Insurance Knot

[QuickMick]

Sent a buddy up their stick the other day. Part of the safety measure was to rig a backup line to the halyard in case of shackle/splice failure. So I went big boy shackle to Jansik special, then left about four inches of slack and connected safety line to halyard bout 3 feet up with a flemish bend. As it worked out the ascender needed to untie the flemish near the spreader... big pain as it is meant to be selfjamming, but to bring him down/rehoist is tough on the tris... any suggestions on another bend with equal safety but easier release?
Ty

[smurphny]

Don't have a clear picture of how you were rigged up but when in doubt use a bowline: strong and will never bind. You could also use a double clinch/halyard/barrel (whatever you want to call it) knot but it would bind as well. The double fig 8 (Flemish) is sure to bind up hard.

[JedNeck]

Try a prussic knot, also known as a monkey fist...it was used as a "rope grab" in the construction industry before mechanical grabs were invented.

[RichH]

Definitely a prussic (on a 'loop'/sling) or a prussic with extra round turns. This 'safety knot' arrangement of adding an additional sling/rope to a 'connection' is called a "jumper" or a "rescue jumper".

Bowlines are easily broken with impact and can easily 'capsize' and come undone if it is pulled with strain over a sharp edge, etc. If you need a bombproof knot for the 'terminal end' of a rope for doing 'mast work' use a 'double loop figure of eight' or 'figure of eight on a bight' for the connection .... a climber or steeplejack would never ever use a bowline - its just too dangerously weak for THAT kind of 'climbing'.

Search and Rescue Knots | How to Tie Search and Rescue Knots | Animated Search and Rescue Knots

[Tempest]

I'm trying to picture what you did, but it sounds like you need some type of non-binding hitch, that will tie over nylon ( slippery) line ?

Any thoughts on these?


Blake's hitch - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Gripping Sailor's hitch - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Here's a whole page of various hitches:

List of hitch knots - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Just saw rich's post...a Prussic knot is great..

[QuickMick]

Originally Posted by smurphny

Don't have a clear picture of how you were rigged up but when in doubt use a bowline: strong and will never bind. You could also use a double clinch/halyard/barrel (whatever you want to call it) knot but it would bind as well. The double fig 8 (Flemish) is sure to bind up hard.

((Chair to-o(small shackle to main)------
Chair to 0(bgboy shackle via jansik)---sss(4in slack then 3 feet up)[flem bend to main]

Now I'm confused... as usual. Lol. You mean a twin bowline for the bend?

[jackdale]

Never go up on a shackle.

Use a bowline with a safety half hitch. Or a double figure eight. Tie a second halyard as a safety with the same knots. You can attach the shackle to keep it out of the way.

[QuickMick]

Jack, you don't think dual shackle redundancy, with one to eyesplice and one to jansik is safe? At that point it'd seem the chair would fail first, so you'd be bones anyhow.

[QuickMick]

Lemme know if u I'm wrong, but it seems any fig8 or fig8 follow through w or w/o stopper would be equally hard to loosen under load?

[jackdale]

Originally Posted by QuickMick

Lemme know if u I'm wrong, but it seems any fig8 or fig8 follow through w or w/o stopper would be equally hard to loosen under load?

True, you would only want to loosen it when you are standing on the deck.

I use the bowline and safety hitch as it is simpler.