Rope Use
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Contents |
Types of Rope
Common materials for rope include natural fibres such as manila hemp, hemp, linen, cotton, coir, jute, and sisal.
Synthetic fibres in use for rope-making include polypropylene, nylon, polyesters (e.g. PET, LCP, HPE, Vectran), polyethylene (e.g. Spectra), Aramids (e.g. Twaron, Technora and Kevlar) and polyaramids (e.g. Dralon, Tiptolon).
Some ropes are constructed of mixtures of several fibres or use co-polymer fibres.
Rope can also be made out of metal, though it's often referred to as cable.
Ropes have been constructed of other fibrous materials such as silk, wool, and hair.
Styles of Rope
- Laid or Twisted rope
- Single Braided
- Braid on Braid
- Solid Braid
- Kernmantle
- Plaited
Knots
Terminology for Knotmaking
- Bight
- Any curved section, slack part, or loop between the ends of a rope, string, or yarn
- Bitter end
- More a ropeworker's term than a knot term, it refers to the end of a rope that is tied off, hence the expression "hanging on to the bitter end". A bitt is a metal block with a crosspin used for tying lines to, found on piers. In fact the bitter end is the end of the anchor "cable" that connects to the anchor bitts in the cable locker under the forecastle or poop using the bitter pin. (British nautical usage). Other uses may be borrowed from this derivation.
- Loop
- A full circle formed by passing the working end over itself
- Elbow
- Two crossing points created by an extra twist in a loop
- Standing end
- The standing end is the end of the rope not involved in the knot, often shown as unfinished. It is often (but not always) the end of the rope under load after the knot is complete. For example, when a clove hitch ties a boat to a pier, the end going to the boat is the standing end.
- Standing part
- Section of line between knot and the standing end (seen above)
- Turn
- A turn or single turn is a single pass behind or through an object.
- A round turn is the complete encirclement of an object; requires two passes.
- Two round turns circles the object twice; requires three passes.
- Working end
- The active end of a line used in making the knot. May also be called the 'running end', 'live end', or 'tag end'.
- Working part
- Section of line between knot and the working end
Common Uses
- Tenting
- Securing loose objects
- Rigging
- Towing
etc...
