[Illustration: RECRUITS AT THE NAVAL TRAINING CAMP, PELHAM BAY, N. Y.,
LEARNING TO MAKE KNOTS]
KNOTS
A study of Marlinespike Seamanship which
embraces Bends, Hitches, Ties, Fastenings
and Splices and their Practical Application.
With chapters on Cordage, Matting,
Hammock Making and Wire
Steel Work
Compiled and Edited by
A. F. ALDRIDGE
Dedicated to the Sailors
of the United States
THE RUDDER PUBLISHING COMPANY
9 MURRAY STREET, NEW YORK CITY
U. S. A.
_COPYRIGHT 1918_
BY
THE RUDDER PUBLISHING CO.
NEW YORK, U. S. A.
_All Rights Reserved_
PRESS OF
THOMSON & COMPANY
9 MURRAY STREET, NEW YORK
CONTENTS
Preface 7
History of Knots 9
Cordage 11
Rope and Its Care 15
Simple Knots and Loops 21
Knots for Uniting Ropes 31
Bends and Hitches 36
Knots Formed on Ropes by Their Own Strands 50
Shortenings 68
Ties 73
Purchases and Slings 79
Fastenings, Moorings and Ring Knots 88
Lashings and Seizings etc. 101
Splicing and Rope Work 112
Wire Rope Splicing 128
Matting 134
Hammock Making 146
Strength of Rope etc. 152
Index 157
PREFACE
The study of knots is always fascinating. To twist ropes so that they
will hold and not break is an art that comes natural to the sailor and
the amateur will watch him in wonder as he does his work. Knots are
just as important in these days of steam vessels as they were in the
days of the sailing vessel, and now when thousands of men are being
trained to handle the fleets of vessels building tying knots is a part
of their training.
At the Naval camps and the nautical schools the men are trained in
squads and with a little practice they soon acquire the art. To aid
those students this book has been published. It has been compiled from
American and British Government records and from many other sources,
so that it is as complete a collection of knots as it is possible to
obtain.
It will be of great assistance to men of the U. S. Navy, U. S. Naval
Reserve, U. S. Junior Naval Reserve, the U. S. Nautical Schools and the
U. S. Power Squadrons who are working so loyally to aid their country
in its time of need. To these men this book is dedicated in the hope
that it may be of some help to them in their work.
HISTORY OF KNOTS
Knots, according to an ingenuous essayist, are probably as “old as
human fingers” and their history is lost in antiquity. Doubtless when
man was first placed on this earth he learned to make fastenings
from the tendrils of climbing vines and trailing flowers which twist
themselves into odd fastenings as they lift themselves from the earth.
The first cords were probably twisted grasses and rushes. Since those
early days knots, like Topsy, have “just growed” and man’s ingenuity
has enabled him so to arrange ropes and cords that they will sustain
weights, fasten various articles together and take up strains so that
they will hold under ordinary conditions.
Seamen are credited with having devised the most knots. They have
invented ties upon which depend the safety of their ships and the lives
of those on board. Operatives in many trades such as building have
borrowed from the seamen their knots and applied them to their work. In
some instances the land operator has invented new knots or ties to suit
conditions not found on shipboard.
To tie a knot properly or to be able to join ropes so that they will
hold and withstand heavy strains is so important with seamen that
careful attention is paid to the instruction of the men in this
particular work. At the many naval training camps scattered about
the country capable instructors show the recruits how to properly
make knots, ties, hitches, bends and splices, and until the recruit
knows how to handle ropes quickly and properly he is not much use at
sea. In the nautical schools, too, and in the divisions of the U. S.
Power Squadron much attention is paid to this part of the novice’s
instruction.
The steamship is steadily driving the sailing vessel from the seas.
Of course on a sailing ship, where every spar is stayed by rope and
where all the sails, the propelling power, are handled by ropes, the
ability to properly tie knots is more important than on a vessel
driven by steam or oil engines, but on the powered vessel there are
many occasions when it is necessary to have a knowledge of knots,
particularly in handling cargoes, in making fast to piers or moorings,
in towing, in handling boats, and in hundreds of other instances so
that the steam engine is not making “marlinespike seamanship” a lost
art.
CORDAGE
Rope is a word that is taken to mean almost every pliable material.
Technically a rope is a cord one inch or more in diameter. It is
generally made of hemp, manila, coir, cotton, steel, iron or copper
wire. In studying the nature and uses of knots, particularly those
which come under the designation of splices, some knowledge of the
mode and of the principles on which ropes are made, is essentially
necessary. The simplest and most effectual mode of obtaining the united
strength of fibres composing the rope would be to lay them side by
side and fasten them together at each end as in the selvagee, which
is described on page 120. This plan, even if the fibres of hemp were
of the necessary length, would be open to many objections; hence it
was necessary to devise some plan which would give unlimited length to
the rope and at the same time preserve its torsion and portability.
This has been achieved by the compression and twisting of the fibres
in different directions, until they produce a compact, hard and strong
rope, neither breaking the fibres on the one hand nor leaving them so
loose as to be easily drawn out from the mass on the other--either
extreme would be equally fatal in its results and injurious to the
stability of the rope. This is achieved by the modern processes of rope
making.
[Illustration: FIBRES TO CABLE]
First the fibres of hemp are loosely twisted together, right-handed,
and form what is technically known as yarn. Two or three yarns twisted
together form a strand; three strands form a rope and three ropes a
cable. The diagram illustrates this clearly. =A= is a yarn teased out
to show the original fibre; =B= shows the yarn forming the strand; the
strands =C=, =H=, and =J= form the rope =D=; the ropes =D=, =F=, and
=G= form the cable =E=.
A hawser rope is composed of three strands laid up generally
right-handed--that is, the direction taken by the strands in forming
the rope always runs from left to right.
A shroud-laid rope, also laid right-handed, consists of four strands
with a heart in the center.
A cable-laid rope is composed of three right-handed hawser-laid ropes
laid up together left-handed, so that it may be said to consist of
nine strands, or it may be formed by three left-handed ropes laid up
right-handed.
[Illustration: HAWSER ROPE SHROUD-LAID ROPE CABLE-LAID ROPE]
Spun yarn is a number of yarns twisted up right-handed. The number
varies from two to eight.
Nettle stuff is made of two or three yarns laid together and is used
for making clews of hammocks, harbor gaskets, etc.
Sennit is made of a number of yarns plaited up into square, round or
flat sennit as required and used for various purposes.
Junk consists of lengths of condemned cordage 4 inches and above.
Oakum is old rope unlaid and the yarns picked into hemp for caulking
the seams in ships’ decks or sides.
Boltrope is cordage tarred and white, made of Italian hemp from ½ inch
to 6 inches. It is soft laid and well stretched and is used for roping
sails and awnings.
Hammock lashings and lanyards are of white Italian hemp 1¼ inch.
Coir rope is three-stranded right-handed rope. The yarn is spun from
the fibres of the cocoanut tree. It is one-third lighter than hemp but
not nearly so durable. It soon rots after being wet, if not well dried
before being stowed away. As it floats so light it is very useful for
warps and is about a quarter the strength of hemp rope.
Twine is made from very fine hemp.
ROPE AND ITS CARE
Rope--and a sailor’s mind instantly pictures a ship. Ropes belong to
a ship in his mind’s processes and since man launched his first boat
on the water, rope has been in one form or another part of a boat’s
equipment. Savages probably had ropes before they had boats, but with
the development of the boat has come the development of rope into the
product of today.
Did you ever stop to think why rope is so much used aboard ships? What
are the qualities which make it such a necessary part of a ship’s
gear? Ropes are primarily used to transmit power in a convenient way.
If sailors could grasp the sail in their hands and clew it up no
clew-lines would be necessary. But their arms are not long enough and
the power would be spread over such a large area that it would become
ineffective. A clew-line concentrates that power from that point of
application to a convenient place for the sailor to apply it. An iron
rod would do the same thing, you say. Yes, but an iron rod lacks two
essential qualities--lightness and flexibility. Flexibility is the
cardinal virtue of a rope. When not in use it can be coiled down to
a very small space and it can follow the wake of the worst helmsman
without fear of breaking its back. A chain is flexible, but its own
weight is so great that it is only of value for certain kinds of work.
Ropes are made of organic material such as cotton, hemp, manila, grass,
and of metals such as iron, steel, bronze and sometimes aluminum.
The class of organic materials is classified as to the material and the
manner in which they are made up. Grass, manila and hemp are spun into
rope, while cotton is spun, braided and knitted. Braided and knitted
ropes have the distinctive quality of being able to transmit torsional
stresses such as a flexible shaft and are used for this purpose in
the patent log-line. They are also free from turns, which makes them
valuable as signal halyards, though by the use of small swivels this
bad feature on spun rope has been overcome for use as signal halyards.
When you do use cotton, remember it has a great ability for shrinking.
Therefore, do not haul your halyards taut in dry weather and wonder why
they parted in the first rain-squall.
If spun rope has ruined so many dispositions by the diabolical turn
which it can foul itself into--why use it? Because that very same
twist--the cause of so much cursing--is the secret of its strength.
Rope is subjected to a tension or pull along the line of its longest
axis. The thread is made of little fibres which are twisted together.
The threads are then twisted to make yarns or strands and the strands
twisted or spun into rope or lines. Rope or lines are made up into
hawsers.
Take a coil spring and pull out the ends. If you put power enough on
the wire it straightens out. This is exactly what happens when you put
a strain on a rope; the twists or turns try to straighten out, and
lie in a straight line along the center. But there is yarn already
in the center, and the coils are pressing in on all sides, squeezing
it more and more as the load increases. Now the reason why the two
first fibres clung together when they were twisted was that this same
pressure made the friction between the fibres so great that they could
not slide by each other. This applies to the many hundreds of fibres
which make up the rope as a whole. So the harder the pull the harder
the squeeze and the harder it is for them to slip by each other. The
fact that some pieces of fibre are first on the outside and then on
the inside makes all get an equal share of the squeeze. Why does this
not go on indefinitely? Because up to a certain load the tendency to
cling together is greater than the reaction from the center, which has
to push them apart, but when this pressure or reaction becomes greater
than the friction the little fibres begin to slide and the ropes part.
The smaller sizes of spun ropes of this organic class are designated by
the number of threads used to make up the rope, such as nine-thread or
eighteen-thread line. The larger sizes are designated by the number of
inches of circumference, such as one-inch, three-inch, etc. Hawsers are
measured by the circumference in inches. Spun ropes are three-stranded
or four-stranded. A three-stranded rope is more flexible than a four,
but a four has greater surface area for the same strength and weight
and therefore wears longer.
Hemp rope is harder and less flexible than manila and is used for
standing rigging, while manila rope is used for running rigging.
Grass or coir ropes are used where the rope is submerged often, as they
do not rot when damp and can be stowed wet. They are very elastic and
are specially used for towing light weights, such as targets in the
Navy.
Just a few hints about this general class of organic ropes:
Always dry these ropes before stowing them to prevent rotting.
Protect them from chafing by use of chafing gear or reversing end for
end to bring the wear in different places.
Always coil down right-handed or with the sun.
The greater the surface the less the wear on any one strand, so use
four-stranded for ropes whose particular wear is from chafing such as
anchor warps, for small boats and boat-falls. A small size rope would
often be strong enough but would chafe through quicker.
Metallic or wire ropes are generally either iron, steel, bronze or
combinations of metal strands spun with hemp or manila strands.
Bronze rope is used for tiller ropes because it is non-magnetic and
it will not rust. This is important, as tiller ropes are often in
inaccessible places. If it does not pass near your compass and it is
out where it can be easily examined and cared for to prevent rusting, a
flexible steel tiller rope is cheaper and stronger for the same weight
and also wears longer.
Galvanized iron wire is used for standing rigging, and the rusting in
places where turns have broken the surface coating, such as around
thimbles of an eye splice, should be carefully looked for. Most sailors
think it wiser not to paint wire except for decorative purposes. If it
is painted be sure to remove all grease and water from the surface.
Steel rope is used for running rigging because of its flexibility and
lightness. It is not adapted, however, for small boats.
A combination of alternate strands of wire and hemp is made into rope
known as durable rope, and is used particularly for cargo falls and it
is more flexible and more easily handled.
SIMPLE KNOTS AND LOOPS
All knots are begun with loops or hitches. These may be single or
double as required. The simple hitch is self-explanatory, as are the
underhand and the overhand loops. The illustrations explain them
clearly.
[Illustration: SIMPLE HITCH UNDERHAND LOOP OVERHAND LOOP]
=The Simple Knot= begins with one of these loops by passing the loose
end through the loop and then drawing it taut as shown in the diagram.
[Illustration: SIMPLE KNOT FIGURE OF 8 KNOT]
=The Figure of 8 Knot= is known as the perfect knot. It is formed by an
overhand and an underhand loop overlapping each other and the loose end
passed through the loop. When drawn tight it bears a close resemblance
to the Arabic numeral 8, hence its name.
[Illustration: DOUBLE KNOT NIPPED TREBLE KNOT OPEN]
=The Double, Treble, Four-Fold, or Six-Fold Knots= may be called
compound knots. They are used often when it is necessary to shorten
a rope a few inches or to increase the size or strength of a holding
knot to prevent it passing through an eye or a block. These knots are
made by passing the end of a rope twice, three times, or as many times
as may be necessary, through a loop as shown in the Simple Knot. The
diagrams show a double knot loosely formed and when nipped or drawn
taut, and a treble knot in its open formation and pulled taut.
[Illustration: FIVE-FOLD KNOT OPEN NIPPED]
=The Five and Six-Fold Knots= present handsome coils and are useful to
travelers who do not wish to cut the precious cords of their baggage.
From Simple knots the student passes to loops, nooses and running
knots. The Bight of a rope is the loop formed when a rope is bent back
on itself. The Standing Part is the principal portion or longest part
of the rope and the end is that part used in forming the knot or hitch.
[Illustration: SIMPLE RUNNING KNOT LOOP KNOT]
=The Simple Running Knot= is made by passing a hitch instead of the end
of a rope when making a simple knot. The variations of this knot are
numerous. When the loose end is knotted with a simple perfect or double
knot it forms one of the most useful and easily made loops.
[Illustration: TOMFOOL KNOT]
=The Tomfool Knot= is a double loop through a simple knot. This knot
is also known as the Single Pitcher Knot. It is said that this knot
has baffled many experts who profess to be able to break any knot. It
is made like the running knot. The firm end is then passed through the
open, simple knot so as to form a double loop or bow. If the wrists are
passed within the loops, the loops then drawn taut and the loose ends
tied firmly around the central part a pair of very good handcuffs is
furnished.
[Illustration: LOOP KNOT FOR LARGE CORDAGE]
=The Loop Knot= is the ordinary useful loop of everyday life and it
forms the foundation for many more elaborate knots and for shortenings.
A more ornamental and even stronger loop, which is well adapted for
large cordage, is made by the figure 8 knot. This loop, like the common
loop knot, when once made and has been subjected to a lengthened
strain, is very difficult to untie. In this case there is nothing
better than a running knot with a check knot, which is a modification
of the fisherman’s knot. A simple knot is tied over the running line as
shown in the figure. After use it may be easily drawn apart, the loop
slipped and the knot untied in very short time.
[Illustration: BOWLINE KNOT]
=The Bowline Knot= cannot slip and is therefore always used for
slinging a man for the purpose of doing some particular piece of work;
the workman sits in the sling. First take the part =Z= in the right
hand with =Y= in the left hand, place =Z= on =Y=, and, turning the left
hand over from you to the left, form a loop and reeve =C= as shown by
the dotted line and haul taut.
[Illustration: FIG. 1 FIG. 2 RUNNING BOWLINE KNOT]
=The Running Bowline= is used whenever a running noose is required.
Form a loop with a long end =C= lying underneath the standing part as
shown in Fig. 1. Now bring end =C= over part =Y= and with it form the
bowline knot on part =Z= as in the previous case it was formed on its
own part, when it will appear as in Fig. 2.
[Illustration: FIG. 1 FIG. 2 BOWLINE ON THE BIGHT]
=The Bowline on the Bight= is used for lowering a man from aloft or
slinging a man over the ship’s side. Using both parts of the rope
together, commence as in making an ordinary bowline. To finish off,
open out bight =C=, taking it in the direction indicated by the dotted
line, pass the whole knot through it and haul taut when it will appear
as in Fig. 2.
=A Simple Clinch= is formed by closing up the initial loop to form a
small ring and securing, by a seizing, a small lashing at =D=.
[Illustration: SIMPLE CLINCH RUNNING OR INSIDE CLINCH OUTSIDE CLINCH]
=A Running= or =Inside Clinch= is formed by the end of a rope on its
own standing part and is often used for securing buntlines to the foot
of a sail.
=An Outside Clinch= is formed in a similar way but the end, =C=, is
brought round on top; that is, away from the bight.
=The Standing Bowline Knot= is formed by passing the loose end through
the lower loop of a figure 8 knot and seizing or tying the end with
small cord or marline.
=Slip Clinches= are very easily made. They are really open running
knots seized instead of tied.
[Illustration: STANDING BOWLINE AND SLIP CLINCHES SEIZED]
=The Running Noose= is one of the most common and useful of running
knots used in commerce but it is only applicable to small cords. A
simple knot is made on the end of the cord which is then simply
knotted round.
=The Crossed Running Knot= is useful in packing heavy goods as well as
a useful anchor fastening.
[Illustration: RUNNING NOOSE CROSSED RUNNING KNOT]
KNOTS FOR UNITING ROPES
The most common knots, those used in everyday life, are to unite the
ends of two separate pieces of cord or rope.
[Illustration: FIG. 1 FIG. 2 REEF KNOT]
=The Reef Knot= is the simplest of all knots and always used when a
common tie is required. The two illustrations show how this knot is
made. Having constructed the knot as far as Fig. 1, be sure part =A= is
kept in front of part =B= as shown, and the end led in according to the
direction of the dotted line.
[Illustration: FIG. 1 FIG. 2 FIG. 3 FALSE OR GRANNY KNOT]
If the cords be of unequal thickness the knot will slip, form a loop
and part company, as shown in Fig. 1 above. If the ends are not
parallel to the rope it becomes the False Knot or Granny Knot. Figs.
2 and 3 show the difference.
A better way to fasten two ropes of unequal size is to tie or seize the
ends (Fig. 1 below) and when this is done as shown the square knot or
reef can be made as usual.
[Illustration: FIG. 1 FIG. 2 FIG. 3 OPEN-HAND KNOT]
=The Open-Hand Knot= is a good one for joining two ropes of unequal
diameter. It is very quickly made and has the recommendation of never
slipping or untying. If, however, a great strain is put on the rope it
is apt to break at the knot. The illustrations above, one showing the
open formation (Fig. 2), and the other its back view when drawn taut
(Fig. 3), explain the process of making.
[Illustration: FIG. 1 FIG. 2 FIG. 3 WEAVER’S KNOT]
=The Weaver’s Knot= is very useful in joining small cord or twine and
is the best for thread. The ends are crossed as in Fig. 1 and both
cords are held between the thumb and forefinger of the left hand. The
right end, =A=, is then looped back over the left end and brought
under the thumb, where it is held fast, while the right-hand end,
=B=, is slipped through the loop. The knot (Fig. 3) is then formed by
tightening the right-hand cord. If cord thicker than thread is used,
the end, =B=, must be held between the thumb and finger of the left
hand while the knot is being drawn taut, as in Fig. 4 (below).
[Illustration: FIG. 4 FIG. 5 FIG. 6 FISHERMAN’S KNOT]
=The Fisherman’s= or =Englishman’s Knot= is of quite another character.
It is formed by two simple knots (Fig. 7) slipped over each cord as in
Fig. 5, and when drawn taut its front appearance is seen in Fig. 6. It
is used by anglers, as it may be separated by taking the ends =A= and
=B= in Fig. 6 so as to admit a third line.
[Illustration: FIG. 7 FIG. 8 FIG. 9 ORDINARY KNOT OR TIE]
=The Ordinary Knot= or =Tie= for uniting large ropes is shown in Fig.
8. It has all the advantages of the open-hand knot, with the additional
recommendations that it is easy to make, very strong and does not
strain the fibres of the rope. First make the simple knot (Fig. 7) and
then interlace the other cord in the manner shown in Fig. 8. When drawn
taut it has the appearance of Fig. 9. If the ends are whipped it is
really a neat and handsome as well as useful knot.
[Illustration: SHORTENING TIE]
=The Shortening Tie= is used when there is too much rope and where it
is necessary to use a large knot for the purpose of preventing its
running too far through the eye, ring or loop. It is formed by making
the figure of 8 knot at the end of a rope, then interlacing it with
another rope, and when drawn taut it has the appearance of the third
diagram.
[Illustration: A ROPE YARN KNOT]
=A Rope Yarn Knot= is for joining two yarns together and is clearly
shown in the diagram.
BENDS AND HITCHES
It is rather difficult to say where knots end and bends begin, because
a tie made in a particular way and under certain circumstances may be
called a knot, but differently constructed and under other conditions
it is called a bend or a hitch. The result is the same in each case. A
single hitch may be merely a loop formed in a rope.
[Illustration: HALF HITCH TIMBER HITCH]
=A Half Hitch= is used generally in conjunction with other hitches.
Its formation is easily seen from the diagram.
=The Timber Hitch= is used to secure the end of a rope to a spar, also
for bending a rope round light cases, bales, etc., when provisioning
ships. It is formed by making a half hitch with rather a long end and
expanding the end backwards round its own part. It is used also with a
half hitch for towing spars, as shown in the diagram below.
[Illustration: TIMBER HITCH FOR TOWING SPARS]
=The Crabber’s Eye Knot= is not well known but is one that is not
likely to part when strained. To make it bring the end back to form a
loop, taking it first under and then over the standing part, up through
the main loop, over the standing bight again and up through its own
bight. Before the turns are hauled into their places, the knot will
slip on the part =A=, as in an ordinary knot. If the part =B= is hauled
upon the strand, =A=, which passes through the center knot, rises and
the coil which goes round it jambs, making the knot secure so that it
may be used as a running knot or otherwise, as desired.
=A Buntline Hitch= is commenced as in making an outside clinch but
instead of putting on a seizing, the end is passed over and through the
bight, as clearly shown in the diagram.
[Illustration: CRABBER’S EYE KNOT BUNTLINE HITCH]
=The Clove Hitch= is really a jamming of two half hitches and is
generally used when a small rope has to be secured to a larger one and
the end kept free for use for further purposes, as in securing ratlines
to the shrouds, and used also for securing the end of butt slings. Its
formation can be followed very easily in the diagrams.
[Illustration: CLOVE HITCH]
=The Roband Hitch= is very useful when a tackle, hook, ring or another
rope is to be fastened to a beam or spar. This is another simple
hitch, clearly illustrated in the diagram.
[Illustration: ROBAND HITCH SLIPPERY HITCH]
=The Slippery Hitch= is valuable because of the ease with which it can
be cast off in an emergency. It will hold securely while there is a
strain on the rope.
[Illustration: FIG. 1 FIG. 2 ROLLING HITCH]
=The Rolling Hitch= is commenced and finished like a clove hitch, but,
as can be seen from the figures, there is an intermediate round turn
between the first and last hitches. It will be seen that the round turn
in Fig. 2 is taken around both the standing part, =A=, and the larger
rope =B=. The great value of this hitch is that it does not slip, and
this can be rendered doubly sure by backing the end, =C=, round the
part, =D=, and securing the end with a strop. It is used for bending a
small rope to a larger one, for putting a tail jigger on a rope, and
for securing hammocks to gantlines.
[Illustration: FIG. 3 FIG. 4 ROLLING HITCH]
=The Double Blackwall Hitch= is made by taking the bight of the rope
and placing it across the neck of the strop of the block, crossing
it behind, then placing the under part over the hook and crossing
the upper part on top of it. It holds better than the two preceding
hitches.
=The Marling Hitch= is for lashing up hammocks or putting temporary
seizing on two ropes or spars. It is also used when making swabs.
=The Midshipman’s Hitch= is used at times instead of a Blackwall Hitch
and it will hold better if the rope is at all greasy. It is made by
first forming a Blackwall hitch and then taking the underneath part and
placing it over the bill of the hook.
[Illustration: DOUBLE BLACKWALL HITCH MARLING HITCH MIDSHIPMAN’S HITCH]
=The Killick Hitch= is a modification of the timber hitch. After making
a timber hitch and hauling it taut, a single hitch is made and slipped
over the end of a stone. This makes a secure anchor on fishing grounds
on rocky coasts where an anchor will not hold.
=The Magnus Hitch= is a method of securing a rope to a spar. Take the
end of the rope twice round a spar in front of the standing part, round
the spar again and then pass it through the last bight.
[Illustration: KILLICK HITCH MAGNUS HITCH]
=The Round Turn with Two Half Hitches= is used to secure a hawser to
the ring of a buoy and the rope in this case should be parcelled as
shown in the diagram.
=The Marlinespike Hitch= is used for heaving the turns of a seizing
taut with a marlinespike or hooking the hook of tackle to any rope
where a small pull is required. It is formed by the standing part being
picked through a loop laid over it, so that the spike lays under the
standing part and over the sides of the loop. Its advantage is that it
never jams.
[Illustration: ROUND TURN WITH TWO HALF HITCHES
MARLINESPIKE HITCH
BLACKWALL HITCH]
=The Blackwall Hitch= is used for hooking a tackle to a rope and
bringing the fall of one jigger to the double block of another. It
consists of a half hitch, and as soon as any strain comes on it the
standing part, =A=, jambs the end part, =C=. By taking another round
turn at =B=, before passing =C= under =A=, it will hold more securely.
[Illustration: STUN’SAIL HALYARD BEND]
=A Stun’sail Halyard Bend= is simply a Fisherman’s bend with the end
backed again over the last round and under the first.
[Illustration: TOPSAIL HALYARD BEND]
=The Topsail Halyard Bend= is made by bringing the rope twice round the
spar, back over the standing part, under all turns, over two turns and
under the last. Then jamb all the coils close and haul taut.
[Illustration: SHEET BEND]
=The Sheet Bend=, as its name implies, is the method of attaching the
sheet to the clew of the sail. It is also used for securing boats’ lazy
painters to the Jacob’s ladders of the lower booms. In making a bend
the ends of the two ropes are not used simultaneously as in forming
reef knots, but an eye or loop is first formed in the end of one of the
ropes as seen in the first diagram and the other rope’s end is then
rove through it in the various ways required. To form a Sheet Bend pass
the second rope’s end underneath the eye at point =A= and bring up
through the loop, then form with it a half hitch round =C= and =B=. It
will hold still better and is less likely to jamb, if the end is passed
round again as in the third diagram. This is called a Double Sheet Bend.
[Illustration: FISHERMAN’S BEND]
=The Fisherman’s Bend= is formed by taking two round turns around the
object to which the rope is to be secured and then backing the end
round in the form of a half hitch under both the standing part and the
second round turn. The end may be further secured by taking a half
hitch around its own part or by stopping it to it. The dotted line in
the first diagram shows the direction the end =C= must take. This bend
is used for bending a hawser to the ring of an anchor or a rope’s end
to a bucket.
[Illustration: SIMPLE HAWSER BEND]
=The Hawser Bend= is so easy as to be constantly used when only a
temporary purpose has to be served.
[Illustration: BOWLINE BEND (UPPER) HALF HITCH AND SEIZING BEND]
=The Bowline Bend= is the strongest of all knotted hawsers. It is
formed of two Bowline knots, one crossing the loop of the other as
shown in the diagram.
=The Half Hitch and Seizing Bend= is used on hawsers which are to be
joined for a long period. Its formation is shown in the illustration
clearly.
[Illustration: CARRICK BEND]
=The Carrick Bend= is for bending two hawsers together when required
to go around a capstan. First form with hawser No. 1 a loop as in the
upper diagram. Pass the second hawser under the first at =A=, bring up
through the eye =B=, back it over the cross at =C= and bring up again
towards you through the eye =B=, and then stop the ends of each hawser
to their own respective parts as shown in the lower diagram.
[Illustration: DOUBLE CARRICK BEND]
=A Double Carrick Bend= is formed in precisely the same way, but a
complete round turn is taken around the cross of the first hawser and
then led up again through the eye and finished off.
[Illustration: CHAIN HITCH]
=The Chain Hitch= is used to attach a small rope to aid in pulling
a larger. When it is necessary to use a lever as a handspike the
fastening in the lower diagram is used. First a clove hitch is formed
to the spar and as many single hitches as required are then made. It
may be finished off with any secure knot.
KNOTS FORMED ON ROPES BY THEIR OWN STRANDS
If ropes, hawsers or cables are left with their ends unguarded, they
are sure to become untwisted or otherwise unmanageable. The same is
true in a lesser degree of lanyards and smaller ropes. These can easily
be secured with a fine whipping and the smaller yarns and threads by a
single overhand or other knot. The ends of ropes at sea are variously
treated. In some instances they are finely tapered to a point, to pass
easily through a block or ring. While some of these knots for guarding
the rope ends may seem fanciful they are by no means merely ornamental
and many of them play important parts in the standing rigging of a ship.
At first glance some of these knots may appear to be very intricate and
difficult to make. They are not as difficult as their pictures would
seem to indicate and a little thoughtful study, carefully following the
explanatory diagrams, will smooth away all troubles.
=To Whip a Rope= first lay the end of a length of twine along the
end of the rope, and then, commencing at the part furthest from the
rope’s end take a half dozen or more turns around both the rope and
the twine, as shown in the first diagram. Then lay the twine in the
form of a loop along the rope and over the turns already taken as seen
in the second diagram. To finish off take that portion of the loop
designated =A=, and continue taking turns tightly round the rope and
part =B= of the twine until the loop is all used up. Pull through the
remainder snugly by part =C= and cut off short when no end of twine
will be visible as in the third diagram.
[Illustration: WHIPPING A ROPE]
=A Palm and Needle Whipping= is a permanent way of securing a rope’s
end from fraying and better than the whipping put on by hand. First
place the needle under one of the strands and draw nearly the whole
length of twine through. Take a number of turns round the rope with
the twine, drawing each well taut in turn, and finish up by following
round with the needle between each strand, forming a series of
wrappings, and cut off the end of the twine.
[Illustration: PALM AND NEEDLE WHIPPING]
=To point a rope= first put on a stop at two and one-half times the
circumference of the rope from the end, which will leave about the
length for pointing. Unlay the rope to the stop, then unlay the
strands, split a number of the outside yarns and make a nettle out of
each yarn. A nettle is made by laying up the yarns with the finger and
thumb left-handed. When the nettles are made up stop them back on the
standing part of the rope. Then with the rest of the yarns, form the
point by scraping them down to a proper size with a knife and marl them
down together with twine. Divide the nettles, taking every other one up
and every other one down. Pass three turns with a piece of twine which
is called the warp very taut round the part where the nettles separate
taking a hitch with the last turn. Repeat this process by placing
every alternate nettle up or down, passing the warp or filling, taking
a hitch each time until the point is to its required length. You may
either form a bight with the last lay by passing the warp through the
bights, haul them taut, and cut them off, or, work a becket in the end
by taking a small piece of rope one-fourth the size of the rope, form a
bight, unlay the ends, and twist the six strands up again by two taking
some of the inside yarns and lay them up as the rope, then short splice
that and the becket together and marl it down.
[Illustration: POINTING A ROPE]
=The Wall Knot= is used for finishing off seizings forming a shroud
knot. It is also used on the end of a rope to prevent it unreeving. To
form a wall knot first unlay the rope so that the strands appear as in
the first diagram below.
[Illustration: WALL KNOT]
Holding the rope with the left hand, with the right lead strand =A= in
the direction indicated, viz., under strand =B= and up between strands
=B= and =C= as in the second diagram.
[Illustration: WALL KNOT IN MAKING AND FINISHED]
Then with strand =B= form a similar loop, enclosing strands =A= and =C=
and bringing the end of strand =B= up between =A= and =D= as in the
first diagram above.
Now with strand =C= form a similar loop enclosing strands =B= and =A=
by leading the end of strand =C= up through the loop =E= in strand =A=
as in the second diagram. Finally work all parts well taut, whip the
ends of the strands together and cut off short, at the bottom diagram.
[Illustration: CROWNING]
=A Double Wall Knot= is formed by making the single wall knot first
and not hauling it taut. Then take one end and bring it underneath the
part of the first walling next to it and push it up through the same
bight. Do the same with the other strands, pushing them up and through
two bights. If made this way it will have a double and a single crown.
A double wall double crowned is a continuation of the double wall. The
strands are laid by the side of those of the single crown and pushed
through the same bight in the single crown and down through the double
walling as shown in the illustration. The middle figure shows one
method of finishing a single wall by cutting off the strands and tying
them with twine. The double crowned wall knot may be finished by a
Lark’s Nest by interlacing the loose strands one within another by a
requisite number of turns over the pudding. This forms a knot at the
end of the rope.
[Illustration: CROWN KNOT MANROPE KNOT STOPPER KNOT]
=The Crown Knot= or crowning forms the basis of other knots. To make a
crown pass the bights of the first and second strands over the second
and third strands respectively, dip the end of the third down through
the bight of the first and work the knot into shape. Its construction
can be followed very easily in the diagram. Double crowning is done by
following round each strand again alongside the first lead.
=The Manrope Knot= is used for securing the upper ends of the gangway
manropes. It is made by first forming a wall and then crowning it as in
the first diagram. Then follow round the wall again and lastly follow
round the crown, when the finished knot will appear as in the second
diagram.
=The Stopper Knot= is used in the ends of stoppers and is made by
forming a wall and half a wall, putting on a good whipping about two or
three inches from the knot and cut off the ends.
[Illustration: TURK’S HEAD KNOT]
=The Turk’s Head Knot= is worked upon a rope with a piece of small
line. Take a clove hitch slack with the rope with the line round the
rope. Then take one of the bights formed by the clove hitch and put it
over the other, pass the end under, and up, through the bight which is
underneath. Then cross the bights again and put the end round again,
under, and up, through the bight which is underneath. After this follow
the lead and it will make a turban of three parts to each cross.
[Illustration: SINGLE MATTHEW WALKER KNOT]
=Single Matthew Walker Knot= is used for securing the standing part of
a rope or making beckets for buckets, etc. To make this knot begin as
for the wall knot but pass the first strand =A= under both =B= and =C=
as shown in the first diagram. Then pass =B= under both strands =C= and
=A=, and bring up through the first loop formed by =A=, shown in the
second diagram.
[Illustration: THIRD PROCESS OF MATTHEW WALKER KNOT]
Similarly pass =C= under =A= and =B= and bring up through the loops
first formed by =A= and =B= as seen in the third diagram.
[Illustration: DOUBLE MATTHEW WALKER OPEN AND TAUT]
=The Double Matthew Walker= is easily made when one notices the
difference between a single Matthew Walker and a wall knot. In the
wall knot each strand is simply interlaced with the strand immediately
on its right coming up through the loop formed by the second strand.
In the single Matthew Walker each strand interlaces the two strands
to its right coming up through the loop of the third strand. Another
evolution in the same order gives the double Matthew Walker. It is
formed as will be seen in the diagram by making each strand contain its
own loop, the other two strands and its own end, that is, each strand
leads up through its own bight after interlacing the other two.
[Illustration: SINGLE DIAMOND KNOT MAKING]
=The Single Diamond Knot= is made some distance from the end of a rope.
It is therefore necessary to unlay the rope considerably more than
is required in the preceding knots and as the strands will have to
be laid up again, try to preserve the original lay in the strands as
much as possible. Now bring each of the three strands down alongside
the standing part of the rope, thus forming three bights, and hold
them thus with the left hand. Take the first strand =A= as shown in
the diagram and putting it over the next, =B=, bring it up through the
bight of the third strand, =C=.
[Illustration: DIAMOND KNOT]
Take the end of the second strand over the third and up through the
bight of the first. The last strand is brought over the first and up
through the bight of the second. Haul taut and lay the rope up again.
The first diagram above shows the loops in their places with the ends
through them before they are hauled taut and the second diagram shows
the completed knot.
[Illustration: DOUBLE DIAMOND KNOT]
=The Double Diamond Knot= is made first like the single diamond and
then the ends are made to follow the lead of the single knot through
two single bights, the ends coming out on top of the knot. The last
strand passes through two double bights. The ends are then hauled taut
and laid up as for the manrope knot.
[Illustration: SHROUD KNOT]
=The Shroud Knot= is of use in joining two ropes together, particularly
in joining a stay or shroud that has been carried away. Each rope is
unlaid the necessary length and they are then brought close together. A
wall knot is formed on each rope with the strands of the other as seen
in the first diagram. The completed knot is seen in the second diagram
but to make a neat job the ends should be marled and served as in the
third diagram.
[Illustration: SNAKING AND SEIZING]
=Snaking= or =Seizing= is done by taking the end under and over the
outer turns of the seizing alternately, passing over the whole. The
whole may be whipped also with small twine. The ends of a four-stranded
rope may be thus secured. The end is first whipped as shown at =A=
in the diagram. The four strands are then opened out. They are then
brought down over the end in loops and the strands tied together, as in
the second diagram, or they may be simply brought down and bound to
the cable with twine, as shown in the third diagram.
[Illustration: SPRITSAIL SHEET KNOT]
=A Spritsail Sheet Knot= is made by unlaying both ends of a rope and
bringing the two standing parts together as in the first diagram.
Grasp both parts of the rope at =A=, with the six strands form a wall
knot, that is, by passing 1 under 2, 2 under 3, 3 under 4, 4 under 5,
5 under 6 and 6 under the loop formed by 1. Now lay any opposite two
of the strands across the top in an opposite direction and crown by
passing the other four, each in turn, alternately over and under these
two. Each of the six strands will then come out leading in a downward
direction alongside the strands forming the first walling. Now follow
round the walling again, when the strands will come through in an
upward direction, each alongside a strand of the first crowning. Follow
through the crowning once more and cut off the short ends, when a
handsome and useful stopper knot will result as in the second diagram.
SHORTENINGS
Shortenings are, as the term implies, knots that take up the surplus
cord and keep the ends from being in the way. A piece of rope or cord
is often too long and to cut it would be waste, so a shortening knot is
used. Sometimes the tie, four, five or six-fold knots are used for this
purpose.
[Illustration: SINGLE PLAIT OR CHAIN KNOT]
=The Single Plait=, or as the sailor terms it, the Chain Knot, is the
commonest of all these knots. First make a running loop and then draw
the loose end through the loop and repeat this operation until all
excess of cord has been taken up. The end may be secured by bringing
the end of the rope through the loop or by passing a belaying pin
through the loop. These two methods are illustrated in the diagram.
[Illustration: TWIST KNOT]
=The Twist Knot= is an ordinary three plait, although it is formed with
one piece of rope. It is more useful than when formed of three separate
pieces, for the ends are fastened and it cannot come undone. To make
this twist hold the double loop in the left hand; the side =A= is then
brought over to =B=, with a half turn =B= is crossed over to =A= and
the process of an ordinary three plait is continued until the end of
the rope is reached, when the loose end is passed through the bight and
the knot is fastened and completed.
[Illustration: DOUBLE CHAIN KNOT]
=The Double Chain Knot= is very easily made, if the first loop is made
secure by a twist in the rope as shown in the diagram, and then pass
the loose end through the preceding loop right and left until the knot
is finished.
[Illustration: SHEEP SHANK OR DOG SHANK]
=The Sheep Shank=, or =Dog Shank= as it is sometimes called, is an
old-fashioned method of shortening a rope and can be used on any sized
cordage. It is used for shortening a rope which requires lengthening
again. Gather up the amount to be shortened in the form of the upper
illustration. Then with parts =A= and =B= form a half hitch round the
two parts of the bight as in the second figure.
To render it still more dependable the bights =A= and =B= may be seized
or toggled to the standing parts as in the third and fourth figures.
[Illustration: BEND SHORTENING]
=Bend Shortening= or =Simple Loop= is a plain, useful expedient
for stout rope and has the merit of not injuring the ropes by an
unnecessary strain, or crossing the fibres of the hemp. It will not,
however, stand any great strain.
[Illustration: BOW SHORTENING]
=The Bow= or =Knot Shortening= is very quickly made. It is simply
an ordinary knot in the middle of a rope in which a double bend has
previously been made. It is not adapted to heavy ropes nor will it
stand a heavy strain.
[Illustration: CATSPAW]
=The Catspaw= is one of the easiest made loops to be used for hooking
on the block of a tackle or shortening up a bale sling stop. First
throw back a bight as shown in the first diagram. Then taking hold of
=A= and =B=, one in each hand, twist them up as in the second diagram.
Bring the two eyes =A= and =B= together and hook in the tackle.
TIES
When the many varieties of knots and ties are analyzed it will be found
that ties used in trades are all taken first from the mariner. The
sailor learned to fasten ropes so that they were able to take up all
strains evenly and to hold without chafing or without any undue strain
being put on any one part of the rope. Consequently when builders
erect scaffolding they use the ties and knots long known at sea. The
Clove Hitch is also known as the Builder’s Knot because it is used to
hold the scaffolding. The Clove Hitch is used by surgeons in cases of
dislocation. The Reef Knot is also used by surgeons to tie arteries
when performing operations. So it is with many other knots and because
of their uses for other than nautical work they have often received
other names.
[Illustration: SIMPLE KNOT]
=The Simple Knot= is the foundation for many ties. In the illustration
this knot is seen made around a mast or other solid substance. This
simple knot can at once become a clove hitch or the builder’s knot
which is illustrated on page 39.
[Illustration:
DOUBLE BUILDER’S KNOT SINGLE BOW KNOT
DOUBLE BOW KNOT SINGLE TWIST KNOT]
=The Double Builder’s Knot= is shown in the diagram above, upper left.
It is made in the same way as the clove hitch or builder’s knot except
that the end goes around again as before and underneath its own part
so making it much stronger.
=The Single Bow Knot= is one of the most common of the knots in general
use. It is commenced with the simple knot and made by doubling one of
the loose ends as shown in the diagram.
=The Double Bow Knot= or rosette knot is begun in the same way. Care
must be taken to keep the simple knot taut until the bow knot is
completed. The ends must lie straight as in the reef knot or it will
become the false knot.
=The Double Twist Knot= is useful when small cords are used and
tightness is required. The diagram below, upper left, shows how it is made.
=The Tent Pole Knot=, below, lower left, is one that can be
used to advantage by all who have to occupy tents or to travel much.
It is a simple loop made by joining the two ends of a rope with a
fisherman’s knot. This admits a short cross-bar or wooden pin and it
will enable the traveler to suspend clothes or other articles around a
tent pole. The cord may also be used for a toggle when two pieces of
wood have to be joined together.
[Illustration: DOUBLE TWIST KNOT TENT POLE KNOT
RUNNING KNOT RUNNING KNOT CHECKED]