Knots and how to tie them

[Healey75]

Came across this website...worth a look to see animated instructions for boaty knots

http://www.animatedknots.com/indexboati ... dknots.com

[water_buoy]

I've got the app that they make on the iPad which is really good and easy to understand, I managed to splice everything from my mooring lines to the dog lead using it

[jeepster]

I've got the app that they make on the iPad which is really good and easy to understand, I managed to splice everything from my mooring lines to the dog lead using it

IMO, they show far more knots than you will actually ever need in practice. Most knots like the clove hitch are quite fiddely to tie, the constrictor knot is very useful but it takes forever to tie and reef knots, whilst simple to tie, can't be undone easily after being heavily loaded, etc...So I now only use the easiest to tie knots and the ones that are easiest to untie too...My motto is: "You never need to leave a knot in a line", so I tend to use quick release knots and the line ends up the way it started, without any knots in it.
I think in practice most people really only need to know about 5-6 knots maximum. The first I might have invented myself because I have never seen it used anywhere else...It is for quickly tying a line onto a post or tree. It is self tightening and very secure but also quick release so it can untied in an instant...I call it the "first end tarp knot", or simply the "tarp knot" for short because its the first end of the line you tie off when securing a a taut line between two trees to hang a tarp over...Say when your going lightweight camping or doing bushcraft activities, but it can be applied to securing boat mooring lines as well. Its makes that Siberian knot Ray Mears uses for the same purpose look like hard work!
The other main knot I use is called a drivers knot. Its for putting a secure quick release loop anywhere you like in a line...It can be tied and untied in an instant. You pass the free end of the line around a second post or secure point and pass it through the drivers knot loop and then pull the free end to tension the line. A quick release hitch knot is used to quickly secure the line after tensioning. Its long been used by drivers to secure valuable or fragile loads in the back of vans and lorries, before ratchet straps became widely available. Its also uses for roping and sheeting tarps over loads on flatbeds. Another is a very quick to tie temporary-permanent loop on the end of a line, which the free end can be passed through to quickly and securely fix one end of a line..I dont have a name for it. Another was the Hunters bend, for joining two ropes together, where you wish to be able to take them apart again after they have been heavily loaded..I have to say that the Hunters bend was listed on the above site but the method they used to tie it seems slow and inefficient...The quick way was shown by its inventor years ago on BBC's Blue Peter, and I still use his method today.
However, after trying the Zepplin bend shown on the above site above I can confirm that it is a far easier knot to untie after being heavily loaded than the Hunters bend, so I will probably be using that for tying two lines together from now on.
The fishermans knot for securely tying fishing hooks onto slippery Nylon fishing line is another....Unless you want to make fishing nets or need to make harnesses for mountaineering, that should be all the knots you will ever need for boating.