The Castwell Knot

[Steven]

When the late JC introduced the Castwell knot in these hallowed pages, back in the day, there was much controversy over whether the knot itself was original or some kind of bend knot that had been around for ages. If I remember correctly, JC himself stated that there was no way he invented it, but he had never seen it written up before and knew no name for it.

Let me state clearly, that in my opinion, JC's popularization of the knot makes the attachment of the Castwell name totally appropriate.

That said, this weekend, I came across a depiction of the knot in George Parker Holden's book, Stream Craft, published in 1919. He refers to it as a simple jam knot - with the only difference being that the tag end of the line is tied in an overhand knot to prevent slippage.

I'm not familiar with silk lines or gut leaders so do not know if the overhand knot was necessary.

[Jack Hise]

It's also known as a "Weavers Bend".

[Ray]

The Castwell knot can't be that old. The knot is best used on plastic lines.

[dudley]

The "Castwell knot" is illustrated in a 1966, 36 page pamphlet that I have titled;

TO CAST A FLY, a step-by-step guide for the modern angler by Scientific Anglers' fly fishing specialists.

They simply call it the "line to leader knot"

The next step is to attach the butt of the leader to the end of the line. There are a number of ways of doing this, but for the time being we'll stick to the simplest satisfactory knot, which is tied as follows......

[big]

To me, it will always be the Castwell knot.

[ohiotuber]

To me, it will always be the Castwell knot.

Me too & it's a GREAT knot.
Mike