Troop 10 Lynchburg Virginia

   Knots play a very important role in Boy Scouts. As a Boy Scout you must learn certian knots to be        able to move forward in the ranks. Knots are also very useful in emergencies, in building things, and many  other.  

 

 

Whipping. 

 

   To whip the end of a rope you need a pocketknife and a two foot long piece of strong string. First take your pocketknife and cut away any of the rope that has become unraveled. Next, form a loop with your piece of string and lay the loop along one end of the rope. Tightly wrap, or whip, the string around the rope, working your way toward the loop formed in the string. When the whipped is at least as wide as the rope is thick, tuck the end of the string through the loop, then pull hard on the free ends to tighten the string and secure the wrapping. Trim away the extra string, when whip the rope's other end.

 

 

Two Half Hitches 

 

   A hitch is a knot that ties a rope to something. Friction caused by the wraps of the rope holds the hitch in place. two half hitches (also called a double half hitch) form a loop that can be adjusted to make it smaller or larger. 

Step 1 - Pass the end of the rope around the post. 

Step 2 - Bring the end over and under the body of the rope (known as the standing part), then back through the loop that has formed. This makes a half hitch. 

Step 3 - Take the end around the standing part a second time and tie another half hitch.

Step 4 - Pull it snug.  

 

 

Taut-Line Hitch

 

   The traut-line hitch is used to make a line tight, ot taut. It's the knot to use for staking out the guy lines of your tent or dining fly. 

Step 1 - Pass the lines around a tent stake. 

Step 2 - Bring the end under and over the standing part of the line to form a loop, then twice through the loop.

Step 3 - Again bring the rope end under, over, and through a loop but this time farther up the standing part. 

Step 4 - Work any slack out of the knot. 

Step 5 - Slide the hitch to tighten or loosen the line.

 

 

Timber Hitch 

 

   The timber hitch is the perfect knot to use for dragging a log across the ground. It is also the knot that starts a diagonal lashing. Here is how to tie a timber hitch: 

Step 1 - Pass the end of the rope around a log. 

Step 2 - Loop the end around the standing part of the rope, then twist the end around itself three or more times. 

Step 3 - Pull slack out of the rope to tighten the timber hitch against the log. 

   The hitch will stay secure as long as you are pulling on the rope. When you are done using the rope, the timber hitch is easy to loosen and remove from the log.

 

 

Clove Hitch 

 

   Clove comes from the word cleave, meaning "to hold fast." The clove hitch can be used to start most lashings:

Step 1 - Bring the rope end over and under a pole. 

Step 2 - Take the end around a second time, crossing over the first wrap to form the shape ofan X.

Step 3 - Bring the rope end around a third time and tuck it under the X. 

Step 4 - Pull the end of the rope to tighten the hitch. 

 

   Another way of trying a clove hitch makes it easy to lay the knot over the end of a pole. This method is especially useful for attaching a line to a bag you will hang from a tree to protect your food from bears or other animals.

 

Step 1 - Make a loop near the end of the rope.  

Step 2 - Form an identical loop next to the first and a little farther away from the rope end. 

step 3 - Without turning over either loop, lay the first loop on top of the second. 

step 4 - Place the pair of loops over the end of a pole or over the neck of a bear bag. Tighten the clove hitch.

 

 

Bowline

 

   The Bowline forms a loop that will not slip. That's just what you want for trying a rope around your waist or around someone requiring rescue. A bowline also works well for securing guy lines through the grommets ona tent or dining fly.

   Learn to tie the bowline around yourself, around a post, and in the free end of a rope. With practice, you can even tie it with one hand. 

Step 1 - Make a small overhand loop in the standing part of a rope.

Step 2 - Bring the rope end up through the loop, around behind the standing part, and back down into the loop.

Step 3 - Tighten the bowline by pulling the standing part of the rope away from the loop. 

 

   Here's a faster way to tie the bowline. Try both methods and see which is easier for you. 

step 1 - Hold the rope end in your right hand and the standing part in your left. Lay a few inches of the end across the tsanding part. 

step 2 - With the fingers of your right hand, grasp the point where the rope crosses.

step 3 - With your left hand, lift the standing part up and around the rope end, forming a small loop with the rope end inside of it. 

step 4 - Pass the rope end behind the standing part and bring the end down through the small loop. tighten the knot. 

   Notice thecollar-shaped bend of rope in the bowline. To untie the knot, push the collar away from the loop as if you were opening the top on a soda can. That will break the knot so that you can loosen it. 

 

 

Sheet Bend

 

   The sheet bend is a very good knot for tying together two ropes of the same or different diameters. It is a close relative of the bowline and can be untied in the same way.

step 1 - Put a bend in the end of the thicker rope and hold it with one hand. 

step 2 - Pass the end of the other rope through the bend. Then take that end around behind the bend. 

step 3 - Bring the end across the front of the bend, and tuck it under its own standing part. (The end does not go into the bend, only under the portion of the rope in front of the bend.)

step 4 - Tighten the knot by pulling the standing part of the smaller line. 

   A loop is formed in arope when the rope crosses itself. A bend makes a similar shape in a rope, but the rope does not cross itself - it simply bends. 

 

 

Square Lashing

 

   Use a square lashing for binding together two poles that are at right angles, or square, with one another.

Step 1 - Place the poles in position.

Step 2 - Tie a clove hitch around the bottom pole near the crosspiece. 

Step 3 - Make three tight wraps around both poles. As you form the wraps, lay the rope on the outside of each previous turn around the top pole, and on the inside of each previous turn around the bottom pole. 

Step 4 - Wind two fraps around the wraps, pulling the rope very tight. 

Step 5 - Finish with a clove hitch around the top pole. 

 

 

Shear Lashing 

   

   Poles secured with a shear lashing can be raised as an A-frame.

Step 1 - Lay two poles side by side and tie a clove hitch to one of them. 

Step 2 - Make three very loose wraps around the poles, and then put two loose fraps between them. 

Step 3 - Finish with a clove hitch around the other pole. 

Step 4 - Spread the ends of the poles to form the shape you need. Redo the lashing if it is too tight or too loose.  

 

 

Diagonal Lashing 

 

   To bind poles at an angle other than a right angle, use a diagonal lashing. 

Step 1 - Tie a timber hitch around both poles and pull it snug. 

Step 2 - Make three tight wraps around the poles, laying the wraps neatly alongside the timber hitch.

Step 3 - Make three more wraps across the first three. 

Step 4 - Cinch down the wraps with two fraps between the poles. 

Step 5 - Tie off the rope with a clove hitch. 

 

 

Tripod Lashing

 

   A close relative of the shear lashing, the tripod lashing is used for making a tripod or for joining together the first three poles of a tepee.

Step 1 - Lay three poles alongside each other with the top of the center poles pointing in the direction opposite that of the outside poles.

Step 2 - Tie a clove hitch around one outside pole. 

Step 3 - Loosely wrap the rope around the poles five or six times, laying the turns of rope neatly alongside one another. 

Step 4 - Make two very loose fraps on either side of the center pole. 

Step 5 - End with a clove hitch around an outside pole.

Step 6 - Spread the legs of the tripod into position. If you have made the wraps or fraps too tight, you may need to start over. 

 

 

Round Lashing 

 

Round lashings bind two poles side by side.

Step 1 - Position the poles beside each other and tie them together with a clove hitch.

Step 2 - Make seven or eight very tight, neat wraps around the poles. there are no fraps in a round lashing. The wraps must do all the works, so pull them as tight as you can. 

Step 3 - Finish the lashing with anther clove hitch around both poles.

Step 4 - Make a second round lashing farther along the poles to keep the poles from twisting out of line. 

 

 

Floor Lashing

 

The floor lashing will tie down the top of a table, the deck of a raft, the floor of a signal tower, or the walkway of a bridge.

Step 1 - Lay the poles side by side on top of the stringers- the logs or poles on which your platform will rest.

Step 2 - Tie a clove hitch around one stringer. 

Step 3 - Bend the standing part of the rope over the pole. Pull the bend of rope under the stringer and cast it over the the second pole. You may need to lift the end of the pole in order to get the rope over it. 

Step 4 - Pull the rope tight, then bend it over the third pole. Continue until all the poles are bound to the stringer. 

Step 5 - Finish with a clove hitch, then repeat these steps to lash the other ends of the poles to the other stringer.