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In another thread a poster mentioned that he keeps loose line in his sailing shorts not only in case he needs a tie-down quickly but because he can practice knots on them.
It got me thinking that it would be a great idea for me because my knot tying repertoire is horrendous. With few exceptions such as hitches on fenders and bowlines on jib sheets, I basically tie "not-a-knots" on everything which is just a version of the shoelace tie with some fancy bends thrown in so my friends can marvel at my sailing knowledge.
How many of you are proficient at knots and what knots other than hitches and bowlines do you recommend?
Can I live the rest of my sailing life tying not-a-knots?
There are a few knots you should know...but for the most part if you have lived this long without needing to...here is a great site to learn some of them:
You really need to learn some basic knots to sail safely.
The bowline, the round turn and two half-hitches, the cleat hitch, the figure-eight knot, the clove hitch, the sheet bend, and the reef or square knot.
While there are a lot of other knots that are very useful for sailors, you don't really need to know them.
You should learn the rolling hitch, in case you ever have to tie into an existing towine, or take the strain off a sheet or halyard in order to clear an override.
I use a knot I haven't seen before to tie down my frame tarp, but I don't know what it is beyond a version of a slip knot. Secure under tension, but pull on the tail and it unravels.
90% of my knots are a bowline-with-a-bight, but I aim to learn a few more anchoring knots, as I want to practice messenger lines, kellets, etc.
Guess I was just lucky last time I moored my zeppelin that it didn't get away 'cause it was only tied down with a bowline. First time I was certified for rope rescue work it was with Manila rope and bowlines, hitchs and bends. Last time it was with modern synthetics and the knots were Figure 8 Follow Thru's, water knots and the like, in the dark, cold, and wet I tie the knots learned 40 years ago.
Jib sheets in heavy weather. I've had bowlines shake loose on occasion, and the bight secures them better. Eventually, I'll probably switch to a lark's head, if that's the right one I'm thinking of (my knot books are aboard, not at hand).
The most used bit of ropework that many folks don't know is how to properly coil a line. Everyone should know how to coil and secure a line. It is really the knot I use most often, next would be the bowline or figure eight.
Buntline hitches are great, but they are close to impossible to untie if they've been in for any extended period of time. They're excellent for tying halyards to shackles.
The stopper knot is better than the figure eight, since it is far less likely to be kicked or worked out of the tail end of a line.
Properly coiling and frapping a line is also important... so that they will run free when released and not hockle or kink.
Buntline hitches are great, but they are close to impossible to untie if they've been in for any extended period of time. They're excellent for tying halyards to shackles.
The stopper knot is better than the figure eight, since it is far less likely to be kicked or worked out of the tail end of a line.
Properly coiling and frapping a line is also important... so that they will run free when released and not hockle or kink.
I had a sailing instructor years ago who could tie a bowline one-handed. He held a piece of line with the bitter end dangling, whipped and flipped it around for a second and sure enough, it came out tied in a bowline.
Frap. To bind tightly by passing ropes around. The act of crossing and drawing together the parts of a tackle or other combination of ropes to increase tension. de Kerchove's Maritime Dictionary
The only place I've heard the expression used is regarding the frapping lines that bring the lifeboat falls more closely alongside for boarding. I suppose it could be used for round turns around a coil of line, I've just never heard it used that way myself.
Right on Denby - Acording to Wikipedia: Frappe. Typically in the New England states and some other eastern states prior to the the mid-1960's, restaurants and other food service providers gave you a choice of a "milkshake" or a "frappe". The "milkshake" was just that, milk whipped with a flavoring syrup such as chocolate, strawberry, coffee, or vanilla. The "frappe" had the same base, but was thickened with scoops of ice cream
In the early 60's when I would ask for a frappe in Connecticut they had no idea what I was asking for. Being from eastern Mass and very young I was just as confused.
Being from NJ, I have never heard of a frappe. I know of milkshakes that always had ice cream and malted milks, which were a milkshake with malt added.
If you have a chance and are in Newport... go by the Newport Creamery, which is an ice cream parlor/restaurant, much like Friendly's or Brigham's, and ask for an Awful Awful. It's a huge frappe.
The bowline
the round turn and two half-hitches
the cleat hitch
the figure-eight knot or stopper knot
the clove hitch,
the sheet bend,
the rolling hitch,
the reef or square knot
the buntline hitch,
BTW, a Frappe is an ice-cream-based milkshake drink in eastern Massachusetts and Rhode Island. Frapping a coiled line means you're taking turns of line around the coil to prevent it from uncoiling.
It has been beaten into me that one is never to finish turning up on a cleat with hitches. It was explained that if the line should come under great load, the hitches make it very difficult to release the line. The right way is to put several full turns around the cleat after having done several figure eights on the cleat. The part that holds the line from slipping is the figure eights where they bind against one another across the top. The turns around put on after are simply to keep it snug.
Thoughts?
I believe this is the case on very large ships, but not on a 30' sailboat. The fact that the lines on a tall ship may be unchanged for days or weeks, under fairly high loads, means that undoing a finished hitch may be very difficult. That generally isn't the case with a 30' cruising sailboat. The loads are lower, the amount of time the lines are under load are generally shorter.
It used to be when I joined two lines I would put a bowline in one then tie another onto that loop. I thought that was dumb so I looked up the proper knot which is a Carrick Bend.
It is easy to tie and more important for me easy to remember and can be used to join line of various sizes.
Gary
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