By John Merwin

So here's a question I was wondering about last night. For those of you using superlines (e.g., braids or FireLine), how are you splicing those lines to a nylon mono or fluorocarbon leader?

Myself, I do a bunch of different things. For surfcasting and when using either spinning tackle (with Fireline) or conventional gear (with Berkley Big Game Braid), I palomar-knot the braid to a small barrel swivel, then clinch-knot a short, heavy fluoro leader to the other end of the swivel. The swivel, or course, stays outside of the tip guide when casting. When freshwater bass fishing using similar lines, I most often use back-to-back uni-knots in splicing on a leader, which creates a knot that can pass through the guides when I cast. That connection has only about 70 percent of unknotted line strength, but the pound-tests I'm using are high enough so I don't think that makes much difference.

I've recently highlighted the J Knot as a monofilament splice, but it was originally developed by Berkley's Dave Justice as a superline-to-mono splice. Justice has told me it works extremely well in that application--much better than when I've used it just to splice two pieces of mono--and it's something I want to spend more time with this coming season.

But how about you...any bright ideas for this common problem?

Comments (5)

from streack wrote 3 years 13 weeks ago

If it's a pole that I use for different fishing applications, I will attach my leader material via barrel swivel. However, if it is a pole that I use only for fishing jigs, I will tie on about 6-8 feet of leader material by using a blood knot; attaching extra leader line allows you to change jig combinations often without the need to tie on more leader line as frequently.

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from VT Outdoorsman wrote 3 years 13 weeks ago

I use the Slim Line Beauty knot to connect my 65-80 lb braid to flouro leaders when fishing for bluefin tuna and stripers. It takes a bunch of practice to get good at, but has worked flawlessly for me in the past.

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from greyghost wrote 3 years 13 weeks ago

This knot looks promising, easy enough to tie and looks strong. I'll let you know more after I tie into a big ling or redfish this spring down in the Gulf.

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from alabamahunter wrote 3 years 13 weeks ago

I've been using back-to-back uni's for the past couple of years to good success. As Merwin said, it will easily pass through the guides on a rod and generally the leader and braid are heavy enough that the fairly weak knot strength makes no difference. I haven't ever used the J-knot, so I can't say. It would be cool to learn how to tie the Bimini Twist too. It wouldn't be useful in most freshwater applications around here, but for saltwater it would be very useful.

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from Sportsman Matt wrote 3 years 13 weeks ago

I use a modified nail knot with a cinch knot and superglue. I found that tying the knots tight enough aren't enough, so I add a couple drops of superglue to the knots, makes them stronger in the fact that they can't come loose. Downfall is you need to cut the knot off if you want to change the mono.

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from streack wrote 3 years 13 weeks ago

If it's a pole that I use for different fishing applications, I will attach my leader material via barrel swivel. However, if it is a pole that I use only for fishing jigs, I will tie on about 6-8 feet of leader material by using a blood knot; attaching extra leader line allows you to change jig combinations often without the need to tie on more leader line as frequently.

+2 Good Comment? Yes | No | Report

from VT Outdoorsman wrote 3 years 13 weeks ago

I use the Slim Line Beauty knot to connect my 65-80 lb braid to flouro leaders when fishing for bluefin tuna and stripers. It takes a bunch of practice to get good at, but has worked flawlessly for me in the past.

+1 Good Comment? Yes | No | Report

from greyghost wrote 3 years 13 weeks ago

This knot looks promising, easy enough to tie and looks strong. I'll let you know more after I tie into a big ling or redfish this spring down in the Gulf.

+1 Good Comment? Yes | No | Report

from alabamahunter wrote 3 years 13 weeks ago

I've been using back-to-back uni's for the past couple of years to good success. As Merwin said, it will easily pass through the guides on a rod and generally the leader and braid are heavy enough that the fairly weak knot strength makes no difference. I haven't ever used the J-knot, so I can't say. It would be cool to learn how to tie the Bimini Twist too. It wouldn't be useful in most freshwater applications around here, but for saltwater it would be very useful.

+1 Good Comment? Yes | No | Report

from Sportsman Matt wrote 3 years 13 weeks ago

I use a modified nail knot with a cinch knot and superglue. I found that tying the knots tight enough aren't enough, so I add a couple drops of superglue to the knots, makes them stronger in the fact that they can't come loose. Downfall is you need to cut the knot off if you want to change the mono.

+1 Good Comment? Yes | No | Report

Post a Comment

 

All submitted comments are subject to the rules set forth in our Privacy Policy and Terms of Use.