How To Make a Haywire Twist

The Haywire Twist is one of the few ways to make a quick and clean connection with single strand stainless steel wire. Fishermen will use this wire as a leader material when targeting sharp toothed species such as sharks and wahoo, which have the teeth to wear through monofilament leaders. The popular sizes of wire leaders on the market range from 0.012'' (30 lb) to 0.043'' (400 lb). Brands such as Malin sell quality coils of this material.

Take the end of the stainless wire leader and cross the tag end back towards the main piece, making an even bend for the loop. The tag end should be around 12 inches, which should be plenty to work with.

Using a pair of pliers, clamp onto the loop where the 2 wires intersect. Pliers make this process much easier when using heavy wire, and make for a nicer finish.

While clamping down tightly with pliers, begin to evenly twist the wire together at a 45 degree angle. Both wires should evenly join around each other.

Keep twisting the wire together for 3-9 turns at a 45 degree angle. More turns equal more strength, but tend to make the Haywire more visible to wary fish. Less turns are desirable if the fish are finicky.

Adjust your pliers down the wires for better leverage as you continue twisting.

When you have finished the initial twists, you will finish the Haywire by wrapping the tag end over the main wire at a 90 degree angle.

3 or 4 wraps will finish the Haywire. Make sure that these final wraps are tight against each other to maximize the strength of the twist.

Now the Haywire Twist is complete. To remove the tag, work it back and forth in a parallel motion to the main strand of wire.

This back and forth motion should break the wire flush, and leave a clean tag end with no sharp edges to cause injury to the hand.