Knots to use when attaching rope to a crab trap harness
I do not tie knots to connect crab pot lines. The three strand lead core line lends itself well to making three strand loops which I connect with stainless steel “ready links”… see the photo.
If you want to try your hand at the three strand loop, you may want to first buy or make a proper “fid”
Then: watch this video a bunch of times… yes, it takes a bit to learn but once you “get it”, it’s easy.
Refer to the photo of my rope set: I use two main floats with a small oval kicker float at the top. This makes it quite easy to see (identify from others) as the first float is often pulled under water when a plus tide comes roaring through. I tie my rope sections at 50’ lengths. Often times I’ll place pots in 40’ of water at a low tide to find I can still see them a few hours later after the tide is up. If I go past 40’ I’ll add another 50’ section using a ready link. The yellow smaller rope in the photo is Danielson’s crab trap yoke. They cost under $20 and make the outfit easier to use. Look close and you will see blue discs cut from storage tub lids. They prevent the figure 8 knots from slipping into and out of the holes in the floats.