From the
folks at Cape Cod Outdoors. The best, area specific, outdoor site.
From the
folks at Cape Cod Outdoors. The best, area specific, outdoor site.| At some time in our fishing careers we started to pay attention
to the kind of knots we were tying. Until then, granny knots and half hitches
seemed good enough. Then something happened to cause us to put out the effort
to learn to tie a better knot. That "something" was probably a lost fish. My something was about 15 lost fish. Let me tell you a story. When I was about 12 years old, I was invited fishing with my Uncle Hal, my grampa and my dad on the upper Mississippi. We trailered Hal's boat the sixty miles or so and trolled all day. We didn't catch many fish but I watched Hal and my grampa carefully for fishing information. They were the experts. My dad didn't fish often and only managed to snag some freshwater oysters. I caught nothing at all. Early in the day, my grampa watched me tie my only knot, a half hitch in doubled line that formed a loop, and said, "you ought to tie a better knot than that." He was a man of few words. Motoring back in through the marshes, Hal was casting along the shoreline when he caught a largemouth. He cut the motor and pointing to the spot suggested I try a cast there too. While he was fighting his fish, I cast, hooked up and broke off a nice bass. Then my grampa and dad made casts and hooked up. In the next fifteen minutes or so I tied on and broke off three more lures. They caught about a dozen fish out of that spring hole before the action ended. I went fishless for the day and decided I better learn something about knots. Your own lost fish story may be about a trout or a striper or a pike but the truth is that when we graduated beyond catching quarter pound sunfish on 12 pound test line we needed a better knot. You can always tell when it's the knot that failed and not the line too. That little curly end to the line and no fraying gives it away. Then you know it was your fault you didn't land that fish and not anyone or anything else's. That curly end also illustrates the weakness of knots; where a line crosses itself or metal, a shearing/cutting force is applied. Hence, strong knots involve many turns around themselves or through the eye to spread out and diminish this destructive force. A few definitions of terms would help before we begin. "Standing line" is the line from the reel to the knot. "Tag end" is the line beyond the knot. "Bight", "turn" or "wrap" are all loops in the line. The most commonly used fishing knot today is probably the improved clinch. Tied properly with at least four wraps this knot is as strong as the line used to tie it. Though it looks involved, it can be tied in the dark and unseen with a little practice. |
Here's how. Instead of holding the loop with one hand and trying to hold the standing line with the other and wrapping the tag end around it with any left over fingers, try this instead.
| (1) Loop the line through an eye (hook, snap, lure) then hold the tag end and standing line together with your right middle finger pressed to the bottom of your thumbprint, tag end between your forefinger and thumb tip. Insert your left middle finger into the loop alongside the eye and spin your finger to twist the line four or five times. | |
| (2) Direct the tag end through the twisted loop and grasp it with your left forefinger and thumb. | |
| (3) Then direct it further through the new gap created by the tag end and the twisted line and regrasp it with your right forefinger and thumb. Now this is very important, wet the twists with your tongue and then grasp the tag end with your teeth. Tighten by pulling the looped eye and standing ends in opposite directions slowly. Do not pull on the tag end while tightening, this will destroy the integrity of the knot; just take up the slack with slight pressure. | |
| Inspect the knot. (4) It should look uniformly barrel shaped around the standing line. If so, trim the tag end closely to prevent catching weeds. |
| The making of this knot raises a number of principles for all knots.
First, experiment with the forming of a knot until you find a hand technique that is easy and efficient for you. Finding your own best way of making a knot allows you to learn to tie without looking at your hands so you can keep an eye on the water when things are happening. It also allows you to tie at night without the aid of a light that would interfere with your night vision or spook the fish. Always lubricate a knot before tightening and tighten it slowly. The friction and heat that results from drawing a knot tight can weaken any line and can destroy monofilament. Wetting and slow motion can eliminate this damage. Know how to tighten a knot. As noted with the Improved Clinch above, tightening the wrong way can hurt your knot. Other knots may not form up properly if hurried, some won't even tighten if they are mishandled. (The more loops and turns in a knot, the more care needs to go into their alignment during tightening.) It is important to check for knot shape when you are done. This allows you to spot when a loop has ridden over the knot improperly. All misshapen knots are unpredictable and should be cut off and retied. Take care to cut the extra tag end line off; don't pull or snip it off with your teeth. I watched a fellow destroy seven improved clinches in a row that way one day at the canal. And, yes, I tried to tell him. By the way, this is what fingernail clippers were really made for and were, in fact, invented by Izaak Walton at a time when his own dentures were failing and were called "metale nippers" in his writings. Only by accident did Ms. Walton discover another use for her husband's "iron teeth" and immediately recognizing the marketing potential developed a cottage industry using her smithy skills that became their sole means of support in their later years. (As you might expect, this in itself is an interesting story but shall keep for another time.) It is absolutely essential that you match your knot to your line type. braided nylon, steel, monofilment, "super" braids, "fusions", leadcore, coated steel; all have their strengths and weakness that are protected or aggravated by a knot. Matching the knot to the task is the next consideration. Certainly, wiring steel to swivels, knotting fly leaders and fastening super braids all require different knots. Do you know them? |
Nail Knot { Mf }: knot crushes onto "thick" lines.
Leader to fly line.
Tighten slowly to hold shape and trim closely.
Steel Twists { St }: strength with and without nylon coating
Eye fastening.
Bare wire tag end should be broken off by metal fatigue
Coated braided steel leaders can be twisted five times and bonded carefully
with a match.
| Overhand Slip Knot { Mf Bn }: attaches line to reel arbor. | |
| Improved Clinch { Mf Bn }; the strongest terminal tackle knot. Attachment to eyes: hook, snap, swivel, flies. Only three turns for nylon. Not for "supers". Tighten properly and slowly. | |
| Palomar { Mf Bn }: the other strong terminal tackle knot. Attach to eyes of all kinds but doubled line not for flies. Be sure the loop snugs below the knot. Tied without looking. | |
| Uni-knot { Mf sB F} still another strong terminal tackle knot. Attaches to eyes. Tie using doubled line and thrice through the eye for slick "power braids" (add super glue) and "fusions". | |
| Surgeons End Loop { Mf Bn Lc } Eye and loop to loop attachments. Above a Palomar creates a "doubled leader". No looking. | |
| Blood Knot { Mf Bn sB F Lc }: strong. Line to line. Different types but similar sizes. Leader to tippet.. Double "power" lines and add two wraps. "Barrel" version is only two wraps for nylon to nylon/leadcore. Tighten slowly holding shape. | |
| Double Surgeons Knot { Mf Bn Lc }: strong line to line. Attaches different line sizes and different types too. Excellent fine tippet to leader knot All lines except steel. Double "power" lines. No looking. | |
| Albright Knot { Mf Bn sB F Lc } : Laborious to build but the strongest line/line Knot Different line sizes and different types. "Power" lines should be (dbl. line surgeons end loop) loop. Wet well and tighten slowly to hold shape. | |
If you take the time to look over these knots and consider how they
are made, you will see a pattern emerging. The number of turns or wraps
is directly related to the surface friction of the line.
Nylon, dacron and leadcore, have the roughest surface and will tie strongly
with only a couple of wraps. Monofilament and Fluorocarbon are the next
smoothest and generally require four or five wraps to bind securely. "Super"
braids and fusions are the slickest and often require line doubling, multiple
turns through the eye and more than five wraps to keep from slipping apart.
Keep this in mind when you are knotting different lines and you will tie
the bind that lasts.
In the end, if you know only the improved clinch, the bloodknot and surgeon's
end loop, you have done well to prepare yourself for whatever might come
your way.