How to snell a hook

Snelled hook perfect for flipping or circle hooks

A snell knot is overlook by many anglers, but it’s one of the best ways to ensure the point of a hook pulls into a fish’s mouth.

Offshore anglers use this knot when fishing with circle hooks, but bass anglers in the know also employ it when flipping heavy cover because of how it leverages the hook.

When combined with a straight-shanked flipping hook, the point of the hook is snapped directly into a bass’ mouth on the hook set.

And tying the snell couldn’t be more simple. Here are the steps:

1) Pass the line through the eye of the hook, ensuring it’s going from the back of the hook toward the point.

2) Pull several inches of line through the eye, line it up along  the hook shank= and form a loop, with the tag end of the line going back toward the eye. Pinch the two parts of the line near the bend.

3) Hold the pinched lines and wrap the tag end of the line around the main line and hook shank, forming six to eight tight wraps.

4) Pass the tag end through the loop, moving from the bend of the hook upward toward the eye.

5) Pull the tag end and main line (above the hook’s eye) in opposite directions, ensuring the wraps stay nice and tight. Slide the knot up to the eye and pull as tight as possible, with pressure maintained on each side of the knot, trimming trim the tag end but leaving a little line to allow the knot to tighten on the hook set if necessary.