The following post on r.c.k (rec.crafts.knots) brought forth enough ideas worth sharing
so I thought I'd echo it in this knotting forum.
On Jul 13, 11:40 am, dmd <ddela...@sympatico.ca> wrote:
> My candidate for the best sack-closing knot:
>
> http://www.geocities.com/davidmdelaney/bag-knot/bag-knot.html
And you judge it "best" because ... ?
1) "this knot binds almost as well as the constrictor knot",
2) "it is easy to tie"
3) "and remember"
To 1, one might ask Why not use the Constrictor?
--indeed, this comes up in my discussion below.
To 2, I take issue (see below).
And to 2 & 3, one should be able to learn any of many different
knots well; it comes down to some practice and repetition of tying.
I recall ages ago some fellow at a restored mill binding bags with
who-knows-what (i.e., I don't recall), and doing so quite ably. YMMV
I take issue with some of your assertions, and in doing so offer what
might be a much simpler/quicker/material-efficient tying method!
>>> "Without the loop, the knot is difficult to untie"
?? I don't find it si hard to untie: simply haul away on the END
in which you form a slip-bight (or which part corresponds to the end
of the hitch #1674), which pries out material of the other end, and
the knot is pretty easily further loosened & untied. (JUST AS IS
the case for the Constrictor--contrary all the parroted "it must be cut"
nonsense that Ashley's words and knot authors' ignorance propagate!)
Having the parallel leg of the slip-bight slightly lessens the friction
nipping that end secure, btw.
>>> "The procedure is suitable for fast blind tying."
Rather, tying the knot as you present is slower, more involved
in making time-consuming tucks than is needed.
For both #1244 AND the Ground-line Hitch (#1243 - 1676/1680),
TIE THE KNOT IN REVERSE DIRECTION. This enables one to
limit the quantity of material used (assuming that one is working
with a batch of cord to be cut upon completion), and it also removes
the need to lift or hold open one part in anticipation of a later tuck!
For the Reverse Ground-line Hitch (a knot used by commercial
fishermen in many binding applications where the cord runs from
knot to knot to knot (sometimes making several spiral wraps of
the bound items, sometimes w/little span between knots),
first make a Half-hitch around the object, which should be
able to be pulled moderately tight; then cast the closing HHitch
appropriately to finish the knot, locking the (hand-held) first
end smartly, w/minimal waste of material. (In the Com.Fish
binding, sometimes an additional 1-3 such castings of forewards
& backwards-oriented HHitches are cast after the initial structure
is formed. FOR A GREAT IMAGE OF THIS, SEE:
http://charles.hamel.free.fr/knots-and-cordages/PICASA_Slideshow/Chalut_trawls_concarneau/index.html and i.p.
http://charles.hamel.free.fr/knots-and-cordages/PICASA_Slideshow/Chalut_trawls_concarneau/target9.html(where one can deduce that the tying moved leftwards, in paired
cord, with the penultimate HH made on left edge, then final on
the right edge, cord leading back away leftwards to flow into
under up into the next knot in the sequence, to the left)
Taking advantage of this build-up of HHs one can bind a bag
reasonably quickly.
NOW, for #1244, try tying it with the slip-bight (or unslipped end)
positioned first, and then make a big turn around the bag,
and THEN TAKE THIS AMPLE TURN, PUT IN THE REQUISITE
TWIST, AND CAST THE FORMED LOOP OVER THE BAG END,
and bring it down to adjust into #1244 (it also could be brought
down to add an 2nd crossing over the first end). If one twists
this large bight one way, the Constrictor is produced, as Ashley
shows in #1251. (Btw, #1253--slow to form--seems a great binder.)
This method should be quickest where the bag end (or whatever
sort of bound-items-end one has) is reasonably compact and
so easily encompassed by the twisted bight of cord. And it
re-(re-)orients the knot to the bag, so that the twisted bight
can be cast over the bag end.
Another effective binder is a Clove hitch--which can be quickly
tied or cast-, with the ends tied off in a Simple knot (such as
the start to tying one's shoelaces) which locks nicely against
the crossing part of the Clove. The effectiveness of this binder
depends on some friction between cord and bound material
------------------
Fiddling with these knots and not a bag but a collection of
rope bights of a handy hank of 3/8" & 7/16" ropes, which
makes for more of a challenge in that the binding cord
will have many *voids* to cross over, where no binding
against the object can occur--it happens in the binding cord
with itself (or fails). For such situations, one can start with
a loopknot at one end, then reeve the working end through
the eye 2 or 3 times to pull on an capsize the wraps to
form a friction-gripping coil in the eye, and go from there
with tighting an initial wrap, and building up upon this
with some successive binding wrap. (I recall seeing a
workman use 3/16" laid polypropylene line to bind some
coil of underground (to be...) cable tubing, where the
hard plastic surface of that would give scant purchase
for the cord. He used some sequence of steps in which
he seemed to be pulling cord through a an eye.)
--dl*
====