Illawarra Flyfishers Club

 

How to Make Your Own Braided Loops

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Lots of people use braided loops as the link between the flyline and the leader, or flyline and backing. It results in an easy way to change leaders or flylines, as well as being just as strong, if not stronger, than the traditional nail knot or uni knot. 

The material I use for the braided loop shown below is 30lb Cortland braided monofilament, commonly sold as running line for shooting heads. It is exactly the same material as the braided loops that are sold in two packs. Gudebrod also makes a good braided monofilament.

Now I am not forcing you to go out and buy 30m of braided monofilament - if you just want to start small, go and buy a pair of braided loops. The commercial variety are so long that you could easily make 2 of my braided loops out of one commercial loop. If you buy a spool of braided mono for use as running line for a shooting head, cut off a couple of metres and keep them for making these loops. It is very handy stuff to have laying around.

What you will need:

• 10cm of braided monofilament (15cm for 8wt and above)
• Medium to Heavy gauge sewing needle (thick enough to just fit inside the hollow braid)

This is the easiest method that I know of to make braided loops. For 99% of the case, this easy method will be strong enough once you have attached it properly.

Once you have finished making the braided loop, click here for instructions on how to attach it to your flyline.

 

Instructions (click on the picture to see a larger view in a new window)

	1. Insert the point of the needle halfway along the length of the piece of braid and push it through the hollow centre.
	2. Push the end of the braid through the eye of the needle. If you quickly expose the ends of the braid to gentle heat from a cigarette lighter, it makes the cut ends behave themselves and it's a bit easier to work with.
	3. Carefully pull the needle through the braid so the tag end is pulled back through the hollow core.
	4. You will now see that a loop has been formed. Put a skewer or thin pencil in the loop, then pull the tag end out of the needle.
	5. Make sure it is all tight and neat, and remove the skewer from the loop.
	6. Trim off the tag end that you just pulled through so that it extends slightly past the outside layer of braided mono. This will make it easier to guide the flyline into the loop when you attach it to the flyline.
	7. The finished braided loop, ready to be attached to your flyline.