Knots - Blood Knot

So tying knots is a pretty essential skill for those wanting to tie their own rigs. Here I'm hoping to use a few posts to demonstrate a few basic knots, and then show you the way I make my rigs. While there's no doubting the quality of ready made rigs, I found when I was just starting out that I gained greater satisfaction catching on my homemade rigs.

When it comes to knots I have been using the same ones for years but never bothered to learn the names. I have now found out that this one is called the Blood Knot.

In the example I am attaching 60lb rig body line to a swivel, the line is an awful yellow colour but it is easier to see than the clear line I normally use. To make it easier to see what is going on I have used marker pen on the loose "tag end" of the line. So here goes...

Step 1
Pass the line through the eye of your swivel/hook and bring the tag end along side the mainline.

Step 2
Twist the tag end around the mainline between 4-6 times. I find thicker lines (60lb+) 4 or 5 times is ideal, being secure and not too difficult to manipulate. Thinner snood lines (up to 40lb) I found tend to be more secure when twisting 6 times around.

Step 3
Bring the tag end back towards your swivel/hook as pass it through the gap between the eye and the first twist of line.

Step 4
Moisten the knot to prevent any friction damage. Then, pull the tag end and mainline equally until the knot compresses. Marker pen gone now, its easier to see without it now.

Step 5
Pull the mainline as tight as you can, you might need to push the knot towards the eye of your swivel/hook in order to make it neat and secure. Make sure the tag end is sticking out at 90 degrees to the mainline, if it is inline the knot has a chance of slipping undone under pressure.

Step 6
Trim the tag end, leaving just 1-2mm sticking out. This leaves the knot neat and aerodynamic while also giving a buffer. Trimming right down there is a chance that the tag could slip back through the loop under pressure.

And there we have it, the blood knot. Unfortunately the picture quality isn't great, and it was a challenge to keep everything in place and take pictures with only one pair of hands. I think there's enough to go at there, and hopefully I'll be able to improve the photos in the future.