FG knot

[MCIPinkie]

Here's my nickel's worth. From everything I've seen or read, no real big time pro's, including Aaron Martens, uses the FG knot. It takes too long to tie out on the water and brings nothing to the goal of catching fish. I've watched Youtube videos of all the PB's that claim they use it. I can tie a half dozen Alberto or Uni to Uni knots in the time they take to tie a FG knot, and you know they edited the snot out of their videos.

If guys that fish for a living can't find a reason, I darn sure can't.

Catching fish is the goal. If it don't support the goal, I don't need it. I ain't here to brag about the PB knots I tie.

PS: PB=Phony Baloney

[Aric11]

Here's my nickel's worth. From everything I've seen or read, no real big time pro's, including Aaron Martens, uses the FG knot. It takes too long to tie out on the water and brings nothing to the goal of catching fish. I've watched Youtube videos of all the PB's that claim they use it. I can tie a half dozen Alberto or Uni to Uni knots in the time they take to tie a FG knot, and you know they edited the snot out of their videos.

If guys that fish for a living can't find a reason, I darn sure can't.

Catching fish is the goal. If it don't support the goal, I don't need it. I ain't here to brag about the PB knots I tie.

PS: PB=Phony Baloney

I can’t account for how many Pro’s use or don’t use the FG Knot but my rebuttal to this is if tied correctly and with a long enough leader while preparing ahead of time for the tournament, you shouldn’t need to tie another leader throughout the entire day. So in theory tying the FG should actually be a lot less time consuming than tying 3 or 4 quick knots during the day. That said I’d have to assume there’s some other reason guys like A-Mart use other knots. Confidence is using what they know maybe?

With regards to not supporting the goal of catching fish I call BS on this one. Whether it’s the FG, the Alberto, the Double Uni or the Granny knot everything you bring to the table to help you get a bite and land that fish is always a factor. You can Jig like Denny, Flip like Biffle, Skip like G-Man, or Crank like KVD but if your Rod, Line or Knot fails while attempting to fight or land the Bass, then your cast / retrieve skills mean NOTHING. Good fisherman can get bites, Great ones consistently land them. That’s often the difference between the Pro’s and the Joes.

[Heelman99]

I use the FG knot connecting 30# braid to 8# Gamma Fluorocarbon. May have to practice tying it a few times to perfect a process in ting the knot quickly. Main reason for using the FG knot is it passes through the small line guides on my rod. Still use the uni to uni knot but not as often. Never had the FG know fail and have used it on shakeyhead and 3/8 oz jig & pig.

[Jetboy]

I have about 7 FG knots working now. Still kinda struggle to make them just right. Mostly 30# to 8# same as you heelman.
cought a few fish. Still casting it. I can hear it but it’s way better on the ears if nothing else. Still working on being faster and neater. No failures yet.

[Rob4AU]

I have been using the FG knot for several years and they are flawless when tied properly. I can tie one in the boat in less than a minute, it's just like any other knot when you get used to tying it. I caught a saltwater stripe over 20 lbs. Friday on 8# braid with 6# flouro leader while crappie fishing, but I use it bass fishing as well.

[DubyaDee]

I was going to ask this on it's own thread but I figure this is only a month old....

When you go to tighten down the leader and pull reeeallly hard, doesn't that weaken you're leader? I've been tying this FG over and over again to try and get it down, but I feel like I'm weakening my leader when I pull it as hard as I can. For what it's worth, I'm using 10 pound braid to 6 lb fluoro.

Thanks!

[reason162]

I was going to ask this on it's own thread but I figure this is only a month old....

When you go to tighten down the leader and pull reeeallly hard, doesn't that weaken you're leader? I've been tying this FG over and over again to try and get it down, but I feel like I'm weakening my leader when I pull it as hard as I can. For what it's worth, I'm using 10 pound braid to 6 lb fluoro.

Thanks!

And that is precisely why the FG is a > 15lb leader knot, imo. Anything under 10lbs I'm tying an improved alberto, or Shin Fukae's "lazy alberto."

[DrewFlu33]

I was going to ask this on it's own thread but I figure this is only a month old....

When you go to tighten down the leader and pull reeeallly hard, doesn't that weaken you're leader? I've been tying this FG over and over again to try and get it down, but I feel like I'm weakening my leader when I pull it as hard as I can. For what it's worth, I'm using 10 pound braid to 6 lb fluoro.

Thanks!

13 months old....

Fukae's "Lazy Alberto" knot is the "deal" for me. What you mention is certainly true in my mind, and no matter what anyone says I don't believe the FG will tell you right away if there's a problem with it and that is scary to me. All it took was one that I had cast several hundred times and actually caught several fish on pulling out on a possible tourney winning fish for me to write it off. Yep, won't happen if it's tied correctly, totally get it. But when you don't know if it's tied correctly until it pulls out after a couple hundred casts, that doesn't really do you any good does it? Too many "tricks" and details to be concerned with and too many opportunities to make a minor mistake that dooms the knot...I think people are really trying to force it to work. Just my opinion of course.

Also as I mentioned on this thread last year, even though the FG is thin, I think the overall length of the knot hinders it going through the guides more than the slightly larger diameter of a much shorter knot. All the others are less than 1/3 the length of the FG. The Lazy Alberto is thicker than the FG by the diameter of whatever fluoro you're using as a leader....if that sounds crazy, just look at how they go together. That is insignificant in my mind, even if the length of the knot didn't make up for it, and it's certainly not enough for me to risk tying a knot that I can't tell is bad until I fish it for half a day. To top it off, I can tie 3 Lazy Albertos in the time it takes me to tie one FG, can easily tie the Lazy Alberto on the water, and there's no propping a rod this way or that way or having to protect my hands with a towel to cinch it down.

[1Cast 1Fish]

I use a Alberto Knot for most my freshwater fishing and normally a Uni to Uni for heavy saltwater setups. No issues so far...plus they are easy to tie. I have tried the FG and when its done right it's great...but I have trouble getting it perfectly right every time.

[LewStulePH.D.]

[Rob4AU]

I use the FG and once you get the hang of it it is not as hard or as time consuming as most make to be. I use from 6# braid to 4# flouro all the way up to whatever and it works on all of it. I use a long leader that gets to the reel and I have no issues. If and when you get hung use a steady pull to break off and not a quick jerk and your leader will break instead of at the knot.

[Jimmy3]

I use to use the uni to uni knot exclusively dor for uniting braid to fluro. Durring that time I broke the knot several times, mostly when breaking off snags.

2 years ago I switched to using the FG, in that time I've always had to cut the braid above the knot because my leader got to short. So in short yes I absolutely trust the FG knot 100%.

I have used the FG to connect 10 lb braid to 6 and 8 lb fluro mainly. I also use 30 lb braid to 17 lb mono for topwater and spinner baits. I use 65 lb braid to 20 or 25 lb fluro for flipping and pitching heavy stuff. The leaders on my fairy wonds start off at about 10 ft with no casting issues. My casting gear only gets a leader that is just outside my reel as the knot tends to hang on my line guide.

As a side note I just began tieing a rizzuto finish and have had no issues as of yet with that. Before I tied 4 alternating hitches and finished with a small dab of superglue on the braids tag.