Tying Hooks

[sweetwater]

+1 on what he said elevated to 99.99%

I am certainly knot (intended) an expert. The .01% is when I screw up.

I'm a she

[peter]

Improved Clinch knot, for me ... about 99.9% of the time, when tying line to a hook, clip, or artificial bait. Properly wetting the line, prior to cinching it down, and then cinching it down slowly & carefully until it's snugged in tight ... has made for a very reasonable percentage of knot holding results. I'm using this knot on mono & braid, for line between 4 - 20 lb test.

The only time I vary from the actual Improved Clinch ... is when I'm using brand new braid. New braid is slick, and knots "can" tend to slip open under pressure. I vary the tying procedure, by simply tying a overhand knot in the tag end of the line. When the Improved Clinch knot is cinched down, and IF it starts to slip open, the overhand knot is drawn against the coils of the main knot and stops any further slippage.

I use the Improved Clinch knot because it's simple, quick, easy to tie ... and it's what I've used for over 50 years. The other 0.1% of the time, I'm using a loop knot ... for topwater and/or jerkbait styles of artificial baits.


... pappy

Me too. Use it on 20lb braid also.
I always give my knots a guick test before throwing them in the water by holding the hook with pliers and pulling real hard on the main line. On flouro After tightening the knott down I grab the hook with one set of pliers and the tag (short) end with another set and pull the knott tighter then hold just the hook with pliers and give the main line a quick tug.

Palomar knotts are easier to tie correctly I think and are good no doubt but cannot be used in eveys situation so I just use the improved clinch all the time to keep it simple.

I have recently began to think about trying snell knotts mainly because I have read where they make for improved hookups because of how the line goes through the eye of the hook. When the line is pulled tight the the hook actually will be at an angle to the line so if the ling is say in the center if a fishes mouth this would put the point of the hook closer to flesh or bone. Gonna give it a try.

Some vids on tying snell hooks.


http://youtu.be/nHOlUVNswIU


http://youtu.be/3qGQgkirH_w


http://youtu.be/882YgGrL9Vs

[redearhoosier]

For tying a leader to a mainline such as braid to mono, I like either the Yucatan or the Bristol Knot. I also like the Stren knot for small diameter braids and mono...great knot. I don't use barrel swivels.

[peter]

I know that came off as arrogant and I apologize for that but I just wanted people to know that I'm not blowing smoke and folks are welcome to ask me about various knots if they choose. I like the Traditional Snell because of the in plane relationship it has with the hook. The fishing line is tied directly to the hook's shank, not tied to the hook's ring. This is a very important feature that allows fisherman to deliver a much better strike when setting the hook.

Thanks for the post. My guess is that you are in fact an expert.

[peter]

The very best knot for tying on hooks is the traditional Snell Knot. The Snell Knot is not only very strong and reliable but it creates an in plane hook set when you go to set the hook and that's why it's the very best terminal knot out there. That in plane hook set allows you to miss fewer fish and catch more fish. This traditional Snell Knot works VERY well when targeting hard pulling bottom fish like catfish, shellcracker or ocean fish such as Grouper.

Most of these other knots being mentioned are tied to the ring of the hook and it allows the knot to freely rotate all the way around the circle of the ring. You certainly won't get the direct in plane hook set you're looking for.

I'm a knot expert that can tie almost any of the standard traditional knots, be it boating knots, rescue knots, fishing knots or general purpose knots.

Are you running the line through the eye or bypassing the eye. Asking because you use the term "in plane".

[Duayne]

http://www.animatedknots.com/indexfi...matedknots.com

[redearhoosier]

Peter,
I always bypass the eye itself and tie directly to the hook's shank. Some hooks have eyes that can actually weaken the line at the entry point so I tend to not thread my line through the eye. You can get away with tying heavier mono through the eyes but smaller stuff can get pinched and weakened really quick. I would prefer to actually run my line through the eye as it would give you an even better "in plane" strike when sitting the hook.

I use the Traditional Snell with all lines too, mono, flouro and braid. The smaller lines simply need more wraps and of course the heavier lines not as many.

[peter]

Peter,
I always bypass the eye itself and tie directly to the hook's shank. Some hooks have eyes that can actually weaken the line at the entry point so I tend to not thread my line through the eye. You can get away with tying heavier mono through the eyes but smaller stuff can get pinched and weakened really quick. I would prefer to actually run my line through the eye as it would give you an even better "in plane" strike when sitting the hook.

I use the Traditional Snell with all lines too, mono, flouro and braid. The smaller lines simply need more wraps and of course the heavier lines not as many.

15 lb line through the eye or not?
Gonna. Tey some snells this weekend.

Thanks for the info.

Funny, i was going to start a thread asking about snell hooks a week or to ago.

[redearhoosier]

I would tie 15lb line directly to the shank of the hook. I would feel comfortable tying 25lb test and above through the eye....as long as I didn't see any factory issues inside the hook's eye that might jeopardize my line when giving it a sudden yank when setting the hook. Some of these hooks have factory issues that could easily create a tiny abrasion or tiny cut that could damage the line and cause it to break when fighting that wall hanger fish. It's why I generally tie to the shank...I learned the hard way.

[peter]

How do ya'll tie hooks to line? Do you Snell them or use a Palomar knot?

Just learned how to snell tie a hook. A guy at the ramp Saturday showed me a super easy way. Only works if you have two free ends though, like when making a leader. Retied everything and going to see if it improves hook placement in the mouth.