Somewhere on the site is a shock absorber for a guy line ...

[Elines]

....that looks something like this:

I remember seeing it on the site ages ago and thought it was a brilliant idea. Apart from being cheaper and giving the satisfaction of making it yourself this seems to me a better design because if the rubber perishes and breaks when in use you still have the intact guy line.

My (bought) rubber loop things are perishing so I want to replace them with this bicycle inner tube approach.

What I have done may be right but I wanted to check the knot used - I tried a reef knot, pulling the knot tight before the last 'loop'.

Can anyone give a link to the original please?

 

[Mesquite]

I think it's this one you're thinking of Chris

 

[Elines]

Steve - thanks - yes that is it - post 5.

As I suspected the knot used in that post is simpler than the one I used

 

[Ch@rlie]

I have some similar for my tarp, but made them slightly different mine are for the tie outs not ridge line but have purchased more catapult tube ready for more..
I have seen the idea but couldn't recall how it was done.
The ones I have made are using thinner cord, 500lb Kite flying line. I cut a length of cord approx 1meter longfed the line through the tube leaving excess for attaching to tarp then tied an over hand knot in the end of the tube.
Stretched the tube to almost max length pinch/grip the tube tight which retrieves the cord inside the tube as it goes back to its usual tube length, then tie another over hand knot.
I appreciate when my tube perishes I need to replace the cord too, but for me it just looks a little nicer.
If I need longer tie outs then I will just add more cord.
I plan to do shorter versions of this shock absorber to ridge line attachment points of tarp, with taught line hitch for the actual knot to ridge line.

 

[Elines]

I am happy with the original method I saw, but......... just out of interest ..... I don't see how these 'thread cord thru the tube' ones work. it you tie each end of the cord to something what is the tube doing?

 

[The Big Lebowski]

I just larks foot 3-4 rubber bands through the tarp eye/loop and clip on a guy line with a mini krab... Fool proof and very quick to set-up.

al.

 

[Ch@rlie]

Elines,

It's exactly the same principle except the cord is inside.
Basically the cord is still approx 1 meter long, but when you stretch the tube to make it the cord gets pulled inside.
finish size is about 400mm with loops tied.
Once its made, the tube stretches under tension, allowing cord to be unraveled.

I just larks foot 3-4 rubber bands through the tarp eye/loop and clip on a guy line with a mini krab... Fool proof and very quick to set-up.

I like it

 

[Miyagi]

I just larks foot 3-4 rubber bands through the tarp eye/loop and clip on a guy line with a mini krab... Fool proof and very quick to set-up.

al.

That's genius Big Leb.

In homage to your great idea, consider it pinched.

Thanks,

Liam

 

[The Big Lebowski]

Welcome....

Or, non larks footed. Just folded over double. trust me, I've fell over my guy lines hundreds of times now... Yet to snap one band, or damage a loop. Taken some dire weather too.

 

[Mesquite]

Neat idea TBL... I now have a use for all those rubber bands the cat keeps bringing home

 

[The Big Lebowski]

Hahaha!

I had a cat that kept bringing milk lids home (?)... you got lucky

 

[Elines]

Elines,

It's exactly the same principle except the cord is inside.
Basically the cord is still approx 1 meter long, but when you stretch the tube to make it the cord gets pulled inside.
finish size is about 400mm with loops tied.
Once its made, the tube stretches under tension, allowing cord to be unraveled.

Ahh - understand now - thanks

 

[Elines]

Welcome....

Or, non larks footed. Just folded over double. trust me, I've fell over my guy lines hundreds of times now... Yet to snap one band, or damage a loop. Taken some dire weather too.

Brilliant - thanks for this

 

[The Big Lebowski]

Welcome... Saves faffing around with silicone tube (for me anyways)

If you 'uber light' tarp and want to skip the mini krab, double one thick band through the eye, tie loops onto the end of your guys and simply toggle with thin(ish) twigs. Or larks foot.

al.

 

[Tank]

anyone want too do a group buy for these.. if we get enough people we could get the price down to 54p a box of 1000 elastic bands

great idea.

 

[Elines]

For those who want to use the original method here is a more detailed description than the original - http://www.bushcraftuk.com/forum/showthread.php?t=78600&highlight= by C_Claycomb - on which it is based.

I like this appproach because even it the rubber 'shock absorber' breaks, the guy line is still attached to the tarp/tent; and as a believer in Sod's Law Squared - "even if it can't go wrong it will still go wrong" - I know it will break some time when it is most inconvenient - howling gale and torrential rain.

Put a loop in the guy line - note the position of the red mark on the line

hold the piece of line that will be furthest from the rubber line (the bit with the red mark on it) and put it through the loop

If you use the other side - the line without the red mark, then the knot will not grip. It took me about 5+ minutes to work out why sometimes the knot held and other times it didn't - it was because I was sometimes using the wrong 'side'.

Put the rubber through the loop (the loop with the red mark on it) and tighten

Form a new loop at about 2x the length of the rubber

note the red mark again


and again pull the line through - again from the side farthest away from the rubber - the bit with the red mark

Put the rubber through the loop with the red mark on it and tighten

As stated by C_Claycomb the knot is a slip knot and done in the way describes holds fast but is easy to undo and so you can easily remove or replace the rubber.

I used bike inner tube because it is what I had to hand. I think that cutting a strip (ie cutting down the length of the tube - 2 times - to half it) rather than using a complete tube section of inner tube will probably be good enough. But this is something you will need to judge as it will depend on the diameter of the inner tube and the thickness of the tube wall.

If you want to stick with the rubber band approach but can't find any rubber bands then you could always cut a short 'length' of inner tube and make your own 'rubber band'

 

[Paul Webster]

I use some yellow zing-it line, yellow exercise tubing and mini clear zip ties to make mine. Seem to work really well.

 

[Minotaur]

I prefer a length of elasticated cord and a couple of thumb knots.

 

[al21]

I make loops from three mil bungee rubber as the shock absorbers on my tarp.

Al

 

[Shewie]

I make loops from three mil bungee rubber as the shock absorbers on my tarp.

Al

Me too, in a similar way to ChrisC but I use clove hitches on the guy line