Tie

Cat's Paw

Loop-to-loop transfer between a doubled main line and a wind-on leader. Documented wind-on systems use three to five nested passes — count them as you make them. The double underneath remains the load path.

Intermediate · Braid / Monofilament / Fluorocarbon

Tie it · 4 steps Check the finishAll diagrams Applications

Connection card

Cat's Paw

For loop → loop, double line → leader.

What it joins Loop → loop · Double line → leader. In braid, monofilament, fluorocarbon.

Turns 3 to 5. Count them before you seat it; afterwards you are guessing.

Shape Two interlocked loops drawn into a short even collar of nested passes. Count the passes the system calls for — three to five are documented.

Tag end No tags in the load path

Seated Collar compact, drawn slowly rather than snatched

Start again if Too few passes for the selected wind-on system. Load is concentrated into fewer bearing points than the selected system intends

This card does not say how strong the knot is. A retention figure comes from a bench, in one material, at one diameter, tied by somebody who ties it all day — and the line in your hand is none of those. What it does tell you is whether the thing you have just tied is the thing the record describes.

What this plate is telling you

Save this as a picture and it works with a dead signal and a nearly dead battery, which is when a joint is most often tied badly. The rest of this page — the steps, the seating sequence, the failure modes and the bench — is for the evening before.

Why this knot

What it earns its place with, what it costs, and what to reach for instead.

Best for

Joining linesHigh strengthOffshore

Not ideal for

Single-strand main line with no double built first
Light tackle where the doubled loop is bulkier than the job needs
Anywhere a loop-to-loop's bulk cannot pass the guides

Common mistakes

Losing count of the passes, or stopping after a single pass, which is only a girth hitch
Snatching the lines apart, so the turns jump over each other and the joint closes lumpy
Starting from a single strand, or from a Bimini twist whose wraps have slipped
Leaving one loop riding over the other, so the collar sits lopsided and catches on the tip guide

Alternatives

Bimini TwistAdvanced
Making a double line with a loop at the end, for loop-to-loop leader connections or as the doubled line in knots such as the Yucatan
Loop-to-Loop ConnectionBeginner
Joining two finished loops, such as a fly-line loop and a leader loop, so the leader can be changed without cutting either line
Yucatan KnotIntermediate
Joining a heavier mono leader to a lighter braid or mono main line that has first been doubled with a Bimini twist or spider hitch
Haywire TwistIntermediate
Joins single-strand wire to a hook, lure or swivel, or makes a loop in the end of a wire leader

Before you start

·Tie a short Bimini twist in the main line first. The cat's paw only joins two loops, so it needs the double line and a wind-on leader with its own loop.
·These steps use five passes, following Salt Water Sportsman. Some published versions use three. Count each pass as you make it.
·Each pass draws the whole wind-on leader through the Bimini loop, so lay the leader out where you can pull it clear.

Line + hardware: Main line with a short Bimini twist double line, Wind-on leader with a loopTools: Clippers

How to tie it — Step 1 of 3 · move 1 of 1

swipe to step

01.1

Lay the wind-on leader loop through the doubled main-line loop

Hold:: Left hand pushes the doubled main-line loop through the leader loop and holds it open
Move:: Right hand feeds the wind-on leader through the doubled loop once

You should now see: Two separate loops are interlocked once; neither line has been tied into a new knot.

Written step 01

Tie a short Bimini twist in the main line to make a doubled loop, and have the wind-on leader ready with its own loop at the end.

You should now see

Two strands of main line running from the Bimini wraps to a closed loop, and a leader loop, with neither loop twisted.

If it goes wrong

Starting from a single strand, or from a Bimini whose wraps have slipped. Count the strands running into the loop: one strand means there is no double to connect to.

Fix: Tie a Bimini twist, or retie one that has slipped, before you join the leader.

Why: The cat's paw only joins two loops. How much load the join can take is set by the double line and the leader loop behind it.

What fails if this is wrong

Built on a single strand rather than a double — The connection is limited by one strand of main line. The paw transfers load between loops; it does not create strength..

arrow keys work

Tying procedure — Cat's Paw

Step 01 / 3
Tie a short Bimini twist in the main line to make a doubled loop, and have the wind-on leader ready with its own loop at the end.
You should now see: Two strands of main line running from the Bimini wraps to a closed loop, and a leader loop, with neither loop twisted.
If it goes wrong: Starting from a single strand, or from a Bimini whose wraps have slipped. Count the strands running into the loop: one strand means there is no double to connect to.
Fix: Tie a Bimini twist, or retie one that has slipped, before you join the leader.
Why: The cat's paw only joins two loops. How much load the join can take is set by the double line and the leader loop behind it.
Step 1 of 3 · move 1 of 1
Lay the wind-on leader loop through the doubled main-line loop
Hold: Left hand pushes the doubled main-line loop through the leader loop and holds it open
Move: Right hand feeds the wind-on leader through the doubled loop once
You should now see: Two separate loops are interlocked once; neither line has been tied into a new knot.
Step 02 / 3
Push the Bimini loop through the leader loop, then pass the free end of the wind-on leader through the Bimini loop and draw it all the way through. Repeat until you have made five passes.
You should now see: Five turns lying side by side where the two loops meet, with the whole leader drawn clear through after the last pass.
If it goes wrong: Losing count, or stopping after one pass, which leaves a plain girth hitch with a single turn where the loops meet. Count the turns before you cinch.
Fix: Back the leader out through the Bimini loop until the turns lie flat, then make the passes again, counting each one out loud.
Why: Each pass adds a turn where the loops bear on each other, spreading the load over more line. Published counts run from three passes to five; a single pass is a plain girth hitch.
1Five passes
Step 2 of 3 · move 1 of 1
Keep passing the leader loop through the doubled loop until you have five passes
Hold: Left hand keeps the doubled loop open and the earlier passes stacked
Move: Right hand feeds the whole leader loop through again without crossing the turns
You should now see: Count five distinct passes in the collar before you start to cinch it.
Step 03 / 3
Pull the double line and the leader apart slowly and steadily, easing the turns down until they close into a short, even collar.
You should now see: A compact, small-diameter joint where the turns lie tight and parallel, with no turn crossing another.
If it goes wrong: Snatching the lines apart. The turns jump over each other and the joint closes lumpy, with one turn sitting on top of the rest.
Fix: Slack off, open the loops until the turns can move, lay them side by side and cinch again slowly. If they still will not lie tight together, whip the two lines together.
Why: Slow, steady tension lets each turn slide into place beside the last one, so all the turns share the load instead of one carrying most of it.
Step 3 of 3 · move 1 of 1
Pull the doubled line and leader apart slowly so the five passes nest into a short collar
Hold: Left hand pulls the doubled main line straight
Move: Right hand pulls the leader while guiding the turns side by side
You should now see: A compact five-turn collar with no turn riding over its neighbour.

What this is based onChanged, not yet re-reviewed · 1 known limit

Record: Reviewed 2026-09-18. 2 sources are cited for this record.
Drawing: Changed to fix faults found in its pictures or its film, and checked by the drawing checks. No person has looked at the change. Not yet re-reviewed, and not yet tied from the drawing. Recorded 2026-09-26.
Known limits: No audit has looked at this drawing since it was changed, so it may have faults that are not listed here.
Strength: Not established. No credible, comparable strength data exists for this knot, so no figure is shown.

What the drawing does not show

Step 3, move 1 of 1: The collar is drawn as tied, all five passes round one leg of the doubled loop with that loop still open; pulled up evenly, the turns share out between both loops and close into the short, even joint the written steps describe.

Watch the tie

Swordfish 101: How To Attach A Wind On Leader (Cats Paw)Pescatarian Fishing · Opens on YouTube

External video from a creator we follow — not produced by us. Nothing on this page loads from YouTube until you follow the link.

Seating sequence — where failures are born

The step list compresses the finish. Run these phases in order, one at a time.

01 Moisten
Wet the structure before any load reaches it.
Zero. Nothing tightens yet.
02 Load
Take up slack slowly until the wraps begin to gather.
Light and even — both ends moving together.
03 Dress
Watch the wraps stack in order; stop and back off if any cross.
Hold, do not pull. Correction happens here or not at all.
04 Set
One continuous pull to full seat — no sawing, no jerks.
Firm, single direction, standing line against the terminal end.
05 Trim
Cut the tag square, leaving a short stub proud of the knot.
None. Never trim under load.

Finished structure — what correct looks like

Drawn from a rope model of this knot: which strand passes over which comes from where the rope actually lies.

Structure: Two interlocked loops drawn into a short even collar of nested passes. Count the passes the system calls for — three to five are documented.
Standing line: Doubled main line and leader collinear through the collar
Tag end: No tags in the load path
Wraps: Repeated passes lying side by side. Count them; the plate is not the source of the count.
Seating: Collar compact, drawn slowly rather than snatched

Verify before you load it

Every line is pass or fail. One fail means retie — do not load a knot you argued with.

01Two interlocked loops drawn into a short even collar of nested passes. Count the passes the system calls for — three to five are documented.
02Collar compact, drawn slowly rather than snatched
03No tags in the load path
04Repeated passes lying side by side. Count them; the plate is not the source of the count.
05No turn crossing over another
06Loop-to-loop collar with the selected system's documented pass count

Something failed → open Diagnose

Field notes — dark, cold, gloves

·Retie by feel first, light second — the seat is a tactile event, not a visual one.
·Gloves off for the dress phase. Fabric hides a crossing wrap.
·Wrong twice in a row means the material or the hardware is fighting you. Change one, not your technique.

Failure modes

When this family fails, it fails as these. The recovered end still outranks the name.

Loop-to-loop family

A loop that either stands as a dropper or handshake onto another loop.

!Dropper loop collapsed into an overhand
!Handshake twisted so one loop saws the other
!Loop sized after it was already loaded

Fails when

!The turns cross or stack on each other, so one turn carries most of the load instead of all of them sharing it
!There is no double line behind the join, or the Bimini twist wraps have slipped
!Too few passes were made, so the load sits on fewer turns where the loops bear on each other
!One loop rides over the other, leaving a lopsided collar that catches on the rod tip guide

Geometry

Too few passes for the selected wind-on system
Load is concentrated into fewer bearing points than the selected system intends
Documented wind-on systems use repeated passes; this reviewed plate depicts five, while other makers specify fewer. · step 02
Turns riding over each other instead of nesting
The advantage of spreading the load is lost
Nested turns share the load; stacked ones do not. · step 03
Built on a single strand rather than a double
The connection is limited by one strand of main line
The paw transfers load between loops; it does not create strength. · step 01
Collar lopsided, one loop riding over the other
Uneven bearing and a connection that snags at the tip guide
A symmetrical collar is what lets it pass a guide and load evenly. · step 04

If you saw this

The connection has fewer repeated passes than the selected wind-on system calls for
Check
- ?Confirm the specified pass count; this teaching plate and the reviewed Salt Water Sportsman method use five
Then
- →Rebuild to the selected leader system's documented pass count and cinch the collar evenly
The turns sit on top of each other rather than side by side
Check
- ?Look along the collar for a turn riding over its neighbour
Then
- →Slack it off and re-cinch slowly
- →Retie if the turns will not nest
The main line enters the connection as a single strand
Check
- ?Trace the main line back — two strands should run into the collar
Then
- →Build a Bimini first; the paw is only as good as the double under it
Too few passes for the selected wind-on system
Check
- ?Load is concentrated into fewer bearing points than the selected system intends
- ?Inspect step 02
Then
- →Retie. Do not dress a defective structure and call it seated.
Turns riding over each other instead of nesting
Check
- ?The advantage of spreading the load is lost
- ?Inspect step 03
Then
- →Retie. Do not dress a defective structure and call it seated.
Built on a single strand rather than a double
Check
- ?The connection is limited by one strand of main line
- ?Inspect step 01
Then
- →Retie. Do not dress a defective structure and call it seated.

Same family

Same failure class, different geometry. Open the plates — Diagnose still starts from the symptom.

This failed — start Diagnose

The bench · rep 1

Get it right with everything in your favour0/5 clean

Nothing logged on this knot yet, so it starts on the bottom rung.

Good light, dry hands, a table. Until the sequence is automatic here there is nothing for the harder rungs to test — you would only be learning that difficult conditions are difficult, which you already knew.

How · Tie it, check it against the list, log it. Five clean and the ladder opens.

Conditions for this rep

Main lineJoined to

What went wrong, if anything

Nothing marked. Log it clean, or mark what happened first.

Strength, and where the number comes from

Not established

Saltwater Sportsman describes the connection without a strength figure, and its limit is the Bimini underneath it rather than the paw.

Percentages come from published tests on their own line, their own knot-tyer and their own pull rate. Yours is a different system. Treat a figure as a reason to test, not as a result you already have.

Sources for this record

Record reviewed 2026-09-18

Vetted references

How to tie the PR Bobbin and Cat's Paw knots
Salt Water Sportsman
Swordfish 101: How To Attach A Wind On Leader (Cats Paw)
Pescatarian Fishing

Test yourself

Take the Working rigs quiz — can you recognise this knot's finished state and failure modes?

Related knots

Already tied it?

Check the finished knot against what correct looks like before you load it.