How to Make a Cowboy Lasso
The correct terminology for a “lasso” is a lariat and comes from a time when the American cowboys learned to use the “La Riata” from the Mexican cowboys, but lets learn how to make a cowboy lasso, or lariat.
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Things You'll Need
- 50 ft of rope
- or
- 50 ft of Raw hide
- Heavy nylon rope
- cutting tool
- water
- rings used for sailing
Instructions
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How to Make a Cowboy Lasso
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1
Cut the raw hide into thin strips, the longer the better and more durable your lasso will be. The raw hide needs to be half-tanned and the hair is not yet removed.
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2
Soak the strips in water and then stretch them over a block. Tie the ends tightly so they don’t fold back and they keep their stretched form
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3
Let the strips dry. After they dry like that for a few days then the strips are braided into a rope. As they are braided each strip is pulled as tight as possible. As one strip another is added into the braid until it reaches forty or fifty feet
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4
Bury the rope. After you finish braiding the lariat or lasso then you need to bury it for two weeks until the rope is softened.
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5
Stretch again. When you pull the lariat out of the ground then you stretch it over a block again and use something heavy to weight it down. If you are a beginner cowboy and a really young one (a young boy or girl), then you may want to start out by using a heavy nylon rope and taking a small iron ring. The rings like those used on sails.
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6
Unravel one end of the rope and pull it through the ring and meat with the ends with the rope again bound the edges in place with strong twine. Then take the twine and bind the other end of the rope too to keep it from unraveling.
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7
Pull the end of the rope without the ring through the ring to tie your Honda knot.
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1
Tips & Warnings
The above methods are the way the real cowboys use their lariats or lassos to rope those animals. Above all have fun with your new lasso and feel like the real cowboys do!
