Comments on: 7 Basic Knots Every Man Should Know

By: Bill G

Bill G — Wed, 30 Jun 2010 13:51:36 +0000

I was also taught that the clove hitch makes an excellent tourniquet. Tie a clove hitch above the wound on an arm or leg, pull the ends and it will maintain compression.

By: 15 Great iPhone Apps for Men | The Art of Manliness

15 Great iPhone Apps for Men | The Art of Manliness — Wed, 30 Jun 2010 04:51:45 +0000

[...] man should know how to tie basic knots. But after you’ve mastered the basics, it’s time to move on to more advanced knot-work. [...]

By: Dave

Dave — Tue, 20 Oct 2009 14:14:35 +0000

Great post, HIvolt!

Further on the clove hitch, one of my favorite, um, knots — ok, hitches. When I’m using it for anything that will have much movement, or I want to leave for a long time, I back it up with a half hitch, or usually two half hitches, thrown around standing side.

In mountaineering, rock climbing, high-angle rescue, etc. you always want to back up a knot with a second knot.

By: Allen Martin

Allen Martin — Tue, 29 Sep 2009 03:26:03 +0000

Ask This Old House had a little turtorial like this one. I tracked it down, and they have several of the same knots featured on here. Like this post, they explan how the knots may be utilize . Hope this helps.

http://www.thisoldhouse.com/toh/article/0,,217079,00.html

By: Hivoltlineman

Hivoltlineman — Sun, 27 Sep 2009 22:01:24 +0000

I am a lineman for a local utility and use knots everyday, all day for a lot of applications. It is great to see that so many people know so much about knots. The one piece that I disagree with is when the narrarator said that the clove hitch isn’t suited for a heavy load; unless, that is, I mistook what he meant. If you’ve every had a Marsh Master stuck in the swamps of southeastern North Carolina, you’ll know what I mean. The clove hitch is perfect for lashing a handline around a suitable cypress tree to extend your winch cable. Half hitches tend to bight the tree too tightly, and can be a downright pain to loosen. The nice thing about the clove hitch is that it doesn’t burn into itself, making it very easy to untie. But what to do with the other end of your handline? A Bowline on the Bight is a very strong way to tie a loop in a rope as it has two loops, two bights, and two hitches. The disadvantage to this knot is that if there is a great amount of uneven strain on the loop, one of the loops will tighten down on your assembly (the hook on your winch cable, etc.) defeating the purpose of tying a proper knot. The figure eight on a bight can be used as well to form your loop. It is the same as the standard figure eight, you just bend the rope in half and tie it so the bight sticks out of the top, making an attachment point for your assembly. This knot also comes out very easily, not burning the rope together as a regular figure eight would under much strain.

However remember this: many knots are only meant for vertical load, not “side load.” An example is if you tie a square knot and then pull it sideways, it will form two half hitches. This isn’t neccesarily a capital mistake, but it does tend to loosen the knot.
Also, ropes are rated for a certain breaking strength determined by the manufactuer. Tying knots in the rope reduces this rated strength by different percentiles.
A few examples are:
Bowline: reduces the strength by 40%
Sheet Bend: reduces the strength by 50%
Square Knot: reduces the strength by 55%
Clove Hitch: reduces the strength by 25%

Have a safe day!
–Hivolt