Small diameter line and an eye of the hook not completely closed could result in the loss of a jig
Small diameter line and an eye of the hook not completely closed could result in the loss of a jig
The love for fishing is one of the best gifts you can pass alongKrappieKrane LIKED above post
I loop mine thru the eye twice before I tie my loop knot even with braid. Some jigs do have what I consider to be sharp (maybe thin) wire which will cause the line to break easily.
Going thru the eye twice sure helps and does not seem to hurt the action or how it hangs more horizontal. JMO.
happened to me the other day , bout a week ago , young buck bass about 14 inches and acting stupid like bass do and off it came midair , fish hit the deck with my beautiful handtie someone made me in its lips , it danced like crazy and I danced with it trying to get my jig back , this way and that and then the jig popped out and as I went for the jig the dang bass tail slapped it off the deck and one more flip and it was GONE TOO !
to make matters worser my other half said "hey I seen you over there dancing around with that fish like an idiot on the dock"! ....
sum kawl me tha outlaw ketchn whales
I beg your pardon….. but a loop knot does not make a jig hang horizontally. Jig design does that, and if it is not in balance, it then requires a constriction knot to gain horizontal alignment. You can cinch a knot down to the front of the hook eye, or to the back to adjust how it hangs. A loop knot will of course allow a balanced jig to maintain a horizontal alignment with ease, and is probably the best knot for a balanced jig in many types of presentations.
I pull my jigs at a constant speed, long lining, so a loop knot is OK but not a big advantage of any kind. The knot in the video is definitely worth mastering. Learn it and you can get pretty fast at fashioning it up. I use it sometimes, and other times I tie a UNI knot. With my style it doesn’t really do anything as the jigs are not free to move, they are being forcefully pulled through the water, and the boat’s speed determines presentation and alignment.
You can see that most fishermen swear by a loop knot, and do so because they believe it produces a horizontal alignment. The jig’s design is what actually makes a jig hang horizontal. Take one that hangs nose down, tie it to a loop knot and it will hang nose down still. I have jigs that hang tail down, and I have jigs that hang horizontal.
Not trying to be special here, just saying.
I suggest that you tie your favorite jig on the line using a loop knot and allow it to dangle down. Notice how it hangs. Then tie a UNI knot to it and cinch the knot down to the front of the eye and see how the alignment changes. Cinch to the back of the eye and see what happens. Then back the knot off using your fingernails, revealing a small loop knot and see what happens. Find one that hangs head down and see how you can adjust this with a UNI knot.
Using a knot that is not a loop can change a badly balanced jig into a more balanced jig. If you feel it is highly important that the jig hang horizontal, well that is going to require more than just fastening up a loop knot. The jig heads shape, weight, the hook, the bait, and the line material will all play a role, too. Matching these up could make you a better fisherman, but consider this- When a man casts his jig out, it will sink head first, and most fish will strike on the fall of the jig. Hmmmmmmm…..
Always test your knots and keep in mind that the strongest knot wars winner is not necessarily so. Everything depends on the man twirling the line. A poorly fashioned knot can never be superior to a lesser knot when tied with skill. I suggest that the original poster develop the skill to tie the knot shown in the video, as it will serve him well going forward. No question about that. It will not however make a badly balanced jig hang on the horizontal.
BTW- A tip for those that use circle hooks. I studied and experimented and determined that there are two best knots for circle hooks. The Loop knot and the Snell. Either will out catch any of the other knots out there. Has to do with how the hook moves when being pulled back out. They allow the tip to stick the flesh in a more reliable fashion. I learned this by fishing for clever little saltwater fish.
Last edited by Micanopy; 06-04-2022 at 08:11 AM.
I throw a lot of ultralight stuff up under trees and around branches and other junk. I find that I get hung up less using the loop knot when casting. I use both tight and loop when jigging vertical.
Creativity is just intelligence fooling around
Micanopy, you stated "I beg your pardon….. but a loop knot does not make a jig hang horizontally."
If your jig head and plastic are perfectly matched to begin with, then when your lure is in the water it will hang horizontally and have freedom of movement. Just sayin
Mike
Aquatic Species Removal Engineer.
May God be with you. Keep CALM and STAY ANCHORED with your faith.
Slabprowler LIKED above post
Thanks for all replys. I definately gonna give it a try, but I catch overwhelming majority of my Crappie with Cast an Retreive. Dont think it will help me much but will see. Thanks!!
I use Fireline Crystal on my crappie rods. If I did a loop knot lots of times the loop will slide through the hook gap. To eliminate that I use a floracarbon leader so I can use a loop knot.