How to tie the perfect knotless knot for hair rigs

(Image credit: Angler's Mail)

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Of course, the knotless knot is now as famous as a blood knot or grinner knot.

It’s ideal for creating a hair rig for boilies and carp fishing, but also useful for mounting all manner of baits.

It leaves the bait itself clear of the hook point – maximising chances of connecting with fish!

Here’s a closer look at  the steps to tie a perfect knotless knot…

(Image credit: Angler's Mail)

Start off by tying a simple overhand loop at one end of the hook length; this loop is the end of the hair and will act as the anchor point for the hair stop which will hold your bait in place.

(Image credit: Angler's Mail)

2 Using a baiting needle thread your chosen bait over the loop and onto the hair then secure it in place with a hair stop.

(Image credit: Angler's Mail)

3 Thread the hook length through the eye of the hook from the back to the front then adjust the length of the hair to suit the hook bait you are using and your requirement. Allow a gap of at least 5 mm from the top of your bait to the bend of the hook but experiment to find what works best.

(Image credit: Angler's Mail)

4 Keeping the hair trapped tightly to the back of the hook take the other end of the hook length and begin to whip it downwards along the shank, trapping the hair beneath a series of tight, even coils.

(Image credit: Angler's Mail)

5 Keep whipping downwards, stopping when the whipping is roughly opposite the point of the hook. How many turns this will require depends upon the shank length of the hook you are using but try to ensure you get a minimum of five or six turns.

(Image credit: Angler's Mail)

6 Once you have completed the turns trap the whipping firmly between finger and thumb and pass the end of the hook length back through the eye of the hook from back to front, ensuring the line comes out from the front of the hook.

(Image credit: Angler's Mail)

7 Gently pulling the hook length tight locks the turns of line against the shank of the hook and completes the knot. You can now tie the other end of the hook length to a swivel or make a loop in it to allow it to be attached to a hook length clip to finish your rig.

Angler's Mail

Running from 1964 until 2020, Angler's Mail was the UK's leading weekly magazine devoted to coarse fishing, telling readers everything they needed to know about which fish to catch, where to catch them, and what kit they needed to do it. Now, loads of the magazine's expert advice can be found on Advnture.com, as a helpful resource for angling newcomers and experts alike.