Urfe Rig
The urfe rig is a simply constructed, long established rig used extensively in Spain and Portugal particularly for bream species. The urfe clip with its swivel allows the hook length to rotate freely and is relatively tangle free with the top swivel and weight clip both shielded by shrink tube. It works well with tide movement with all hooks on or close to the seabed and is effective when slow retrieving or twitching baits back to cover a wide area.
The it can be fished with a long hook length and droppers can be attached using water knots or a stop knot with one end left long. Attractors and bling should be kept to a minimum and only used on the tail hook to reduce the risk of tangles. Stiffer fluorocarbon works best for the longer snood lengths. The shock leader can be tied directly to the urfe clip or a clip can be used but this should be covered by shrink tube or silicon tubing to prevent tangling.
When casting it helps to hold back or feather the cast as the weight hits the water ensuring that the trace falls freely. A stands off for the snood length can be produced slipping a length of silicon tubing over the swivel, this should also be used if a quick change link is used on the hook length.
Rig Components
Main Body
1 x Urfe Clip, shop bought or DIY
1 x Lead Weight, normally without grip wires
Snoods
1 x Optional Snood Clip
Optional rig tubing for standoff
Optional sequin bait stop or attractors
1 x 1 to 3 metre of 0.20-0.30mm Fluorocarbon of choice
1-3 x Size 10 – 1 Hooks, pattern to suit bait, species and size of fish targeted
The Rig Body
1. Tie the snood length to the urfe swivel, either directly or via a clip. Attach the tail hook and the any droppers and hooks.
The urfe rig can be adpted by adding a boom to the body of the clip in place of the swivel.
an adapted urfe rig with a short boom
It is not always easy to find a single coil boom, which rotates more freely than those with two coils, but a twisted boom can be cut in two. A simple snip allows the boom to be untwisted and separated to provide two booms. An eye can then be formed at the end of the boom with a swivel enclosed. This can then be used to form a boom version of the urfe rig.
an adapted urfe rig with a separated twisted wire boom
There are numerous sources of terminal tackle both locally and on-line, here are a few suggestions –
