Guild SuppliesPrice List 2003

Item Price

Knot Charts

Full Set of 100 charts £10.00Individual charts £0.20

Rubber Stamp

IGKT Member, with logo £4.00(excludes stamp pad)

Guild Tie

Long, dark blue with Guild Logo in gold £8.95

Badges - all with Guild Logo

Blazer Badge £1.00Enamel Brooch £2.00Windscreen Sticker £1.00

Certificate of Membership £2.50Parchment membership scrollSigned by the President and Hon SecFor mounting and hanging

Cheques payable to IGKT, or simply send your credit card detailsPS Don’t forget to allow for postage

Supplies Secretary: - Bruce Turley

19 Windmill Avenue, Rubery, Birmingham B45 9SP

email bruce.turley@blueyonder.co.uk

Telephone: 0121 453 4124

Knotting MattersMagazine of the

International Guild of

Knot Tyers

Issue No. 79

President: Jeff Wyatt

Secretary: Nigel Harding

Editor: Colin Grundy

Website: www.igkt.net

Submission dates for articles

KM 80 07 JUN 2003

KM 81 07 SEP 2003

Late President Brian Field performing the Boomerang Knot at Portsmouth

Back Cover: Replica of the saxon helmet found at Sutton Hoo in macramé by

Wendy Elizabeth

IN THIS ISSUE

Braids and beyond 4In Memory of Brian Field 5Half-Yearly Meeting 12NAB-2003 13Knotmaster 14Some Notes on the Rogue’s Yarn 16CD Review 21Teaching Others 22Knot Gallery 24Spherical Knot Coverings 36Webbing Knots - Part 2 37Splices - Who needs ‘em 42Quoit Making an Encroaching Myth 44Branch Lines 45Postbag 50

The IGKT is a UK RegisteredCharity No. 802153

Except as otherwise indicated, copyrightin Knotting Matters is reserved to the In-ternational Guild of Knot Tyers IGKT2003. Copyright of members articlespublished in Knotting Matters is reservedto the authors and permission to reprintshould be sought from the author and ed-itor. All sources of quotations printed inKnotting Matters are acknowledged.ISSN 0959-2881

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Notes from the Secretary’s Blotter

t doesn’t seem five minutes since wewere all getting ready for ourtwentieth birthday, and now it is

another pleasant, but fading memory. Ayear on, and now well into our thirddecade, and at the time of writing this, Iam getting packed and ready to set offfor the AGM at Weston Super Mare.

Over the last year there have been anumber of essential changes to the waywe administer the Guild, and whilst noneof us like change, I believe that in thiscase it has all gone on quite painlessly.As far as I can see, there have been nodisasters or catastrophes however, I havenoticed that our new professional helpersdo make the occasional mistake, forwhich I apologise. Actually, they makeme feel a lot less embarrassed about thevarious mistakes that I have made

At this point my flow has beeninterrupted. I am late again preparingthese notes, and am just a little pressedfor time, so using spellchecker for theword catastrophes, it didn’t so muchcheck the spelling, but gave me apractical demonstration, and with a curtTerminal Error Message - the computershut down. Grrrrr

From the secretary’s point of view theuse of CAF in collecting subscriptionseases a great burden from my shoulders,however these is still some updating ofour own records to done, but it is mucheasier. It does cause a few lot moreheadaches for the treasurer, buthopefully as we both get used to the newsystem all will be well. For those whofind all this rather difficult, do talk to merather than just give up, I will always tryand help if I can.

I have received a number of enquiriesover the last few month, and this is whereyou may be able to help. The first queryfrom Michael Morrison is about amethod of breaking string or fairlystrong cord. The string was wrappedaround the left hand and a piece lefthanging, which was pulled over and bysnapping down the string would break. Itwas surprising how thick a piece of cordyou could break. - Anyone?

Bob Arthur is looking for the wayfishhooks were once lashed to a cord; heis not looking for something new, buthow the Pacific islanders did it.

Kawita is a photographer interested inincorporating traditional Asian Indianand English type knots into a series ofphotographs that have to do with theinteresting, intricate and intimaterelationship between India and England,represented through traditional knots inuse at the time of partition. Kawitawould like to know what type of knotswould have been used by Asian Indiansat this time, and what would have beenused by the English?

Mike Hammond is looking for somebooks with clear diagrams, or better still,videos of Ocean Plat mats and TurksHeads. Finally, Richard Zehrung is a USNavy Sailor currently trying to researchhistoric knotwork, particularlyElizabethan and before. Country oforigin is not a factor. Can anyone help orat least point him in the right direction.At this point I must stop, pack mysuitcase, and head off to Weston.

Nigel Harding

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President’s Letter

y first duty as President of theGuild was to attend the funeralof our last President, Brian

Field. It was very moving, attended byhis family and friends, together withsome 18 Guild members. Unfortunatelythe weather matched the occasion byraining most of the time. After theservice, most of us adjourned to Brian’sfavourite pub on the quayside at Maldon,where we exchanged our personalmemories of a good and kind man.

In carrying on Brian’s tradition oftrying to attend as many Guild meetingsas possible, my first official visit asPresident was to the West YorkshireBranch’s “Flat Knotting” event early inMarch, where I was made very welcomeby all who attended, especially Davidand Sheila Pearson who gave me bed andboard. (Happy retirement, David!) Avery interesting and informativeweekend with Master classes runningthroughout.

I next attended the meeting of IGKTFrance at Fecamp near Dieppe. On ourarrival on 28 March we spent awonderful evening at the home of Lucand Odile Prouveur in the company ofseveral other French and Englishmembers, our hosts providing someexcellent local fare. My congratulationsto Graham MacLachlan for being electedPresident of IGKT France. The meetingitself was attended by members fromFrance, Holland, Belgium and England.The venue and organisation wereexcellent.

Jeff Wyatt

Col’s Commentwedish knottologist, StenJohansson recently sent me a parcelwith postage stamps displaying a

knotting theme. The reef knot is for firstclass letters, the sheet bend for secondclass and the bowline for Guilds andsocieties having large mailings. Stencomments that a left-handed seamanmade the bowline. Do members know ofany other stamps issued with a knottingtheme, if so let your editor know?

MS

CORRECTIONSKM77 p13: Pulling up Stakes byJack Keene, Texas.KM78 p25: photograph of verrytarry serving to an eye splice byGraham mcLachlan, France.

ROPE ENDS‘... and Kristi was a talented girl.Flighty though. She hopped from onegreat idea to another. I rememberwhen she wanted to make macrambaskets for the basketball hoops.’

Lilian Jackson Braun,The Cat Who Talked to Ghosts - a

mystery novel - 1990

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Braids and BeyondA Broad Look at Narrow Wares

his exhibition is a celebration of 10 years of the Braid Society. It explores manyof the techniques used to create narrow wares making for a truly eclectic exhibi-tion. The background information includes the geographical influences and his-

torical need for such wares. Examples are offered that show a wide range of usage fromall over the world and from many different times. Here are examples from clothing tomousetraps through household items and weapons. There will be “hands on” opportu-nities as well as explanations on structure and methodology. The Exhibition will besupported by a variety of workshops.

This is an exhibition not to be missed by anyone interested in any branch of textiles,making, collecting or even just looking at the detail on textiles.

Braids and Beyond is supported by The Heritage Lottery Fund, The Joan HowesTrust, Handweavers Studio, Silken Strands and Creative Exhibitions Ltd.

WorkshopsWorkshops are planned for the term of the exhibition.Newark Houses, Leicester:

January 17 2004 In quest of Braids and bands Tutor: Jennie ParryMarch 8 2004 Curators Day. Tutor: Veronica Johnston

The Bowes Museum, Barnard CastleWorkshop on beginners ply split. Date to be arrangedWorkshop for children. Date to be arrangedTablet Weaving Masterclass. Tutor Marijke van Epen. Date to be confirmed

Royal Albert Memorial Museum, Exeter.Workshop to be arranged

For further details: Jan Rawdon Smith, 34 Bedford Street, Peterborough PE1 4DNTel: 01733 312649Email: jrawdonsmith@totalise.co.uk

T

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In Memory of Brian FieldPresident of the I.G.K.T. 1999 - 2002

t is with great sadness that I have to announce the peaceful passing of BrianField, President of the Guild from 1999 - 2002 (the first President to serve asecond term of office). He had been suffering from cancer for some time. He

had many good friends in the Guild who will be greatly saddened by this news.On behalf of the Guild I would like to offer my very sincere condolences to

Margaret and their children.Jeff Wyatt

President IGKT

From Brian’s wife MargaretI would like to thank everyone for the kind messages of sympathy and condolence

which the family have received. The Book of Condolence on the I.G.K.T. website hasbeen a great comfort to read. It is heart-warming to know that Brian had made so manyfriends worldwide through his teaching and his work. Many thanks to all those whowere able to attend Brian’s funeral, helping to make it a very special occasion for hisfamily and his friends.

With love from Margaret.

I

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The high esteem that Brian was held inis shown by these messages taken fromthe Book of Condolence opened on theIGKT website.

Brian did everything that was expectedof a human being, and what is more hedid it with style and humour. He was agood and kind person whose aim in lifeseemed to be to live in harmony withthose around him. He was a first-classPresident of the Guild, and will be sorelymissed by so many of us. His kindnessand patience was much appreciated byall who knew him.

I would like to offer my support andfriendship to Brian’s wife, Margaret, andtheir family.

Farewell Brian, Rest in PeaceJeff and Lesley Wyatt

A man is measured by what he does andby what he is remembered for.

On both counts, we can celebrateBrian and be proud of him.

John Smith

Brian will be greatly missed and ourthoughts go out to Margaret and herchildren and friends in their loss. We willall remember and thank Brian for hiswisdom, quirky humour, practicality,

artistry and hours of entertainment as afellow member whilst latterly providingpositive but thoughtful leadership asPresident of the Guild.

Rest in peace, Brian!Peter Goldstone

IGKT Surrey Branch

“Kua Hinga Te Totara, Haere Te ArikiNui, Haere, Haere, Haere”

(The mighty tree has fallen, farewell toour International President, thricefarewell...)

“Haere Te Ariki Nui. Haere Ki TeRereinga Wairua, Haere Ki Te HawaikiNui, Te Hawaiki Roa, Te HawaikiPamamao, Haere, Haere, Haere

(To Our International President.Farewell, thrice farewell.)

Tony Fisher, FNZEI.President, New Zealand Chapter

On behalf of the entire Dutch Branch Iexpress our sadness of the loss of Brianto his family.

We all knew Brian very well and feelsorrow and extend our sympathy withthose he has left behind.

May he rest in peace.In sorrow:

Jan Hoefnagel; Willeke van der Ham;N M Fam Luiten; Ineke Kok;

Willy Willert; A Vlietstra;Peter Williams.

It has been an honour to know Brian andto learn from him for the past eight years.I shall try to continue his work on thequay at Maldon, where he is sorelymissed. Nobody will ever be able toreplace him. He was a very patientteacher, and had time for everybody whowanted to learn. The children will misshim and his magic tricks, for which hewas well known. Our daughter, Diana,misses him badly - she called him “Sub

7

(substitute) Grandpa”, and would haveliked him to come to her wedding. I willmiss him SO much. My husband,Richard, will also miss him a lot - Briantaught him all he knows about knottingand splicing. Farewell, Brian -entertainer, teacher and good friend.

Sarah Ford

We have known Brian for over 12 yearsand during that time he has been a friendand inspiration to us, both from aknotting point of view, and a personalone, particularly with the courage he hasshown in the past two years. He will besadly missed but his inspiration willcontinue.

David & Sheila Pearson

I first met Brian Field at the AshleyRetrospective in ‘97 and that started afriendship that I will always treasure. Hewas a true knotman and a real crowdpleaser with his easy banter and quickknot tricks. His ornamental flat knottingwas admired worldwide.

He will be missed by all knot tyers andby myself and my family. He will be inour prayers and our sympathy goes out tohis wife, Margaret, and his family intheir time of grief.

Joseph Schmidbauer

All the members of the IGKT - PacificAmericas Branch mourn the passing ofPast President Brian Field and oursympathies go to the family he leftbehind.

We flew Brian to California in 2000for our AGM and his willingness to teachand his good fellowship will always beremembered by all who attended. Rest inpeace.

IGKT-Pacific Americas Branch

Brian was a great communicator. Hiswillingness to teach, His patience andHis sincerity will be greatly missed.

Dave Walker

May we express our sorrow for the lossof a great man. Condolences to his wifeMargaret and family. He will be a manwho will be greatly missed and we werepleased to have the pleasure of knowingthis good man.

Linda and Bruce Turley

Brian was a classic “quiet achiever”.When I challenged him to make aflatwork anchor, he responded withconsummate skill, and suitable humour.His compliments on my own work werebrief, sincere and remembered. We metbriefly and I was the richer for that time.Vale amicus.

Frank BrownTasmania

I remember when I first became awareof Brian’s genuine warmth toward

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people - I was at the PAB 2000conference. He made a point to circulateand encourage everyone he met. He tookgreat pains to show me how to make oneof his crosses.

Everyone who speaks of him has agreat respect for his skills not only inknot tying but dealing with people. I’mvery privileged to call him my friend.

My thoughts are of his family andwife. We will all miss him. But hislegacy will live on in each of us by whathe taught us about living.

Ed Morai

Deeply moved I send you my sinceresympathy in these difficult moments.

Louchouarn Nelly

Brian’s presence, quietly unassumingyet observant to the finest detail, is thatof the greatest of people - an artist,raconteur and a gentleman. We shallnever forget his greatness, the kindnessand generosity of spirit that he showedus, and the graciousness that he shared

with us. He made a point ofremembering our names, our likes anddislikes and remembered us at a timewhen he was suffering greatly, althoughnever showing the slightest trace of hisown discomfort.

Thank you Brian for having sharedyour all-too brief sojourn with us.

Thank you too Margaret for allowinghim the freedom to endure within ourhearts - we shall always remember him,not with sadness that we now feel, butwith the greatest joy and reverence forhis skills and his poetry in life.

“So wise so young, they say, do neverlive long” - Shakespeare

You will live long in our hearts Brian- Requiescant in pace.

Lindsey Philpott and Family

With fond memories of a Gentle Giant -a true gentle-man with a greatpersonality and a great heart - quick toidentify other people’s strengths andgenerous in overlooking theirshortcomings - a great friend. Brian’slast words to me were “ la prochaine!”I’ve since wondered whether he said thatoften or whether it was specially for me,knowing that I would understand itssignificance. The “next time” might havebeen the AGM weekend in May 2003.Never mind, I’ll wait.

So, Brian, I return the compliment:Here’s to the next time - when we meetagain.

Tim Field

As a young lad I was taught to rememberlost loved ones, not in sadness at theirloss, but as we knew them in life. Andalthough I am sad that Brian is gone, Iprefer to remember him as the vibrantman that he was. I’ll never forget theSummer of 2000, after the PAB meeting

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in L.A., when several of us of the TexasBranch got to spend a quiet weekendwith Brian before he returned to GreatBritain. Brian may not be with usphysically but he will always be with usin our hearts.

Gary Sessions

People who were fortunate to knowBrian E. Field knew a man who blessedthose around him. He touched many: Theworld is a better place for his being in it.Among many, he had gifts of service, offaith, of caring, of knowledge, of skill, oflove. My sympathies extend to his familyand friends for his loss. His memories,example, and advice live on.

With Respects,Skip (Samuel S., IV) Pennock

When I came in IGKT three years ago, Iwas accommodated by Brian. Heteached me many knot trip, thank youvery much for everything.

Patrick Lefour

C’est avec une profonde tristesse quenous apprenons le décès de Brian :Janine et moi-même n’oublierons ni sonhumour ni sa délicatesse... Nous vousprésentons nos sincères condoléances.

Henri Philippot

The world has lost a great tradition-bearer, and we all lost a great friend. Ourdeepest sympathies to Brian’s family.We will always remember his visits toNorth America, especially his first visitto Michigan and our home. We willremember his warmth, wit, andfriendship. As I read these touchingtributes to him, I am amazed and yet notcompletely surprised how much hemeant to so many people. I sharedexamples of Brian’s knotwork to my

daughter’s third grade class last Friday.Brian continues to inspire others today.Our hearts are with all of you who gatherat the funeral.

Your friends in Michigan,LuAnne Kozma and family

Sorry, very sorry to read the sad news ofthe loss of Brian when I opened the webpage this morning.

Often feel very remote from IGKTfraternity on this side of globe but newsof this kind brings home closeness ofcommunity with a common interest,regardless of location.

A sad loss to our community.Jim Caswell

Sydney, Australia

It was with sadness that we heard of thepassing of Brian. He was a courageousperson and a true gentleman.

He will be remembered by us withaffection, and our memories of hisfriendly willingness to share hisexpertise will remain with us always.

Our condolences go to his family whohave suffered such a tragic loss.

Pam and Maurice Smith,

Remembering 20-odd years offriendship, wise advice and patienttuition. The memories will stay.

Europa

We are sorry to loose a fine knotter, atrue gentleman and a good friend.

Richard HopkinsWest Country Knotters

A gentleman and a gentle man, whomade everyone a special friend. His quietcourage over the last two years was an

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inspiration. It is an honour to haveknown him. Our sincere condolence toMargaret and the children.

Tony and Ann Doran

Brian - sadly missed but knotforgotten

Norman & Lesley Cockburn

I hope Brian’s goals and ideals for theGuild will encourage future generationsof knot tyers around the world! He willalways be remembered as a greatinspiration to all of us.

Daniel L. CallahanAlaska

If it were not for Brian, the NorthAmerican Branch would probably notexist.

It was Brian that had the foresight toencourage the formation of the NorthAmerican Branch. Brian attendedseveral NAB General MembershipMeetings and was truly an ambassadorfor the Guild and it’s stated purposes.

The Guild and North AmericanBranch members will truly miss him.Our sincere sympathy to Margaret andfamily.

North American Branch

Our thoughts and prayers go out toMargaret and family. Over the past nineyears, we have had many greatconversations and laughs with Brian atthe NAB General MembershipMeetings. We will always remember theweekend telephone calls we would getfrom Brian. We will remember thena andBrian’s positive attitude always.

Kay & John Burke,Michigan, USA

Brian was a great man, not only to theGuild, but to all those who had thepleasure of knowing him. He will besadly missed. I had the pleasure ofinterviewing Brian a couple of years ago,he spoke of his time as a teacher andsaid, “When a kid walks back fivehundred yards at the end of term to saythank you, that’s an achievement!” Thiswas typical of Brian’s modesty. Brian, Ihave been privileged to know you.

Colin Grundy

With great sadness I heard the news ofBrian’s death. Please accept mycondolences.

Marc LauwereynsBelgian Branch IGKT

It is with great sadness that I read of thedeath of Brian Field. I particularlyremember his kindly, warm, andpleasant company at the final dinner atthe annual meeting at Weston. It was

11

gratifying to be treated so cordially. Iwill miss him.

Dick Chisholm,New Hampshire, USA

Brian was a brilliant teacher, he will besorely missed.

Ian Crabbe

It says a lot about the spirit within theGuild that I, even though just havingbecome a member, felt the loss afterBrian Field. I was deeply moved when Iread his message in the latest issue ofKnotting Matters, where he regrettedthat he was unable to go on as president,and knew as I read it that he had alreadypassed on.

My deepest condolences to all of youwho had come to know him personally -which I regret I did not have the time todo myself.

Lasse Carenvall

My sincere condolences to Brian’s wifeand family. I never had chance to meetBrian but I have a few of the publicationshe wrote so I feel there is some sort ofconnection with him through knottingand the Guild and I am sure he will beremembered by a lot of people he neverhad the chance to meet also. My thoughtsare with you at this time.

Barry Brown,West Drayton, Middlesex.

April 1st was a cold, wet, gloomy day,and. following Brian Field’s cremationIGKT members were gathered in theQueen’s Head at Maldon. For the luckyfew looking out of the window, theywere rewarded by the sight of the sunbreaking through the clouds to light upthe barges and the pitch where Brianspent so many years. This was followedby a magnificent rainbow - was thisBrian’s way of saying farewell?

Albert Southerden

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Half Yearly MeetingIpswich 17th - 19th October 2003

This year’s Autumn Meeting will be heldat Hallowtree Suffolk Scout Centre andCampsite, Nacton, Ipswich, Suffolk.IP10 0JP.

Site Map Reference O.S. Sheet TM192 404

Suffolk is a beautiful part of England,with historic towns, beautiful country,coast and heathlands; plenty foreveryone.

Ipswich, the county town of Suffolk ison the River Orwell (home to theThames barges) with The AncientHouse, Christchurch Mansion, amuseum and a historic wet dock area, aswell as the acclaimed Norman FosterWillis building (youngest grade 1 listedbuilding). There is plenty ofaccommodation with hotels of allstandards, guest houses, B&Bs, andonsite facilities for camping either with atent or caravan, and some space insidefor sleeping bags.

Within half an hour’s, drive is theseaside resort of Felixstowe;Woodbridge; Sutton Hoo Viking Shipburial site; Pinmill with the wonderfulriverside pub the Butt and Oyster; andShotley the home of HMS GANGES.

A little further away is Orford with itscastle, and fish smokeries; Snape with itsmaltings, now a concert centre, andspecialist shops. Aldeburgh, home to theMusic Festival with its beach fishermenworld and associations with BenjaminBritten. Framlingham, with its castle; themedieval wool town of Lavenham; andthe cathedral town of Bury St Edmunds.

Hallowtree itself is situated justoutside Ipswich, a few moments awayfrom the A14, next to the River Orwell,in 45 acres of woodland and field space,with good quality indooraccommodation and facilities. Getting there

Ipswich is well served by good majorroads and is on the main railway linefrom London Liverpool Street (just overthe hour). There is also a cross-countryrailway route via Cambridge. Thecampsite is a taxi ride away from therailway station (something like 10 for thetaxi, but if we know you are coming wemay be able to help out). The Port ofHarwich International is about 45minutes away, giving access frommainland Europe, with a train toIpswich, or we may be able to collect youfrom the terminal. The nearest airport isLondon Stanstead, which is about oneand half hours away and is home to manylow cost airlines; again we may be ableto arrange something. What’s happening

The East Anglian Branch of the IGKTwill give you a fine welcome

We hope to put together a weekendlong series of interesting activities. Atthis early stage, we hope these willinclude: a visit on Friday afternoon to aYacht Riggers; a visit to HMS GangesMuseum on Sunday morning and TheMuseum of Knots and Sailors RopeworkFriday afternoon and Sunday morning,each of which you must book. Saturdaywill have both talks and workshops, on

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such subjects as halters, fishing nets, halfknots, rope mantlets, the turning of fids,some thoughts on commercial ropework;and for one hour it is hoped that we canbe joined by short wave radio, internetand telephone with our North Americanfellow Knot Tyers at their annualmeeting, in Newport News, Virginia.

We look forward to you coming. For more information contact Des

Pawson Telephone 44+(0)1473 690090 or e-

mail knots@footrope.fsnet.co.uk

NAB-2003

What: The International Guild of KnotTyers - NAB 2003When: October 17 - 19, 2003Where: Mariners Museum, 100Museum Drive, Newport News, Virginia23606. Telephone: 757-596-2222

Hotel Accommodations: Point PlazaSuites & Conference Hotels, 950 J ClydeMorris Blvd, Newport News, Virginia,23601. Located approximately 4 milesfrom the museum.

30 Deluxe Guest Rooms are beingheld in a block for the IGKT-NAB.

The room rate for the Deluxe GuestRooms are $69.00 per night, plus cityand state taxes which are currently 12%.

Amenities: All rooms feature in-roomcoffee makers, full size ironing boardswith irons and data port capability. Thehotel provides free shuttle to and fromthe Newport News/WilliamsburgAirport.

Reservation Procedures: USAAttendees may make their reservationsby calling toll free (800) 841-1112 priorto Wednesday September 17, 2003.Overseas reservations can be made bycalling the hotel directly at (757)-599-4460. Reservation requests receivedafter this date will be accepted on aspace-available basis and a rate availablebasis. In order to receive the specialgroup rate, guests need to identifythemselves as attending the InternationalGuild of Knot Tyers- North AmericanBranch. At check-in, attendees maypresent a credit card or refundable cashdeposit to cover any incidentals chargedto their room.

Hospitality Room: Available forThursday, Friday, & Saturday nights.

Saturday Evening Dinner: The IGKT-NAB will be holding a dinner onSaturday Evening at the hotel. Dinnerwill be served at 7:00PM.

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Knotmaster Series‘Knotting ventured,knotting gained.’

Matthew Walker Knots - 2

Recalling Knotmaster’s lastinstalment, this chunkier three-strandkissing cousin also consists ofinterlocked overhand knotted strands.

• Assemble the strands and tie a simple overhand or thumb knot in the right-hand one so that it encloses the other two (fig. 1).

• Repeat this procedure with sec-ond or middle strand, taking care to ensure that the working end tucks finally through the initial overhand knot on the way to mak-ing its own. (fig. 2).

• Do the same with the remaining strand, tucking up through the preceding two strands and itself (fig. 3).

• Gather together the three working ends between the fingers of one hand, and the trio of standing parts with the other hand. Then, with small pull-&-push move-

ments (like playing a miniature concertina), contrive to rotate the ends in the direction illustrated, while at the same time removing some of the slack and daylight from the knot.

• When it begins to resemble the final form (fig. 4), locate the wend and stand of a single strand and pull it tighter. Repeat, in turn, with the other two strands.

MW knots may be firmed up hand-tight, but they can also - taking care totension each and all of the knot partsequally - be hardened still furtherwith the judicious application of acouple of pairs of round-billed pliers.After which, it can be rounded andbedded down by turning it beneath amild pounding with the thick end of afid (or squeezing it several timesbetween the flat jaws of yet anotherpair of pliers).

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16

Some Notes on the Rogue’s Yarn.

by Des Pawson

ROGUES-YARN, a name given to a ropeyarn of a particular construction, whichis placed in the middle of every strand, inall cables and cordage in the king’sservice. It differs from all the rest, asbeing untarred, and twisted in a contrarymanner, by which it is easily discoveredThe use of this contrivance is to examinewhether any cordage, supposed to bestolen or embezzled, has been formed forthe king’s service. Falconer’s MarineDictionary [1760]

ood quality rope is a valuablecommodity, essential to therunning of a ship. Poor quality

rope puts life and ship at risk. The verybest ropes are made from the very bestraw materials by the very best craftsmen.However the making of rope gives theunscrupulous the opportunity of all sortsfraud, of adulteration of yarn by mixingqualities of fibre, even the use of old ropeyarn or fibre to make what is known astwice laid rope. It being impossible tocheck the whole length of rope in everycoil, the weight of the coil would bechecked. This in itself also lead to abuse,over tarring etc. The use of rope beinguniversal also meant that there wasalways temptation for theft of both newrope and second-hand rope.

From the early 14th to the 18thcenturies the Venetians operated afactory making rope in their Arsenalwhich was organised in all aspects of thebusiness: importation of raw materials,amounts and quality of work done, rates

of pay, quality control at all stages offibre yarn and finished rope. ‘Cables formooring or other uses in which theymight be under water were made of thebest Bolognese hemp and bore a whitewool label. Ropes of second gradeBolognese hemp had a black label, firstgrade not Bolognese a green, secondgrade not Bolognese a yellow. Thus wasthe ultimate purchaser and user protectedfrom fraud in what might be for him amatter of life and death.’1

For this system to have worked inpractice the wool label must have been awoollen yarn that was laid up with thehemp yarns when the rope was made, itthen being in the entire length of the ropeor cable.

Samuel Pepys, firstly as Clerk to theNavy Board and later as Secretary[1660-1679], was most concerned aboutthe theft from the dockyards, as well asthe quality of work and material used. Hetook a great interest in learning about theropemaking process, visiting theropewalks at Woolwich* and Chatham*a number of times watching the ropebeing made and attending tests of hempfibre obtained from various sources. InFebruary 1665 he even drank with aparty of Dutch rope makers!

It is not certain whether Samuel Pepysintroduced the distinguishing yarn thatcould identify the source and quality ofthe rope, known as the rogues yarn intoEngland, but by 1780 it can be seen thatit is common enough to warrant the entryin Falconers Marine Dictionary and by

G

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1792 it was laid down that outside yardssupplying rope for the Royal Navyshould mark their ropes. ‘All cables andcordage to be tarred... a white thread,twisted the contrary way, is to be laid inall the strands of the cable and largecordage; and a twine in the small cordagefor the king’s mark, so as to be seen onthe outside of the strands.’2 At this timethere was already an Act of Parliamentthat stated that cordage made from hempinferior to clean Petersburgh hempshould be ‘deemed inferior cordage andthat the manufacturer shall distinguishsuch cable, hawser or rope by runninginto the same, from end to end of eachcable three tarred mark-yarns, spun withthe turn contrary to that of the rope yarn,and also one like tarred yarn in everyother rope, for the use of shipping, andby marking or writing on the tally thereofthe word STAPLE OR INFERIOR,’3

By the mid nineteenth century therecertainly had developed a series ofcoloured yarns to distinguish cordagefrom the various naval establishments.Alston in 1860 designated them as‘Rogues’ Yarn .- red, Plymouth ;blue,Portsmouth; yellow Chatham.’4

Admiral W.H. Smythe in his WordBook 1867 speaks of ‘A yarn twisted thecontrary way to the rest of a rope fordetecting theft or embezzlement. Beingtarred if in a white rope but white in atarred rope, it being the easier to bediscovered. It is placed in the middle ofeach strand in all the cordage made forthe Royal Navy. Latterly the rogue’syarn has been superseded by a thread ofworsted: a different coloured worstedbeing used in each dockyard, so that anydefective rope can be traced to the placewhere it was made’.5 Thus the RoyalNavy was doing much the same thingthat the Venetians did 300 years before.

In 1894 Lieut. C. Craddock in hisWrinkles in Seamanship goes on to state‘In all rope supplied from H.M.Dockyards the government mark is laidup vis:- Portsmouth - red yarn;Plymouth- blue; Chatham - yellow;Hualbowline [Ireland] black. Thedistinguishing yarns are made of jute,and a black yarn is also supplied to seagoing ships to be laid up in all rope madeon board, but is seldom if ever used -these different marks are known as theRogue’s Yarn’6

As by then the ropewalk atPortsmouth had ceased making, it can beassumed that the rogues yarn could alsobe used as a distinguishing markshowing the Dockyard for which therope was made rather than just the yardat which it was made.

It appears that Craddock may have gotPlymouth and Portsmouth mixed up, asthe Admiralty Manual of Seamanship for1908 says that ‘all hemp rope made inthe Government yards is marked by adistinguishing yarn of coloured jute viz:-red for Devonport (Plymouth) andyellow for Chatham’; going on to saythat ‘the Government mark is inserted ineach strand for 1½ inch [circumference]rope and above and one mark for 1¼ inchand below.’7 Devonport and Chathambeing the only navy Dockyards stillproducing cordage themselves. Yet acouple of years later the same work withits 1922 revision puts back blue forPortsmouth.8 For the 1932 new editionred is for Devonport and yellow forChatham remain with blue beingdesignated for trade manufacture, andamendments issued in 1934 added that‘Sisal cordage is distinguished by tworogues yarns’9 not stating the colour.

It is the advent of various fibres ofdiverse qualities, with varying properties

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coupled, I believe, with the erosion of thebasic knowledge of fibres that lead theAdmiralty in 1950 to bring about ascheme of marking various fibres andqualities of ropes with a complex seriesof combinations of ‘rogues yarns’ for

both Navy made, [the Admiralty Roperyat Chatham being the sole source of allnaval cordage except log line and somesmall stuff; (Plymouth being blitzed in1941)] and commercially made rope thatwould have been bought in.10

ROYAL NAVY COMMERCIALBritish Standards InstituteSpecification

2052 1953

HempWhite [untarred] one red rogue’s no markyarn in each strand

Manila one red rogue’s yarn Grade I “Special”, one black yarnin each of two strands in three strands

Grade II ” Standard “one black yarn in two strands

Grade III “Merchant” one black strand in one strand.

SisalOne yellow rogue’s yarn in each One red yarn in each of two strandsof two strands.

Coirone yellow rogue’s yarn in one strand. no mark

The manufacturer of the cordage,wishing to distinguish his rope from allothers created a trade mark; for exampleMarlow Ropes ‘Look for the BlackMarker the guarantee of quality and

performance’[1974], or in the USA TheColumbia Rope Company with their‘tape marked pure manila rope’ using apaper tape and later added red, white andblue surface marker yarns as well, first

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thought of in 1911 and finally patented in1919.11

The idea of marking the rope todistinguish either maker or owner wasalso taken up by commercial companiesboth makers and large users such shipowners, lighterage companies and PortAuthorities. The users of rope wished toavoid theft of their valuable property.

The Port of London Authority hadtheir rope made with one whole stranddyed green and a single green yarn in oneof the other strands; latterly there wasalso a tape with the makers name anddate of manufacture12.

The Association of MasterLightermen and Barge Owners London

issued a schedule of owners marks; andname tapes.

The 1963 edition of this schedule lists65 variations on coloured yarns, andname tapes13. Sometimes the police haddifficulty in getting the owners to presscharges for theft, the company notwanting to lose a good man14, but itcertainly had its uses in catchingthieves15. No doubt this system was to befound in other ports and countries.

The continued growth in fibrevarieties especially synthetic fibreswhich may have similar appearance havegiven rise to a range of Europeanstandard marks in the 1990s

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Synthetic fibre Natural FibreNylon-- Green Hemp--- GreenPolyester--- Blue Manila --BlackPolyethylene---Orange Sisal----RedPolypropylene-- Brown.

Thus today that odd yarn passingthrough the length of the rope continuesto tell a lot about the rope and its maker.

* Royal Navy RoperiesWoolwich started in 1612, closed

1860sChatham started 1618 [ceased

production under MOD 1984. Now acommercial concern operating in thesame buildings with much the sameequipment.]

Portsmouth mid 1600’s to 1860’s.Plymouth [later devonport] 1690’s

until blitzed in 1941.Short lived small open air roperies at

Port Mahon and Malta.Ref. J. Coad, Historic Architecture of

the Royal Navy 1983.

References:1 “Cuore Veneto Legale” f. 123,regulation of 1531 quoted in The ropefactory and hemp trade in the fifteenthand sixteenth centuries. Frederic C Lanefirst published in the Journal ofEconomic and Business History IV 1932.2 D. Steel, Elements and practice ofrope-making 1794

3 Abstract from Acts of parliament thatcame into force 25th July 1785 Quoted inD. Steel Elements and practice ofropemaking 17944 Lieut. A.H. Alston, RN Seamanship18605 Admiral W.H. Smythe. The Sailor’sWord Book 18676 Lieut. C. Craddock RN “Wrinkles” inSeamanship or A “HELP” to salt horse.1894.7 Admiralty Manual of SeamanshipVol.1 1908 revised 1915 and reprinted19178 Admiralty Manual of SeamanshipVol.11908 revised 1922 and reprinted19229 Admiralty Manual of SeamanshipVol.11932 and revisions issued in 1934.10 Admiralty Manual of Seamanship Vol.II 1951.11 The Association of MasterLightermen and Barge Owners.Warning, Buying and selling of rope.London 1963.12 John Barber [ex Port of LondonAuthority employee] personalcommunication 200013The Columbia Rope Company TheMonument a History 1903-1948. 1948 14 G. Budworth [ex River Police]personal communication to the Author,200015 G. Budworth, Knots and Crime. 1985.

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CD Review‘Raising Public Awareness ofMathematics’ by Centre for thePopularisation of Mathematics. RonnieBrown: Director

If you have been looking forsomething different to do involvingknots then look no further, this CDRomwill keep you occupied for someconsiderable time. It illustrates a facet ofknot knowledge of which many knottyers will not be cognisant.

This CD, which is attractively offeredin an illustrated wallet, discloses fourmain sections of the presentation. Theyare:1. Raising Public Awareness ofMathematics.2. Mathematics and Knot Exhibition. 3. Geometry and Topology. 4. Symbolic Structures

Section 1 discusses The Pentagram,Golden Mean, Golden Rectangle,Golden Angle, and The FibonacciSequence. It goes on to explain howviruses tie DNA molecules into knots,and, how by applying knot theory,different types of virus may be identified

Section 2 will be the section of primeinterest to knot tyers, and explains howmathematics involves itself with knotsand the analysis of the form andrelationship of knots by consideringknotted and unknotted loops of string.The ‘Unknot’ is explained as are theconcepts of mirror images, unravellingand the Reidermeister moves. These arefollowed by the definitions of crossing

numbers, uncrossing numbers, andbridge numbers.

Section 3. concerns itself withBoromean rings, Mobius bands and theProjective Plane. Also discussed areTorus knots, Fibre bundles and Fractals.

Section 4 illustrates and describesSymbolic Sculptures by John Robinsonand includes animations of sculptures byNick Mee of Virtual Image.

The sculptures display symmetry,balance and elegance, and the Trefoilknot, Torus knot, Mobius band , Gordianknot and Boromean rings are allfeatured. The sculptures are all wellillustrated and there are animations aswell as more details about individualsculptures.

Whatever the extent of yourknowledge, experience and use of knots,I am sure that you will find somethinghere on which to exercise the ‘greymatter’, but be warned, you will findyourself looking at tabby cats, seashellsand flower seedheads in an entirelydifferent light, and you may even , as theauthors if the CD hope, raise yourAwareness of Mathematics!

The CDRom is available at 10including VAT and postage from:CD OrdersCentre for the Popularisation ofMathematicsDean St.BangorGwynedd LL57 1UTUnited Kingdom

Preferred method of payment is bySterling cheque payable to University ofWales Bangor

In the USA it can be ordered and paidfor securely on line from Mathartfun

S Maurice Smith

22

Do You Get It Right Teaching Others?

by Ken Higgs

hen my father found I was anapt pupil at knot tying hecommented, “I’ve had seamen

with me for ten years who still could notguarantee to tie a reef knot!” In my ownexperience I have found people who caninstinctively ‘see’ how a knot is formed -and conversely - some just cannot, nomatter how you, and they, try!

Most of us lie between these extremesbut to those who now teach can I ask youto consider my title please?

Recently my daughter tried to teachher nine-year-old to tie a reef knot - andwas getting nowhere. Knowing the lad tobe quite adept with cords I was curious todiscover ‘why the hiccup?’ Theinstruction was right over left, then leftover right and the lad was flummoxed. Iasked him just to tie me an ordinary knot(over hand), which he did easily BUTleft over right. Problem solved - he cannow tie the reef perfectly - left over rightthen right over left! So, you have astudent who had a problem, did you trythe ‘left hand’ approach instead of your(maybe) ‘right hand’ way?

Can you tie a bowline left handed forthose who are thus inclined? It issurprising how your ‘cred’ goes up whenyou can.

On a slightly different tack -whentrying to tie a new knot from a book andfinding it to be difficult - is it because thedrawing is in an opposite hand to what isnatural for you?

This happened to me when becomingannoyed at the way the Perfection Loopwas shown recently. Firstly, if a loop isrequired then this is the starting point,make the loop then tie the knot. Asshown in KM 71 p 14, the knot is tiedthen the required amount of cord has tobe worked through (tediously to createthe loop. So, turning to another book Ifund the answer, but found it difficult towork - until I took a tracing of thedrawing and turned it over to give amirror image - then it all became clear!So you are a ‘handed’ hand-person?Consider my alternative, it may help youand your student(s).

Try the Perfection LoopFirst create size of loop needed. (Fig.1)

At point ‘x’ make an Overhand knot withthe wend pulling it through enough toleave the loop. (Fig. 2)

Tie the lock to secure the loop. (Fig. 3)

The same result but easier to tie?

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Knot Gallery

Above: Bellrope, and additional end-knot (mid - 1960’s) by Geoffrey Budworth.

Facing: Dog lead by Geert “Willey” Willaert.

Overleaf: The handle of this megaphone was made of a too thin brass sheet to give comfortable handling, so the 2.5 polyester handle cover, made with a ringbolt hitching, was not only a decorative work by Agostino Cortese.

Mobius band by Guild President Jeff Wyatt.

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More Ways to Design Spherical Covering Knots

by Jesse Coleman

n a previous note to KnottingMatters, I discussed two ways todesign spherical covering knots

(SCK’s) by inserting a single cord into amodified Turk’s head knot (THK). Thisnote extends these two methods byexamining how to design a SCK byinserting 0, 1, 2, 3, 4, ... cords into aTHK. This note is a continuation of thatprevious note and it will be helpful tohave that note nearby when reading thisnote.

Look at figures 1 through 5 in theprevious note. There, we inserted asingle cord into a 3B X 4L THK. Let uscall the line or cord of the 3B X 4L THKthe primary cord of this SCK. Notice, inthose figures, that the inserted cordremained entirely inside the primarycord. Look at figures 1 and 2 in this note.Here, we are doing the same thing,except that we insert two cords instead ofone. We skip some of the intermediatefigures as the steps are so similar. Wecould have produced similar knots byinserting three or more cords into the 3BX 4L THK and keeping all of theminside the primary cord.

Look at figures 8 through 11 in theprevious note. There, we inserted asingle cord into a 4B X 3L THK. Noticethat the inserted cord crossed the outerbights of the primary cord and went“outside” on the drawing. Look atfigures 3 and 4 of this note. Here, weproduce the same knot as in figure 11 of

the previous note, except that two cordshave been inserted and both of theseinserted cords go outside the primarycord. We could have followed thesesame steps and added three or morecords. When you make a drawing of anyof these SCK’s, be sure that all crossingsfollow the usual over/under pattern. Themat drawing will be your “road map” forthe knot.

Some ordinary THK’s with noadditional cords inserted may be used asSCK’s. We will look at theircharacteristics. I have tied the 4B X 6LTHK using red and green cords andplaced it over a small sphere. It made anice spherical knot even though the basicknot is not naturally spherical.

In figures 1 and 3, the cords arenumbered. The primary cord is numberone and the next cord is two, etc. Inorder to obtain a striped pattern in thefinished knot, an odd number of cordsshould be added and the colour pattern ofthe cords should alternate. For instance,if three cords are added, then the totalnumber of cords is four. If cordsnumbered 1, 2, 3 and 4 are colouredblack, white, black, white, then thefinished knot will consist of black andwhite stripes. If the cords are colouredwhite, white, black, black, then a patternof “four cornered snow flakes” willappear. The pattern will be mostnoticeable around the equator of theknot.

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Fig. 1. Initial steps in the drawing of a Spherical Covering Knot classified as ‘3B x 4L, two cords added, inside.’

Figure 3. Initial steps in the drawing of a Spherical Covering Knot

classified as ‘4B x 3L, two cords added, outside.’

I use the term cord to refer to the entireinserted THK and to the primary cordeven though the rule of the greatestcommon factor may require that the theyare actually tied with several physical

Figure 2. Completed drawing of a Spherical Covering Knot classified as a ‘3B x 4L, two cords added, inside.’

Figure 4. Complted drawing of a Spherical Covering Knot classified as ‘4B x 3L, two cords added, outside.’

cords.We need a way to classify these

numerous different types of SCK’s.There are three things to consider: (1)The basic THK used as the primary cord,

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(2) the number of cords inserted and (3)whether or not the inserted cords remainentirely inside the primary cord (figures1 and 2) or go outside (figures 3 and 4).

In this system for classifying SCK’s,the first method in the previous note iscalled ‘one cord, inside’ and the secondmethod is called ‘one cord, outside’. Thefigures in the previous note showingfinished drawings of SCK’s areclassified as:

Figure 5; ‘3B X 4L, one cord added,inside’,

Figure 6; ‘4B X 5L, one cord added,inside’,

Figure 7; ‘4B X 7L, one cord added,inside’,

Figure 11; ‘4B X 3L, one cord added,outside’ and

Figure 12; ‘4B X 5L, one cord added,outside’.

The two figures showing completeddrawings of SCKs in this note are:

Figure 2; ‘3B x 4L, two cords added,inside’ and

Figure 4; ‘4B X 3L, two cords added,outside’.

Equations for the crossing numbers(CN), the equatorial circumferences(EC) and polar circumferences (PC) aregiven in Appendix 1. The results ofthese formulas for many SCK’s aregiven in Appendix 2. The information inthe tables is intended to be of practicalhelp to knot tiers who are interesteddesigning SCK’s. I will illustrate how Iused these tables to design severalSCK’s.

In the previous note, I discussed how Itied a SCK classified as ‘4B X 5L, one

cord added, outside’ using two differentcolours of 6mm braided cord on a 3 inchdiameter Styrofoam core. I alsodiscussed the problems I had with twolarger SCK’s using the one cord addeddesign. When only one cord is added,the only way to increase the equatorialdiameter (necessary for larger spheres) isto choose a primary cord with morebights. This led to problems of large,uncovered holes at the poles of the SCK.I prefer to design large SCK’s that use aprimary cord with only 3 or 4 bights.When this is done, the “holes” at thepoles look like most other holes on theknot. That is, the holes vanish.

From Table 3, we see that a SCKclassified as ‘4B X 5L, one cord added,outside’ has a CN of 64, an EC of 16 anda PC of 20. Averaging PC and EC, wehave a good circumference of thisspherical knot of about 18. I wished tocover a 4 inch sphere. Using theequations in Appendix 1, I estimated thedesired CN to be about 114 (64 x 16/9)and the circumferences to be about 24(18 x 4/3). I wanted the knot to bestriped so I looked on the tables for oddnumbers of cords added. In order to havean EC of about 24 in a one cord addedSCK, six or more bights would berequired (see tables 2 and 3). That wouldprobably produce holes at the poles so Ilooked at tables 6 and 7 to pick out athree cord added SCK. I chose the ‘3B X5L, three cords added, inside’ SCK witha CN of 120, and EC of 24 and a PC of28 (Table 6). The resulting knot is verynice. When tied with a colour pattern of1, 2, 3, 4: red, white, red, white, the whitestripes are isolated from each other andall red cells are connected. This seems tobe a characteristic of SCK’s of the“inside” type when using this alternatingcolour scheme for the cords.

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Notice that for the SCK classified as‘3B X 5L, three cords added, inside’,each of the three added cords are 3B X3L THK’s. The rule of the greatestcommon divisor requires that each ofthese THK’s be tied using three cords.Thus, ten separate cords (of two differentlengths) are required to tie this knot.Many desirable SCK’s must be tied withnumerous cords. Anyone interested intying SCK’s using these techniquesshould become comfortablemanipulating these multi-cord knots.

I tied another SCK that covered an 8inch Styrofoam sphere. I estimated thatthis knot should have a CN of about 455(64 x 64/9) and circumferences of about48 (18 x 8/3). Again, I wanted a stripedpattern, so I needed to add an oddnumber of cords. I chose a ‘4B X 4L,five cords added, outside’. This knotconsisted of six separate 4B X 4L“THKs”, each requiring 4 physicalcords. Thus, a total of 24 separate cordswere required, each making only onecircuit of the sphere. The work wastedious and consumed much time.However, I feel that the result is worththe effort. I tied this knot with cordsnumbered 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 coloured black,white, black, white, black, white. Thisproduced a maze of black and whitestripes. All black cells were connectedto each other and all white cells wereconnected to each other. The black andwhite patterns were identical andinterlocking, centered on the two polesof the knot. These seem to becharacteristics of SCK’s of the “outside”type when using this alternating colourscheme for the cords.

I also tied a SCK that covered aprolate spheroidal object. I found asponge rubber toy football (Americantype). Measuring a string that I laid

around the equator of the footballindicated that the equatorialcircumference (distance, not cordcrossings) was about 12 inches. Thedistance around the poles was about 15inches. The distance around the 3 inchsphere was about 9.5 inches. I estimatedthe numbers that I would need whenusing the tables in the following way:

EC = 18 x 12/9.5 = about 23,

PC = 18 x 15/9.5 = about 28 and

CN = 64 x (12 x 15)/(9.5 x 9.5) =about 128.

Perhaps not the best choice, I pickedthe ‘3B X 5L, two cords added, outside’to cover this knot (CN = 108, EC = 18and PC = 30, from Table 5). I used red,white and blue cord and the result lookslike some sort of giant Easter egg withmany small coloured splotches.Acceptable, but not one of my favoriteknots.

I prefer striped knots so I returned tothe tables for a second try at this Easteregg/football. The ‘3B X 5L, three cordsadded, inside’ SCK used for the 4 inchsphere (and described above) seemed tobe ideal (CN = 120, EC = 20, PC = 28)and the drawing was already completed.I tied this knot and placed it over thefootball shape instead of the sphere. Theresult was very nice, showing that theseknots are very pliable and can be made tofit different shaped cores.

I have not yet figured out a foolproofway to estimate the required lengths ofcord to tie these spherical covering knotsnor have I figured out ways to alter knotdesign when changing to new cords ofdifferent thickness. Trial and error

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continues to serve me well.Closing thought: These two notes on

how to design spherical covering knotsmay seem like engineering documentswith all of their formulas and tables ofnumbers. I would like to apologize tothose who find them overly complicated.We are not sending a person into spaceor building a bridge. We are just tryingto design a pretty knot that will cover a

sphere. Tying any spherical coveringknot is an accomplishment. To tie onethat you have designed for yourself is aneven larger accomplishment. The valuesfor CN, PC and EC may vary widelyfrom some ideal calculated value andyou may still tie a fine spherical knot.Draw up the plans for a knot and give ita try. Good luck. Have fun.

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Appendix 1: Equations

In these equations,

N = The number of cords added,B = The number of bights of the primary cord,L = The number of leads of the primary cord,CN = The crossing number of the SCK,EC = The equatorial circumference of the SCK andPC = The polar circumference of the SCK.

Spherical Covering Knots of the Inside Type:

CN = B(L - 3)(N+1)2 + 2B(N+1)EC = 2B(N + 1)PC = 2(L + NL - 2N)

Spherical Covering Knots of the Outside Type:

CN = B(L - 1)(N+1)2

EC = 2B(N + 1)PC = 2L(N + 1)

Tying a SCK with different diameter:

Suppose you have successfully tied an SCK on a sphere of diameter D1 and this SCKhas crossing number CN1, equatorial circumference EC1 and polar circumference PC1.Suppose that you now wish to tie a similar SCK on a sphere of diameter D2. Theseequations may be used to estimate the CN2, EC2 and PC2 for this knot:

CN2 = CN1 D22/D1

2,EC2 = EC1 D2/D1 andPC2 = PC1 D2/D1.

For SCK’s tied on spheres, EC and PC should be about the same.

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37

Webbing Knots - Part 2by ‘Jack Fidspike’

ontinuing the feature begun in thelast issue of KM, webbing used tobe found only as sail boat toe-

straps or on lifting tackle in civil engi-neering projects, but increasingly it is ap-plied to various other purposes afloat andashore: as safety and barrier ropes; to re-place permanent docking lines; forstrops to shorten mainsheet tackles and

kicking straps; and for lashing downloads on trucks. I employ it to securekayaks and dinghies atop a car’s roofrack or road-trailer. The flat lashingscling without scoring where they bind -unlike hard round lines - even after re-peated use, while the extra surface areaavailable for contact generates frictionfor some very strong and secure hitches.

Ossel hitchThe ossel hitch (with

or without a drawloop)requires only a little careto ensure that, as theworking end is takenaround behind the stand-ing part, it resembles thecollar of a jacket. Oncedone, it adheres like su-per-glue to skin.

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Collared hitchThe collared hitch is a more robust knot, able to withstand a heavy pull from just

about any direction. Arrange each collar neatly, as shown, so that between them theyenclose the standing part.

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Ring or bale sling hitchTie this hitch in the bight, ensuring no unwanted twists are allowed to remain, before

tightening it and encouraging one of the two legs to ride up over the other one.

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Reinforced ring hitchTo increase the strength and security of the basic ring or bale sling hitch, reinforce

it this way. Tied in the bight, with an extra three crossing points, it will cling and gripthat bit harder.

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Reinforced cow hitchGiven a working end, rather than an endless strop or sling, tie the reinforced cow

hitch. Superficially identical to the preceding hitch, its dynamics are different becauseonly ONE leg is loaded. Ring hitches share their load equally between both legs.

42

SPLICES – Who needs ‘em?

asks Geoffrey Budworth

Confessed an old hand, name ofRandall;

‘A sheath-&-core splice I can’thandle.

Hawser-laid stuffI can tuck well enough;But my braid-on-braid work is a

scandal.’

n decades devoted one way oranother to rope work, I have used justthree kinds of splice – an eye splice,

a back splice and (very occasionally) ashort splice – and none of those recently.Only once have I ever seen a long splicedone for real (first aid to a bustedmainsail halyard, applied hastily so asnot to miss the tide), and that was over 50years ago, during the make-do-and-mend era of austerity following thesecond World War.

It used to be said that knots wereweaker than splices; and so, in the pastwhen vegetable fibre ropes could barelycope with the loads routinely imposedupon them, using the stronger alternativeto safeguard breaking strength andincrease the likelihood of preservingsuch cordage intact made sense. Somerope diameters were, in any case, toothick and unwieldy to be knotted.

Nowadays, however, we know somemighty muscular knots, while syntheticropes are slimmer and boast breakingstrengths many times greater than the jobin hand. So why struggle with theawkward splices necessitated by these

hi-tech products? For there seem to be asmany ways to splice sheath-&-core orbraid-on-braid lines as there areexplanatory leaflets. Dextrous boat showdemonstrators make the process lookeasy, but I remain unconverted.

Splicing wire may also be redundantthese days, given swaged (and the latestswage-less) rigging terminals.Manufacturers claim 100% efficiencyfor some of these items of hardware. Inother words, there is as much chance ofthe wire parting as the fitting failing.

I accept there must be riggers forwhom the daily application of splices isan indispensable procedure. Someamateur devotees, too, may well stillpractice and preserve this rare skill. Tothem I say, well done. Keep it up.Someone must.

Many more of us however, I suspect,have come to regard splices as outmodedand anachronistic. Consequently wehave failed to embrace recentinnovations, although (like the old handin the opening limerick) we may beembarrassed to admit it. Splices appearvery infrequently on the pages ofKnotting Matters or in mainstreamknotting publications, though that couldbe just because of the problems ofillustrating and describing them. So,honestly, how many readers actually usesplices?

Illustrations from NARES SEAMANSHIP BY Lt. George S. Nares, RN., firt

published 1862

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44

Quoit making and encroaching Myth

by Thomas Simpson

n recent years a number of knotting/ropework books when choosing touse the quoit to explain and illustrate

the construction of a grommet are failingto include a reminder that the quoit wasnot made by the grommet method at sea;at least not in the hustle and bustle of thereal world aboard passenger liners andcruise ships, where 99.9% of all quoitsare made and used. This is anotherexample of standard working practicesbeing overtaken by myth.

Quoits were normally made a set(four) at a time and stockpiled for futureuse; although losses and replacements,due to wear and tear, could be quite high,especially in the flying fish latitudes. Themeasurements mentioned below make acorrect standard quoit, although onewould always defer to the prevailinglocal measurements on any particularship. The key measurement was the outerdiameter, 6½ inches (165mm), whichshould never be exceeded. The firstchoice rope size was 3½ inchcircumference (28mm diameter) manila,three stranded, with a right (Z) twist andmedium laid - very occasionally, 3¼inch was used.

A fathom of 3½-inch manila wasstretched out at waist height (uncut), a ½-inch palm and needle whipping wasplaced ¼ inch from the bare end. Fromthe end of the rope a carefully measured16½ inches (420mm) was marked, Two½-inch palm and needle whippings wereplaced a ¼ inch from either side of themark. This exercise was repeated threemore times to complete a set.

With a razor sharp knife, the rope wasprecisely and carefully cut on the firstmark, between the two whippings. Thetwo ends were then butted and marriedby an adaptation of the palm and needlewhipping’s diagonal stitching (I/I) thatdiagonally spanned/bridged the two ½inch whippings, then was repeated inreverse to give an XXX effect. The needto reduce the spanning distance was thereasoning behind the shorter than normal½ inch whippings. The join was thenneatly covered with a 2½ inch (wide)piece of canvas, then seamed andstitched on the quoit’s innercircumference. The canvas would belater painted for colour identification.

Sets of fancy quoits - in newcondition, the cuntlines wormed withcontrasting tarred houseline or spunyarn,and the canvas edges sometimestrimmed with Turk’s heads, were brokenout for use in the formal, high profile,competition finals, which were heldtowards the end of certain legs of a deepsea voyage, or near the end of cruises.

There is a very good drawing of theabove mentioned join and diagonalstitching (being used in another context)in Sam Vensson’s Handbook ofSeaman’s Ropework, it’s figure 34, andis on page 52 of the 1971 first Englishtranslation. This excellent nauticalropework book was published in Swedenas Handbok i Sjmansarbete, in 1940.How or why such an importantseamanship book took 31 years to get anEnglish translation beggars belief?

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BranchLinesWest Country BranchWe have just held our AGM and havehad a successful year. We had a numberof speakers during the year includingDave Walker, Chairman of the Councilof the Guild.

Members have attended both the GuildAGM and the six-monthly meetingalong with various fairs and open days.We continue to hold teach-ins at our bi-monthly meetings and have also giventalks and demonstrations to variousclubs and organisations. The officers ofthe branch are the same with theincumbents of last year being returnedunopposed.

‘Tug’ Shipp

Yorkshire BranchThis was the first full day meetingorganised by the West Yorkshire Branchto which all Yorkshire members wereinvited. The theme for the meeting wasFlat Knotting based mainly on thedesigns of Brian Field and Skip Pennock.We had hoped to meet a lot of Yorkshiremembers who had not managed to get toour previous meetings or events, butsadly only a few were able to attend. Theusual hard core was there plusrepresentatives from North Yorkshire,Luton, Chester and Nottingham. After abrief introduction and a talk about flatknotting in general, the main meeting got

under way with four bases for workshopsand exchange of ideas. We broke forlunch and then continued with a generalsharing of knotting skills. Followingafternoon tea we finished so that thepeople who had come a long way wereable to make the most of the daylight toget on the road home.

This had been a great day with arelaxed and informative atmosphere.

Thanks to the people who travelledlong distances to support us, we weredelighted to have you there.

Whilst this is intended to be a one-offmeeting the success warrantsconsideration for similar meetings in thefuture.

David Pearson

Pacific Americas BranchThe Pacific Americas Branch has beenbusy in 2003. At our monthly meeting inJanuary, we were approached by the LosAngeles Maritime Institute, who had arequest for the Knot Tyers Guild. LAMIwas close to finishing the TwinBrigantines Irving Johnson and ExyJohnson and they needed sea chesthandles for the eight chests that wereaboard each vessel. They asked forsixteen sets, thirty-two handles in all.The completed handles were needed byFebruary 28th. It was agreed to base thehandles on Ashley #3632, the basewould be a five-inch inside diameterrope grommet to be covered by somefancy knotting to be determined by eachknot tyer. They had to be kid proof andhave a lifting capacity of 75 lbs. Thehandles needed to be varnished orshellacked before use. LAMI also hadneed of two Bellropes and four Jacob’sLadders (based on Ashley’s #3841), oneshort ladder and one long.

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It was a lot to ask and the time wasshort. The call went out to all PABmembers and the response wasgratifying. In the end here are thecontributions that came in:

Charlie Bell (8 pairs & 2 bell ropes);Joe Soanes (1 pair traditional & 1 pairgrommet style); Dan Callahan (2 pairs &4 key fobs); Joe Schmidbauer (2 pairs);John Williams (1 pair); Jimmy RayWilliams (1 pair); Roy Chapman (1pair); Clint Funk (1 pair); LindseyPhilpott (2 pairs).

Many thanks to all who came throughso splendidly, everyone is happy with theresults and they sure do look greataboard the vessels, lending a verynautical and colorful air.

March was also busy for the PAB.Early in the month we had a display atthe Whale Festival at Dana Point Harborhere in Southern California. LindseyPhilpott and Charlie Bell manned the

booth there with many items from theirpersonal knot collections on show aswell as items from the PAB collection.At the end of the month there was thechristening of the Twin Brigantines atthe Los Angeles Maritime Museum andthe PAB was asked to set up a displaythere as well. Once again LindseyPhilpott was there as well as MasterRigger Joe Soanes, Jose Hernandez-Juviel, Tom Mortell and PAB SecretaryJoe Schmidbauer. Jose diddemonstrations of worming, parcelingand serving. Lindsey and Joe worked onone of the Jacob’s Ladders needed byLAMI. So along with the full view ofthe PAB knot collection, the public gotto see ropework in action as well.

Stepping back a bit I want to alsoremind everyone of the special effort putforth by Lindsey Philpott in making a setof fenders for Skipper Doug Lean’s tugKatahdin. He did all the work himself

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and also arranged to have themtransported up to Washington. Themoney Lindsey will make from all thislabor he is very generously donating tothe PAB so we will be able to carry onour good work. There wouldn’t be aPAB without Lindsey’s untiring efforts;we are very lucky to have him as ourBranch President.

Joe Schmidbauer

IGKT-NAB IGKT-NAB will be holding its NAB

2003 details elsewhere in this issue.Ohio members - The Ohio Scouting

Outing takes place at Burr Oak StatePark on October 3-4-5, 2003. Additionalinformation will be on our web site.

In addition, the IGKT-NAB hosts aKnot Chat, on the internet each Sundayfrom 18:00 - 21:00 Eastern StandardTime. One must have a computer,downloaded Yahoo Messenger, and beawake at that hour. Additionalinformation can be obtained on the NABweb site. www.igktnab.org

John Burke,President IGKT-NAB

3rd French Knotting WeekendGrand Banks Fishery Museum,Fcamp, 29th & 30th March 2003

This year’s meeting of the FrenchBranch, IGKT France, took place in thetemporary exhibitions hall of the GrandBanks Fishery Museum in the Upper-Normandy port of Fcamp. The town issteeped in the history of the Cod-fishingindustry and the museum has an

extensive collection of ship paintings,models and artefacts: it was the perfectsetting for our AGM 2003. As with thefirst two meetings, we continue to callour knotting weekend, the Journeseuropennes des amateurs de nuds(literally : “European Knotters’ Days”)as we aspire to invite as many of ourfriends as possible from the surroundingcountries (GB, CH, B, N, E etc.). Thisyear four countries were represented by25 knotters : France, England, Belgiumand Holland.

The weekend got off to a great start onFriday 27th with the arrival of the firstknotters. Quite by chance a few of us metin the town and we were kindly invited toLuc & Odile’s house for an informalfringe meeting. On the hastily organisedagenda were an aperitif, a side of beefcooked over an open fire of rosemarybranches (aah, our gallic cousins knowhow to cook) and some delicious red

Henri Philippot

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wine. This was followed by an in-depthcalvados tasting and everyone, of course,went to bed too late!

On the Saturday morning the museumstaff opened an hour early to let us getourselves organised and set up thestands. Members from far and widearrived as the morning progressed andthat delightful feeling which comes frommeeting up with old friends began toseep into the atmosphere of the room...By midday all was ready and we wereushered into the Museum proper toreceive an official welcome from theMayor, the Curator and some other localdignitaries. All the talk was followed bya much-appreciated aperitif laid on bythe municipality.

Geert “Willy” Willaert came all theway from Belgium with a fine display offenders and knob knots. Unfortunatelywe couldn’t lay our hands on thenecessary equipment for a Powerpointpresentation of the Ellen knot, but we’lldo it next time. Ex-President Jan Vosbrought along his knot inventories andhis library of knotting books, which got

everyone browsing and wonderingwhether he can read Japanese. NewPresident Jeff Wyatt treated us to hisfinely knotted picture frames, bell ropesand bookmarks. Ken Yalden showed hisearrings and photos of 2K2. Europa got alace-making workshop going, along withLeslie “mumsy” Bell and Janine Dahiel.Patrick Moreau brought along hisjewellery collection Nouages and hisfinely developed teaching skills. MichelStraub displayed pictures of his coveredknife handles. Gabriel Richir, with thehelp of Alain ‘King of Tahiti’ Sey,displayed a fine collection of traditionalsailors’ work such as fenders, ocean matsand sea chest beckets. Luc Prouveurtreated us to a new version of the Turk’shead (literally on the head!), his 18-sidedmonkey fist and a rather enigmatic andintriguing theory for tying Turk’s headsin the hand that he calls the ‘HelicoidalStarting Banana.’ Henri Philippotdisplayed his collection of fine ropeworkfrom around the globe. Patrick Lefourpresented his extra-dimensional Turk’sheads. Graham macLachlan set up the

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six knot challenge (without thestopwatch) and other rope games. Otherknotters and new faces came along andhelped out such as Jean-Baptiste, Jean-Pierre Durand, Isabel Rachel, Yves,Jean-Michel Galloy, Frdric Ltaconnoux.We also received a visit from DanielBilleaux, ropework teacher at Fcamp’sLyce maritime Anita Conti, hopefullywe will be able to twist his arm to joinour ranks. Journalists from severalnewspapers came along to eke out anarticle and Pat Moreau convinced onepoor hack that his title was Dr. ofApplied Nodology . We closed theafternoon’s meeting with a thank-youpresentation of red roses and Ardbegwhisky for Luc & Odile, organisers ofthe weekend.

Later that evening we all met up at theHtel de l’Angleterre for the“Nodologists’ Dinner” which was aculinary and social success. Speechesflew thick and fast around the table : Jeffthanked the French Branch on behalf ofthe IGKT, duly translated by Graham;IGKT France thanked the Anglo-Belgico-Dutch contingent for makingthe effort to come and then Jan Vos madea speech in Dutch which was heartilyreceived by Willy. Graham endeavouredto translate it for the non-Dutch speakerssuch as himself and Jeff lamented thefact that there were no Norwegianspresent to “speech” to. Ken proposed ademonstration of the icicle hitch(something he does at the drop of thehat), but we ran out of time. The day wasrounded off with a nice walk home.

In spite of the change to summer time,Sunday morning saw the ConstituentAssembly of IGKT France. The FrenchBranch is now an association loi 1901,which is a status similar to that of aBritish charity. Its constitutional rules

and aims are those of the IGKT, withsome modification to comply withFrench civil law. The foundingcouncillors are : Graham macLachlan(president), Luc Prouveur (secretary)Jean-Pierre Durand (treasurer) PatrickMoreau, Patrick Lefour, Henri Philippot,Gabriel Richir and Alain Sey. 15 or somembers signed up and then we went tothe Yacht Club for lunch.

Sunday afternoon carried on where wehad left off the previous day and theevent ended at museum closing time.Over 600 visitors (museum estimate) lefta bunch of tired but satisfied knotters topack-up their belongings and say theirgoodbyes.

Thank you all for coming and see younext year at the Maritime, Fluvial andPort Museum in the city of Rouen on the27th & 28th March 2004.

Graham macLachlan

Luc Prouveur

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PostbagThe views expressed in reader’s letter do notnecessarily reflect those of the Council. TheEditor reserves the right to shorten any letteras necessary.

The Flag of SevilleThose of you who speak Spanish willknow that Nodo means knot and the factthat what appears to be a hank of cord isstuck in the middle of the word could beconsidered to be a fanciful decoration.The lettering and symbol are gold on ared ground.

In fact the story behind the flag’sdesign is rather more complicated andinteresting.

In the 13th century, Alfonso X TheLearned, King of Castille and Leon lostthe support of most of the cities in hiskingdom who transferred allegiance tohis son Sancho IV.

Seville however remained faithful toAlfonso and the “Knot of loyalty”remains the city’s symbol.

The 8 represents, in fact, a skein ofwool, in Spanish madeja and the letters

and symbol become a pun on theexpression NO - me ha deja - DO whichtranslated means “You didn’t leave me.”

The symbol is also shown on the armsof the city, but the skein may be depictedmore in the form of two interlockingcircles and so is harder to decipher.

Richard HopkinsBristol, UK

WelcomeI am impressed! Deeply impressed! Justa few days after my memberships waspaid a heavy envelope landed in mymailbox. The envelope contained the“welcome-package” from IGKT: twoissues of Knotting Matters, addresses toall members, the IGKT history, etc. Iimmediately felt very welcome andregarded as “one of the gang”!

I described this to some people Iknow, and the reaction was “WOW!That’s the way to go! We should havesomething like that, too!” This meansthat IGKT have set an example forNordrike, a Swedish medievalistassociation.

A small comment on a thingmentioned under the heading “Newideas”:

Hollow needles, threaded inside,really are very handy! It appears to be thekind of idea that pops up independentlyin several places, as I use them, too. Thedifference is that I have found that theycan be used for most materials, fromhemp or leather to synthetics. As I makethem myself I can make them almost anysize I need. (I have thread taps from M2

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to M12.) I turn them in metal; often usingdiscarded pieces of re-bar from buildingsites, and cut the threads myself. The re-bar machines well, takes a good finish,and has the right hardness to be toughwithout being brittle. (The onlydisadvantage is that it has a tendency torust if exposed to humidity.)

Recently I covered the grip of myViking style hatchet with a long Turk’shead made from 2-mm round leatherthong. I simply would not have been ableto make it without the hollow needle!The TH, by the way, is generouslytreated with a mixture of roughly onepart boiled linseed oil and one part old-fashioned leather grease (which in turn isa mix of sheep’s tallow, beeswax and tar- I have no idea of the proportions!). Theresult is one of the safest and mostcomfortable non-slip grips I have ever

laid my hand on. Looks rather nice, too,don’t you think?

Lasse CarenvallVnersborg, Sweden

Irish BowlineI saw the article by Joe McNicholas(KM77 p10) on two “new” knots. Atfirst I didn’t mind so much to see himpromote a knot that I’d pronounceddubious (the “Irish Bowline”: dubious revalue and asserted qualities (surely notso strong; awkward to tie; not all sosecure); and dubious name, as it lacksbowlinesque features).

I replied to Joe with a NKCAC ruling.Clearly, Joe didn’t receive my letter.

Joe’s tying-steps images are quitepoor in that at no time does he indicatewhat bit of the inchoate structure isdestined to form the loopknot’s eye - onemight want to know that! So, I wonderwho can figure out how to progress fromhis Fig.4 to Fig.5 (finished knot)?Looking closely at Fig.4, one can discerninterlocked crossing knot structures, andit is the loop upper and right-most thatbecomes the eye (whose legs feedequally into crossing knots, only one ofwhich is loaded). I pointed out thatAshley’s #1424 is the same knot form,but with a markedly different loading(for one, it’s a bend) - upper endbecomes standing part, lower is end, andother parts fused into the eye.

Dan LehmanNew Knot Claims

Accreditation Committee

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Knotting DiaryAGM’s & 1/2 YEARLY MEETINGS

IGKT Half-yearly MeetingHallowtree Suffolk Scout Centre, Nacton, Ipswich17th - 19th October 2003Contact: Des PawsonTel: 01473 690090E-mail: knots@footrope.fsnet.co.uk

NAB 2003 Meeting17th - 19th October 2003Mariner’s Museum, Newport News, VirginiaContact: John BurkeTel: 313 562 4393E-mail: knottyrope@prodigy.com

BRANCH MEETINGSMidlands Branch9th June 2003The Old Swan (Ma Pardoes), Halesowen Road, Netherton, DudleyContact Nick JonesTel: 01384 377499

East Anglian Branch7th June 2003‘Eaton Cottage’, Thornham, HunstantonContact: Duncan BoltTel: 01485 512508 EVENTSDelfsail 200310th - 14th July 2003Delfzijl, NetherlandsContact: Klaas KuiperTel: 0596 619 513

Von Hundepints, Schweinsrücken und Neunschwänziger Katz (Pointing, Cockscombing and Cat o’ Nine Tails)June - September 2003Marstal Soefartsmuseum, Prinsengade 1, DK-5960 Marstal, DenmarkContact Karl BarethurE-mail: jacktar@foni.net

Inland Waterways National Festival22nd - 25th August 2003Beale Park, BerkshireContact: Ken NelsonTel: 07836722198

SECRETARY:Nigel Harding16 Egles Grove,Uckfield,Sussex, TN22 2BYTel: 01825 760425E-mail: nigel@nigelharding.demon.co.uk

Guild Annual Subscription rates:Juniors £5Seniors £16Families £20Corporate by arrangementPayable by cash/cheque Eurocard, Master-card or Visa. Taxpayers in UK - we would pre-fer a covenanted subscription.

EDITOR:Colin Grundy4 Hanwood Close,Eastern Green,Coventry CV5 7DZTel: 024 7646 8603E-mail: knotting_matters@btinternet.com

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Full page £32 £49Half page £19 £22Quarter Page £10 £15

Printed by Gipping Press Ltd., Needham Market. Tel: (01449) 721599 Fax: (01449) 721372

Guild SuppliesPrice List 2003

Item Price

Geoffrey Budworth

Notlore a miscellany of quotes from fact and fiction £2.50The Knot Book £3.99Plaited Moebius Bands £2.50Knot Rhymes and Reasons £1.50

Brian Field

Breastplate Designs £2.50Concerning Crosses £1.50

Eric Franklin

Turksheads the Traditional Way £1.50 *Nylon Novelties £2.00 *

Stuart Grainger

Knotcraft £3.60 *Ropefolk £1.30 *Turks Head Alternatives £2.20 *Creative Ropecraft (Hardback - 3rd Ed.) £9.95Knotted Fabrics Hardback price includes UK postage £9.00

John Halifax

Something Different with over 50 Button Knots £3.20

Colin Jones

The DIY Book of Fenders £9.95

Harold Scott

On Various Cruxiform Turks Heads £2.50Sliding Template Method for Designing Cruciform Turks-Heads Vol. 2 £3.00

Skip Pennock

Decorative Woven Flat Knots £12.50*

IGKT

Knotting Matters copies of past editions £2.50(Some past editions available - contact the Secretary for details)

*bulk purchases of these items available at a discount - phone for detailsCheques payable to IGKT, or simply send your credit card details