Contents
Knot Basics
How to Choose and Care for Rope
How to Tie Stopper Knots
Overhand Knot
Figure-Eight Knot
Double Overhand Knot
Stevedore Knot
How to Tie Loops
Bowline
Bowline on a Bight
Running Bowline
Alpine Butterfly (Lineman’s Loop)
How to Tie Hitches
Clove Hitch
Round Turn and Two Half Hitches
Taut-Line Hitch
Cat’s Paw
Chain Hitch
Timber Hitch
Constrictor Knot
Rolling Hitch
Cleat Hitch
How to Tie Bends
Square Knot (Reef Knot)
Sheet Bend
Double Sheet Bend
Double Fisherman’s Knot
Sheepshank
Carrick Bend
How to Tie Lashings
Square Lashing
Diagonal Lashing
Shear Lashing
How to Tie a Necktie or Bow Tie
Four-in-Hand Knot
Windsor Knot
Half-Windsor Knot
Pratt-Shelby Knot
Bow-Tie Knot
Learn more with these titles from Barnes & Noble
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- Choose the safest and most secure type of rope for any job
- Tie 25 of the most useful knots for camping, sailing, fishing, and everyday use
- Perfect the five most common necktie and bow-tie knots
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Knot Basics
Whether you’re boating, camping, climbing, fishing, hauling, sailing, or doing work around the house or yard, knowing a few strong, secure, and easy-to-untie knots can make the job much easier.
Knot Terminology
To start, it helps to know some basic knot terminology.
- Line: The rope or cord in which a knot is being tied
- Working end: The end of the line used to tie the knot
- Standing end: The end of the line not used to tie the knot (this end is often left out of images that show how to tie a knot)
- Standing part: The section of line between the knot and the standing end
- Bight: A stretch of line formed into a “U” or semicircle that does not cross itself (some knots can be tied using the bight of a rope rather than the ends; these knots are said to be tied in the bight)
- Loop: A closed section of line, formed when the working end of the rope passes over itself
Types of Knots
Nearly all knots fall into six basic categories, each of which serves a particular purpose:
- Stopper knots: Used to stop a line from passing through a hole or pulley
- Bends: Used to join two separate lines together at their ends
- Hitches: Used to attach a line to a stationary object, such as a hook or post
- Loops: Used to create a closed circle in a line that is of either fixed or adjustable size (variable loops are called slip knots or nooses)
- Lashings: Used to fasten together two solid objects, such as metal poles or wooden branches
- Necktie knots: Used to finish off a formal outfit with a necktie, whether a traditional necktie or a bow tie
Properties of Knots
Every type of knot can be described in relation to the following four attributes or properties:
- Strength: All knots weaken rope to some degree, as the twists and turns needed to make a knot weaken the fibers in the cord. Some knots weaken a rope up to 50%, others less. To be safe, it’s best to assume that all knots will cut the strength of a rope in half. Always make sure the rope you’re working with can carry more than twice the load it will need to bear.
- Security: Some knots slip or spill (come apart) when jostled, slicked by water, or subjected to a load. Other knots are more secure and stay intact under even the roughest conditions.
- Ease of tying: The easier a knot is to tie, the quicker and more convenient it is to use.
- Ease of untying: Some knots release (untie) more easily than others. Ease of untying is crucial in situations when a knot must be tied, untied, and then retied (as in sailing, for instance). A knot that’s difficult to untie is said to jam.
Different jobs demand knots with different attributes. A knot used to tie an anchor to a boat needs to be extremely secure, and since you’re unlikely to want to untie the anchor from the line, it doesn’t matter much if the knot has a tendency to jam. On the other hand, a hitch used to tie down a load must be secure enough to hold the load temporarily but also easy to untie.
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