Tying leadcore to mono

[pete277]

What is a good way to tie leadcore to mono.  I know that you are supposed to pull the jacket back about 6 inches and pinch off the lead, then thread the mono/fluorocarbon into the hollow jacket.  Yeah right like that's going to happen! I've been trying to get that sucker in there for 3 hrs and it ain't happening so there has to be another way.  I tried a blood knot but the mono pulled thru.  Any ideas ?

[John E Powell]

Willis knot. look on youtube for a video.

[pete277]

Yup,  that's the knot I've been trying to tie.  I get the mono in about an inch then it pokes out the side, Guess I need to keep on trying. Thank's.

[Tim Bromund]

think chinese finger cuff.  Compress/Bunch up the lead core sheath to increase the inside diameter so the mono slides in easier.  It does take a little practice.  what size leadcore are you using?

 

Tim

[CaptSpike]

I used the double uni-knot this yr and it seems to be holding well.

Spike

[EarlyRiser]

I used the double uni-knot this yr and it seems to be holding well.

Spike

I also use the double-uni and it serves me very well.

[holy mackerel]

Albright knot

[Legacy]

Willis knot is the way to go with leadcore! http://www.netknots.com/fishing_knots/willis-knot

[apb]

Legacy is right..Willis is simple as pie....the trick is to cut the mono at a sharp angle so the tip of the mono is pointed...you will find it feeds in much easier!!!

Edited April 23, 2013 by apb

[momay4000]

Pete,

 

I tie the Willis all the time and it never fails. I don't attach it to mono, but rather fluoro leader which has a smaller diameter than mono. However, I cannot get anything larger than 30# Seaguar Fluoro leader in the sheath (not sure what that corresponds to in monio diameter).

 

One helpful tip I use: I will cut the fluoro leader straight and very carefully with a razor blade instead of with pliers. I add a little spit and pass it through. The pliers tend to "squish" the cut and make it wider and it's hard to pass through the sheath. The razor makes a cleaner cut. I do not make an angled cut b/c the sharp end always seems to poke through the sheath. 

 

Good luck,

 

Chris

[pete277]

Thanks guy's for all the tip's. I will give the willis knot another try but i'm happy to hear there is another option,  I was just snipping the flouro leader with finger nail clippers and it did seem to smush the end.

[DJ 17]

I've never tried it, but read on another forum that some guys use a sewing needle to feed it through, then just push the needle out the side of the sheath and tighten the knot. The post said it worked very well with braid and smaller diameter mono/floro.  Braid can bea royal PITA to feed into the sheath of the core. 

[Xxx]

Thanks legacy for that site, I tried it and it worked flawlessly. It's hard to believe that one overhand knot will do the trick, I pulled on it as hard as I could and it wouldn't come apart( The 2 fishing lines for those that may be mislead by my wording)

[John E Powell]

I've never tried it, but read on another forum that some guys use a sewing needle to feed it through, then just push the needle out the side of the sheath and tighten the knot. The post said it worked very well with braid and smaller diameter mono/floro.  Braid can bea royal PITA to feed into the sheath of the core. 

 

There is a specific leadcore splicing needle you can buy for under $5 that will allow you to tie a few more leadcore knots besides the Willis knot. One "knot" I particularly like allows you to attach a tiny Spro swivel on the end of the leadcore making it very easy to replace leaders on your core out on the water in a moving boat. This is especially nice for people with older hands or eyes who struggle with knots. To replace a leader you just tie a new leader on to the swivel with whatever knot you prefer.

 

Edited April 24, 2013 by John E Powell

[pete277]

Hoo Hoo !  Finally got that sucker in there. I ended up cutting the flouro at an angle with a razor blade and kept the jacket bunched up while slipping it in. Glad that's over!  Thanks again to all. Tight Lines & cold beer!

[Sk8man]

Nothing like getting it in there after working hard at it

[DJ 17]

John,

What does the "leadcore needle" look like?

[John E Powell]

This type of needle is basically a sewing needle called a "latch needle". The difficult part is finding one small enough to fit inside the leadcore sheath. This size needle is used mainly by European Carp fisherman. On their websites they refer to it as a "leadcore splicing needle". basically it's a high quality, small sized, latch needle with a handle (larger sizes are called latch hooks).

 

Do a Google image search for latch needle and you will get the idea.

[Borch]

Albright knot

For me the willis is first and the Albright if it takes to long or if I need to retie in rough water.

[pete277]

I know I just learned to tie this knot and probably shouldn't be giving out tip's but here's one anyway,  After sliding the mono in and butting it up to the lead, I put a small drop of superglue on the jacket where they meet.  It soaks thru the jacket and onto the mono and lead and holds them firmly in place while you snug up the overhand knot.  I also put a drop on the end of the jacket to keep it from fraying.

[Yankee Troller]

Quick tip for the "Willis Knot" 

 

Before you slide the mono into the sheath take a pair of side cutters or needle nose with cutters on them, and angle them so they cut the tip of the mono on an angle. It seems to slide down the sheath a lot better. Also, you only need to pinch off about 2.5-3" to tie the Willis when you get good at it.

[John E Powell]

I know I just learned to tie this knot and probably shouldn't be giving out tip's but here's one anyway,  After sliding the mono in and butting it up to the lead, I put a small drop of superglue on the jacket where they meet.  It soaks thru the jacket and onto the mono and lead and holds them firmly in place while you snug up the overhand knot.  I also put a drop on the end of the jacket to keep it from fraying.

 

For what it's worth, the European carp guys, who have this leadcore to mono splicing down to a science, specifically recommend NOT to use superglue, but I can't find an explanation as to why. To prevent the fraying at the end of the core, they insert a regular needle (bigger in diameter than the mono your splicing to) into the end of the core and then ever so gently melt the frayed core end on the side edge of an alcohol flame where it's coolest. Then, they pull out the needle leaving a perfectly round hole for the mono leader to slide into.

 

Among the Europeans, there seem to be a larger camp of people who leave the core alone, and a smaller group who melt it as described above, however, they are almost all in universal agreement that superglue and core is not the best thing to do. I wish I could find an explanation from them to site, but I haven't seen one yet.

 

I did see one reference however about superglue defeating the "chinese finger lock" principle of the core sheath and the possibility of "fractured" superglue cutting mono, but as to whether this would apply to how the superglue is used as described above, who knows?

[Yankee Troller]

Also, I have used about every leadcore out there. Mason was the worst experience. Cortlands Kerplunk wasn't bad, and the Suffix was our choice up until Pete Alex came out with the Stealth Core by Woodstock. I spooled this stuff up over the last few weeks, and I am very impressed with it. I know he and a few select others ran this all last year with good results. 

[nautime]

I have found the Willis knot is quite easy to tie with 27lb Kerplunk, but the 18Lb Kerplunk was impossible. Anybody want a spool of it? I picked it up accidently at a show last year. Thanks for heads up on the Suffix. Will give it a go next time respooling.

 

Cheers...Jake