What is Fly Fishing >>Fly Fishing Knots >>Tying the Barrel Knot/Blood Knot

Tying the Barrel Knot/Blood Knot

If you need to join two sections of tapered leaders together or you want to tie the end of your leader to your tippet, the barrel knot/blood knot is an option you may want to consider. While the barrel knot/blood knot is not as secure as some of the other fly fishing knots and it can be a bit difficult to tie, it does offer more uniformity than many of the other knots used for the sport.

Step 1 – Make an “X”

Okay, here’s the easiest part of the entire knot-tying process when you’re forming a barrel knot/blood knot. Simply take your leader and tippet and form the letter “X” as shown in the picture below. Please note, we’re not using actual backing or tippet in the following pictures. We are using a much thicker string so you are able to see the details of the knot-tying process.

Step 2 – Wind It

The next step in the barrel knot/blood knot process is to take one end of the backing and wind it around the tippet four or five times and then pass the end to the other side of the “X” as shown in the pictures below.

Step 3 – Go the Opposite Way

Now you need to clamp down on the line with one hand as you use your other hand to wind the free end of the line around the standing piece in the opposite direction another four or five times as shown in the pictures below. This time when you go through the loop, do it through the same loop, but in the opposite direction.

Step 4 – Tighten the Knot

Now it’s time to tighten the barrel knot/blood knot. Pull the standing parts together to form the knot without putting any pressure on the short ends, as shown in the picture below. If you find it hard to pull the parts together, you can use lubrication to make the process easier.

Once you’ve tightened the barrel knot/blood knot, it should look similar to the knot in the following picture.