Fishing Knots
The ten knots that get tied on San Diego boats, from a half day in the bay to a 15 day trip to the Lower Banks. Each one has a one-minute video from our Sportfishing Report channel and a full step-by-step guide at FishingKnots.com.
Step-by-step guides by
Palomar Knot
Rated ~100% line strengthThe knot every deckhand will show you on your first trip out of Point Loma. Double the line through the eye, one overhand, and pass the loop over the hook. It holds close to full line strength in mono, fluoro and braid alike, and it's hard to tie wrong.
- Hooks on a live-bait rig
- Swivels and dropper-loop sinkers
- Braid straight to a hook or jig
San Diego Jam Knot
Rated 95% line strengthBorn on this fleet. It's quick to tie with cold, wet hands, it seats cleanly in the heavy 40 to 80 lb fluorocarbon that's standard on our tuna and yellowtail trips, and unlike the Palomar you don't have to pass the whole jig through a loop. If you only learn one knot for a flylined sardine, this is it.
- Heavy fluoro to the hook
- Surface iron and yo-yo jigs
- Ringed hooks and swivels
FG Knot
Rated ~100% line strengthThe braid-to-leader connection for bluefin, yellowfin and the long-range boats. It's slim enough to run through the guides on a cast, so you can fish a long fluoro topshot on a braid-filled reel. Learn it at the kitchen table before the trip. A rolling deck at 3 a.m. is no place to tie your first one.
- Braid to a fluorocarbon topshot
- Popper and stickbait outfits
- Kite and flat-fall setups
Bimini Twist
Rated 100% line strengthDoubles the line into a loop that keeps full line strength, which is the starting point for wind-on leaders and every serious offshore rig. The 10 and 15 day boats run it on the heavy outfits, and tournament crews build their whole system on it.
- Loop-to-loop wind-on leaders
- Heavy outfits for 100 lb plus bluefin
- Tournament and long-range rigs
Uni Knot
Rated 90% line strengthTies line to a hook, and as a double uni it joins two lines. When the bite is wide open and you need a fast braid-to-mono connection, two unis back to back get you fishing again long before an FG would. It works from the bay bass in Mission Bay to a 50 lb topshot.
- Hooks and swivels on any line
- Double uni for a quick line-to-line join
- Backing to braid on a fresh spool
Improved Clinch Knot
Rated 95% line strengthThe first knot most of us learned, and still a fine one for lighter mono on a half day out of Seaforth or a morning in San Diego Bay. It loses its grip in heavy fluoro and in braid, so once you move up in line, move up to the San Diego Jam or the Palomar.
- Bay bass, halibut and sculpin on light mono
- A first trip with the kids
- Freshwater at Dixon, Poway or El Capitan
Non-Slip Mono Knot
Rated 100% line strengthA loop knot that lets a jig swing free instead of being cinched tight to the eye. Surface iron, yo-yo iron and knife jigs all swim better on a loop, and a loop is what lets a popper walk. Strong, simple, and tied in the heavy fluoro our jig fishermen use.
- Surface iron on the yellowtail grounds
- Yo-yo and knife jigs for tuna
- Poppers and stickbaits
Blood Knot
Rated 90% line strengthThe classic line-to-line knot for two lines of similar diameter. It's neat and slim, so it passes through the guides, and it's the knot to know for anyone who rigs their own leaders, tapers a topshot or repairs a nick without stripping the reel.
- Mono to fluoro of similar diameter
- Building tapered leaders
- Repairing a topshot mid-trip
Dropper Loop
Rated 85% line strengthA loop in the middle of the line, tied with nothing more than twists and a pass-through. It's the rig on every rockfish and bottom-fish trip out of San Diego: a sinker on the bottom and one or two hooks standing off the line above it. Tie the loops long enough to reach the hook, and keep them apart so they don't tangle on the drop.
- Two-hook rockfish and lingcod rigs
- Dropper loop with a sinker for halibut and bass
- Standing off a fly or bait above a weight
Surgeon's Knot
Rated 95% line strengthThe easiest way to join two lines: lay them side by side, tie an overhand knot with both, and pass through twice. It handles lines of different diameters better than the Blood Knot, so it's the fix when you need a short fluoro leader on mono in a hurry, and it's the leader knot for anyone who fishes the bay or the lakes with light line.
- A short fluoro leader on a mono main line
- Joining lines of different diameters
- Fly leaders and light-line bay rigs
More knots, and which one to tie for which fish
FishingKnots.com has the full library: line-to-line and leader knots, loop knots, the knot strength database, and picks for the fish we chase out of San Diego.
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