THE FOLLOWING, WITH OUR THANKS, WAS KINDLY SUPPLIED BY DAVE LANE:

The idea of the Heli-Gripter bead is to create a safe helicopter rig when using Leadcore or thick solid nylon leaders.

The top (or release) bead is the crucial part of the set up and this bead has been designed with a hole bore three times the diameter of most standard beads. This, when combined with the large eyed swivel (supplied), ensures that the top bead and the hooklink can easily pass over the knot that secures the leader to the main line.  So, should a breakage on the main line occur, the fish can dislodge the top bead with a flick of the head and the hooklink and bead will slide off the leader and off the main line where it has broken, leaving the fish with only the hooklink to eject. This will be far easier as it is not trailing a weight or a long length of heavy duty leader that could easily snag up and keep constant pressure on the hook-hold.

Carp are very adept at ejecting hooks if there is no pressure on the hooklink and this usually only takes a day or two in most normal situations. If you are unsure in anyway about the safety of a rig from a lead ejection point of view then there is a simple test you can perform.

Simply tie the rig up as normal and then hold the rig by the hook out in front of you at about waist height. With a small flick of the wrist that gently bounces the lead, the rig should work and the lead should discharge and hit the floor, completely free of the leader. If this is not happening then the lead is not safe. This test applies to both helicopter rigs and also lead release clips.