Knot strength

[Clay]

I know that there are several threads on knots. One of the recent ones prompted this post, but I didn't want to take that thread too far off of topic. I know that many have favorite knots and that thier confidence levels are high using those knots. I am trying to develop a new knot strategy for fly fishing. I have the following goals:

Best to keep knot selection simple.

Know how to tie a few knots well.

I want to pick my new knots for being easy to tie and being strong. There is a web site that I cannot remember the name of and that many Google searches have not discovered. It was something like knottests.com or knotstest.com, but not either of those. They used one of those knot testing machines and tried various knots. Anyone know of a web site like this?

I did find this nice article: http://www.midcurrent.com/articles/k...astlink_1.aspx It is mainly about which knot to use to terminate your tippet to your fly.

Here is what I am currently using:

Reel to backing: Arbor knot

Backing to fly line: Albright

Fly line to leader: speed nail knot: http://www.flyfisherman.com/skills/jb4knots/

Leader to tippet: Tripple surgeon's knot

Tippet to fly: Improved clinch, but after reading the first link that I provided it will go to the Orvis knot.


I would like to know a good source of scientific, or at least some reasonable tests on knot strength. If you know of a web site I would appreciate a pointer in the right direction. Thanks,

Rick

[gzacckey]

try this one. Knot wars http://www.fishingclub.com/ExtraCont...aspx?id=132344 it's not specific to FF but is covers basic knots for mono, floro & super lines.

[J Castwell]

Make TWO turns around the arbor of your reel and notice the direction of pull when tied to avoid slipping on the center shaft.

[raw69]

I've been following the Knot Wars on ESPN and it has been very informative. As I thought the good ol' Palomar has been the winner so far.

Personally, here is what I use.
Reel to backing: Arbor knot

Backing to fly line: Blood

Fly line to leader: Nail knot

Leader section to leader section (I tie my own) Blood

Leader to tippet: Blood or Triple surgeon's knot

Tippet to fly: Loop knot on all streamers - Palomar, if possible, or Improved clinch

[Clay]

GZ, that was the web site that I was looking for. I just watched a whole bunch of those on line videos. I was surprised by the leader knot outcome.

One of the comments by Art Scheck, who wrote the Midcurrent's article, was to be careful not to tie superior knots from tippet to fly and weak knots when attaching tippet material. This condition would have you break off your entire tippet and leave that material in the stream. If you are going to tie a great tippet to fly knot, you had better do a great leader to tippet knot.

I see where I will have to tie up some of my own test rigs to do tests on the Palomar vs the Orvis knot. Then the uni-knot vs the tripple surgeons.

JC, thanks for the tip on the arbor knot. I do modify it some now, in that I tie a double overhand to make the nonslip portion of the tag end larger so that it won't slip through the hole as easily. If I ever get to this knot, I know I am in the deep stuff anyhow. I had better stop the fly line before it gets here and break the tippet so that I don't loose $60 worth of fly line.

Rick

[shorthaul]

I switch lines a lot on my saltwater reels so my backing to line is attatched with a bimini twist with a large enough loop to put my reel through and a loop is spliced at the end of the flylines (loop to loop connections)---i can switch from a sink tip to a floater to a shooting head if conditions change while on the boat.

On trout leaders i have a loop at both ends ---loop to loop at the flyline and tippet is put on with a modified uni knot and the fly is tied with an improved clinch knot---the clinch always breaks first---that way i dont lose the whole tippet when i break off a fly on a snag as i would with 2 clinch knots.

[Clay]

I think that many freshwaer fisherman could learn much from salt water anglers. I personally don't fish the salt because it isn't anywhere close to Wis, but maybe one day.

Rick