# Which leader knot do you?



## wongus (Feb 12, 2006)

I have been a long time user of the double uni knot and generally have found it to be a strong knot and fits most of my applications with similar sized diameter braid (8lb) and leader (fluoro 12lb). More recently, when I've downsized my braid to 4lb, I've had problems using the 12lb leader due to the leader knot catching on the runners when casting.

So that has started me on a quest to search for an alternative knot. The guy at Tackle Warehouse recommended the Albright knot which seems pretty good and easy to tie although he complicated matters by suggesting I use a double for the braid with a bimini knot if using heavy leaders such as 20lb or 40lb leader (we were talking about rigs for mackeral and he doesn't recommend wire as it will decrease the number of hookups).

Anyway back on topic: So what do you guys use for your lighter braids (I've kept it to 12lb or less)


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## sbd (Aug 18, 2006)

Danny, can you edit your thread title to lose the special characters please. They make it unanswerable.

Double uni for me.


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## mustrumr (Feb 27, 2009)

I voted "other". I use a 12 turn bimini to a Bristol knot, even for bream weight lines (4lb braid, 6 & 10lb fluorocarbon leader) and all the way up to 20lb braid and 40lb leader. The Bristol is easy to tie, super slim, casts beautifully and I've had no failures other than bust-offs on big rays and one failure when I cut the tag too short.

Here's what I wrote in an earlier similar question:



mustrumr said:


> I use a 12 turn bimini twist and the Bristol knot, as recommended by Doug Olander in this article http://www.sportfishingmag.com/article.jsp?ID=43557 which he tested as the strongest of all the leader connections. (He calls the Bristol knot the Yucatan, but he confirmed to me that the knot he tested was the Bristol knot as shown here: http://www.saltwatersportsman.com/artic ... D=21012464 ) Here's a link to how Doug ties the bimini (no pics unfortunately) http://forums.sportfishingmag.com/showt ... imini+turn
> 
> To get the Bristol to hold in bream strength leaders you need to do around 20 turns of the leader around the doubled braid. It still comes out as a very small slim knot which is quite easy to tie. I've only once had the knot itself fail, when I think I must have cut the tag of the leader too short.
> 
> ...


Since then I've had one rather frightening incident: I was casting a 25 gram metal and the loop of the bimini wrapped around one of the top guides as I cast, yanking the whole top section of my 4-6kg Nitro Magnum Butt into the drink. Fortunately the line didn't break, and I was able to reel the rod section back in, but if it had broken I'd have been stuffed, as the Nitro $60 "replace a broken section" guarantee requires you to send the broken section back. Still, this is the first time in many thousands of casts that this has happened, and guide wrapping can occur with any knot so I won't be changing from the bimini/Bristol combination any time soon.

Cheers,


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## wongus (Feb 12, 2006)

Well I bit the bullet this morning and decided to learn the Bimini twist. With the help of a few youtube videos I think I've finally mastered it although the litmus test will be on the water.

So my rig for the spotties is now 8lb fireline with a bimini twist to form a double. This double is then connected to 40lb mono using the albright knot. The problem with the albright knot is the 40lb tag end is still pointed towards the lure and I can still see the potential of this tag catching on the runners.

I see 2 options
1) put a dab of araldite or something to smooth out the knot (seems like a PITA) and not practical if on the water.. but then neither is tying a bimini on the yak.
2) shorten the 40lb leader so that the albright knot is past the rod tip when casting. I think I'll try this option.

Now I just need another school of spotty macks to test this out on!!


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## yakfly (Jun 8, 2006)

Danny
go get some UV knot sealer (Tackle Warehouse should stock it) to coat the knot,I use it when
making up tapered leaders for the fly gear.
All you do is form it round the knot to smooth out the rough edges then hold it out in the sunlight (or 
a UV lamp/torch if making them up at home )for around 20 seconds or so and it will solidify.
you may be able to then use the albright knot option to tie your leaders together the coat the finished knot
with the knot sealer to smooth out the tag


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## Feral (Oct 18, 2008)

I voted other, I use an improved albright, very few use the original albright anymore.


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## MikeG (Jun 16, 2009)

I also use an Improved Albright on my light stuff, on my heavier braid (10lb+) I use a 30-40 turn Bimini to a Rolling GT, a nice compact knot with the tag facing the right way.

Mike


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## wongus (Feb 12, 2006)

MikeG said:


> I also use an Improved Albright on my light stuff, on my heavier braid (10lb+) I use a 30-40 turn Bimini to a Rolling GT, a nice compact knot with the tag facing the right way.
> 
> Mike


Sorry for the ignorance but what is a "Rolling GT"

Also is the improved Albright the one where after you do the wrap on both strands of the loop you also do the last few turns around the single strand?


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## RedPhoenix (Jun 13, 2006)

Unfortunately, due to the change in ownership of this web site and the lack of response by the owners to my requests to remove my email address from all administrative-level notifications and functionality, I have decided to remove my posts on AKFF. Thank you for the great times, the fantastic learning experiences and the many many fish. If you are desperate for the old content of this particular post, it is available below base64 encoded and bzip2 compressed.

Red.

----

QlpoOTFBWSZTWWELcLQAACvfgAAQQefhCAQgEAA/79+gMADm0hqnk1D0Q0Q2o2gJk8kImE0hoA0AAAGp6TRNTyZTaTQ9IAHpFBDnr3bnlRx3TeaKiDmqLupUtRxsasu0SZvzi9wh4Oe+AvGyXPV/pk2VxssMl1xDYFVuQw8npoZEEL8bWcRT0Qn0HFsjzLN1a3HHBHasIJVdX7eZ1BDknd8et5uejWVfLSF1jFbS1BsgIGLCaW0CrocYgHV8YGKg475Nlej2OY54oEK5I1sCs2EzNDBwtXC0Ez7kR1OW/a0xKjxBBVzSkVcsU4GzVxIGmcFEeRc9gpoUYhByEV1BMekRoRTJEK2rBPxdyRThQkGELcLQ


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## diabolical (Mar 30, 2008)

Albright for me. Trim the tag end of the leader really close and you wont have any trouble with it getting caught as you cast. The braid tag can be left a little longer.


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## Robdog (Aug 12, 2007)

Hi all,
See latest Freshwater Fishing vol no 100, page 18. Some interesting versions, have started trying the "Kaneit" seem the goods so far, but I'm no expert.
Robdog


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## bfc (May 15, 2009)

I use an albright tied to short bimini double for my heavy baitcasters and a double uni on my light spin gear.
cheers Bruce


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## Revo (Aug 3, 2008)

Double uni for me. I haven't tried other knots since I started to use braid a couple of years. I've only had one fail on me so far.


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## etr420 (Jan 7, 2008)

I've been experimenting for a few months with twisted (a.k.a. "furled") leaders. These are easy to make on the spot with lighter lines, and have two main advantages: They enable a very strong, slim loop-to-loop connection between braid and leader, and they are natural shock absorbers without deadening the sensitivity of the braid. They are also more supple, and less prone to memory than straight mono. I've made them with line from 4lb to 20lb, mono and fluoro, by hand and used them very successfully fishing for bream with baits and lures. I've made them in lengths from about 1 to 4 metres.

I also use more complex 4-stage tapered twisted leaders for fly fishing.


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## etr420 (Jan 7, 2008)

I've been experimenting for a few months with twisted (a.k.a. "furled") leaders. These are easy to make on the spot with lighter lines, and have two main advantages: They enable a very strong, slim loop-to-loop connection between braid and leader, and they are natural shock absorbers without deadening the sensitivity of the braid. They are also more supple, and less prone to memory than straight mono. I've made them with line from 4lb to 20lb, mono and fluoro, by hand and used them very successfully fishing for bream with baits and lures. I've made them in lengths from about 1 to 4 metres.

I also use more complex 4-stage tapered twisted leaders for fly fishing.


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## anselmo (Aug 26, 2008)

I voted Albright but actually use the improved albright
I retie after every trip as I've found powerpro can wear away a mono knot


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## wongus (Feb 12, 2006)

Can someone point out the difference between the Albright and improved Albright? Seems to be quite a few different versions around.


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## BIGKEV (Aug 18, 2007)

After being a long time user of the double uni knot for my braid to leader knot I had a couple of crappy expereinces very similar to Danny's predicament, thin diameter braided line trying to join thick diameter heavy leader and knots catching on guides when using my baitcasters which completely stopped the momentum of my casts and resulted in god awful birds nests, the likes of which I have never seen and never want to see again.

My solution to this problem was the Slim Beauty knot which I have now mastered. It creates a cone type shape which points down the line toward your lure, and also has all tag ends facing backwards with absolutely no chance of the snagging a guide as they pass through on the cast if it is tied correctly. It does how ever clunk back up through the guides on the way in but I can live with this as I know it is coming and can make adjustments to suit. So far I haven't had any issues with failure and I have been pleased to have introduced this knot to my arsenal. Admittedly I have never tried to use albrights or bimini twists as the steps involved in tying them have put me off a bit, but many of the top guys use them and this really should be a testament to their effectiveness.

Kev


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## Donkey (Oct 21, 2008)

Yeah, what BIGKEV said!

I was a long time user of the double uni but with a bimini. A mate finally convinced me to try the slim beauty and I'm now a convert. It travels through the guides really nicely and although it's a bit more difficult to tie, It's never failed and bust offs nearly always occur at the terminal knot so rarely needs to be retied mid session.


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## yakfly (Jun 8, 2006)

improved blood knot


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## mrwalker (Feb 23, 2009)

Gotta give a vote to the slim beauty, been using it for nine months now and I am sold on it. Not one failure since I started using it. Cheers, Dave.


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## Revo (Aug 3, 2008)

Thanks for the comments about the slim beauty knot. It looked a difficult knot to tie when I first looked at it in a book a year ago but your comments made me look it up again and this site made it a lot clearer about how to tie it. http://www.adventurebound.com.au/reviews/gear/how_to_-_slim_beauty_leader_knot.html

Worth giving it a go.


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## HAWKEYE3 (Jan 8, 2009)

Mine fits into the OTHER Category.

I use a 5-STAR GRANNY Knot. It is similar to a surgeons knot. I developed it in the early 80's experimenting with a spider hitch and understanding how the knot compresses as it pulled tight.

I refer to it as a 5-Star granny as it is easier to remember than a special nomenclature.

Lap the 2 lines about 30 - 40 cm and just tie a granny knot with 5 loops. Wet and pull down gently, adjusting any misbehaving loops as you go. Pull tight and then trim tabs. The knot will resemble a barrel. It passes easily through the guides.

With mono I have never had a failure. I have had one with braid/mono but I should have stripped the braid off after previous use. I have used doubled over braid/mono which seems to be ok.

Fluoro/fluoro has worked ok with no problems to report.

Regards

Hawkeye3


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