A final chapter will likely never be written in the great debate of the best way to join braided line to mono. The arguments between saltwater anglers will rage on as long as they are using both types of line, which will probably be for the rest of my lifetime, anyway.
Everyone has their preference, which is shaped, of course, by the kind of fish they like to target and the kind of tackle they use. I’ve had my preferences for a long time, but recently, I’ve been introduced to a method that has changed my way of thinking. Enter the FG, or “Fine Grip” knot.
From down under
The FG knot comes to us from Australia. I’ve never fished there, but I’ve talked to plenty of people who have, and it sounds like anglers have plenty of opportunities Down Under to hook massive fish that pull really hard. For comparative purposes, I’ve never even considered using wire that was bigger than No.10 while fishing offshore in the Carolinas. The Aussies routinely use No. 14, which is really thick stuff. They may have a slightly different accent, but they know what they’re talking about.
Having always favored the loop-to-loop connection with a Bimini and a hollowcore loop, it wasn’t hard for me to appreciate how the FG works once it was explained. Technically, it’s a plait and not a knot, but it really works the same as the hollowcore loop concept, where the braid squeezes down on the mono. The harder the fish pulls, the more it squeezes down. This phenomenon is commonly referred to as a “Chinese Finger Trap.” They have some major differences, however. I would go as far as to call them advantages.
First, the FG is a really clean and tight knot when it’s tied (plaited?) and finished correctly. Very little bulk has to pass through the rod guides, whether the fish is running or line is being retrieved. I will go so far as saying that it’s a really pretty connection. It’s almost a failsafe that it looks good. If you have an ugly FG when you’re done making the connection, you probably did something wrong and need to start over.
Second, it’s a single connection, not a series of connections. The loop-to-loop requires three connections, two of which make the loops and the third where they are actually looped together. So the loop-to-loop connection can theoretically fail in three places, which is three times as many points as could fail on the FG knot.
Finally, the FG knot is made of just mono and braid. When you fish it, that’s all that goes into the water. With the loop-to-loop connection, at least the way I have always made them, you not only have your main braided line and the mono that makes your topshot, but two other types of braid, the hollowcore and the small diameter braid that is used to make your served connection. Then, you have to glue the served end of the hollowcore loop and let it sit for 24 or so hours to cure. Not to mention, you really need to buy a set of rigging needles to make the hollowcore loop correctly. The loop-to-loop process simply has a lot more going on.
Videos help
I’m not going to say that the FG is a simple knot to tie. It’s not. The process requires a lot of repetition, as you are constantly working the mono around the braid. To figure out the correct sequence to make the plaited side of the knot, I had to find a video on the internet that animated the knot and, even then, I had to slow down the playback speed to get it to go as slow as possible. I would recommend anyone who is serious about using the FG to approach it the same way. Even after I figured out how to make the plaits (about 30 each way seemed to work best for me), I still struggled with keeping tension on both ends of the braid and the tag end of the mono. My wraps kept unraveling and I ended up with FG knots that had kinks and bald spots. I needed a better way.
Ultimately, building a specific jig for FG knots saved the day. I ended up cutting a 36-inch piece of 4×4 lumber for my base. To each end, I screwed in a 24-inch piece of 2×4, which made a giant “U.” I then screwed in a ratcheting bar clamp to each 2×4 at the top, so that the tensioning grips faced away from me. The clamps with the flat rubber pads are the way to go here. As long as the pads are in good shape, you’re not going to damage the line, even with a good amount of pressure.
With long enough tag ends to work with, I was able to adjust the pressure on each side individually, and I used the clamps to hold my braid, with the mono attached to nothing. I found that you wanted to have enough tension on each side to allow the braid to slip through when you really pulled it. For reference, as I’m right-handed, I stood on the right side of the jig after my braid was set up in the clamps, with the tag end of the braid being held by the clamp to my left. I ran the mono under the braid to begin, then used my right hand to work the mono around the braid over and over, with my left hand holding tension on the back of the mono to make sure the plaits fell neatly into place.
When I finished the plaiting part of the knot, I held all of the wraps (with my left hand) to keep them in place while I released tension on the clamp to my left, opening the clamp just enough to take the braid out and put the mono in. Then I clamped down on the mono to do the half hitches and stopper knot that finishes the connection.
I put as much tension on the clamps as I could at this point, which allowed me to put a bit of torque on the half hitches, which are essential to keeping the plaited part of the connection stable and doing their job. Trim the tag ends close and you are ready to roll.
With the jig I built, it’s actually really easy to tie good FG knots if you follow the process, just a bit repetitive. Tying this knot on a boat may be a different story, but we’ll cross that bridge at some point.
I have tested this knot pretty extensively so far and the results are telling me that with 50-pound and 80-pound mono, with compatible strength in braid, you are not sacrificing knot strength one bit. I would use it to go bluefin fishing tomorrow and not worry for a second.
The jury is still out on how it works with lighter classes of line, where I haven’t had a chance to test it quite yet. If it works as well for skinny braid as it does for the big stuff, I may just consider myself as being fully converted to the “Down Under” way of thinking.
Pre-tie it:
Making leaders at home with the FG knot on a jig is recommended, at least until anglers get proficient at tying it.
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