Learn these five knots and you can tie every rig on the rigs page — inshore, surf, pier, jetty, offshore, freshwater. Step-by-step with diagrams, the common mistakes that cost you fish, and what each knot looks like when you've tied it right.
Three rules for every knot
Wet it before you cinch. Dry line + friction = heat = weak knot. Spit on it, dip it, lick it — just don't pull a dry knot tight.
Leave 6 inches of tag end to start. Running out of tag mid-wrap is the most common reason a new tier has to start over.
Trim to 1/8 inch, not flush. Cut too close and the cinched knot can pull the tag back through. A little overhang stays put.
Which knot when?
If you only memorize one decision tree, make it this:
Line to hook, swivel, or lure. Your everyday terminal knot for mono and fluorocarbon.
Pass the line through the hook eye. Pull about 6 inches of tag end through — you'll need every bit of it.If your tag is too short to start, you'll run out mid-wrap and have to begin over.
Wrap the tag end around the main line, 5 to 7 times. Hold the wraps in place with your thumb so they don't unravel before you finish the next step.Use 5 wraps for mono. Bump to 7 for braid because braid is slick and slips with fewer turns.
Find the small loop right next to the hook eye — the gap between the eye and your first wrap. Pass the tag end through it.
Now you'll see a bigger loop above your wraps. Pass the tag end back through that big loop.This second pass is what makes it the improved clinch — it locks the knot under load.
Wet the knot. Pull the main line and tag end at the same time, evenly. The wraps slide together and seat against the hook eye. Trim the tag to about 1/8 inch.
Watch out: If you only do 3-4 wraps, the knot will slip under pressure. If you cinch dry, the wraps will look fine but will fail at half the line's rated strength.
You'll know it's right when: The wraps are tight, evenly spaced, and seated flush against the hook eye. There's no visible gap between the eye and the first wrap.
Knot 2 of 5
Palomar
Strongest everyday knot — especially with braid. Line to hook, jig, or swivel.
Double 6 inches of your line by folding it back on itself, forming a loop at the end. Pass the entire doubled loop through the hook eye.Some hook eyes are too small for a doubled line. If you can't get it through, switch to a Uni or Improved Clinch instead.
Tie a loose overhand knot with the doubled line. Do not tighten yet — keep the loop large enough to easily pass over the hook in the next step.If you cinch it now, you can't finish the knot. You'll know you tightened too early because you can't get the hook through.
Pass the entire loop over the hook or lure. The hook should end up sitting in the middle of the line, with the overhand knot above it.
Wet the knot. Now pull the main line and the tag end at the same time. Slowly. Watch the wraps gather together above the hook eye — they should seat cleanly.
Trim the tag end to about 1/8 inch. The doubled portion is what gives this knot its strength.
Watch out: The most common Palomar mistake is twisting the line as you double it. If the two strands cross over each other before you tie the overhand, the knot will seat unevenly and weaken.
You'll know it's right when: The knot sits as a tidy small bundle right at the hook eye, with both strands of the doubled line emerging cleanly from the same point. No twist, no cross-over.
Knot 3 of 5
Uni Knot
Line to hook or swivel. Foundation of the Double Uni for joining braid to leader.
Pass the line through the hook eye, then double it back so the tag end runs parallel to the main line.
Form a loop with the tag end by curving it back toward the hook. The loop should sit on top of the doubled lines, looking like a lower-case "p" lying on its side.This loop is what your wraps will go through — keep it about an inch wide so you have room to work.
Wrap the tag end through the loop and around both parallel lines, 5 to 6 times. Each wrap should sit neatly next to the previous one — not on top, not overlapping.Braid users: do 6 wraps. Mono or fluoro: 5 is plenty.
Wet the knot. Pull the tag end slowly — the wraps cinch together into a tidy bundle. Don't pull the main line yet.
Now pull the main line. The whole knot slides down toward the hook eye and seats against it. Trim the tag.
Watch out: The wraps must be neat and stacked, not jumbled. If they twist over each other, the knot fails. If you skip step 4 and just pull the main line right away, the knot won't fully seat.
You'll know it's right when: You can see a tight stack of 5-6 evenly spaced wraps holding the doubled line against itself, with the knot snugged against the hook eye.
Knot 4 of 5
Non-Slip Loop (Kreh Loop)
Leader to jig or lure when you want the lure to swing free and move naturally — topwaters, jerkbaits, jigs that need action.
Tie a loose overhand knot in the main line, about 6 inches from the tag end. Leave the overhand loose — you need to pass things through it.
Pass the tag end through the hook eye, then back through the loose overhand knot from the same side it originally came out.This step looks weird but is critical — the tag goes IN the overhand on the same side as the main line.
Wrap the tag end around the main line, 4 to 5 times. Keep the wraps loose.
Pass the tag end back through the overhand loop — entering from the opposite side from step 2.
Wet the knot. Pull the main line and the tag end evenly. As it cinches, watch the small loop at the hook eye stay open. That open loop is the whole point — the lure swings on it freely.If the loop closes against the eye, you didn't leave enough slack at step 1. Cut and start over.
Watch out: The first overhand knot has to stay loose until the very end. If you tighten it too early, the rest of the knot won't seat. Also: don't make the loop too big — a 1/4 inch opening at the eye is ideal; bigger and the lure moves awkwardly.
You'll know it's right when: There's a small open loop (about 1/4 inch) between the knot and the hook eye. The lure can swing freely on that loop.
Knot 5 of 5
Double Uni
Braid mainline to mono or fluoro leader. Small, strong, passes through rod guides cleanly.
Overlap 8 inches of braid and leader, pointing in opposite directions. Braid going one way, leader going the other, laid parallel across each other.
Tie a Uni knot in the braid around the leader. Wrap 6 to 7 times — braid is slick and needs extra bite to hold.If you only wrap 4-5 times, the braid uni will slip when you pull the lines together in step 4.
Tie a Uni knot in the leader around the braid. Wrap 3 to 4 times — leader is thicker so fewer wraps seat better.Don't match wrap counts. The asymmetry (braid 6-7, leader 3-4) is intentional and correct.
Wet both knots. Pull the braid and the leader in opposite directions, slowly. The two Uni knots slide toward each other and meet in the middle, forming one small combined knot.
Trim both tag ends close. You want the finished knot to pass smoothly through your rod guides — long tags will catch.
Watch out: Symmetric wrap counts (both Unis with 5 wraps, for example) make a weaker knot. The braid needs more wraps because it slides. Also: if the two Unis don't slide together cleanly in step 4, one of them isn't seated — pull the tags individually to seat each before pulling the mainlines together.
You'll know it's right when: The two Uni knots have merged into a small, neat combined knot. You can pinch it and feel both knots firmly in contact. The finished knot will pass through standard rod guides without snagging.
Bonus: Dropper Loop
A few rigs on the rigs page call for this. It's a rig-tying technique, not a knot to memorize:
Fold the line into a loop at the spot where you want the dropper.
Twist the loop 6 to 8 times — both strands together.
Reach through the center of the twists and pull the middle out as a new loop.
Cinch it down. That's the loop your hook snells to.