Fishing using a feeder or match fishing rod requires the fisherman to carry out long and accurate casting. For this, anglers very often use sliding equipment. It is she who makes it possible to control the casting distance by adjusting the position of the float. This is carried out using various locking devices on the main fishing line of gear. One of them is a locking sliding unit. We will talk about him, and also consider options for his proper knitting.
Why you need a sliding float
A sliding float is mainly used for fishing from the bottom, as well as at a long distance from the fisherman. Its difference from the usual bite pointer lies in the fact that it is not fastened to the main fishing line “tightly”, but with the possibility of free movement along it in a certain range set by the fisherman.
When casting such a float is in close proximity to the cargo, which allows you to "throw" the gear at the greatest possible distance. Once in the water, the load with the hook sinks to the bottom, and the bite pointer slides up the fishing line until it is stopped by a locking sliding knot or other similar device. At the same moment, under the action of two forces, one of which pushes the float to the surface, and the other pulls to the bottom, it will harden and stand upright.
Such a float does not lose its sensitivity at all, but, on the contrary, reacts to any vibration of the equipment.
Float Stoppers
As a stopper, various devices can be used, like rubber or silicone beads worn on the main fishing line. They are freely sold in fishing stores and markets, and at the same time cost a penny.
But nevertheless, the most popular and widespread means for fixing the float is the sliding knot invented by savvy fishers. Tie it, knowing at least one of the ways, is not difficult. And you can do this even at the place of fishing, having at hand a piece of fishing line or even a regular sewing thread.
If you do not want to knit the locking assembly for the sliding float yourself, you can buy it. Yes, even knots are sold in fishing shops today. Usually they are tied on a special tube, and the angler only needs to remove the knot, put it on the fishing line and tighten it.
But we will not be likened to lazy and inept fishermen, but we will practice how to knit such knots independently.
What to knit
As for the material, ordinary fishing line here is not the best choice. Firstly, the friction force in this case will be minimal. This will lead to the fact that the node will be easy to move and will no longer be locking. And secondly, the fishing line is transparent enough, and we need the top border of the float to be constantly visible.
Most often, a sliding knit is knitted from a piece of a backing cord for fly fishing, braided fishing line or ordinary thick thread (preferably wool). The latter option is preferable, since it does not require any costs, but works most efficiently.
What else you need to know when starting to knit the locking assembly
If you plan to fishing using a match fishing rod, the stop node must be given maximum attention. The fact is that the match fishing rod has many access rings with rather narrow holes. Because of this, when throwing, a situation very often arises when the node simply gets stuck in them. This, in turn, leads to the fact that the tackle not only does not fall into the intended place, but also gets confused.
To avoid such troubles, the locking unit for the sliding float must not only clearly correspond to the size of the rings, but also be well tightened. In addition, its ends can by no means be cut off completely. Firstly, it significantly worsens the passage through the access rings of the rod, and secondly, they will still be needed to tighten the knot when it loosens.
The main methods of knitting locking knots
There are many different ways of knitting fishing knots, including stop knots . Of course, it is impossible to study all of them, so we will consider the simplest and most popular of them:
- "Clinch" - the simplest and fastest in the manufacture of the locking unit for the sliding float;
- “Improved” knot - fits with a needle;
- “Creamus” is a simple double knot;
- "Danken" - the most practical and reliable unit
How to tie a clinch-type sliding knot
The clinch knot is the easiest to knit. Because of this, anglers most often use it. Clinch is a single node, but this does not mean that it is unreliable or inefficient. He does his job well.
To make it, we need a woolen thread of bright color of the same cross section as the fishing line. The knitting knot algorithm is approximately as follows:
- A piece of thread 25-30 cm long is folded in half and applied to the main fishing line from below, pressing with your fingers.
- We throw one end of the thread through the fishing line and the other end so that the main fishing line is inside the loop formed.
- Holding the loop with your fingers, make 5-7 turns with the first end around the fishing line and the second end.
- Pass the first end into a loop, wet the knot with water or saliva and tighten.
- We cut the remains of the thread, leaving 2 cm on both sides.
Locking knots for a clinch-type fishing line, due to their "elegance," are mostly used specifically for match tackle.
"Improved" (modified) node
Another option is a simple node. His knitting does not cause any difficulties at all, the only thing that should be at hand is a needle (preferably gypsy).
To tie the “improved” sliding knot for the float, we take the thread, the needle and attach them to the fishing line (in parallel). Next, one of the ends we wind all this, making 5-6 turns. Then we thread the same end into the eye of the needle and stretch it a little. We pull out the needle towards its tip and, having previously wetted the knot, slowly tighten and cut off its ends.
Kremkus knot
“Kremkus” is a double knot, as it fits into two threads. It is much thicker and denser than the clinch, but the process of knitting itself is also quite simple:
- We fold the thread in half and wrap it around the fishing line.
- Around the formed loop we make 3-4 turns at both ends.
- Wet the knot, tighten it and cut off the ends, not forgetting to leave 2 cm at the edges.
Similar nodes are more often used in feeder gear.
How to make a sliding dunken knot
The dunken knot is considered the most practical. Tightening it once during knitting, you will not do this anymore. It holds firmly on the fishing line and does not open. To link the sliding knot for the danken float, the following steps must be completed:
- We bend the length of the thread in half, and apply the loop formed at the intersection of the ends to the fishing line.
- One of the ends is skipped under the fishing line, threaded into the loop, repeating this step 4-5 times so that the bottom of the loop is wound around the fishing line 4-5 turns.
- Wet the knot with water and slowly tighten it, spreading the ends to the sides.
- Trim the ends, leaving 2 cm.
How to prepare nodes for future use
If you are a lover of match or feeder fishing, you can’t do without stop knots anyway.
In order not to suffer with their knitting every time you mount the gear, you can stock up on them in advance.
To do this, take a plastic tube like an ampoule from a ballpoint pen or insulation of an electric wire 5-8 cm long and fasten the required number of nodes on it. Now you will always have at your fingertips a whole set of stoppers. To use them, just put the tube on the main fishing line, pull the extreme knot onto it, draw it to the desired area, tighten and trim the ends.