Fishing School
Knots
Leader Assembly: Blood Knot & Non-Slip Loop
This video shows how to tie the leader assembly with the lighter top section and the strong bite tippet (knot lessons start at the 2:17 mark).
Braid to Leader: FG Knot
Braid to Leader (2nd Choice): Crazy Alberto
Some members have reported issues with tying the FG knot, so here’s the next best option based on its strength to diameter ratio:
How long should the entire leader line be before attaching to the braid?
I usually tie my braid to leader knot to the leader while it’s still attached to the spool, and then I cut it to my desired length which is about 30 inches. But if cutting the leader line off the spool first, I’d just cut about 32 inches as I typically have a ~2 inch tag when tying the FG knot.
Is a double uni knot an acceptable way to tie the bite tip to the leader? If so, why do you recommend a blood knot instead?
The blood knot is stronger and more sleek than the double uni knot, so that’s why it’s a better fit for this more advanced leader assembly.
Where is the table of leader line recommendations that you mention in the top video at the 3 minute mark?
Here’s a video that I did more recently that shows how the Alberto compares to the FG knot: https://www.saltstrong.com/articles/albright-vs-alberto-vs-fg-knot/
Watching and trying to learn from a left handed video is tough! Everything is backwards
Just learned this knot and probably gonna be my go to for now on
I’m learning the fg knot, mainline to leader, and see the better result (smaller knot profile). Why not use it also with leader to tippet? Why the bloodknot?
The FG knot only works when connecting braid to a mono/fluoro line… it won’t work without 1 of the lines being braid.
With the loop knot, it is important to ensure that the tag end, once it passes through the eye of the hook goes into the loop from the same side that the tag end exited the loop. If you hold the loop horizontally and look at the loop from the side, you will see a definite “top side” and “under side” of the loop, as to how the line enters and exits the loop. Make sure when you feed the tag end back through the loop it is coming from the underside. Otherwise, the loop in the knot may slip.
Thanks for adding the helpful tip David!
Another great lesson
Thanks Donald!
Never really gave line diameter and line noise/vibration much thought in the past, just went to “strong enough to land something a little bigger than I was expecting in this area” but this actually makes great sense if you consider the natural senses of a fish – we’re putting something foreign into the environment they are 100% instinctively tuned to monitor for their eat or be eaten survival.
Anybody that’s fished a fair amount has no doubt seen bubbles from the line itself on the water as it descends through the water column or the water parting on the surface during a retrieve and it stands to reason there is some sort of discernible (to a fish!) sound or vibration associated with that.
In keeping with the science and testing in your approach to fishing plus underwater sound technology advancements I’m wondering if there’s any way to actually test line noise in the water…
Great question! If there is, it’ll likely require a very expensive device to measure the wavelength of a thin line going through the water.
Thinking about it from above the water, consider how much noise the line of an upright stowed rod can make “singing” in a decent wind with just a little tension. All food for thought with regards to every aspect of our presentations.
Thank you Luke !!! I know that knot tying has HUGE importance out there 🤜🤛
Thanks for making time to post the nice comment Dave!