Top 5 Knots?

[BowdrillBrink]

Hey everyone!

Random question here.
In your opinions, what are the five most useful knots for bushcraft?
thanks

Brink

 

[scanker]

I use different knots for different purposes, but I guess the ones I tie most frequently for "bushcraft" are:

Round turn and two half hitches
Clove hitch
Sheet bend
Taut-line Hitch

Stuck for the fifth. Either Trucker's hitch, bowline, zeppelin bend or Tarp taut hitch

 

[Minotaur]

I use different knots for different purposes, but I guess the ones I tie most frequently for "bushcraft" are:

Round turn and two half hitches
Clove hitch
Sheet bend
Taut-line Hitch

Stuck for the fifth. Either Trucker's hitch, bowline, zeppelin bend or Tarp taut hitch

Figure of eight
Constrictor
Fisherman's Bend
Sheep Shank

Then I too run into trouble.

 

[Peter_t]

i dont think i can answer this one, i know so/too many
sometimes it just depends on how i feel lol

pete

 

[jdlenton]

If i have to pick five

Evenk slippery figure of eight v v useful
taught line hitch again v v useful
over hand knot dead simple and every one knows it
clove hitch simple and goes round stuff
larks head dead simple and really useful

but then there's

round turn and two half hiches
figure of eight
sheet bend
constrictor
fishermans bend
timber hitch
and loads of others

i recon learn as many as you can and use them lots

 

[John Fenna]

My most used 5 are
Round turn and 2 half hitches
Clove hitch
Double fishermans
Prussic (various types from Classic, through French to guyline)
Sheet bend

 

[Peter_t]

Prussic (various types from Classic, through French to guyline)

how is a french prussic better? i know many who climb on them but think its a bit over the top for a guyline

ps. if your a real geek you know it as a valdotain tresse lol

pete

 

[Joonsy]

I'm afraid i'm one of those people that enjoy playing around with rope learning knots so could never restrict myself to five, when you learn a new knot you then find there are different variations of that knot and it's good fun and useful learning them, one of the most useful is surely the simple bowline in all it's variations, for those especially keen there is the ''Knot Tyer's Guild'', if i believe correctly (happy to be corrected) it is quite a feat to invent a new knot that is recognised as being ''new'' and would warrant some prestige in the knot tyer's circiut.

 

[John Fenna]

how is a french prussic better? i know many who climb on them but think its a bit over the top for a guyline

ps. if your a real geek you know it as a valdotain tresse lol

pete

French prussic is easier to tie than a classic - just wrap it round - no jamming ...
A single ended type prussic replaces a guy slider, though it goes under several other names as well.
As to being over the top for guys - it is more the size of a rope than the knots in it that determine what is over the top....I use double fishermans knots for joining climbing ropes through to necklace cords.....

 

[slammer187]

Bow-line
Constrictor knot
Sheet-Bend
Figure of Eight
Round turn and two half hitches
They're my most used knots for bushcraft and sailing!

 

[Peter_t]

French prussic is easier to tie than a classic - just wrap it round - no jamming ...

in my experience the french takes a while to dress and set so it bites correctly which tends to make me worry more while climbing but maby thats just me lol

surely when useing it for ridgelines you want it to jam so it doesn't slip? another good one is the klemheist, my personal favorite very easy to tie , smooth to slide and never jams

pete

 

[stretch3144]

Bowline - After many years of practise I can tie this one handed left or right.
Clove hitch
Trucker's Hitch
Anchor Bend (similar to a round turn and two half hitches, just locks off easily)
Reef knot (don't know why I put this here. Its the first knot I was ever taught to tie in Scouts - 'nuff said)

I doubt if I could use any of these to tie my hammock and tarp up though!

 

[Zeph]

I found this site, it might be of some use

http://www.animatedknots.com/

 

[BowdrillBrink]

Thanks everyone for all your great answers!
I will have to agree with most of you when you say "you cant limit it to just five."
I just wanted some good knots that I can focus on learning at the moment. But I will definitely be learning many more later on! Thanks again

~Brink

 

[Joonsy]

French prussic is easier to tie than a classic - just wrap it round - no jamming

in my experience the french takes a while to dress and set so it bites correctly which tends to make me worry more while climbing but maby thats just me lol -- surely when useing it for ridgelines you want it to jam so it doesn't slip? another good one is the klemheist, my personal favorite very easy to tie , smooth to slide and never jam

One very important difference regarding prussic's, the french is the only prussic that can be released while under tension and heavyload, if you pull down on the knot while the rope is under heavy load it releases and slides easily, for this reason it has very specific use in climbing as it can be accidentally released by grabbing the knot with the hand, the klemheist cannot be released while under tension / heavy load, therefore the klemheist is best used for ascending a fixed rope and the french for protecting an abseil (an autobloc), also the french will not jam at all unless under heavy load and the klemheist is less prone to slip but may not grab the rope at all in event of a sudden fall, the klemheist can be tied with tape but the french cannot, and importantly no prussic should ever be out of arm's length hence out of reach. Also prussic's work by rope being thicker than prussic, for example a lot of climbing rope is about 10mm and the prussic would be about 5mm, for a prussic with the same diameter as rope a Blake's hitch can be used (tree climbing knot) but it only works on certain type of rope. Just an example of how diferent variations of a knot can have very different uses, and also consequences.

 

[John Fenna]

One very important difference regarding prussic's, the french is the only prussic that can be released while under tension and heavyload, if you pull down on the knot while the rope is under heavy load it releases and slides easily, for this reason it has very specific use in climbing as it can be accidentally released by grabbing the knot with the hand, the klemheist cannot be released while under tension / heavy load, therefore the klemheist is best used for ascending a fixed rope and the french for protecting an abseil (an autobloc), also the french will not jam at all unless under heavy load and the klemheist is less prone to slip but may not grab the rope at all in event of a sudden fall, the klemheist can be tied with tape but the french cannot, and importantly no prussic should ever be out of arm's length hence out of reach. Also prussic's work by rope being thicker than prussic, for example a lot of climbing rope is about 10mm and the prussic would be about 5mm, for a prussic with the same diameter as rope a Blake's hitch can be used (tree climbing knot) but it only works on certain type of rope. Just an example of how diferent variations of a knot can have very different uses, and also consequences.

In a bushy environment - I just use them to tension my tarp and guys! No great risk to life and limb there...thank goodness

 

[Minotaur]

If i have to pick five

Evenk slippery figure of eight v v useful
over hand knot dead simple and every one knows it

Never use an over hand knot. They are both stopper knots, but you tend to be able to untie the figure of eight.

taught line hitch again v v useful
clove hitch simple and goes round stuff
larks head dead simple and really useful

but then there's

round turn and two half hiches
figure of eight
sheet bend

These two knots also do the same job, sort of. A sheet bend is best used for different thicknesses, while the fishermans bend works best for similar thicknesses.

constrictor

This has replaced the clove hitch for me almost completely.

fishermans bend
timber hitch
and loads of others

i recon learn as many as you can and use them lots

The Ashley Book has over 2000 different knots, and I think a lot of the modern ones are missing, so lots to learn.

 

[Joonsy]

Never use an over hand knot. They are both stopper knots, but you tend to be able to untie the figure of eight.

These two knots also do the same job, sort of. A sheet bend is best used for different thicknesses, while the fishermans bend works best for similar thicknesses.

This has replaced the clove hitch for me almost completely.

One of the best stopper knots is the ''Ashley's Stopper Knot'', forms a much bigger knob for stopping with the rope neatly emerging from the centre for maximum effect, easy to both tie and untie.

Also for joining rope the ''Carrick Bend'' is an excellent knot and well worth learning, easily untied after suffering heavy tension.

The ''constrictor'' can be very hard to untie after tensioning where the ''clove hitch'' is not, after heavy tension the constrictor may even have to be cut to release it, if you need to untie knot use the clove hitch, constrictor good on sacks and the like where it holds firm and doesn't have to be untied afterwards.

 

[Minotaur]

One of the best stopper knots is the ''Ashley's Stopper Knot'', forms a much bigger knob for stopping with the rope neatly emerging from the centre for maximum effect, easy to both tie and untie.

Like that, it is actually more of a proper stopper knot. The reason I prefer the figure of eight is because with one knot you can do so many things, and it does not have any bad habits.

Also for joining rope the ''Carrick Bend'' is an excellent knot and well worth learning, easily untied after suffering heavy tension.

Must admit would not be on my list for that purpose, and you have to be careful with it apprently. Fails 65% of the time according to wiki.

Was reminded today of a rope joiner I have used in the past. Fishermans something. Basically make a loop in both ends, and then reef knot the loops, by slidding one over the other, and then threading it back though. Important that the loops have formed a reef knot. Apprently does not suffer from the rope thickness problem that a lot of joining knots do.

The ''constrictor'' can be very hard to untie after tensioning where the ''clove hitch'' is not, after heavy tension the constrictor may even have to be cut to release it, if you need to untie knot use the clove hitch, constrictor good on sacks and the like where it holds firm and doesn't have to be untied afterwards.

That is why I said it has almost replaced it, if doing a demo, or planning on undoing it will use a clove hitch.

You have to watch Cloves, when not under tension from both directions they come undone.

 

[scanker]

Was reminded today of a rope joiner I have used in the past. Fishermans something. Basically make a loop in both ends, and then reef knot the loops, by slidding one over the other, and then threading it back though. Important that the loops have formed a reef knot. Apprently does not suffer from the rope thickness problem that a lot of joining knots do.

That description sounds a bit like the Fisherman's knot described here, but not quite. There is also a double fisherman's knot.

There seems to be a bit of name confusion with the Anchor bend which is also sometimes called the fisherman's knot/bend, but looks more like a round turn and two half hitches.

The zeppelin bend mentioned in my earlier post is a superb knot for untying, even after heavy load. It's the knot I use to to join the string to tension my collapsible bowsaw.