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  1. #1
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    soft shackle fail analysis

    My homemade soft shackle nacrabiner didn’t turn out the way that Opie’s turn out in the photo instruction sheet that he posted on this forum. For sure, it’s user error on my part, and I need your help in figuring out what I did wrong. In Opie’s example, the buried portion is completely covered by the outer sheath through which it has been pulled. In my attempt at following his instructions, in order for the adjustable loop to be closed when pulling the tail inside the bury, about 3 inches of tail comes back out no matter how carefully I milk the bury. I must be doing something wrong, but I followed the instructions exactly.
    --Amsteel 7/64.
    --30 inch length of line.
    --Mark at 3.5 inches and 12 inches.
    --Inserted FID at 3.5 inch mark and popped it out at the 12 inch mark.
    --Pulled the line inside the bury.
    --Closed up loop.
    --Milked bury upward and downward to stretch it back out as long as possible and remove slack/volume in the sheath.

    At that point, no matter what I did, even when I made the first mark at 2 or 2.5 inches as is also suggested, I was still left with about 2 or 3 inches sticking out of the bury at the first of the two marks – where I had inserted my FID. There was no way that I could milk any addition length in the buried portion to cover up and swallow up that section that stuck out. So I buried the ends in the little tail and long tail, and tied the stopper knot in the long tail that was poking out through the bury. The result is a soft shackle that when closed has a much bigger diameter than the one shown in Opie’s pictorial. It is also possible to pull the adjustable loop closed by pulling on the tail with the stopper knot. That’s a nice feature, but it’s not at all like the pictorial.

    What the heck did I do wrong? I’m using Amsteel 7/64 and my measurements were accurate. Help. Oh, also, is there any reason why the mutant soft shackle I created would be any less effective or strong than it would be if the buried line was completely buried and didn’t have the tail sticking out? The sheath covering the bury is the distance between my 12 inch and 3.5 inch mark, per the instructions, so I believe I have the proper amount of bury.

  2. #2
    Senior Member raiffnuke's Avatar
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    Do you have any pictures of what you ended up with? That might help us figure out what you did or didn't do..

  3. #3
    Senior Member WV's Avatar
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    You use the tail that's sticking out along with the other end to tie the lanyard knot for a stopper.

  4. #4
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    tail plus end = knot makes sense, but . . .

    Using the tailing sticking out plus the end to tie the knot makes sense, but clearly in Opie's series of very sharp, detailed photos, the buried end is completely buried with no end sticking out. Opie, can you chime in on this one? I'm still thinking I did something wrong since my end sticks out of the bury.

  5. #5
    Senior Member JasonJones's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by WV View Post
    You use the tail that's sticking out along with the other end to tie the lanyard knot for a stopper.
    Yeah, that is how I make them.

    the lenght of the bury is the diameter of the loop I want, then I tie a diamond knot with the 2 tails as close to the end of the bury as possible. That way when I load them to harden the knot they come out perfect and I can milk the loop end fully closed under the knot.

  6. #6
    Senior Member raiffnuke's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by motorapido View Post
    Using the tailing sticking out plus the end to tie the knot makes sense, but clearly in Opie's series of very sharp, detailed photos, the buried end is completely buried with no end sticking out. Opie, can you chime in on this one? I'm still thinking I did something wrong since my end sticks out of the bury.
    I think that Opie tied his stoppers, then cut the inside strand short, then did a short back splice on the remaining (outer) strand. This gives a nice finished look as well as preventing fraying. I have used this method before, the only thing that I don't like about it is that is leaves a longer tail than I like. Just my 2 cents.

  7. #7
    Senior Member bdbart's Avatar
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    Pics would help with determining exactly what your problem is...... but the 3.5 and 12 marks are at opposite ends of the piece of rope
    My memory's not as sharp as it used to be. Also, my memory's not as sharp as it used to be.

  8. #8
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    marks on opposite ends!?!?!

    Ding, ding, ding, ding. The winning answer, determining where I goofed. Excellent. Opie's pictures led me to believe you started at one end marking at 3.5 inches and then continuing along and marking the 12 inch point. This explains where I messed up. Excellent. Now, to learn to tie the diamond stopper correctly. I was cheating and using an Ashley. Thanks. I love this forum.

  9. #9
    Senior Member opie's Avatar
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    Sounds like you solved your issue. I read this earlier but cant stand typing a reply on the phone.

    I think where you got lost was backsplicing the tail and then tying the stopper knot so the end of the longer bury is in the middle of the knot. This locks the outer and inner cords so the inner cant come undone.

    However, the diamond is far superior as the stopper knot, and eliminates the backsplice in the end.

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