Knot Q: Slippery Loop?

[Matthew / BPL]

Can anyone suggest a knot or hitch that puts a loop at the end of a line that is slippery? Something like an overhand on a bight, anglers loop or bowline that comes loose without picking it apart?

[Erik G]

I just use a bowline. Holds fine on my Lawson UltraGlide bear bag line. Keeping the ‘tail’ a little extra long seems to help a bit, and I do check it before hoisting my food up a tree.

[Bob Moulder]

For the 1.2mm Z-line on the corners of my Duplex and Hexamid tarps, I use a Blake’s hitch in place of the typical LL2. You could tuck the tail on a bight if needed for quickly undoing the whole thing.

With this hitch you have the option of making the guyline shorter or longer. The only caveat is that, like the LL2, only half the total length of the guyline is available for adjustment.

My little mnemonic for this one is “1-2-3-4, over-under-out the middle”

[JCH]

+1 on the Blake’s hitch.  I’ve used this in so many places I’ve forgotten half of them are there, only get a little smile when I grab something and notice the knot :)  It’s good for pretty much anything where the load pulls in one direction only, up until you encounter loads sufficient to require whoopee slings ‘n such.  It should do exactly what you are after Matthew.

[David Thomas]

Do you prefer the Blake’s Hitch over a taut-line for tent guy lines?

[Hugh Webb]

“something like a … bowline that comes loose without picking it apart?”

Matt, perhaps also take a look at the Kalmyk knot. It is one of the only knots I know of that forms a strong, fixed loop but which “explodes” when you gently tug the free end.  See:

https://robertharder.wordpress.com/2011/04/15/kalmyk-can-the-kalmyk-unseat-the-bowline-as-king-of-knots/

 

 

 

[Matthew / BPL]

Ding ding ding we have a winner! The Kalmyk is exactly the type of solution I’m looking for. Thanks, Hugh!

[Bob Moulder]

David, I prefer Blake’s because with the 1.2mm Zline (spectra in a poly sheath) it has a bit more grip and it doesn’t loosen itself in the oscillating load/no-load windy conditions. It will still slip on woven dyneema cord, although it takes a lot more force than with a taut-line. However when I’m in a hurry I use the taut-line because it is a bit quicker. This is my experience anyway.

I also like it because it looks like it’s giving you “the finger” when it’s tied correctly.  :^)

Another slip hitch that comes undone easily is the Mooring Hitch. It is my all-time fave for tying to dead-man sticks under snow because when the tail is pulled to release it the lines do not cross, which greatly reduces friction when you’re trying to extract it from hard compacted snow.

[JCH]

The Kalmyk is fascinating and awesome, as is the bowline with a bight.  Both will see a lot of use in the future.

[Matthew / BPL]

Bowline with a bight. Ugly but it looks like it would provide rapid disassembly.

I’m turned off on the Blake’s Hitch because I’m not looking for a sliding knot but I suppose I could jut slip it into a small loop and finish with a bight for disassembly. I need to practice all three and see which I like tying best. The Kalmyk pleases my sense of aesthetics most. :)

[Ratatosk]

I’ve never seen the Kalmyk loop before. It’s a neat little knot!

[Roger Caffin]

a knot or hitch that puts a loop at the end of a line that is slippery?
I have that problem all the time with Spectra lines. That stuff is super slippery.

But my solution is very simple: I double the end and tie a simple thumb knot. Dead simple, can be done in the dark. It does not slip: it is self-tightening.

One thing I prefer to do is to make the double line ‘neat’ with no twists or crossings inside the knot. I don’t think this alters the strength: it just looks better.

A slight disadvantage of my knot: it can be a bit hard to undo if it has been loaded. Well, that’s OK by me.

Cheers

[Matthew / BPL]

Thanks, Roger. I was looking for something that was slipped, so it could be undone easily not looking for a knot that functions well with slippery cord like spectra. I probably shouldn’t have used the term slippery.

I have no recollection of what I was trying to do with this knot.

[Bill in Roswell]

Great knot. All thats lacking is a video of tying it for those who are not into knots!

[Bonzo]

Great knot. All thats lacking is a video of tying it for those who are not into knots!

Done.

[Ratatosk]

Watching that video, I realized this is probably an Evenk hitch, which may be why it’s not in Ashley’s. It’s a very common tarp ridgeline knot, I did not recognize it until I saw it tied around a standing object. On the plus side, I now know how to tie it with no standing object, so it’ll be a great bowline replacement at times.

It’s a wonderfully cultural knot, in that you can tell it comes fron a cold place; you can tie it in mittens.

[Eugene Hollingsworth]

OMGosh. This 5 year old thread proves we are all connected at some quantum level or String Theory anyone?

Just last night I got fed up with trying a slippery bowline, and bumped into the Kalmyk loop ( Inuit Loop, or Eskimo Loop) and then just made it “slippery” because I can.

 

[Bonzo]

OMGosh. This 5 year old thread proves we are all connected at some quantum level or String Theory anyone?

Correlation is not causation. 😉

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