Carolina Rig Masterclass From the Guy Who Perfected It

How do you fish a Carolina rig for bass, and what weight, leader length, bait, and retrieve should you use? This episode breaks down Carolina rig setup from top to bottom, including weight size, line and leader choice, bottom contact, hook and bait selection, and how to retrieve it. We also get into the Petey Rig, a finesse Carolina rig variation for spooky or tough to catch bass, plus why so many anglers hurt themselves by using too little weight and fishing the rig too fast. Peter Thliveros spent decades refining the Carolina rig in tournament fishing, with more than $2 million in career earnings, seven BASS victories, 13 Bassmaster Classic qualifications, and an FLW Tour Angler of the Year title. He also developed the Petey Rig, a lighter and more subtle variation that he used to catch bass in clear water, grass, around cover, and when conventional presentations struggled. His experience here matters because these are adjustments he worked out over thousands of hours of actual fishing. You’ll learn: • How to set up a Carolina rig for bass • What weight to use and why bottom contact matters • How long your leader should be in cold and warm water • Why your leader should usually be lighter than your main line • When to use tungsten, lead, round weights, and bullet shaped weights • How to use a Carolina rig to identify hard bottom, shell, gravel, rock, and cover • Why a Super Fluke became one of Peter’s most trusted Carolina rig baits • How to rig and fish the Petey Rig • When the Petey Rig shines around spooky and pressured bass • How to fish Carolina rigs around grass, rock, current, shallow water, and clear water • When to drag, twitch, deadstick, or steadily reel the rig • The two Carolina rig mistakes Peter sees most often Peter Thliveros Guide Service: https://bassonline.com/fishing-guides... My complete 5 hour course on How to Get Better at Bass Fishing: How to Get Better at Bass Fishing (Full Co... Save 10% on MillerTech lithium batteries and all other products: https://tinyurl.com/MillerTech10off 0:00 Why the Carolina Rig Still Gets Bit 6:04 How the Carolina Rig Setup Evolved 7:22 Why Heavier Weight Improves Bottom Contact 12:20 How to Fish a Carolina Rig Year Round 21:08 What Is the Petey Rig? 25:14 How to Catch Spooky Bass in Clear Water 29:56 Best Carolina Rig Bait and Setup 33:34 How Long Should a Carolina Rig Leader Be? 34:50 Why Most Anglers Use Too Little Weight 35:58 Round Weight vs Bullet Weight 37:42 How to Rig Beads and Protect Your Knot 40:40 How to Read Bottom and Choose Carolina Rig Weight 45:08 Best Hooks and Baits for a Carolina Rig 47:27 How to Rig the Petey Rig 51:38 Carolina Rig and Petey Rig for Smallmouth 59:11 Best Rod Position and How to Detect Bites 1:02:30 How to Choose the Right Carolina Rig Retrieve 1:03:13 How to Trigger Bites Around Brush 1:05:52 When to Reel a Carolina Rig 1:08:14 When Fishing Extremely Slow Works 1:12:06 The 2 Biggest Carolina Rig Mistakes Catch More Bass podcast with Tom Redington. Audio podcast version available on Apple, Spotify and other major podcast platforms. New episodes Mondays at 2 PM Central. YouTube: Catch More Bass Podcast Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast... Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/2QGQyLE... Follow Tom for More Bass Fishing Content Facebook: Facebook: TomRedingtonFishing Instagram: Instagram: TomRedington TikTok: TikTok: TomRedington Some links are affiliate links and help support the channel with a small commission for me, at no extra cost to you.