The best carp fishing hooklinks

If you need an exceptionally rigid material, the Korda Hybrid Stiff is an excellent choice. This material features a coated outer layer that can be stripped back to reveal a supple braided inner section. One of its key advantages is that it can be crimped, allowing you to retain its full strength, keep your rigs neat, and achieve the exact length you want without using knots.

Once you steam the rig straight, it will hold its shape very well, so you don't have to worry about the rig changing form after it hits the bottom.

The Korda Hybrid Stiff is best used over firm lakebeds such as gravel or clay, as its stiffness can cause it to kick up off the bottom. It is available in weed green and gravel brown, with a 20lb breaking strain on a 15m spool.

For excellent camouflage with your braided hooklengths, the Fox Camotex Soft is hard to beat. Finished in a matte camo color, it subtly blends into a variety of lakebeds, meaning you don’t need 20 different spools of hooklink material to make your rigs disappear on the substrate.

The outer coating is very supple, making the hooklink extremely versatile and suitable for most fishing situations, whether you're dealing with soft silt, fishing in weed, or on gravel. It excels in creating bottom bait rigs and boom sections for popular pop-up rigs like the Ronnie.

Available in 20lb, 25lb, and 35lb breaking strains on a 20m spool

Thinking Anglers Think Link is an incredibly strong material that is ideal for rigs such as the D-Rig, where a stiffer hooklink is needed to help kick the rig away from the lead. Made from a type of monofilament, it has very low memory, which allows it to be steamed straight easily and remain that way. It is excellent for creating boom sections and can be crimped if that’s your preferred method of securing your rigs.

The high knot strength ensures that Think Link won’t let you down, making it a great choice when fishing for large fish or in snaggy or weedy situations. The clear nature of the product means it disappears on any lakebed, while its slightly supple nature still offers movement that you wouldn’t expect from a stiffer material.

Think Link is available on a 20m roll in 25lb and 30lb breaking strains; however, it breaks well above the stated strength.

For the ultimate underwater concealment, you’ll be hard-pressed to find anything better than the ESP Soft Ghost Fluorocarbon. With nearly identical refraction properties to water, this 100% fluorocarbon material practically disappears when submerged, making it unbeatable for targeting wary fish.

Because fluorocarbon is denser than water, it sinks to the lakebed effectively, keeping it out of the way of feeding fish and helping to position your rig precisely where you want it. The ESP Soft Ghost has slightly more stretch than other fluorocarbons on the market, providing extra shock absorption, making it very strong for its diameter whilst helping reduce hook pulls. Additionally, it is softer and more supple, making it a more user-friendly material.

Available in 10lb, 12lb, 15lb, and 18lb on 20m spools.

When strength is required, the Nash SkinLink is one of the best choices currently available on the market. The inner braid is made from industry-unique Kevlar fibers, the same material used in stab-proof vests, making it incredibly abrasion-resistant. If you encounter situations such as snags, sharp gravel bars, or mussel beds, you can be confident that this material has the strength needed to safely land fish without the rig parting too easily.

Thanks to the Kevlar fibers, SkinLink is also quite heavy, so it sinks well, reducing the amount of putty needed to keep it pinned down—ideal if crayfish are present. The semi-stiff nature ensures that the rig always resets if disturbed while in the lake.

Available in Gravel, Weed, and Silt colors, and in 15lb, 20lb, 25lb, and 35lb breaking strains, there is sure to be a braid in the range to suit your needs.

When using chod or hinged-stiff rigs, you'll need a specialist material, and the Korda Mouth Trap has been specifically designed for such rigs. This very stiff filament material has high memory, allowing you to introduce a curve using just your hands—no need to steam it to achieve that perfect angle for your rig.

The stiffness of the material makes it challenging for fish to manage once they inhale the bait. The crucial curve you introduce into the chod section ensures that the hook is positioned perfectly to grab hold. Mouth Trap is also incredibly tough, ensuring it won’t break, which is particularly important when using a short hook length as with a chod rig.

Available on a 20m roll in breaking strains of 15lb, 20lb, and 25lb.

The Fox Zig and Floater hooklink is ideal for suspending a bait off the bottom or fishing on the surface. Its neutral buoyancy helps prevent it from sinking, which could otherwise drag your hookbait out of position.

The Trans Khaki finish on the monofilament makes it very hard to see underwater, reducing suspicion from fish, especially important when using long hook lengths for zig and floater fishing. The line benefits from a low diameter relative to its breaking strain, enhancing concealment, while its ultra-smooth profile helps reduce twist and tangles.

Available in 10lb, 12lb, and 15lb on a 100m spool, you’ll have plenty of line to tie up rigs for any depth.

The OMC AMMO Braided Hooklink is ideal if you need a super-supple braided material for fishing solid bags or if you want the maximum amount of movement in your rig. Thanks to its tightly woven fibers, the material doesn’t fray easily and offers excellent anti-tangle properties, even as an uncoated braid, making it suitable for use as a boom section to give the carp something different to deal with.

The camouflage finish on the braid blends well with a variety of lakebeds, and it is incredibly strong and durable. This makes it perfect for rigs like a slip D or combi, where you want to change the hook without frequently replacing the hooklink. The rounded, slightly thicker diameter also helps prevent unnecessary damage that thinner braids can sometimes cause, which is a great advantage.

Available in two colors—Gravel/Clay and Weed/Silt—with 25lb and 50lb breaking strains on a 20m spool.

If you’re new to carp fishing or on a budget, the Korda Basix Coated Hooklink is an excellent choice. It offers high-quality material at a fraction of the cost compared to other coated braids on the market.

The outer coating is between soft and semi-stiff, making it ideal for almost any situation and rig, thus simplifying your choice of hooklink material. The material straightens out well without the need for steaming, is very strong, and strips easily if you want to adjust the presentation. It also blends in effectively with the lakebed.

Available in Camo Green in 18lb and 25lb breaking strains on a 10m roll.

Keeping the hooklink pinned to the lakebed is crucial when fishing on the bottom, and the ESP Tungsten Loaded Coated Braid excels in this regard. Thanks to the use of tungsten in the manufacturing process, the hooklink is very heavy. Not only is the braid heavy, but it also performs exceptionally well. The Dyneema core is very supple, doesn’t fray easily, and the coating can be easily stripped back.

Tested and produced with input from renowned anglers like Terry Hearn, you can trust that this braid meets high standards. It is available in both soft and semi-stiff versions, with the semi-stiff option often favored by anglers for its slightly better performance, unless the bottom is very soft. The color scheme is unique, featuring flecks along its length to break up its appearance on the lakebed.

Available in a 20lb breaking strain with Gravel, Silt, and Weed colors on a 10m spool.