Favorite knots for floro - fly and mono - floro/tippet?

[jonbo]

I've been using the Double-Davy for awhile at the fly. This is on the relatively small, size 14 or smaller flies I normally favor. I'm usually using 5x, sometimes 6x tippet. The Double-Davy is very easy to tie for me and SEEMS to be about the right strength. I've looked at knot-strength comparisons online and it seems to test fairly high. I've tried the simple Davy, which is even easier, but had it slip. That made me lose confidence in it immediately. It's also supposedly weaker than the DD. Online, some recommend the simple (not improved) Clinch knot with 7 turns (they're specific about that). But then, supposedly it's fussy about how you cinch it down. I wasn't careful cinching it down when I tried it, and IT slipped. It's out! The DD, on the other hand is easy, not too fussy (you want to pull the standing end till it "clicks" into place), and seems the right strength. That is, the breakoff tends to happen at the terminal knot, so you're not leaving floro tippet all over the stream.

For the tippet knot, I've been using the Orvis Tippet Knot. It's a Double Surgeon's with the two tags together passed an extra time around the loop before you start feeding them through the loop. It's definitely stronger than the DS, and I think it's stronger than the Triple Surgeon's. That is, when I started using it the line started breaking at the terminal DD knot, which is what I want. (It was while researching knots awhile back that I came to the discussion that our fishing ethics should make us try to make sure our terminal knot is the weakest one, so we won't tend to leave floro tippet in the stream and hanging on the stream-side trees. They were saying that if you're going to use an inferior tippet knot, by rights you need to just use an Improved Clinch, a fairly weak knot, at the fly. I had to agree, though it was the first time I had thought of that.)

Right now I'm trying to learn a terminal loop knot. I had never thought of using one, but I plan to take streamers with my new Orvis 6 wt down into Zone 2 over the weekend of the 4th and I thought it might be good idea to try to use a loop with them instead of a cinch-down knot. The one I've settled on is the Rapala. It's fairly easy to tie and said to be strong. I find it easier to tie than the Duncan's Loop which I struggle with. Anything harder than that, with my coordination and old-man shakiness, I don't think I can really manage. If I decide I don't need a loop while fishing streamers I might just go with the Improved Clinch or else a Palomar, as my leader will probably be something like 7' of 10 or 12 lb mono and I won't be overly worried about knot strength. But with the heavier leader I plan to use, tying the streamer on with a loop would seem to be the thing to do. So I'll be trying out the Rapala Knot, I think. (Been practicing it sitting here at the computer which inspired me to write this post.)

If anyone is curious enough, you can look up how to tie all these knots online which is where I find them all.

What do y'all recommend? "Bueller, Beuller"?

[jonbo]

One more thing, doh! I forgot. I'm planning to try out using tippet rings, too. Does anyone recommend a particular knot to tie them on with, and then the tippet to the ring? I'm willing to use a slightly more difficult tying knot if it's better as I won't be redoing it every ten minutes or so as I am with my terminal tippet-fly knot. I'm practicing with a "Pitzen Knot" right now. Thanks!

[dannys]

I use the Eugene Bend knot almost exclusively for tippet to fly. I also use tippet rings and I use the Eugene Bend for tying leader and tippet to the ring. This knot is simple to tie and I find it very strong for fluoro and mono.You can find the Eugene Bend fairly easily on the internet.

[jonbo]

I'll give that a try. Thanks. I tied up a Euro-type leader I'm fixing to try, using tippet rings. At first I used a Trilene Knot, but found I was able to pull it out after tying it on several of the leader/tippet to ring connections. So I tried using a San Diego Jam Knot for the first time, although I'd practiced it at my desk. I wasn't able to pull it out at all. I'm also getting better at tying it, because it was pretty tricky at first. It seems when the knot asks you to wind it away from the terminal thing you're tying to, like a Clinch Knot or Trilene Knot, that's pretty easy, but when it asks you to twist the tag end toward the terminal thing it fights you a lot more. You're really needing a third hand. You have to kind of use one hand to grip the fly or a loop while twisting the tag end with it at the same time. But I'm liking the SDJK.

The other thing, I'm really thinking about the ethics of leader/tippet littering. (I almost wish I hadn't read a discussion of it, 'cause now I have a problem.) If I break at any of my tippet rings or Orvis Tippet Knot connections instead of right at the fly I'm going to have to switch to using an Improved Clinch Knot at the fly. I had never before considered that the terminal knot could be TOO strong. But, for now, it's a Double Davy Knot at the fly, a San Diego Jam Knot at the tippet rings, and an Orvis Tippet Knot wherever I join without a ring. We'll see how that works.