Before we start this review it is probably worth mentioning I’ve known Ian Houlton (Moonfleet Angling) for over 4 years. To be honest I’ve always resisted reviewing his rigs as it could be construed as a conflict of interest, reviewing a mates own products coupled with the fact we also sell them in the WSF Shop, could be viewed by some as a bit “dodgy”. So instead of a standard review, I’ve put together a report on why we decided to stock them...

The phrase “bought rigs” will appear often in this review, why? Well because it would be unfair to compare these rigs to a homemade rig when they are in competition with other bought rigs. If you don’t buy rigs and make your own and have no intention of ever buying a rig...go and make a cup of tea, watch the telly or better still go and do some fishing, because this review isn’t for you!

In today’s society we demand more for the money we spend, this is fine, except it can lead to manufacturers cutting corners in order to make up the margins they might have otherwise lost out on. Ian invests in only the best components he can, as well as using good quality line, despite this Ian has managed to keep the rigs down to a sensible price, too cheap in my opinion, but Ian disagrees.

All of Moonfleet rigs are made using 80lbs Sakuma Rig Body Line, which Ian pre-stretches for 3 days checking daily and adjusting as he needs to create the perfect rig body. The same is applied to the snoods and Ian only uses Amnesia for these, and it does show. It is rare for a Moonfleet rig to twist or tangle and it’s nice to see Ian has a grasp of measuring. The problem I’ve always found with some bought rigs is that they never, ever measure up correctly. You can guarantee that when one snood clips perfectly the others are going to be a mile out. So it’s nice to have a rig I didn’t tie myself that measures up as it should.

On close inspection of all the rigs I’ve looked at from the whole range, it’s obvious to see that Ian has used proper genuine components from Gemini, Sakuma and Breakaway and not cheaper copies. Ian also takes special care with the hooks he uses, choosing Partridge, Sakuma and Kamasan as his preferred brands. As with all of Ian’s rigs, the customer can choose which hook brand they would prefer, this means Ian can cover all his customers individual needs. What is interesting for a bought rig, Ian chooses not to use crimps which are a far quicker and cheaper way of putting a rig together; instead he uses silicon sliders which mean his rigs are adjustable when fishing. You can literally fish a snood anywhere on the main rig line if you really wanted to, without much bother; whilst I’ve used derivatives of sliders for years it’s rare to see them on bought rigs.

You can tell by looking at the rigs that Ian puts a lot of care into the way they are tied. A detailed look at the knots shows that they have all been tied correctly and there are never any obvious heat marks that are often associated with bought rigs.

There are plenty of little quirks on Ian’s rigs that you would usually only see on rigs made by anglers themselves. You certainly don’t get that Friday afternoon slapped together feel with these rigs. I like the way you can tell a little bit of thought has gone into the rigs, rather than them being built from a set pattern. For instance all of Ian’s rigs are customer customisable. Each rig can be changed in some way or another to suit the situation in hand. He sends rigs out with various snoods of differing kinds; these can be attached to the main rig body to customise the rig to target a specific species, again rare to see on a bought rig.

The rigs are component heavy, each rig has a large array of different components on them which allow the rigs to be customised and tweaked to the angler’s specification. This may not suit all anglers especially those that specialise in fishing the rough stuff (pulley rigs apart). Due to the way the rigs are built and the components on them I wouldn’t use them in an area that I would be likely to get snagged or find rough. If you are going to be fishing these areas, ask Ian to build you a stripped rig with fewer components, he’s more than happy to produce customised rigs for his customers.

For beach work though there is little wrong with the rest of the rigs. They are of a far superior standard than most bought rigs I’ve seen before and I’m impressed with the way Ian has managed make a consistently well tied rig, whilst still retaining a sensible price.

Having seen the trend of Moonfleet Rigs over the past couple of years, there is no doubt that the tweaks and improvements that Ian has applied to his rigs over this period, have made these rigs one of the “premium” rigs to buy. One of the main issues Ian has addressed, which I didn’t like with the first rigs, was the use of 8mm beads. Ian now uses 5mm beads on his rigs and only uses genuine Gemini or Sakuma beads too. He has also removed the original barrel swivels from the first rigs I saw, and replaced these with quality crane and rolling swivel varieties.

If you buy your rigs then these are definitely up there with some of the best, not the cheapest granted, but competitively priced given the build quality and you do get what you pay for (and a bit more).

Moonfleet Angling supply Shore and Boat rigs and a full list can be viewed on the Moonfleet Angling Web Site, where you can also purchase the rigs.

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