NOVA Mackerel Flasher

Overview

The INOVA Mackerel Flasher 4 Hook Rig is a ready-tied sea-fishing trace built around four size 1/0 hooks, each dressed with a reflective flasher-style lure. It's officially catalogued by INOVA as the Mackerel Flasher Trace 4 Hook under product code 200089.

The rig is tied on a robust 50lb mainline with 30lb snoods, giving it a sturdy construction compared to finer baitfish rigs such as INOVA's Skinners range. This makes it one of INOVA's heavier traditional mackerel strings rather than a fine-wire Sabiki-style setup.

The flasher dressing is described in the official catalogue simply as a reflective flasher-style lure on each hook, designed to catch the light and attract fish as it's worked through the water column.

Perfect For

This rig is primarily aimed at mackerel and pollack, making it a popular choice for UK sea anglers casting and retrieving from the shore or jigging vertically from a boat. INOVA's own catalogue also lists it as suitable for cod, haddock, wrasse, gurnards and ling, giving it versatility beyond just mackerel strings.

A typical shore setup runs mainline through to the Mackerel Flasher rig and then down to a lead, with the four lures worked through the water by casting and retrieving, or by lifting and dropping. It's equally suited to being worked vertically from a boat over marks holding mackerel, pollack or other listed species.

Technical Insight

The four size 1/0 hooks are spaced along the trace so each reflective flasher-style lure can move independently in the water, creating multiple flash points that help draw fish in from a distance – a key reason traditional flasher rigs remain effective for mackerel shoals.

The 50lb mainline and 30lb snoods give the rig genuine strength for general UK sea fishing, standing up to repeated casting, retrieving and the occasional multiple hook-up that mackerel rigs are known for. This heavier construction sets it apart from finer baitfish Sabiki-style rigs, making it a durable choice for anglers wanting a straightforward, hard-wearing mackerel and pollack trace for shore or boat use.