Knot strength test!

[fishyman]

hey guys found this one on akff there is a link on page 1 to a braid and knot test a guy did pretty interesting stuff.

i will be certainly experimenting with some knots now

/>http://www.akff.net/forum/viewtopic.php?f=10&t=14178&st=0&sk=t&sd=a&start=15

[Feral]

Gee those Bimini twists every one raves about came out very poorly, I thought they would be up at the top the way they are hyped up! Only 35 odd percent of line strength! Only a percent or two above the good old albright!

[fishyman]

yeah i was suprised as well feral.

and according to this guy 12 turn bimini's are stronger than more twists like 40-60

i tried one just then and they tend to slip when only 12 turns are used so you have to be a bit carefull. but when i tested it i couldnt break the knot on 6lb braid so there could be some truth in that.

also that yucatan knot is also called bristol or tony jones knot for anyone thats wondering. it also works good but as the leader coils around the braid it is a bit bigger knot compared to say an albright.

hope this helps some people catch some fish

[Dan23]

Guys, I experimented a lot recently with things and the double uni is perfect for leader and the uni is great for any terminal knot. Since I worked out you only do 4 wraps with the leader but 15-20 with the braid it won't fail and goes through the tiny guides on my raider beautifully. Any more than 4 wraps of the leader uni and it creates a hole big enough for the braid to slip back through. That was why I lost that tarpon at Lee's secret dam.

Problem with the Albright knot I was having was the leader tag would face back towards the guides and kept getting caught. The uni faces the other way and has totally eliminated the problem.

Not really on topic but I thought I'd share.

[fishyman]

all welcome dan i just thought it was an interesting article

about that albright, i have had some trouble with that but after purchasing som nail clippers i have been able to trim it up nicely and am very fond of that knot for my light work.

10 turns up, 3 turns around mainline and ONE side of leader loop.

for heavy work its still bimini twist double to tony jones knot or yucatan as that article called it.

i always found the uni to uni a bit bulky for my liking, slim beauty is good but takes longer than the albright

[kevinchen19870316]

when i used albright and gel-gun leader knot, line always broke at the knot. since i switch to bimini+albright, i have broken line for over 15 times( mostly when testing) and none of the breakage happened at the knot.

[nigehey]

Great link thanks! I'm still using uni-uni (single mono to single fluro 4/8 turns for 4lb/6lb) and uni with a loop to lures/jigheads (5 turns). Almost always I bend the jighead (mostly berkley/squidgie size 1 or 1/0) - very very rarely do i bust at the mainline to leader connect. Interesting stuff! The figures are amazing though, no wonder I can manhandle such big fish (relatively! :-)) with no worries on the fireline.

[fishyman]

glad i could help mate i certainly learnt a bit

[Terry H]

Feral wrote:

Gee those Bimini twists every one raves about came out very poorly, I thought they would be up at the top the way they are hyped up! Only 35 odd percent of line strength! Only a percent or two above the good old albright!

Feral, I'm not going to claim I've tested a bimini twist as extensively as Geoff Wilson or what the guy who wrote that article may have done, but everytime I've tested or broken my line when using a bimini twist, the line has broken randomly along the length of the line, not at the knot.

Edit: Maybe I've misread the article (only quickly skimmed over it, but..)It has been proven by numerous fishermen that a Bimini Twist, tied properly will break at almost 100% of the rated breaking strain. This guy said his 20 turn bimini broke at 70% in 30lbs mono... 70%? that's a BIG difference from the 97-100%'s I read other fisherman saying.

After reading this article one thing is for sure: I won't be changing my bimini twists.

[username_taken]

I always do a uni-uni for leader knot, and usually a rapala loop for lures/jig heads. Only issue I ever have is braid cutting 6pd leader on the leader knot.

[Feral]

No and I wont be changing from my albrights. If your knots do the job why would you?

Be different if we were watching lures swimming away with the fish regularly! I cant remember ever having a loop knot or leader knot fail that I had tested (you always get the odd one where you dont tie it properly and when you give it a tug it comes apart in your hand, but thats why you give em a tug!).

You should renew your knots regularly though, particularly if catching a few fish or doing a lot of casting (constantly running it through the runners),thats probably the cause of most failures, the knots just plain wear out.

[kriso]

im the oppostie to dan i used to use the uni -uni knot and would break all the time. so i switched to a albright and havent had break at the knott yet.

[waldo]

I don't fish braid but I have a bit of experience with mono and found often knots that suit one aren't as good on another or different strength of the same brand. For that reason those test results may only be applicable to 20pound fireline and 50pound power pro.

If you go to a new brand or size of line it can pay to find what knot works best with it yourself then stick with that knot for that brand and size line. The old find what works for you keep to it applies :woohoo:

[werewolf]

wow the old Palomar knot came up trumps for connecting terminal tackle. It's a piece of cake too tie too. I wonder how it would hold with 6 pound Fireline though:P

and go the spider hitch lol! Another easy knot that creamed the fancy bimini twist!

[Feral]

My 6lb fireline is like fencing wire, its that thick and stiff. Just a couple of twists should hold, dont really need a knot!

[Terry H]

waldo wrote:

I don't fish braid but I have a bit of experience with mono and found often knots that suit one aren't as good on another or different strength of the same brand. For that reason those test results may only be applicable to 20pound fireline and 50pound power pro.

If you go to a new brand or size of line it can pay to find what knot works best with it yourself then stick with that knot for that brand and size line. The old find what works for you keep to it applies :woohoo:

You are correct. For example, different thicknesses in the lighter and heavier mono will affect the performance of a knot.