How to Tie a Double Carrick Bend

Use a double Carrick bend to join two lines. Its use is especially common with thick or stiff cable that cannot be easily formed into the more common bends. The double Carrick bend also goes by many other names, but it may be uniquely identified as knots No. 1428 and No. 1439 in Ashley's Book of Knots. The following steps will show how to tie a double Carrick bend.

Instructions

Difficulty: Moderate

1. Form a loop with the first rope where the working end is underneath the standing end and call it rope A. Lay the loop of rope A on top of the other rope which we will call rope B.
2. Keep the standing end of rope B under the loop of rope A and bring the working end of rope B over the standing end of rope A and under the working end of rope A.
3. Pull the working end of rope B around the working end of rope A and over the part of the loop in rope A that is nearest its standing end. Now push it under the portion of rope B that is beneath the loop of rope A.
4. Bring the working end of rope B over the part of the loop in rope A nearest its working end to complete the double Carrick bend.
5. Ensure that the ropes in the double Carrick bend are symmetrical about the center. Tighten the knot by pulling on both standing ends first and then pulling on both working ends. When placing the double Carrick bend under a heavy load, the working ends of the ropes are usually tied securely to their respective standing ends.