Need to know if there is a easier knot to tie on the fly than a clinch knot. I am finding that age and eyes or making it more difficult to tie on the small flies. Would appretiate any comments. walt
I use a Turle knot for all tippet to fly connections as it’s easy to do and does not require good eyesight. Just have to watch for possible twisting of very fine tippet.
Al
Walt:
If you don’t have a pair of Hat Eyes clipped to your hat brim you should. I’ve needed them for a few years now and knot tying down to any old X you want is a breeze. They are available in various powers and are way better, (IMHO), than Flip Focals.
Give 'em a try if you haven’t already; they really help.
walt,
Any way you look at it, you have to put the tippet through the eye of the hook. Now you can do this on the river while fishing OR prepare some snelled flies ahead of time. This will allow you to make a good size loop into which you can knot your tippet.
Allan
The pitzen is pretty easy
Walt,
What took you so long…?
IMHO the clinch knot is one of the easiest to tie for people of our vintage,…but it is a piece of cxxx…
As said above we gotta go with magnification…
And we need to practice some better knots…I’m really working on the knot thing because for me at least it has probably caused more failures than anything…
The Pitzen [aka 16-20] suggestion is a good one…and there are others…the Davy knot gets great acclaim …but so far I think there is a good and bad way to ty it…
Respect Your Elders!
Try the Orvis knot.
Go to Orvis.com and search for the knot.
I have been using it and it is pretty easy for my old peepers.
~zm
I’ve been using the Davy Wotten knot for all of my fly to tippet connections for about 6 years now. I can’t recall a single failure attributed to the knot. As with all knots, you need to lubricate it before tightening. And, if you don’t tie it right, it pulls loose when tightened. Even though it’s the easiest knot that I have found and trust in, I still need magnifiers. But, you know what “they” say…“Gettin old ain’t for sissies”.
Give the Davy knot a try. You might be surprised.
Tight lines,
Bob
OK,…in “researching” this…knots that is… it so far seems to me that we can’t say…“this is THE knot”…there are many factors…chief of which may be [at least in my type of fishing]…marrying fluoro with mono…or just fluoro… then there are differences in diameters…it goes on and on…matters if it is line to leader…leader to tippet…or tippet to fly…
Respect Your Elders!
Try a reverse clinch - also known as the San Diego Jam Knot. You can make the loop at the top as big as you need to in order to see it. Also, more importantly I find it holds much better than a standard clinch.
[url=http://www.marlinnut.com/knots/sandiego.shtml:e24db]http://www.marlinnut.com/knots/sandiego.shtml[/url:e24db]
e
I also use a turtle knot with the knot on the leader, not the hook. Strong knot and easy to tie regardless of your eye sight or lack thereof.
jed
I have gone to Lefty’s Fishermans Knot for tippet to fly. Easy to tie and my leader to tippet knot (double surgeons at the moment, looking for something better) seems to fail first since I went to that over a clinch knot. I haven’t had either knot fail on a fish lately including some fairly good size browns, smallies and carp. I have unfortunately left a few flies decorating trees lately which is why I need a better leader to tippet connection. Trying the triple surgeons at the moment and I seem to be getting breaks about 50-50 between the 2 knots. Since changing to these knots and Frog Hair I have to work pretty hard to break my line when I catch those trees.
Fish more, work less!
The reverse clinch [San Diego Jam] appears to be very similar to the Pitzen [16-20].
Iwonder if it’s stronger or weaker?
Respect Your Elders!
I’ll second the Davy Wotten knot. Here’s a link
[url=http://utahoutdoors.com/pages/Davyknot.htm:aefe2]http://utahoutdoors.com/pages/Davyknot.htm[/url:aefe2]
I went to the Orvis knot. I like it and it’s easy to tie. I am sure they have instructions on their website. I now use it for all my fresh water tippet/fly connections.
-wayne
Weaver’s knot
[url=http://www.flyanglersonline.com/begin/knots2/weaversknot2.html:58741]http://www.flyanglersonline.com/begin/knots2/weaversknot2.html[/url:58741]
Gettin’ the tippet through the eye of the hook is the only hard part.
I use the Weavers knot Jeff posted. Vison not a problem for me once I slide my magnifiers on, but my small motor skills aren’t that great and this one makes it easy for me.
RickB:
Instead of a double surgeons use a triple surgeons. Never had one fail!
The weavers knot looks like a bass ackwards tied Uni Knot…which I may be totally alone in that I have been useing the Uni knot for all fly to tippet…I use fewer wraps for thinner material and the max of 5 for heavier …and it’s worked well for me,But…After clicking JC’s link…I’ma gonna haf’ta do some knot testing later…Now thats an easy knot… 
…Always a plus…If I ever feel a need to change a leader knot…hummm My new 4wt. Headstart came today,So I’ll just try the “Castwell Knot” out too!..That too…I seen on a recent thread ,in a link that JC provided…It’s for Leader TO Line connect.
“I’ve often wondered why it is that so many anglers spend so much money on,and pay so much attention to.the details on the wrong end of the fly line.If they took as much care in selecting or tying their flies as they did in the selection of the reel and rod,They might be able to gain the real extra edge that makes it possible to fool a fish that has,in fact,seen it all before” A.K.Best
“Wish ya great fishing”
Bill
7X tippet? Middleaged eyes? Size 22 and above flies? Easy knot??? Puhleeze guys and gals! There ain’t no such animal! Tie them on 18" lengths of leader the night before you go fishing. Use a magnifier.
And to you 2 guys who use the Turle knot, thanks for the laugh. I appreciate a put on as much as anyone else.
I think it was Art Lee who said that if he had to use a turle knot every time he tied on a fly he would give up fishing!