equipment.

Typically, you only need 5-6 items to set it up, depending on which version of the rig you want to use.

We will discuss these items in the order to follow when setting up the rig.

The main line

Nothing special here. This is the line coming from your reel and rod. So use the one that best suits your conditions and fishing goals.

If you are unsure of which line to use, I invite you to read this guide where we have talked about everything you need to know when choosing a surf fishing line.

Perhaps the most important thing to mention here is that the main line needs to be strong enough to support the weight that we will use later for this rig.

This is very critical because a weak line can break after the cast and let your terminal tackle fly away, putting your safety and that of others at risk.

Typically, anything between 50 and 80 pounds will work fine for this.

If you don’t want to use such a thick line, consider tying a shock leader at the end of your line.

A shock leader will allow you to keep your main line thin while giving your configuration the necessary strength to support the massive stress you create during the load and as a result prevent your sinker from snapping away.

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The sliding sinker

After choosing your main line, you need to connect a sinker to it.

The main thing to remember here is that your sinker must be able to slide along the main line.

This is the special thing about the fish finder rig.

Most other saltwater rigs are static and do not allow the weight to move. This makes the fish finder rig more attractive to fish and allows surf anglers to present their bait in a more natural way.

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We will talk about this later. Now let’s see how to allow the lead to slide down the line.

Generally speaking, there are two ways to achieve that:

Option 1: An egg-shaped sinker where you can simply thread the line.

Option 2: A slider sinker.

What is a slider sinker? It’s just a sturdy plastic sleeve (which you can thread the line into) connected to a pyramid sinker.

Personally, unless the surf is extremely calm, I always go for the second option.

Pyramid sinkers hold better on the bottom and help keep your bait in the strike zone when the surf is moving and pushing things.

As for the size, I believe 3-4 oz works well in most cases, although extremely strong currents can sometimes require larger sizes.

Remember to keep an eye on the line and adjust your weight until you achieve the required stability.

Worth noting here that you can either buy a slider sinker that is ready to use for the rig, or you can buy just a slider sleeve and then connect it to a pyramid sinker.

The bead

The principal role of the bead is to protect the knot that connects the leader to the main line.

Since the sinker is able to slide along the line, moving waters will cause it to continually bounce and beat on the knot, which could damage it and cause it to snap.

That’s why we put the plastic bead right after the lead. The goal is to cushion the pressure of the sinker and therefore to make the knot last longer.

The size of the bead is not that important. Personally, I use beads ranging from 4 to 8mm and they all work well.

Worth mentioning that the bead can also be useful to draw the attention of fish and therefore bring more bites.

Colors like red, orange and yellow make fish curious and attract many of them to investigate the bead.

Also, some beads that you can find in the market produce a clicking sound when moving, which is believed to be attractive for fish, too.

The swivel

Now it’s time to tie the leader. For that, you will need a simple size #5-#3 barrel swivel.

Is the pivot necessary? Can I just use an Albright knot?

Unfortunately, you can’t. The role of the swivel is to stop the moving sinker and prevent it from sliding down to your hook.

To achieve this without a swivel, you will have to tie a knot that is too large, which is usually not good for fishing.

Another purpose of the swivel is to prevent line twisting, especially when fishing rough surfs or fighting large fish that can tangle your terminal gear while trying to escape the trap.

In addition, a swivel allows your leader to move more freely in the water, which in turn allows the bait to cover more ground in the surf zone and therefore to cross more fish.

The leader

The leader is the most discussed thing about the fish finder rig.

This is because compared to the other equipment of the rig, the leader is the one that has the most leverage effect and the one that will affect your results the most.

I mean, increasing or reducing the diameter of the pearl for example is less likely to have a big impact on how much fish you catch.

The same goes for the size of the swivel or the weight of the sinker.

Yes, optimizing these items may improve your overall efficiency in the surf, but don’t expect them to make an enormous difference, especially in your catches count.

But by changing the leader, however, the impact can be seen directly in the next cast.

This is why surf fishermen are so concerned about their leaders. They constantly wonder how thick, strong, and long the leader should be to catch more fish?

So let’s give a general answer to these questions.

As a rule of thumb, the shorter the leader, the better.

Long leaders receive more pressure from the wind and the air during the cast which may reduce your casting range.

Also, long leaders are more affected by the currents and can make your terminal tackle less table in the surf zone.

Short leaders on the other hand make your rig more aerodynamic and thus allow you to cast further. They also receive less pressure from moving water and allow your bait to stay stable where it should be.

A short leader also keeps your bait next to the sinker and the sand turbulence it creates when moving or bouncing. This turbulence triggers the curiosity of the fish and brings them closer to investigate your offer.

In addition, short leaders allow you to be more accurate with your casts. All you have to do is to concentrate on the sinker and try to drop it in the strike zone.

With longer heads, however, you have to do more math to deploy the bait exactly where you think the fish are holding.

So try to keep your leaders short. Personally, I rarely use leaders longer than 24 inches (2 feet) with the fish finder rig.

That being said, keep in mind that there are some situations where using long leaders becomes a better idea.

Fish like sharks, red drums, albacore, and tarpon give a tremendous fight when you hook them up. During these fights and in order to free their mouth, they will perform a lot of powerful head jerks, tail kicks, and body rolls. These aggressive movements can twist your line and snap your knots.

The only way to reduce this is to keep the leader long, so that the fish stay away from the sinker and the knot that connects your leader.

So for such fish, you may need a 36-48 inches (3-4 feet) leader.

Another advantage of long leaders is that they allow you to cover more ground in the surf zone. This can be an important thing to have, especially when the bite is slow and you want to check different spots at the same time.

On top of that, the sinker can sometimes be spooky to fish. So keeping your bait away from it may help bring more bites, especially in calm surfs and crystal clear waters.

So it’s a trade-off situation here. You need to see the pros and cons of each leader length and then decide which one to use.

Worth noting that the length is not the only thing to consider about the leader.

The thickness plays an important role too.

Thick leaders resist better to abrasion and therefore help to prevent cut-offs when targeting sharp-toothed fish like mackerel or when fishing abrasive structures and sharp rocks.

This is why monofilament is the most used material for the fish finder rig. Compared to braid, mono is thicker and better abrasion resistant, which makes it the way to go for the leader.

As for the pound test of the leader, it all depends on which species you are chasing.

In general, 30-40 lb test monofilament works great for most species that you may encounter in the surf zone. (Pompano, surfperch, bluefish, sea bream, snook, striped bass, etc.)

But when going for sharks and the other large predators, I believe 60-80 pounds is the safer choice.

Note also that fishing for species like sharks or albacore may require the use of steel leaders to better resist the sharp and knife-like jaws.

The hook

Now we come to the last item on the list: the hook.

In general, circle hooks tend to produce the best results with this rig. Why? Because circle hooks don’t need to be set when something bites, and that’s a huge advantage when using the fish finder bench.

Let me explain.

Unlike most other rigs, the sinker of the fish finder rig comes before the hook.

The downside of that is that the angler will generally receive less feedback on what happens after the sinker and therefore be less able to detect bites.

In other words, when a fish hits your bait, the weight of the sinker will absorb much of the stress that the fish creates and, as a result, send you very few signals to detect the bite and act on it.

In layman’s words, with the fish finder rig, you are more connected to the sinker than to the hook, and it is quite difficult to detect bites like that.

This is where the circle hooks come in. As we said, circle hooks don’t require setting them when something bites, which will compensate for the lower sensitivity and give you plenty of catches without any movement from your end.

Don’t get me wrong here, j-shaped hooks also perform well with the fish finder rig, especially when targeting sizable fish that are hard not to feel their bites.

But when it comes to small species with subtle bites, circle hooks prove to be the most effective.

As for the size of the hook, the rule is simple: choose the size that ensures the best bait presentation for the species you are targeting.

I invite you to read this article where we have discussed in depth how to choose the best hook size for surf fishing.

If you want a quick answer, I’ll leave you with the following two tables that describe the best hook sizes for each species and type of bait.

Best hook size per fish species

Best hook size per type of bait

The advantages of the fish finder rig

As we said, the most obvious advantage of the fish finder rig is that it’s very easy to set up and does not require a lot of gear.

This can be an enormous advantage for novice anglers and kids who want to start surf fishing without spending too much time learning how to tie knots and set up rigs.

The simplicity of the fish finder rig also makes it great for long casting distances and good stability in the surf.

As a general rule, the more items you throw in the water, the more resistance you receive from the wind and the current.

The result of this is obvious, a shorter casting distance, and baits that keep being pulled out of the strike zone.

The fish finder rig minimizes these problems since it incorporates very few items and as a result, cuts better in the current and the wind.

When it comes to surf fishing, this is critical. Why? Well, simply because rough waters and choppy surf conditions are usually the most rewarding, especially when aiming for large game fish.

Calm and clear waters make small fish seek shelter so as not to be easy prey for predatory fish. In turn, predators know that there will be very few things to feed on when the surf is calm.

All that to say, you are more likely to have a good catch count when the surf is moving, and to do so, you need to use the fish finder rig because it will allow your terminal tackle to stay where the interesting things happen.

The other advantage of the fish finder rig is that it ensures an appealing and natural bait presentation.

By allowing the leader to swing with the current, your baits will have exactly the same movement as the other crustaceans, sand fleas, and nutrients in the seabed.

Fish will be less resistant towards your offering this way because it looks like a natural food for them.

On top of that, the free movement of the bait makes it cover more ground and therefore test multiple spots in the same time.

The last advantage of the fish finder rig is my favorite.

Since the sinker can slide down the main line and is not attached to the hook, fish is less likely to feel any weight when they strike your bait.

This gives them more time to work the bait and completely swallow it before they feel any danger.

Fish like sea bream, pompano, and surfperch are extremely cautious and will not strike baits until they check and tug on them multiple times.

Using a static rig where the sinker is attached to the hook and not able to slide on the line will decimate your chances with these species.

A sliding weight on the other hand allows fish to check on baits as much as they want, without suspecting anything. This will encourage them to do the last strike where they swallow the bait and get deeply hooked 😉

The limits of the fish finder rig

Perhaps the only downside of the fish finder rig is that it is not suitable for all types of structures.

For instance, highly covered areas and mixed seabeds full of rock piles, seaweed, and wrecks tend to make the fish finder rig tangle more often.

In other words, the fish finder rig works best in sandy bottoms and open waters with a low snag risk.

What bait to use with the fish finder rig?

Both cut and live bait work fine with the fish finder rig.

Personally, I find the best success with live green crabs and clams. Cut shrimp, mullet, and sardines also bring a lot of bites.

The most important thing to remember here is to use what is familiar in your fishing area. You want your offering to look like a natural food for the fish. For instance, don’t use crabs if they aren’t a common thing in your area.

Stick to what the fish in your area are used to eat.

As we mentioned before, one of the advantages of the fish finder rig is that it gives the fish more time to work the baits and swallow them completely before noticing anything spooky.

Well, the best way to take advantage of that is to use large chunks of bait to maximize the chances of catching something with every cast.

In other words, since the sliding sinker prevents the fish from feeling the weight of your rig, you have therefore the opportunity to use larger baits and leave them there for a long time until a good catch comes and takes it.

This is not an easy thing to do with the other rigs where the lead is not allowed to move. With such rigs, you should be more careful with the size of your baits and try to fit them perfectly to the species you are chasing.

Put differently, without the fish finder rig, you want the fish to be caught at the first tug, otherwise, it won’t be long before they feel the weight of the sinker and think something is “fishy’” 😀

Final thoughts

As we said, surf fishing gives the best results when we use simple techniques and minimalistic rigs.

So unless there is a critical factor that imposes using more complex line configurations, It’s better to stick to what has been used for years and always worked like wonder: the fish finder rig.

In other words, do not try to reinvent the wheel. The fish finder rig is most of the time all you need for surf fishing.

Even if you prefer other line configurations or you want to try different rigs for certain situations, then at least make sure you have the necessary gear for the fish finder rig in your tackle box.

Chances are that you will need to get back to it when your beloved rig stops bringing bites 😀

Lastly, if you want to buy the gear we use to set up this rig, kindly consider the following kit where we have consolidated the best and top-rated items for the fish finder rig.

Note (*): If you make a purchase through links from this website, we may get a small share of the sale from Amazon or other similar affiliate programs.