How many knots do you know/use?

[Mick Dempsey]

I can’t see it personally. But not a hill worth dying on.
 

Any knots you use that perform a different task to the ones I posted?

[peds]

A fig8 instead of the bowline for a lot of your applications, probably, but I still see the value in a bowline. The 8 is better in some instances, the bowline better in others.

[Mick Dempsey]

4 minutes ago, peds said:

A fig8 instead of the bowline for a lot of your applications, probably, but I still see the value in a bowline. The 8 is better in some instances, the bowline better in others.

When and how is a fig 8 better?

Not arguing just curious. 

[peds]

A bowline can and does undo itself if loaded, unloaded, loaded, unloaded etc., unless rethreaded or given a Yosemite finish, or given a massive tail (very useful sometimes) but then it isn't a bowline, it's a bowline with extra steps. An 8, once tied (correctly...), is an 8 until you undo it.

So if it's a knot to be used, unweighted, ignored, used again, unweighted, left alone for a while, used... etc... an 8 is miles better, in my humble opinion. 

 

A bowline will take a 3 way load, though (that is, up the rope, on the loop, and down the tail...), so you can have something on the bowline loop itself, then a massive tail with whatever you want tied on to it as well. You can even chain loads of bowlines one after the other, without weakening the rope; whereas a fig8 must not do this unless you've got an isolation loop followed by another 8 (or a different knot. A bowline maybe?).

 

So they both have their place, and there are places where one knot cannot replace the other.

[AHPP]

My climbing systems are all pulleys and VTs (or something very close if anyone's going to be a purist for what crosses over, what crosses under etc). Never bothered learning the distels, michoachans etc because a VT always works well enough. If I cobble up a rope tail, hip thrusting type system, it's probably a tautline hitch or something like one. Just whatever grabs on whatever rope is in my hand. English prussik if I have a loop. 

 

Bowline with a steel biner for most rigging. If no biner, usually a daisy chain hitch. Otherwise clove, cow or even a round turn and two half hitches. Whatever is proving easiest to untie for whoever is on the ground or just whatever feels right when the rope hits the wood.

 

Bowlines on bights midline. Rigging prussiks usually end up being a klemheist. Progress captures french/VT or english. Just whatever works with whatever bit of tat I have in my hand. 

 

Cow or timber for base tie choking or rings/pulleys up trees. Running bowline if I'm short on tail. 

 

Cloves for pulling ropes through with throwlines. 

 

I think that's mostly it. I probably make up others or just use wraps, boat cleat type hitches round stubs etc on the go. All very jazz. 

 

 

The one knot I really should learn is something for joining two ropes for heavy winch pulls etc that unties easily, probably a zeppelin bend. 

[peds]

4 minutes ago, AHPP said:

 

The one knot I really should learn is something for joining two ropes for heavy winch pulls etc that unties easily, probably a zeppelin bend. 

 

Best solution for two ropes welded together after a big load/heavy pull: reef knot with a fisherman either side of it. Game changer for me.

[Steve Bullman]

2 hours ago, Mick Dempsey said:

There’s a lot of knot talk, lots of exotic names etc.

I regularly use a handful, I might know a few others but never use them.

 

Blakes hitch, for climbing obvs.

Truckers hitch, for mechanical advantage, plus useful midline for machine pulling without overtightening.

Bowline for everything.

Clove hitch, for rigging.

Timber hitch, rarely used.

err…that’s it really.

 

Am I missing out on something else? That doesn’t do the same job as the aforementioned?

 

 

This more or less, plus reef knot for sending up another line to a climber 

[Mick Dempsey]

36 minutes ago, AHPP said:

 

Rigging prussiks usually end up being a klemheist. Progress captures french/VT or english. Just whatever works with whatever bit of tat I have in my hand. 

 

When and how do you use rigging prussiks?

[AHPP]

29 minutes ago, Mick Dempsey said:

When and how do you use rigging prussiks?

 

Not often. The most useful application I've found is for a lifty zipline. Othwerwise just little hacks like grabbing something under tension if you need to reset a winch or anchor or something, spider leg balancer, hanging several branches like mackerel feathers. The klemheist is the grabbiest of the prussiks. Doesn't release nicely like a springy VT. 

Edited May 4 by AHPP

[AHPP]

The lifty zipline. 

 

Alex Purser (@alex_purser) • Instagram photo

WWW.INSTAGRAM.COM

---

22 likes, 3 comments - alex_purser on November 25, 2021: "A pragmatic and very useful #norwegianreeve...