How to Tie the Arbor Knot

By Alex Clayton · Updated 23 October 2026

You fill a fresh spool, start winding, and the new line spins round the bare spool without loading a single turn. The right knot stops that.

The arbor knot is a slip knot made from two overhand knots. It pulls line tight onto the arbor, the centre of the spool, on fixed-spool, baitcaster and fly reels. If you want to know how to tie line to a reel, this is the knot to learn, and it suits mono and fluorocarbon best. Braid needs extra grip first, which Step 1 covers.

Six steps follow. For other knots, see our fishing knots guide.

Step 1: Check Your Line and Spool Before You Tie

A knot that holds mono perfectly can let braid spin freely. Braid is slick and thin, and a smooth arbor gives it almost nothing to grip.

Choose your approach before you tie:

Mono or fluorocarbon: tie the arbor knot straight to the spool.
Braid on a bare spool: use one of two fixes. Wrap electrical tape round the arbor and tie onto that. Or tie a few yards of cheap mono on with the arbor knot as backing, then join the braid to it with a double uni or blood knot. Our guide to joining braid to mono covers the join.

Some spools are sold as non-slip or braid-ready, and braid can go straight onto those. Check your reel’s manual. If it says nothing and you are loading braid, put the mono backing on first.

By now you should know whether you are tying to the bare spool, tape or backing.

Step 2: Pass the Line Round the Spool Arbor

Open the bail arm first. Tie on with it closed and the line sits outside the roller, so you start again.

Flip the bail arm open on a fixed-spool reel. On a baitcaster, thread the level-wind guide first.
Pass the tag end round the spool arbor and back out towards you.
Hold the tag end in your right hand and the standing line (the part still on the filler spool) in your left.

Some anglers take two or three wraps round a polished arbor before tying, so the wraps tighten as the reel turns.

By now the line should sit round the arbor, with a few inches of tag spare.

Step 3: Tie an Overhand Knot Round the Standing Line

The common mistake here is tying the overhand in the tag end on its own. That gives a fixed loop that will not slide down onto the spool.

Take the tag end over the standing line and back round it.
Push the tag through the loop you have just made, forming an overhand knot around the standing line.
Leave about an inch (2.5cm) of tag beyond the knot.
Snug it lightly. Do not cinch it yet.

Keep light tension on the standing line with your left hand while your right hand ties.

By now you should have a loop round the arbor that slides when you pull the standing line.

Step 4: Tie a Stopper Overhand in the Tag End

The second knot never touches the spool or the standing line. It is only a stopper, yet without it the loop pulls straight back out.

Tie a second overhand knot in the tag end on its own.
Place it 1 to 2 inches (2.5 to 5cm) beyond the first knot.
Wet the line and pull this one tight.

When you pull the standing line, the stopper jams against the first knot so the loop cannot pull back through. On a grinner knot the turns do the gripping. On the arbor knot, the stopper does.

By now you should have two overhands on the tag with a short gap between them.

Step 5: Slide It Down, Seat It and Trim the Tag

One steady pull locks the arbor knot in place.

Pull the standing line. The loop closes onto the arbor and the first knot slides down until the stopper jams against it.
Keep pulling steadily until the line just starts to stretch, then release.
Trim the tag close, leaving a tiny stub that cannot catch the first turns.

Common faults:

The spool spins inside the loop: the loop is loose or the arbor too slippery. Add the extra wraps from Step 2, or the tape or backing from Step 1.
The knot pulls apart: the stopper is missing or was not tightened.

Hold the spool and tug the standing line. The knot should grip the arbor without sliding round it.

Step 6: Wind the Line On and Know the Knot’s Limits

The arbor knot will not stop a fish that empties your spool, and NetKnots says it is not designed to. Its job is to stop line slipping on the arbor, and to hold if a rod and reel go overboard and you retrieve them by the line.

Close the bail and wind on, running the line between finger and thumb for light tension. Follow your reel maker’s guidance on how full to fill the spool.

The same knot ties off spare line on a filler spool for storage.

Mono and fluorocarbon go straight on. Back braid first.

Frequently asked questions

Can you use an arbor knot with braid?

Yes, but braid can slip on a bare spool. Wrap the arbor with electrical tape, or tie on a few yards of mono backing with the arbor knot and join the braid to it with a double uni or blood knot.

What knot do you use to tie line to a reel?

The arbor knot is the usual spool knot. NetKnots also lists the 100% Arbor Knot and a uni knot with several wraps as alternatives. The uni knot is closely related to the grinner knot many UK anglers already use.

Does the arbor knot need to be strong?

No. Its job is to stop line slipping round the arbor while you wind on. NetKnots states it is not designed to hold a fish that strips all the line off the spool.

Which knot goes on the other end?

Hooks, swivels and lures need a terminal knot instead. The palomar knot is a simple one to start with.