Kiwi Snell Or Knot

[livo]

Having been tying Pseudo Snapper Snatchers over the weekend I'm interested to know if anyone has info about snelling hooks. I have a couple of knot books but the snell shown in most of them is not easy to achieve with the hooks being tied into a type of Salt Water Fly.

I watched an old New Zealand Snapper fishing video a while ago and it had a very simple knot that had windings down the shaft of the hook but it could be tied onto a leader already top connected, ie; didn't need both ends free. It was referred to as a Long Liners knot but searches for it give results for attaching a dropper to the long line which is not what I'm after. Perhaps one of our Kiwi forum members knows this knot and can describe how to do it.

The kiwi kite fishing site has a snell that works but it can come loose when not under tension with larger line.

I have used my old faithful which, surprisingly, I have never seen in knot book but is so easy to tie. Looking at all the illustrations in the books it must be a type of inverted of inside out snell. To tie it I follow these steps.

Thread the eye of the hook from above and pull through some spare.

Make a half turn and hold the line and hook at the gape.

Take the tag end back to just under the eye and start winding back down the hook shaft. The number of turns depends on line weight. ( My Grandfather told me 7 for the 7 seas).

This produces a loop at the gape and the tag is threaded through the loop.

Pull the main line up tight and it wont ever let go. Sort of like a whipping finish.

As I said I've used this simple variation of a snell for nearly forty years but I've never seen it in a book.

Edited December 2, 2007 by livo

[wildfish]

have a look at the top of the page and click on the knot section! check out the snell!

[livo]

have a look at the top of the page and click on the knot section! check out the snell!

That's the same snell that is in most books. Not the one I tie nor the one used in the NZ video.

[jewgaffer]

Hi Livo

The old snell knot you are referring is a good leader to hook knot up to about 40 lb, but behond that the knot can't be pulled in tight enough because the coils will not bite in well enough to hold, the coils can loosen. However for light to medium lines it is an easy and quick knot to tie. It is one of the strongest knots and is pure in the form of a "knotless knot", in that, from the eye of the hook down the shank there are no pressure points or loops crossing at the pressure end, only where the tag end crosses over to go in thru the end loop, a pressure free area, due to the pressure being shared equally by the first few loops down the shank.

The ordinary uni knot snelled along the shank can be turned into a two or three hook set up along the leader by using a longer end. The uni snell can be tired by regarding the shank as an extension of the main line when gripping the back loop and making the uni knot as a snell.

This knot can be pulled in very tight and it bites in well on heavier line by holding the tag end with a pair of plyers and the leader and the swivel at the main line pulling each hook in tight as you apply pressure.

This method tightens the hooks and helps reduce the memory in the leader as well.

The kiwi longliners knot is a variation of the Mediterrarean "longliners" knot. The Greek one for paternostas is better.

Make a cross over loop along the leader pull part of the loop thru and wrap it around twice then keep putting the same loop into, under, and over each new loop formed only three times but back in different directions. That knot gives equal distribution and no particular pressure point.

Cheers Livo

jewgaffer

[livo]

Hi Livo

The old snell knot you are referring is a good leader to hook knot up to about 40 lb, but behond that the knot can't be pulled in tight enough because the coils will not bite in well enough to hold, the coils can loosen. However for light to medium lines it is an easy and quick knot to tie. It is one of the strongest knots and is pure in the form of a "knotless knot", in that, from the eye of the hook down the shank there are no pressure points or loops crossing at the pressure end, only where the tag end crosses over to go in thru the end loop, a pressure free area, due to the pressure being shared equally by the first few loops down the shank.

The ordinary uni knot snelled along the shank can be turned into a two or three hook set up along the leader by using a longer end. The uni snell can be tired by regarding the shank as an extension of the main line when gripping the back loop and making the uni knot as a snell.

This knot can be pulled in very tight and it bites in well on heavier line by holding the tag end with a pair of plyers and the leader and the swivel at the main line pulling each hook in tight as you apply pressure.

This method tightens the hooks and helps reduce the memory in the leader as well.

The kiwi longliners knot is a variation of the Mediterrarean "longliners" knot. The Greek one for paternostas is better.

Make a cross over loop along the leader pull part of the loop thru and wrap it around twice then keep putting the same loop into, under, and over each new loop formed only three times but back in different directions. That knot gives equal distribution and no particular pressure point.

Cheers Livo

jewgaffer

Thank you jewgaffer. You are dead right about the snell I use not holding well on heavy line. I'll try playing with your other suggestions.