Wind knots in tippet or leader

[auriemma]

When you get them in the middle of your tippet or leader and they have already sinched down tight, do you ...

A. let them go wait for them to break?

B. stop fishing and replace the leader and/or tippet immediately?

 

[Rip Tide]

If you haven't already caught a fish (or a bush ) you can usually back them out.
Hold the knot lightly between thumb and forefinger and push the leader back from the point end. Works for me most of the time in the tippet and always back in the leader

If it doesn't I change tippets. A wind knot decreases the tippet strength by half. Not worth losing a fish over.

 

[gatortransplant]

Good question Joe, and thanks for a good answer Rip!

 

[littledavid123]

Replace immediately, and when you get home grab a needle and work the knot out.

Dave

 

[Jackster]

Much like Rip Tide, I cut them out and retie if they can't be undone. Another of the little things that upped my landing rate when I made a New Years Resolution to myself to no longer lose fish to thrift or laziness.

 

[williamhj]

Does the creation of the knot decrease the strength of the tippet even if it is undone? I understand that if the knot hasn't tightened at all it probably doesn't decrease the strength, but from what I've heard, even if we untie the knots, the damage is done. I could be wrong, just what I've been taught.

 

[caseywise]

Replace immediately, and when you get home grab a needle and work the knot out.

Dave

i have a buddy who carries the screw portion of a wine opener on his vest.
its on a retractor and looks rather odd.
he uses it exclusively for untangling wind knots.


casey

 

[Rip Tide]

... if you need a tool to get the wind knot out, the damage is already done

 

[ghost_reaper]

I agree with Rip Tide. If it's to tight to get out by hand cut it out and re-tie.

:starwars:

 

[swirlchaser]

I never get wind knots. I only cast indoors, on calm days. LOL.

 

[rockriver]

I pick them out if possible, if not, I don't worry about them. I wonder, maybe I should worry.

 

[Brewmaster]

... if you need a tool to get the wind knot out, the damage is already done

I have to disagree with you on this one Rip, at least when it comes to leaders! Depending on the leader material you can often get knots out of a leader with no damage, especially furled leaders (when you get the ocassional wind knot), but even mono or fluoro knotless leaders. I use a couple of inexpensive Rocky Mountain T-Pik tools (also known as a Fisherman's Knot-Pik'R) - see the eBay link below and the actual tool is pictured in the lower left corner of the packaging:
Rocky Mountain T-PIK | eBay
I keep a couple of these little tools on zingers, the tips of the tools are slightly rounded (not like a sharp hook) so it can be inserted into a knot to open the knot without damaging the line. If it is so tight one T-Pik won't do the trick, then you insert one from one direction and the other from the other direction and use the 2 tools to open the knot. It takes much less time to open a knot than it did for me to type this explanation.

Now removing a knot from tippet - if you cannot simply back it out by hand then I agree - the damage is already done. Best to just cut out the knot and re-tie, or cut off the tippet and tie on a whole new length of tippet.

My best answer for your question Joe is this - think about the strength of that tippet with a knot in it, and picture the next fish you hook is as big or bigger than the rated test strength of your tippet - before it got a knot! Do you want to risk the biggest fish of a trip (or a lifetime) because you intentionally left a knot in the tippet? Just a thought.

 

[wjc]

Another of the little things that upped my landing rate when I made a New Years Resolution to myself to no longer lose fish to thrift or laziness.

I remember two big tarpon I lost for being lazy in the last two years. One was for a hook that I knew was too dull, the other for a knot I was too lazy to cinch up with pliers and the hook ring on my buddies boat. Both were at the end of a slow day with little action.

If I get a knot tight enough where the kink won't straighten fully, I cut it out if it's within 4 feet of the fly or so (unless it's at the end of a slow day when I'm tired, lazy and no longer optimistic ).

Cheers,
Jim

 

[pegboy1]

I can honestly say that I don't think I've ever lost a fish as a result of a wind knot breaking. I seldom take time to undo them unless they affect my presentation.

 

[wjc]

You gotta start fishing for some bigger fish, Pegboy!

 

[BigCliff]

I actually agree with RipTide on this. If you can't get it out, you probably need to replace it.

That said, I'm frequently fishing the local streams for fish under 2# with 3x tippet, so I'll often just not worry about it until I hang on a permasnag*, or am changing flies anyway or something.

Why 3x for runts, you say? Stiffer mono is a bit less likely to knot up, turns over bulky flies better, and I find it easier to knot. (we're also talking about bass and sunfish here)

(Permasnag- a spot from which one cannot free their fly via wiggling, the roll cast trick, or walking past it and pulling; frequently includes higher tree limbs, or deeper holes)

 

[silver creek]

What I do with the knot depends on where it is and if the waters I am fishing hold big fish that can break a weakened leader.What I do with the knot depends on where it is and if the waters I am fishing hold big fish that can break a weakened leader.

If the knot is in the butt or midsection of the leader, I take it out. I use a home made knot picker made from a sewing needle. You can also use a safety pin or a diaper pin. The reason I take the knot out and don't replace the section is that even a knot weakened butt section or mid section of a leader will be stronger than a new tippet.

If the knot is on the tippet, I will replace the tippet ONLY IF the potential fish are large enough to break the tippet. Otherwise, what is the point. Just pull the knot tight and keep fishing. For the small streams I fish locally, a 13 inch Brookie is huge and no way would it break even a knot filled 5X tippet.