TYING THE FLORRY LOOP
Those familiar with my postings will know that I like to use fine braid in the 10 lb class as the starting point for any knots that I am writing about. This is because any knot that can hold its own on such a thin slippery line material as this will inevitably work equally as well with monofilament and fluorocarbon lines.
And this is what I was aiming for with the above knot pattern, but, just like other knots of a similar configuration (Rapala Knot, Non-Slip Mono, Kryston Non-Slip Loop), it does not have what it takes to make a strong braid loop knot - hard though I tried.
Ordinarily, this failure to perform on braid would be sufficient for me to class it as another 'heroic failure' and move on. However, the line type that I first tested this knot on was fluorocarbon and the strong performance it was giving recalled to mind the words of NetKnots in their introduction to the aforementioned Kryston Non-Slip Loop Knot:
"Now, Chilton says that he believes that this knot performs well in fluorocarbon line, but our tests have not shown that to be true. In monofilament it is every bit as strong as the Non Slip Mono Loop and the Rapala Knot. But as with all the non slip loop knots we test, it fails in fluorocarbon well below the line's rated strength. This is a common theme with the non slip loop knots, and this one fairs no worse than the rest."
Obviously, I am not privy to what tests they have conducted to reach this conclusion. In fact, although I use standing loops a lot in my fishing, I have no need to resort to this lure-fishing style of loop knot. But I know that many of you do and that any knot I present to perform this role must be out of 'the top drawer'.
If you want the performance of a Bimini Twist Loop Knot in a nice easy-to-tie package on your fluoro line, then you have come to the right place!
Before I detail how to tie this knot, I feel duty-bound to mention a very significant difference between my knot and the three afore-mentioned ones. I am using double or treble the amount of turns commonly used in these patterns on my 10 lb fluoro.
Therefore, it is not inconceivable that if you similarly increased the amount of turns on your Rapala and Non-Slip Loop Knots, you too might see a jump in performance matching what I am able to achieve. But increasing the amount of turns in a knot will require greater care when cinching if the full benefit is to be realised. Fortunately, as you will see, this knot pattern readily accepts an increased number of turns.
I know this will be the least of your considerations, but I find the appearance of the Florry Loop Knot to be one of the more aesthetically-pleasing knots in my collection - a P51D Mustang Knot, if you like.
I am hoping that if you are just starting out, you will find this knot pattern easy enough to master - I will be doing my level best to make it so for you. Equally, if you are a more seasoned angler, I can imagine that a lot of the moves will be comfortingly familiar and that your fingers will find their rhythm a lot quicker than mine did - which is another way of saying that if I can tie it, anyone can!
As usual, I will start with a step-by-step how-to guide using a coloured shoe lace. This will then be followed by pictures of the knot being tied with my 10 lb fluorocarbon line.
Enjoy!
Lace
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01  Allow yourself a good length of lace - 24" should suffice. Make the loop to the right of the picture |
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02  Insert the line through the eyelet of your lure or fly when tying for real |
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03  |
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04  The loop of line formed at the bottom of the picture is reminiscent of a bicycle chain with the adjustor loop forming the back wheel and the main loop holding the lure or fly soon to be partitioned into the front wheel. When cinching, you will note how this bicycle-chain line starts to revolve just like a real bicycle chain too
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05  Now, bring the tag end back down across both lines of the main loop inserting it through the gap between 'bicycle-chain' line and the lower line of the main loop. Bring it out the other side as shown to make the first turn. This is not so dissimilar to tying a Uni Knot |
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06  Make another 4-5 turns for the purposes of this exercise (but at least x10 on fluoro). Finish with your tag end around the two lines of the main line loop but tucked inside the 'bicycle-chain' line. Shoe lace is a very limp material compared with fluoro, so will probably need you to apply light tension to keep everything going as depicted. But it is an excellent way to understand how the knot functions. Trust me, once you have built up some muscle memory, fluoro should seem a lot easier to work with! |
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07  With your left hand, take the topmost line of the main loop - it will usually be this line unless the lines have become crossed when getting to this stage. With your right hand, grasp the back of the adjustor loop and main line whilst also trapping the tag end with your spare fingers. Pull gently with you left hand on the topmost line of the main loop. If you have picked the correct line, you will see the 'bicycle-chain' line turning within the adjustor loop causing the turns around the main loop to bunch up towards the adjustor loop. Now, still maintaining tension on the topmost line, begin to apply tension to the tag end whilst using the thumbnail of your left hand holding the topmost line to ease the coils together towards the adjustor loop. |
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08  Tighten, but DO NOT fully cinch as you will wish to decrease the size of the main loop using the adjustor loop at the back. Holding both lines of each loop and pulling in opposite directions was found to level up the turns you have put on place. I had thought to call this the 'Bow Lace' loop knot because, at this stage, it resembles for all the world the knot you might tie your shoe laces with |
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11  Take hold of the main loop with your left hand and pull gently on the main line to reduce the size of the adjustor loop to more manageable proportions |
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12  Once sized as required, you can complete the tightening of the main loop knot. To do this, take the top of the main loop with the fingers of your left hand whilst pulling hard on the tag end. This should take out any excess slack there might be |
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13  Time to lock this knot up. Take the tag end around the main line and the line of the adjustor loop once |
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14  And then a second time - maintaining tension all the while. In the unlikely event that the knot was slipping, you can add an additional turn. Adding these turns simulates tying a secondary Uni Knot which gave me the notion of calling this knot 'The Double Uni Loop Knot' ... |
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15  Keeping tension on the two turns you have added, pull hard on the main line with your right hand whilst holding the loop with your left. This 'seals the deal' and locks down the knot |
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16  Just visible at the back of the knot is the bridging line you have put across your two turns - looking just like two reversed half hitches aka Cow Hitch |
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17  As you don't want to miss out on the opportunity to gain an easy extra 1 lb b/s, you seize the opportunity to lay down some more pairs of reversed half hitches. Here, the first one of the pair is being added using the mnemonic "over is 1, under is 2, over is 3, under is 4 ..." |
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18  And here comes the "under is 2" to complete the first pairing. On fluoro, I would use x6 pairings of reversed half hitches making a total of x12 reversed half hitches (study my Caterpillar Loop Knot for further details). Easy poundage there for the taking. |
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19  Congratulations! You have successfully completed the Florry Loop Knot - here presented as a standing loop, and in the next sequence of pictures, encircling a lure |
Whilst you ready yourselves to tackle this knot on fluorocarbon, there is one other facet of this knot that I think differentiates it from its rivals.
A few years back, when I was trying to find a loop knot that would work well with fine braid, I naturally tried various permutations of the Rapala and Non-Slip Mono Loop knots, and never once got close to reaching the 90%+ of the braid line's potential. Granted, I know more than I did back then, but with this Florry Knot, I have on more than one occasion reached the 90% - 100% mark on my 11 lbs braid, but not consistently enough to class it as a true high-performance braid loop knot like some of the others I advocate.
Ok, now that I have got that out of the way, let's turn our attention to fluorocarbon - a material that does appear to suit this knot very well indeed.
Fluorocarbon
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01  Here is a picture of the line I have been testing with. Look closely and you can just see a fluoro loop that I prepared and tested earlier. As you might expect, fluorocarbon is not the easiest of materials to photograph |
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02  I have selected a particularly colourful type of lure to be representative of the lure or fly that this knot is designed for. I am unsure what species of fish it is supposed to represent - a goldfish, perhaps? Anyway, in this shot, I can be seen holding the adjustor loop between the thumb and forefinger of my right hand. The fluoro line has then been threaded through the eye of the lure and back up through the adjustor loop with the tag end coming to rest on top of the lure's eyelet. Allow yourself plenty of line when making this loop |
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03  In this picture, the full x10 wraps are seen to have been laid down. You can just make out the adjustor loop sitting up to the right of the shot with the tag end exiting off to the right and the main line heading towards the top of the frame |
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04  This shot shows the start of the tightening process described in Step 07 above. Remember to lubricate generously and don't be afraid to use the thumbnail of your left hand to help the coils come together. If you go to x12 wraps or more, the fluoro starts to 'snatch' when just pulling in opposite directions, leaving you with no choice but to use your thumbnail. The topmost line exiting to the right is the tag end which has been pulled in the opposite direction to the topmost line of the loop (off camera) |
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05  As shown in Step 08 above, the wraps you laid down earlier are now nicely ordered and bunched into a Uni Knot leaving a long length of loop between it and the lure. Tighten about three quarters but do not fully cinch |
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06  After once more lubricating the long length of the main loop, you are ready to carry out the instructions outlined in Step 09 - the result of which you see shown. As you take back the excess of line from the main loop via the adjustor loop, you should be able to feel some resistance indicating that the main loop knot is starting to bite |
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07  See how neat and tidy the Uni Knot looks in this picture! But note also that I have performed a number of the above steps to reach this point: Step 10-11 - you can't work with the adjustor loop being so big. So, lubricate the adjustor lube (there shouldn't be much friction - but just in case ...) and pull on the main line until it reduces to a more manageable size Step 12 - complete the cinching of the Uni Knot. Easy to forget but needs to be done to give the performance you want Step 13-14 - add the two turns with the tag end to form the secondary 'locking' Uni Knot |
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08  Step 15-19 - Sunset Boulevard, Norma Desmond (aka Gloria Swanson), "All right, Mr. DeMille, I'm ready for my close-up". I have offered you many knots down the years, but never one as handsome as this. Its movie-star looks deserve a quote from the movies! |
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09  Take a good look at this picture. This is the very knot you have watched me tie through the preceding frames just after it has been pulled round to more than 10 lbs b/s. (To build this knot, I used the following recipe: x10 turns around the main loop x2 turns around the adjustor loop x12 reversed half hitches behind the main knot) Hardly a turn is out of place. It still retains its poise and composure. Come on, admit it, it's a class act! |
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