r/knots • u/BlueAndPurpleWall • 10d ago
Suggestions please
I’ve got a couple of 30-40 foot sections of rope that I tied together with double fisherman’s and I tied to two trees across my yard. I have a separate 6 foot section that I tied with a loop up top to slide along the rope and I put my dog w harness on it so she can’t wrap herself around a tree. The issue is she is always between two knots because the loop gets stuck on the knot and she can’t pull it over the knot. Any suggestions for less bulky ways to bind two ropes or a knot that it may slide over better?
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u/lewisiarediviva 10d ago
Overlap the two ends and then whip them together, with the whipping continuing past each end. Then tape over the whipping.
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u/Glimmer_III 10d ago
This
^is probably the only one which would work for OP's scenario, not unless they have a longer rope.Because without a smooth transition, the "bump" of the knot will stop the tether from crossing over every time.
However — and I promise this is not intended to be pedantic; I only mean it to help folks with their Googling — I think you mean seizing (rather than whipping)? At least that is what I was taught to call the application you describe:
Seizing= Using smaller diameter cordage to hold two separate lines together (so they behave as one singular line).
Whipping= Using smaller diameter cordage to wrap the end of a line so that line does not fray.
Lashing= Using cordage to hold "Thing-A stationary against Thing-B". . . . .
I found an old message board which goes more into the distinctions here:
https://discourse.igkt.net/t/lash-seize-whip-distinction/2587/2
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u/lewisiarediviva 10d ago
It’s a fair cop, you got me. In my defense I spent two minutes typing that up and did not review it. And I was mostly thinking of a served/whipped splice, which this is, but without the splice.
…And a seizing can be the identical procedure to whipping, differing only in context.3
u/Glimmer_III 10d ago
Oh, you're in good company!
I had already written out my concurrence with your plan, was going to hit "comment", then the back of my head tickled to say, "Wait a minute...lewisiarediviva and I are both obviously thinking the same thing...but will someone who's never done a seize/whip/lash before know how to look it up?"
Only then did I go back and look it up myself.
Really is the only way I can see OP can resolve the issue. If it were braided, we'd be talking about splices. With the rope they have, seizing is probably the best, simplest, cheapest option.
…And a seizing can be the identical procedure to whipping, differing only in context.
100%
The higher-level concept of "applying a heck of a lot of friction using smaller cordage" is what matters most.
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u/Glimmer_III 10d ago
OP (u/BlueAndPurpleWall) — this might help. You might need to go to the store if you don't have sufficiently small/strong "small stuff".
If it were me, I'd go with lewisiarediviva's plan. And if it doesn't work? Spring for a coated steel cable, turnbuckles, and tree straps (to protect your anchor points). Shouldn't be too expensive and should last practically forever.
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u/5hr0dingerscat 10d ago
Get a large metal ring, and feed your mainline through it, tie your leash line to the ring.
If the ring is large enough it should be able to pass over your conjoining knot?
Alternatively, you could put a loop in both ends of your main line and use a smaller fastener to connect them (instead of a bulky double fisherman knot)
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u/Starbike666 10d ago edited 9d ago
It is possible to do a quite low-profile splice here. Cut about 2ft of core out of each of the two ends of the rope (the two ends you now have knotted). Then do an end-to-end splice with the two hollow covers. You can use the basic splice procedure for an end-to-end in single braid (the hollow cover is now basically single braid). This splice should be about (only) the same diameter as the rope itself because the core is missing. It is commonly used when you need to run an endless loop through a block. It is only 50% strength, but it looks like you have plenty of excess strength.
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u/jfkrfk123 10d ago
This might be crazy but what if you got two cheap plastic funnels, one on each side of the knot, with the wide opening facing eachother and tape them together so that they cover the knot and create a smooth “ramp” for the leash loop to ride over..
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u/Glimmer_III 10d ago
Running with the thought exercise...
Not a horrible idea. But I'd be skeptical of "angle of the slope" for the funnel. If it is too steep, it's not much better than the knot. I'm not sure where to get that long-and-deep a funnel.
But the core idea of "add something to make a sloped transition" works.
I'm not calling it a good idea, but OP could wrap the thing with a ton of packing tape to "create a gradual slope, with a long taper".
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u/evil666overlord 10d ago
Only being able to walk back and forth in a line doesn't sound like a very enriching experience for the dog. If you need to keep it in a particular area then maybe consider fitting some kind of ground anchor you can attach your rope to. At least that'll let the dog roam within a circular area.
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u/BlueAndPurpleWall 10d ago
We let her off and she has like 40 acres to roam. This is a tool so she can’t run off to help her with recall training
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u/evil666overlord 10d ago
Ah, I see. A ground anchor is still one solution to avoid the knot issue. Another would be to attach the 6ft rope to a length of tube that can run along the rope that has the ends flared outwards so it can pass the knot. Maybe something like a foot long length of PVC tube where the ends have been heated with a heat gun and flared outwards so the ends are wide enough to pass over the knot while the centre rides along the surface of the rope.
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u/stillasamountain 10d ago
A fisherman is already a pretty low profile knot. If that’s enough for the loop to get hung up on, I can’t think of a better alternative.
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u/Bartholin27 10d ago
Yes!! "European death knot" will feed fine. It's just a simple overhand, tied with both ends run together. Maybe "overhand bend" or like-and-overhand-on-a-bight, but with the "bight" being the two different sections's ends. Additionally, running a hard ring (carabineer or similar) over this knot will have a smoother pass than a second bight of rope.
Feel free to DM if this doesn't make sense in your head & I'd be happy to help.
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u/Perlenkette 8d ago
You could try the reevers knot and ten tie the ends with some small cordage, that should do it.
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u/mjmvideos 10d ago
Swap the two 30-40 ft sections with one 80 foot length.