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the "Non-Twist Knot"

8K views 19 replies 15 participants last post by  emerald_miner 
#1 ·
So last season, a friend of mine (Mark S) introduced me to a knot called the "Non-Twist Knot". He forwarded me the link from the Deschutes Angler that gave instructions on the knot. It's used for large trout flies that tend to spin when casting or when stripping line in : thus causing twist in the leader.

The whole thought is the tippet freely spins inside the hook eye preventing line twist. The video from the Deschutes Angler will show how you cut off a short piece of 10lb mono and tie it in with a triple surgeons knot into your tippet.

I tried this knot out last season on steelhead dry flies. I dig it. I really prefer downeye hooks on my steelhead dryflies and this knot works great - as it allows the tippet to exit perpendicular to the shank.



As far as the "non twist" idea; maybe it helps a little but what I really like about this knot is that you don't trap hackle/hair fibers when cinching it down! (I really dislike trapping material in the knot....especially when it's really well-tied Steelhead Bee).

So, the question is: Would I trust it?

It's landed hot larger steelhead for me last year and the knot has been solid.

Click on the video below for a "hack" on the Non-Twist Knot:



As you can see in the video: If I am not too concerned about losing tippet length, I just double over my 10lb Maxima tippet (I think our own Mae West gave me that idea). I also only use a Double Surgeon's knot since my dryfly hook eyes are small.

Would love to here some reviews on how the knot performs for some of you this coming season.

Cheers and Blessings,
Adrian

P.S. I normally don't talk fast but I was running out of room on phone storage for that video
 
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#2 ·
Really cool idea, eliminates the need for swivels elsewhere in the leader or line. Any specific reason you run the line through the underside of the eye? Almost seems counter-intuitive to add an extra point of twist in the setup, although it seems to work fine for ya.
 
#5 · (Edited)
Maybe I'm not fully understanding this knot but I think I am. It's not tied to fly, it stops the fly from falling of the end of the tippet. Ingenious, this is 2020 and fly fishing is just now seeing the brilliance of this...can't believe I didn't think of it. I've lost too many steelhead because the at fly knot broke because of tension applied at squeezing junctions. I think that's why every fly I've lost to a steelhead was lost to the steelhead. Any knot at the tippet end that stops the fly from slipping off will not receive the cutting tension due to the location of the knot. The entire knot receives the tension so it transfers it everywhere within the knot. I'll be using this approach for all my swung line fishing from here on out.

Thanks for the post!
 
#7 ·
Great knot. Good idea. The only thing is that you cannot tie all sizes of flies on all sizes of tippet. You need to make sure the tippet knot will never go through the eye even on huge tension. Which is not easy to guess... My 2 cents here. Be careful with this cuz a knot under its first high tension can get smaller. And since dry fly fishing is often better on light tippets, it is even more important to keep that in mind.
 
#9 ·
I'll be using this method for all my fly fishing, except maybe shad on the Columbia, but bluegills, perch, bass, pikeminns etc. will see a looser fly on my tippet. My wet flies and sinktip offerings will all be attached with this technique. I'll get more movement, more dead drift type action. And I'm certain I'll have fewer breakoffs. The last two serious steelhead I've hooked both broke 12# maxima clear, so I went to 15#...now I'll go back to 10#, or maybe 8... and tie a larger knot.
 
#10 ·
Worked great

After reading about the non twist knot here, I decided to try it last night with a Stone fly/Salmon fly pattern. Worked great and was strong.
To make the knot big enough I had to triple over my line which used a considerable amount of tipped compared to a standard fishing knot. But no twisting issues when throwing big bushy dries.

SL2
 
#17 ·
Thank you Adrian for sharing this and me finding this way too late.

Does anyone have any experience they can share for the folks to have too many upturned eye hooks in supply? I’m curious if it rides similar to traditional turle/hitching technique.

Please help me if my understanding is correct. For an upturn eye hook I would be essentially feeding tippet from bottom side of the eye so it’s the most direct connection and level with shank?

If everything else is the same in motion this is fantastic! No rings to argue weight issues and no matting materials from all the hitch.
Thanks so much for sharing and appreciate everyone’s input
 
#18 ·
In theory, inserting the tippet from the bottom of the up-eye with the Non Twist knot would make the tippet level with the shank. But I think it would also depend on the angle of the up-eye and the size of your tippet.

I have tried it on small up-eye hooks dressed as a dry fly. I was curious if it would affect the wake; it was hard to be conclusive but I feel the fly sat lower in the water. But it still landed fish just fine.
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However, the Non-Twist knot has been my exclusive attachment for down-eye dry flies for 3 seasons now. I have not lost a steelhead on the knot at all.

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You can see the knot holding strong.

If one uses a lighter tippet (say 8lb), it would be smart to retie the knot after a long day of casting - the lighter tippet will sport a kink on a down-eye hook. (12lb Maxima - no need to lose sleep over the 'kink')
 
#20 ·
Thanks for sharing this one Adrian. This knot came up while talking to a mentor of mine who got me onto this site and led me to the river rambler podcast. I just listened to your episode on there and I really dig your story man! I just have a few days of fishing heavy tips for winter steelhead under my belt. No fish yet but I’m already excited to fish this knot on a steelhead bee or caddis in the summer time!!!
 
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