I've tried tying that knot with the support ropes for the Clark hammock and it still slips.
I've tried tying that knot with the support ropes for the Clark hammock and it still slips.
Well that sucks. Nope, that post isn't knocking down BSA. They just screwed up and taught us a knot with the wrong name. Knot tying didn't make me an Eagle, so that doesn't bother me a bit that I was wrong. Now I'm gonna go try the real taut line. I always loved the taut line (BSA version) but hated it's weight limitations. Glad to know there is a knot with the same ease to tie, but without the weakness.
I tried the rolling hitch with the stock rope on a HH explorer and worked very well. I tried it on some 7/64 covered spectra on my DIY hammock and it did not work. I think it takes a larger diameter with a cover that grips for it to work.
Tonight I observed that with 2.8mm Spyderline, the rolling hitch doesn't hold under body weight tension. That's a pity. It would be nice to be able to leave a sliding adjustment knot in place, and save the weight of rings/buckles/carbiners.
Grizz
The key to preventing slip is to jam each turn behind the previous turn, locking them behind one another. Done right, it will actually make a kink in the line where the turns roll back on one another. It won't slip through that kink.
I tie a bight in the last pass through the loop, leaving enough loose to wrap around my hand. When I back off tension on the line and give the loose end a yank, I have never had one stick.
It's worth noting that I tie 2 bowlines and have a pulley tightening system that can be easily slackened.
off the subject a little, but i have recently switched to the 1" owf polyester camo webbing for my tree straps. i have always tied a variation of the sheetbend as i had broblems with the single sometimes letting a bit of rope(inch or two) slip through the knot when in use. with the new webbing, the single sheetbend hasn't slipped. this is great news b/c it takes much less time to tie than my variation or a double sheetbend. the single with a bight takes about as much time to tie as it does to pull the slack and pop the bight.
Well while we're off topic... you can tie a bowline one handed, which makes it the perfect knot when dangling from a rope. it's about all I remember from BSA. This video shows how it's done:
http://www.instructables.com/id/EDX7AMVSEREWP86NX8/
just imagine video is upside down and your left hand is holding your weight off camera. wrap the end of the line around your back, then tie the knot as shown with your right hand. you can then release the rope with your left hand.
In technical terrain rescue they taught us how to tie the "Rescue Knot" which is this method of tying the Bowline. They also told us to NEVER tie an unconscious person with a knot/hitch that is designed to slip (take up slack), like the Taught Line. If the loop were to slip down on the peson it could cause considerable harm, and depending on the terain and duration of the lift, death or loss of limb. Which is why a rigid loop liket he Bowline is recommended.
However, when sailing solo a different piece of advice is given. It is common practice to leave a length of rope trailing behind your vessel in case you go overboard. It is easy to swim to the rope and belay yourself, let the boat drag you until she goes into irons (full stop headlong into the wind) and then use the rope to pull yourslef back to your boat. The recommended knot/hitch to use for this is the Midshipman's Hitch (Taught Line tied properly). Partly because the one handed Bowline (above) is very difficult to tie while there is tension on the rope (try pulling yourself up, with one hand, to gain slack) and partly because when done correctly the Midshipman's holds after just two wraps, easily.
So we have two knots used in to similar situations where we would normally think the same knot is adequate. But when thinking of life and limb it is easy to see why the knots are preferred for each particular task.
One, the person is either unconscience or has no way to self rescue, and a cinched loop could be deadly.
The other the person is conscience and the loop is easy to make, easy to hold and is temporary anyway.
I guess if I fell out of my boat while I was running the diesel engine I would tie the Bowline, it's gonna be a long time until she runs out of fuel
"I aim to misbehave." - Capt. Mal Reynolds
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