Fishing tackle set up Giant Siamese Carp and Mekong. Fishing in Thailand Bangkok. Rigs, Knots.

Hi. So, the one question I get kind of frequently is how I am setting up for the bigger freshwater fish we have here in Thailand. The fish like the Giant Mekong and the Giant Siamese carp etc.
I thought I would put together an explanation video showing my general set up and some of the things I do to make a strong reliable setup that can hold up against the larger more powerful fish we come across here in Thailand. Rig and gear setup is always a personal preference and there are many ways of setting up that I am sure would work.
I hope this video helps someone planning on fishing in Thailand for the first time and if you have some suggestions, please add them below in the comments.

[@elzanhayadi1322]

very informative. Thank you sir.

[@tedsacre]

Good informative video I think putting link swivels on the floats is a good tip, saves a lot of time, hard to glue floats if made of polystyrene as it melts.

[@kevinmalone180]

Also in case anyone didn't quite hear and want to know the reels mentioned: Shimano Baitrunner D and OC Okuma CDX Baitfeeder Okuma Azores

[@goldplaybest]

Nice Tumbnail ;) you can't go wrong with an Okuma Azores icw a SKR Rod

[@carlward7372]

An excellent and informative video buddy well done 👍👍👍

[@fi2483]

Useful tips , thank you 👍🏻

[@kevinmalone180]

Thanks for your vid on this, I enjoyed this and your line testing one :)

[@Fishinginbangkok]

Thank you I appreciate the feedback

[@supawadeekr]

👍👍👍

[@rider660r]

I don't get the use of the huge 12000,etc. size reels and heavy #80 line.Reason is I have used #30 Hercules (all my braids are) braid with a #60 mono leader and a 24" steel leader on a 6500 reel for shark and have caught 5 and 6 footers about 50-75 yds out with them.I'm looking to get into bigger shark and rays at 200+ yds out though and have purchased a 50/80 rod and paired it with a Penn Squall 60 lever drag lefthand.I'm going to spool it with #70 and #100-120 mono shock leader with 24-36 steel leader. For those fish I would at most maybe use #40-50 and stick with the 6500 reel. I also use the same #30 Hercules braid for Cats here in the US but 20-36" #40 mono leader on a 4500 reel,the Flathead and Blues can get 80lb+ I use a leader on all my rods,usually from 12" up to 36" for my freshwater rods and 2-3 rod lengths on my shark/ray rod and around 36" on the smaller salt setups.I use a swivel on everything other than my shark/ray setups and just use a clinch not to attach them.I also use a FG on the shark/ray but may try out the SC next time I get to go. I use a Santee Rig here for Cats,it's a float near the hook to raise the bait up off the bottom.The float is smaller than you have but made the same,with the center hole.You could slit them lengthwise with a razor blade or hacksaw blade and find a peg that fits tight in that center hole and drill a hole in the center of it to feed your line (just seen you use a chop stick as a plug,that can be used as a peg).Then if you want to take the float off all you do is pull the peg and slide the float off the line.The peg will stay on the line but so does those beads but you can also slit the peg or chopstick and use it as a slip float too,just have to line up slit in float and slit in peg about 180* from one another.You can also use it as a fixed float and then you could take both the peg and float off the line without cutting the line.I snell all my circle/bait hooks (except the shark/ray setup),it doesn't take but a few seconds to cut and retie if need be. @ 9:47,yeah here in the US it's referred to as a Cow Hitch knot.I'll use it to attach sinkers when used below the hook. I'll never waste $$ on Okuma garbage again,got 2 collecting dust because they couldn't handle every day use.One lasted about 7 months,the other barely 4 days.I bought them and by the time I got to use them and then had problems there was nothing I could do.Since then I have only bought other off-brands from Amazon to test and they all have been sent back within 2 weeks.Only reels I'll buy now is (in order from 1-3) Shimano,Daiwa,Penn.Out of 40 or so reels I have never had one of them give me one problem,and I have a few Shimano's from the late 80's that has caught 1000's of fish and they're still made and are only $30,I forget what they cost back then.Daiwa went down hill bad back in the 80's and/or 90's but since sometime in the earlier 2000's they been making quality stuff again.

[@Fishinginbangkok]

Hi Sir. wow what a long message. I am sitting here dyeing of covid hoping my body will kick its ass by the weekend as i want to go fishing. Why do we tend to use 80Lb braid? well good question i do fish sometimes with 65Lb and even have reels rigged with 50lb and 25lb. it very much depends on where i am going both with potential size of the fish and with the lake design. The video here is very much focused on the high-end lakes that hold the biggest fish. I will start with the size of the fish. some of the higher end lakes here have catfish stocked to around 400Lb and they go like stink a very powerful fish. You are correct I could get a 400Lb fish in on 50Lb braid, but I am going to have to take it very slow and the fish could die during the fight. This is all catch and release, and the big fish are worth many thousands of dollars, so the owners want the fight over relatively quick to reduce stress to the fish. A big carp over 100lb could be worth 20 thousand USD. Many of the high-end lakes here stipulate in their rules that the minimum LB of braid they will allow is 80Lb. Ok so for the design of the lake. There are often loads of snags at many lakes here. They build the fishing platform on concreate posts. when the fish takes a dive under the platform you must put the brakes on hard and turn it out or you will get broken off very quickly even when using a 100lb mono leader the concreate will rub through very fast. No wire is allowed at any fishing parks I know. I also like shimano as a rule they make very good reels. I have tried a few okumas and I was not impressed with some of there products. However, I have to say the Azores reel is a different animal. I don’t know what happened when they made this maybe they just got lucky but it’s a beast of a reel. The other reels used regularly are the shimano’s and the daiwa BG. I tend to use the shimano for the carp as the max drag is ½ of the okuma and this stops me tightening the drag to hard in the middle of the fight when the adrenalin is pumping pulling the hook from a soft carp’s mouth. The okuma I tend to use more for the Mekong as they are the fish that need more control, and their mouths are considerably harder so less chance of pulling the hook. Pen here I have seen fall apart after only a few trips, but I have also heard that there are many imitation penn reels doing the rounds so unless I was buying in the USA or the UK I would keep clear of Penn here. This is also true for the braid here. There are many copies here that’s why I buy the made in China stuff as no one copy’s the cheaper products. I will be in the USA again at the end of the year after 3 years and plan to stock up on a few products.

[@rider660r]

@@Fishinginbangkok Yeah I know it got to be a winded comment.Thanks for answering though,now I understand.Here in the US we call those ponds/lakes Pay lakes.A lot of people are trying to get those shutdown,because they go out and get the big fish from rivers,lakes,etc. and put them in their ponds and are not very well taken care of...pretty much starved so they bite the customers baits.I've never been to one,I fish all the natural waters. Give that Hercules a try,never tested it so IDK how close it is to the advertised breaking strength but it should be pretty darn close.

[@DillonTrinhProductions]

@@rider660r I’m guessing that you never been to Thailand

[@james6495]

How do you determine when you will use a shock leader?

[@Fishinginbangkok]

For me it all depends on the amount of snags at the venue. Some where like Bungsamran I will use a shock leader because all the platforms are made with concreate posts in the water. If the braid touches the concreate it will cut it in a split second. Mono will give you a chance of guiding the fish out.

[@rossmaxwell7737]

Would the Shimano bait runner 8000d be a good reel for these lakes?

[@Fishinginbangkok]

There a gr8 real. Only potential downside. would be the line capacity if you fished at Bungsamran as the lake is huge, if you hooked it to something big it could spool you. but I have fished at Bungsamran using a 8000-OC loaded with 60Lb braid and caught a 107lb Mekong and it handled it just fine. Other than that most fishing lakes are no a problem as they are much smaller so the fish will just run out of runway. .

[@rossmaxwell7737]

@@Fishinginbangkok thanks for the advice. Also Can you tell me where in Bangkok I can buy a decent powerful rod, Ideally I would like something that is either telescopic or something that packs down in 4/5 sections for travelling with backpack? Not sure if something like that exists but any info would be much appreciated.

[@Fishinginbangkok]

@@rossmaxwell7737 telescopic or 3-4 section travel rods are not really a thing in Thailand. especially if you want something strong enough to handle a decent size Siamese or Mekong. you can buy a decent 2 section rod from most tackle shops for 1500-2500B. you can pay a lot more but 1500-2500 will get you a plenty good enough rod and you can find 2 section rods everywhere. most Thai rods are around 6-9ft long. or alternatively bring your own real loaded with good line and rent the rod from the lake. the reel is the more important part of the set up and easer to transport.

[@obsessed_angler]

I am currently in Thailand and cant decide between the Penn Spinfisher LL 6500 or 8500. What size would you recommend for the big catfish and carp?

[@Fishinginbangkok]

Both will probably do the job just fine. If you are fishing Bungsamran you may want the bigger reel just because of the line capacity. The lake is long and if the fish takes off you will be thankful of the extra capacity on the spool.

[@markberriman2609]

Does the okuma azores have a bait runner m8 ?

[@Fishinginbangkok]

for the Azores there is no bait runner function. The Okume CDX has a bait runner function and so far its doing the job but i have to say if you are looking for a bait runner the shimano is the best.

[@donaldwhite6097]

Where can I buy the floats? I there any online link ?

[@Fishinginbangkok]

Hi. Most of the tackle stores in Thailand sell the floats. Most lakes will sell a few floats also.

[@donaldwhite6097]

@@Fishinginbangkok I live in Vietnam, can they ship ?

[@Fishinginbangkok]

@@donaldwhite6097 i would think the shipping would be considerably more than the floats. www.7seasproshopthai.com/ is a shop i use in Bangkoksend them a message they may ship. other than this take a look at Lazada and Aliexpress.