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The Ashley Book of Knots (1944)

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Re: The Ashley Book of Knots (1944)

#21

I have problems with knots, I am terrible with them, despite having some books. I think what I really need is a flowchart (what are you tying to what else? what kind of cordage do you have? what kind on the other end, if applicable?) with a list of knots at one end, with their various strengths and weaknesses. The jargon is a bit of an issue, too.

You can make due with only a couple of good knots. Very short list: the reef knot (square knot, avoid the granny version) and the alpine butterfly (don't use reef knot for joining two ropes, i.e. a "bend"). The alpine butterfly is more useful to know than the bowline, IMHO.

If you want to expand your list a little, here are some additional useful ones: double fisherman's, adjustable grip hitch, sheet bend, trucker's hitch.

Edit: I suppose this is more useful with a little additional commentary. The reef knot is so common that you should know it and know how to avoid the granny knot and also when not to use it (e.g. as a bend). You can use the alpine butterfly as a bend and also for quite few other things. It is more versatile than the bowline (e.g. if you need a loop that doesn't slip) and works fine as a bend (very smiilar to the Zeppelin bend).

Re: The Ashley Book of Knots (1944)

#22

A long time ago, I took the Sierra Club Basic Mountaineering Training Course (which was since abolished after some lawsuits!). We practiced the bowline-on-a-coil and belaying someone on flat land, and then we did rock climbing, belaying each other. I had a gentleman on the climbing end, who shouted "on belay" to which I responded "belay on." Then he yelled "falling." I was sitting with my feet braced, and I'd practic…

The risk with the Bowline is that it can work itself loose if it is repeatedly tensioned and loosened. It _definitely_ needs a backup safety knot on the tail.

Re: The Ashley Book of Knots (1944)

#23
post #8

Know knots or tie lots! Knowing a few different knots for a variety of situations comes in handy. The right knot holds properly and can usually be undone when needed without having to cut it out. If you're starting out then the square knot, two half hitches, taught line hitch, clove hitch, and bowline cover most use cases. And, yes, those are among the basic ones taught to Scouts.

I would suggest adding the sheet bend (ABOK #1) to that list: if you ever end up not having enough rope, you will want to be able to join multiple sections together.

Re: The Ashley Book of Knots (1944)

#24
post #8

Know knots or tie lots! Knowing a few different knots for a variety of situations comes in handy. The right knot holds properly and can usually be undone when needed without having to cut it out. If you're starting out then the square knot, two half hitches, taught line hitch, clove hitch, and bowline cover most use cases. And, yes, those are among the basic ones taught to Scouts.

I would suggest adding the sheet bend (ABOK #1) to that list: if you ever end up not having enough rope, you will want to be able to join multiple sections together.

Yea, another good Scout knot. While a square knot can do the same it can capsize under tension!

Re: The Ashley Book of Knots (1944)

#25
Knots are shared a lot here. There are sites listing hundreds of them each with its own strengths and weaknesses and use cases. But is there any science/math to them? For example, if I want to have not with specific set of features, is there something like an algorithm to build that knot from scratch?

Re: The Ashley Book of Knots (1944)

#26

Knots are shared a lot here. There are sites listing hundreds of them each with its own strengths and weaknesses and use cases. But is there any science/math to them? For example, if I want to have not with specific set of features, is there something like an algorithm to build that knot from scratch?

The math of knots is more rudimentary than what you're asking for but still fascinating!

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=8DBhTXM_Br4

Re: The Ashley Book of Knots (1944)

#27
post #21

I have problems with knots, I am terrible with them, despite having some books. I think what I really need is a flowchart (what are you tying to what else? what kind of cordage do you have? what kind on the other end, if applicable?) with a list of knots at one end, with their various strengths and weaknesses. The jargon is a bit of an issue, too.

You can make due with only a couple of good knots. Very short list: the reef knot (square knot, avoid the granny version) and the alpine butterfly (don't use reef knot for joining two ropes, i.e. a "bend"). The alpine butterfly is more useful to know than the bowline, IMHO. If you want to expand your list a little, here are some additional useful ones: double fisherman's, adjustable grip hitch, sheet bend, trucker's…

Right, but this isn't a what question, it's a when to do what question. I might know a knot, but I don't know when to use that knot and when it ought to be avoided. That's what I am getting at.

Even under the "bend" page in Wikipedia, sometimes the knots are merely described.

Re: The Ashley Book of Knots (1944)

#28
post #20
post #16

Earlier quoted context omitted.

oh. I said "ABOK" when I meant "Grog". It looks great but it's outdated.

How can a knot be outdated? Seems odd in a thread about 80 year old book.

Clearly we have higher performing knots which leverage modern material benefits for less slippage, total movements/tying time and complexity etc.!

Re: The Ashley Book of Knots (1944)

#29
The Marlinspike hitch is my favorite :) If you stick anything functioning as a marlinspike in there (stick, screwdriver, etc.), you get a great handle for pulling in tension. If you put a hook in there, you have a hitch onto the hook that can be released by slipping it off (and the whole knot collapses in on itself). If you stick the tag end one way instead, you end up with a great stopper knot (Oysterman’s Stopper Knot) that is triple the diameter of the cordage. If you stick the tag end in another way, you end up a Bowline—and it’s a whole lot faster tying it than the “rabbit-around-the-tree” method.

Re: The Ashley Book of Knots (1944)

#30
I think this might be my favorite kind of nonfiction book. Truly the Bible of knots.

For years I have looked for a list of "Bibles" of their respective subjects, but have never found anything quite right.

Chapman's Piloting & Seamanship is another example that comes to mind.

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