Kinds of Rope Knots
Knots are supreme in their versatility and functionality. For millennia, human beings have used intricate knots to secure heavy objects, transport items by rope from one area to another, fasten masts to boats, catch fish and even create artwork. All of these activities require various kinds of knots.
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Loop Knots and Binding Knots
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Loop knots are strong knots that include a closed circle. These knots are commonly used in boating and fishing. The bowline knot is one type of loop knot that is used worldwide to fasten the various parts of a sailboat's mast together. In fishing, the angler's knot is a popular knot used for tying bait to the line. There are hundreds of other loop knots as well, including the farmer's loop, figure-of-eight loop, Honda knot and the span loop. Binding knots are similar to loop knots, but include several more turns of the rope than most loop knots. Examples of binding knots include the boa knot, granny knot, thief knot and strangler's knot
Hitches
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The hitch is another category of knots used to tie items together securely. A hitch knot may either use the friction between the parts of the rope to bind items or it may include a knot at both ends of the rope to create a secure hold. There are more than 100 hitch knots, ranging from the very simple to the complex. Some examples of simple hitch knots include the becket hitch, ground-line hitch, half hitch and ossel hitch. The complex hitch knots include the alternate ring hitch, barrel hitch, masthead knot and sailor's gripping hitch.
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Bend Knots, Slip Knots and Stopper Knots
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Bend knots are knots that are used to tie two separate ropes together rather than to tie the ends of one rope. Examples of bend knots include the alpine butterfly bend knot, Carrick bend knot, harness bend knot and the sheet bend knot. Slip knots are knots tied into a rope such that they can be adjusted and slid along the length of the rope. The noose is the most well-known type of slip knot. A stopper knot is tied into the end of a rope to stop an object from slipping off of the rope. The overhand knot, Stevedore knot and Ashley's stopper knot are types of stopper knots.
Decorative Knots and Trick Knots
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Decorative knots are often complex knots that are used in crafting, such as macrame, the practice of making art with yarn by tying knots instead of sowing. The square knot is the most common macrame knot and the basis for almost any macrame creation. Other kinds of decorative knots include the diamond knot, the endless knot, the monkey's fist knot and the shamrock knot. Lastly, trick knots are a kind of special knot often used in magic because they have the appearance of a strong knot, but are deceptively simple and easy to unravel. The grief knot, handcuff knot, vanishing knot and the Tom's fool knot are all trick knots.
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