about a month ago I saw a web article on a father who took his son to a bass/trout fishing show and showed an exhibitor a new knot his son had come up with. It was very simple but had a 100% test.
this was posted within the last 3-4 months. Has anyone seen this knot or the article or any article about this young fly fishers knot? If so please post a URL for it or send a cut and paste.
thanks , Jan
I did not see it here, but there in the book More Midges, the story of a father whose son showed the author a knot. I have used that knot. It is easy to tie and seems to be at LEAST as good and by my unscientific observations better than the other tippet to hook knots out there. If you use it, be sure to look at the Oct. Nov. Dec. issues of Fly Angler to see a comparison of line to leader and leader to tippet knots. If you use a surgeons knot with the good hook knot, your tippet will keep breaking off when you snag a tree. The Orvis knot is needed for the leader to tippet knot. IM (oh so) HO
Here you go. Just go to search this forum and type in midge knot.
Topic:?? Midge Magic Knot…a GREAT one!
Great knot, I use it, I wouldn’t call it 100% though, actually I don’t think a knot can be 100%, but that’s my opinion. Low build up, I haven’t had it fail yet. -Chad
Many go fishing all their lives without
knowing that it is not fish they are after.
That knot and story appear in “Midge Magic”. The sample pages for Midge Magic on Amazon.com decribe the knot. That’s where I first saw it.
One day, I will buy that book.
I think microsoft needs a fact checker. The book is Midge Magic and the magazine with the knot comparisons is American Angler. Sorry about that.
To obsessively add another small point. 
The “Orvis” knot and the Midge Knot are closely related. I believe the Orvis knot was submitted to Orvis in a contest some years ago. I think there is an animation of how to tie the knot on the Orvis web site. The American Angler author liked both the Orvis tippet knot and the Orvis line-leader knot.
I sometimes have had knots that were supposedly “strong” fail on me – I’m sure because I didn’t get them to seat properly. I think a lot of it boils to what knot you can tie well.
The midge knot looks attractive because it’s simple. However, I have learned how to tie a good clinch knot using my hemostats spit-spot. I’d like to find a knot that’s as easy to tie as the clinch but is perhaps a little stronger.
[This message has been edited by BigFlatBrook (edited 07 April 2005).]
[This message has been edited by BigFlatBrook (edited 07 April 2005).]
BigFlatBrook…
The knot you are looking for is the Pitzen or 16/20 knot. It tests out at 100 % which is way better than a clinch knot.
I will send you an e-mail with attachment showing exactly how to tie it.
Dick,
I’m very intrigued by the method of tying the 16/20 knot you sent. I’m going to have to work on it.
Thanks!
thanks to Cardinal, Badger, Big Flat Brook and Dick M.
I know why I’m having the problem now. I own a copy of the Midge Magic book by Koch and Holbrook! Strangely after reading it I figured I saw it on the net.
Still if you hadn’t helped I would have become even more “obsessive” than normal and my wife would have ended up telling me to go fish and get over it.
For those who have the book, it’s page 6 … DOH!
the replies were truly appreciated.
regards, Jan
I always worry about a little about a 100% fly/tippet knot. The reason is, if you happen to have a breakoff, and the leader/tippet knot is not a 100% knot, you will lose not only your fly but your tippet as well. In my experience, the fly/tippet knot should be the weakest link in your terminal tackle.
Regards,
Emerger
Thank you JanNormandale for posting this question. For the past week I have been going through, with great frustration, numerous of my fly tying mags to find this knot. I had made a copy, since lost, to carry in my vest. Thanks to the numerous responses I opened to pg. 6 of “Midge Magic” five minutes ago and eureka.
Thanks guys for no more sleepless nights.
Walt
I have been using the Pitzen knot for many years, dating back to my hardware chunking days. While it is a great knot, it really takes up a lot of tippet material.
That said, I still use it when fishing for bass.
“Catch 'em all…Put some back!”
[url=http://www.warmwaterangler.net:84cd0]Warmwater Angler[/url:84cd0]
Try this one. It’s really easy and has held up well for me.
[url=http://utahoutdoors.com/pages/Davyknot.htm:2df51]http://utahoutdoors.com/pages/Davyknot.htm[/url:2df51]
Elliott W.
I tie flies to give the fish something to laugh about.
Garry Miller…
I have sent you the same instructions that I sent to BigFlatBrook. Hope they help you.
DickM
Guess I had better tell everybody about the easy way to tie the Eugene Bend\Pitzen\16/20 knot with hemostats.
Hold the fly in your left hand\eye pointing right.
Take the tag through the eye of the hook and back towards the standing line.
Then take the tag back towards the eye of the hook, forming an open loop.
Hold about 3/4 of an inch of the tag in your left thumb and index finger.
Then insert the closed hemostats into the open loop you have just formed. Twirl the hemostats five times around the standing line which will form a sort of clinch knot around the standing line with the open loop.
Then slightly open the hemostats and grab the tag and pull it through the clinch that you have formed. Keep pulling but do not fully seat that part of the knot. Just close it enough that it will not pass through the eye of the hook. You can then remove the hemostats, lubricate the knot and pull on the standing part of the line to seat the knot. You will feel the knot “turn over” as it seats which will mean that you have done it correctly.
I know it sounds complicated but it is really quite simple. You can even do it with gloves on and it is a much stronger knot than the clinch.
Tight lines and tall tails,
DickM