How Much Drag Can a Fish Knot Carry?

Overview

My project title is How Much Drag Can A Fish Knot Carry? Through my research, I learned that most line breaks and loss of fish id due to the breakage at the knot. The knot has always been a critical link between the angler and the fish, allowing the angler to keep the fish hooked. Even through they are important they are often neglected by anglers. Knots that frequently fail are frustrating, causing anglers to lose their fish. To avoid this, anglers pair their knots with the right line weigher and amount of drag.(Sarkees). How do I know which fishing knot supports the most drag? My hypothesis is that out of the knots I'll test, the one that is most intricate to tie will carry the most drag. To test, I built a push-pull test stand to calculate that knot’s durability, then practiced tying knots on a 13.6 kg monoline. The knot that carried the most drag was the Trilene knot, with an average breaking strength of 18.7 kg. This knot is mid-range in complexity of typing: it outperformed the Clinch knot with an 11 kg mean, the Palomar knot with a close 18.1 kg, and the most intricate SD Jam knot, with a 17.6 kg average breaking strength. Testing these fishing knots does not support my hypothesis that the most intricate to tie would hold up best. Next time I go fishing, I'll be using a Trilene knot and hopefully reel in a big catch!

Competition history

• CSEF 2026 Applied Mechanics (Junior Division) · Entry J-02-20

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