Fly Fishing & Fly Tying Knots

Fly fishing knots

Everything you tie on the bank — leader, tippet and fly.

Improved clinch

Start here

Same job as the clinch, with an extra tuck for security on bigger fish.

Very good — around 95%

Surgeon's knot

For your level

Joining tippet to leader. Quick and forgiving in cold hands.

Good — around 90%

Arbor knot

For your level

Attaching backing or line to the reel spool before you start.

Plenty for the job

Clinch knot

Tying the fly to your tippet. The first knot most people learn.

Good — around 85% of line strength

Blood knot

Neat leader-to-leader join for similar diameters.

Very good — around 90%

Nail knot

Attaching leader to fly line so it slides through the rings smoothly.

Excellent when seated properly

Non-slip loop knot

Gives streamers and big flies free movement. Best choice for pike-sized flies.

Good — around 85%

Davy knot

The quickest fly-to-tippet knot there is — great for cold fingers and small flies.

Good on light tippet — around 80%

Perfection loop

A neat, straight loop in the end of your leader for loop-to-loop connections.

Very good — around 95%

Double surgeon's loop

Fast loop in the end of tippet or leader when you want a loop-to-loop join.

Very good — around 90%

Dropper loop

Making a loop mid-leader so you can hang a second fly off it.

Good — around 85%

Fly tying knots

The thread knots you use at the vice when making a fly.

Jam start (starting the thread)

At the vice: locking your thread onto a bare hook before anything else.

Holds firm once the wraps trap the tag

Half hitch

At the vice: a quick lock after a tricky step so nothing unravels.

Enough to hold one step in place

Whip finish

At the vice: the proper finish that buries the thread and ends the fly.

Excellent — the standard way to finish a fly

Hand whip finish

At the vice: finishing a fly with just your fingers, no tool needed.

Excellent — same finish, no tool