Author Topic: Quick/easy release hitches  (Read 12686 times)

andy753421

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Quick/easy release hitches
« on: January 09, 2010, 07:48:50 PM »
Two questions about quick release hitches:

First, I need something similar to the highwayman hitch, but more secure and easier to release while under load. What other knots would you suggest for this? I saw this post: http://igkt.net/sm/index.php?topic=1262 and tried tying those but they seemed like they would be difficult to release while under a heavy load (~100kg). I came up with my own knot for this a few years ago and was wondering if it has a name. It starts similar to the highwayman by warping a bight around the object, but afterwards only the working end is used. A bight is made in the working end and passed though the bight around the object, then another bight is made in the working end passed though the previous bight. This is repeated several times on alternating sides of the standing end. Basically, it's a daisy chain around the standing end. I've included a couple pictures below which may help. (one is after tying, the second is after tightening)

Second, are there any hitches that can be released using only the standing end? This would be tricky because the standing end would need to hold a load as well. Perhaps twisting the rope could release a toggle? I'm looking for something that could be released from the opposite end of the rope.

(Note: I know better than to use any of these for anything safety critical)

edit: fix typos
edit: add instructions
« Last Edit: January 10, 2010, 03:40:21 PM by andy753421 »

roo

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Re: Quick/easy release hitches
« Reply #1 on: January 10, 2010, 07:08:51 AM »
Two questions about quick release hitches:

First, I need something similar to the highwayman hitch, but more secure and easier to release while under load. What other knots would you suggest for this? I saw this post: http://igkt.net/sm/index.php?topic=1262 and tried tying those but they seemed like they would be difficult to release while under a heavy load (~100kg).

Depending on the severity of the situation, the load-releasing configuration on this page may work for you:
http://notableknotindex.webs.com/slippedbuntline.html

It does involve using the end of the rope, so I don't know if that violates your highwayman-like hitch requirement.

I'm not sure I can discern your daisy-chain-like hitch, but I don't see the point.  Why multiply tucks other than to waste rope?  Eventually, a bight will be heavily loaded, so you're not gaining ease of release, but then again, I didn't spend much time looking at it.

Quote
Second, are there there any hitches that can be released using only the standing [part]? This would be tricky because the standing end would need to hold a load as well. Perhaps twisting the rope could release a toggle? I'm looking for something that could be released from the opposite end of the rope.

(Note: I know better than to use any of these for anything safety critical)

What are your intended uses?  In other discussions on this board we've had suggestions of making a bight in the rope before the hitching object, traveling around the object, and tying a Clove Hitch (or similar hitch) around the bight.  Thus, when a certain load is reached, the bight slips out and everything vanishes.  It'd likely be weak, and difficult to predict the collapse load.

Other options would include just using low-security hitches, and then just shake them free when you're done.  In some situations this could just be a clove hitch.  Or it may involve a Half Hitch (ABok #1663) carefully laid out to be just secure enough to last until it sees some shakes (see image below).   All options involve skill and some luck.



Another knot form that I had in mind was a partial or uncompleted bowline.  It is quite unstable, but can be made a little more stable in pliable rope by winding the rabbit up the tree instead of going down the hole.   It's related to the bell-
ringer's knot discussed here:

http://notableknotindex.webs.com/spanloop.html

see also:
http://notableknotindex.webs.com/bowline.html

Twisting the standing part of an uncompleted bowline in a certain direction with just the right amount of tension will further destabilize it and often cause a spill.
« Last Edit: August 21, 2018, 11:19:25 PM by roo »
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roo

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Re: Quick/easy release hitches
« Reply #2 on: January 10, 2010, 07:37:34 AM »
It does involve using the end of the rope, so I don't know if that violates your highwayman-like hitch requirement.

There may be ways to modify the Tumble Hitch to allow for heavy load release.  Look at the center step (image) shown here:

http://notableknotindex.webs.com/tumblehitch.html

The bight looks like a person's head poking up through a collar of a shirt.  Imagine the "head" bending back, down, and then back up through the shirt collar another time.  Then finish the steps.  This modification will make for an ugly hitch, but it will reduce the clamping force on the final bight.

More standard options for reducing slip bight clamping force:
https://igkt.net/sm/index.php?topic=6939.msg45832#msg45832
« Last Edit: February 03, 2021, 06:52:28 PM by roo »
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andy753421

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Re: Quick/easy release hitches
« Reply #3 on: January 10, 2010, 10:19:59 AM »
I'm not sure I can discern your daisy-chain-like hitch, but I don't see the point.  Why multiply tucks other than to waste rope?  Eventually, a bight (not bite) will be heavily loaded, so you're not gaining ease of release, but then again, I didn't spend much time looking at it.

Oops, sorry about the misspelling. The nice thing about the daisy chain is that it distributes the load across several bights. When loaded the bight around the object pulls away from the standing end, but this is prevented by the next bight which wraps around the standing end, which also pulls apart, and so on. With only one or two tucks in the daisy chain the whole knot would just pull itself apart. Each successive tuck prevents the previous one from pulling apart until the force is low enough. When releasing the knot under load, the last two or three tucks tend to pull out on their own due to the load.

As for the second part, I didn't really have any intended uses, I was mostly just curious if it was possible. A couple of my thoughts were that if it was a twisted rope you could put something between the strands that would come loose when untwisted. Maybe the knot could rely on several kinks in the rope which would come out. If you had access to something fixed (e.g. on the ground) you could tie a string between that and the knot to act as a toggle which could be released by pulling it to the side. Just a few ideas, but I couldn't come up with much of anything workable.
« Last Edit: January 10, 2010, 10:21:19 AM by andy753421 »

DerekSmith

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Re: Quick/easy release hitches
« Reply #4 on: January 10, 2010, 04:09:29 PM »
Try the tensionless hitch finished with a slip knot, but first for an understanding of how it works see Roo's  excellent tutorial on friction http://notableknotindex.webs.com/friction.html

The nice aspect of this hitch is that after releasing the slipknot, the load is still under your control as you allow the releasing end to flow into the turns.

Derek

roo

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Re: Quick/easy release hitches
« Reply #5 on: January 10, 2010, 11:13:41 PM »
Try the tensionless hitch finished with a slip knot, but first for an understanding of how it works see Roo's  excellent tutorial on friction http://notableknotindex.webs.com/friction.html

The nice aspect of this hitch is that after releasing the slipknot, the load is still under your control as you allow the releasing end to flow into the turns.

Derek

Such a setup would assume that the line doesn't swing and that the hitching object will not rotate in response to the torque.  Otherwise, it's no longer "tensionless". 

I won't critique the method of release, as I'm not entirely clear of your "slip knot" configuration.  However, that is not very important, as there are many ways such a release mechanism could be tied.
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DerekSmith

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Re: Quick/easy release hitches
« Reply #6 on: January 11, 2010, 08:39:15 AM »
Hi Roo,

Good point about the hitching object not rotating - that was why I pointed andy753421 at your tutorial on friction so he might understand what it was he was doing.  

It seems crazy that anyone should make this hitch around an object that will rotate, but just last evening, I watched one of these 'How To' videos with a 'Fireman' showing how to tie the Tensionless.  He took great pains to explain the tying of an eight on a bight, fixed the bina, then made two turns about a pipe and clipped the bina to the load line.  Then he simulated the load and the whole assembly rotated until the eight had fed around the pipe and bound in the bina which was then clamped tight against the pipe with side pressure right on its gate.

If it hadn't been a serious attempt to teach people the Tensionless, it would have been the perfect comedy sketch for any IGKT convention.

I appreciate that the name 'Tensionless hitch' is a bit of a misnomer - it should perhaps be called the 'Nearly Tensionless in the Tail Hitch', but could you explain why swinging of the load line is an issue ?

Actually, whenever I use multiple coils to load dump, I normally just trap the tail by slip tucking it under one of the mid turns where the load is much reduced, but still enough to hold the tuck.  One example of use is in my greenhouse where I use it to tie up the tomato plants to overhead 2" dia pipes.  When the plants reach the pipes, I pull out the slip and let the plants down by a foot nicely under control, ( a fully cropped vine can be quite a load) so the spent vine lays on the floor and the plant can continue to grow on up the tie line.  In this application, I finish by tucking the slip up the side of the loaded line to grip it.

Derek
« Last Edit: January 11, 2010, 08:41:34 AM by DerekSmith »

Dan_Lehman

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Re: Quick/easy release hitches
« Reply #7 on: January 11, 2010, 10:05:07 PM »
Quote
Quote
Try the tensionless hitch finished with a slip knot, ...
The nice aspect of this hitch is that after releasing the slipknot, the load is still under your control as you allow the releasing end to flow into the turns.
Such a setup would assume that the line doesn't swing and that the hitching object will not rotate in response to the torque.
Otherwise, it's no longer "tensionless". 

The unasked-for ability to easily lower the load shows that the hitch
wasn't tensionless; the tens.hit. is typically w/o such ability until given
an unwrapping; YMMV.

But all these suggestions are beside the OP's point, which I take to be for
a "slip-free" hitch, not merely something with a slip-bight finish.  To which
that "Tumble Hitch" is one of a variety of potential candidates.  But the
stipulation of being releasable when under load does make it challenging.

The OP has a good start, and maybe that hitch satisfies the need.
What might it be called?  Hmmm, try searching for "Canyoneering Macrame
knot" -- but some stuff (Canyonwiki) is pay-to-play; I didn't find a quick
URLink.  But it uses similar structure, IIRC.

I'm trying to come up with a solution that uses one of the cod-end knots,
but so far am short of that.

Still don't see a statement of purpose for the knot
-- of what object is intended to be so hitched, and by what material
under what sort of loads.  Since the slip-free aspect requires that one
pass a bight around the object, some structures which will work by
repeating this sort of thing can be material-expensive with a large
object (though work fine around a ring, say).

--dl*
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roo

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Re: Quick/easy release hitches
« Reply #8 on: January 11, 2010, 11:06:43 PM »
The unasked-for ability to easily lower the load shows that the hitch
wasn't tensionless...

Agreed, but upon swinging or rolling, the near-tensionless end becomes very tensioned.


Quote
What might it be called?  Hmmm, try searching for "Canyoneering Macrame
knot" -- but some stuff (Canyonwiki) is pay-to-play; I didn't find a quick
URLink.  But it uses similar structure, IIRC.

As I recall, such a macrame setup was used in such a way that alternate ends had to be pulled over and over, thus adding a slim measure of safety against accidental release.  This does not appear to be the case with Andy's hitch.  But without explicit images detailing Andy's intended structure, I'll refrain from giving it more demerits than I already have.  I'm skeptical of it.

All those successive bights are obscuring the basic structure.
« Last Edit: January 12, 2010, 12:44:50 AM by roo »
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roo

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Re: Quick/easy release hitches
« Reply #9 on: January 11, 2010, 11:40:32 PM »
 I'm skeptical of it.

All those successive bights are obscuring the basic structure.

I notice Andy has updated his original post to include specific instructions.  Thank you, Andy.

It looks like I'll have to eat my skepticism.  Those successive bights seem to prevent the hitch from drawing up into its basic form that might otherwise be difficult to release under heavy load.  As things are untied, the basic form surprisingly never rematerializes. Andy's solution appears to work.
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andy753421

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Re: Quick/easy release hitches
« Reply #10 on: January 11, 2010, 11:50:35 PM »
What might it be called?  Hmmm, try searching for "Canyoneering Macrame knot" -- but some stuff (Canyonwiki) is pay-to-play; I didn't find a quick URLink.  But it uses similar structure, IIRC.

I'm trying to come up with a solution that uses one of the cod-end knots, but so far am short of that.

Thanks for the suggestions, I'll do some more looking for a Macrame variant later and post a link if I find one.

The cod-end knot looks interesting as well, if this is what you're referring too: http://notableknotindex.webs.com/codendknot.html


Still don't see a statement of purpose for the knot -- of what object is intended to be so hitched, and by what material under what sort of loads.  Since the slip-free aspect requires that one pass a bight around the object, some structures which will work by repeating this sort of thing can be material-expensive with a large object (though work fine around a ring, say).

I've used my version for a couple different things, originally I designed it to tie up hammocks. The slip-free requirement was a deterrent when other people were using it and wouldn't get up. In that particular case, it would be tied around a tree or to the ring on the end of the hammock and would need to hold two to three body masses. I think the original rope I used was a braided polypro that came with the hammock, which was hard enough to untie even without a load.


As I recall, such a macrame setup was used in such a way that alternate ends had to be pulled over and over, thus adding a slim measure of safety against accidental release.  This does not appear to be the case with Andy's hitch.  But without explicit images detailing Andy's intended structure, I'll refrain from giving it more demerits than I already have.  I'm skeptical of it.

All those successive bights are obscuring the basic structure.

I added an attachment to the original post with instructions on how to tie the knot. (looks like you found it while I was typing this) It should be pretty simple to follow, let me know if you have any questions. It works best to leave a little slack in the first few bights tied instead of tightening them. That way, the load gets distributed better and the release is smoother.

In this particular case, I want the knot to come completely out with one pull, so alternating pulls would undesirable. I can't think of a way to do alternating pulls and still have an easy release under load, but if you know of one, that would be interesting as well.

Dan_Lehman

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Re: Quick/easy release hitches
« Reply #11 on: January 13, 2010, 12:02:44 AM »
Firstly, Roo's remarks about superfluous successive bights/tucks point
to a fundamental problem that needs to be solved in order to get the
desired slip-free (or merely quick-release) structure:  moving the slip-tuck
out *line* of the heavy loading.  The typical chain of bight-within-bights
e.g. boils down to, at last tucking to be slipped untucked, something
that could well be solidly bound by great pressure -- a failing with a great
many supposed easy-to-untie solutions presented in the literature (prime
example is the Constrictor), as esp. in much cordage the fold of the bight
tip presents an effectively greater bulk to the compressed twin strands
which will nearly preclude pulling out, or require excessive force, perhaps
to some damage of the cordage -- YMMV.
In any case, Roo's concern is at the base of this issue.
Andy's structure does seem to work around this, at least fairly well (again, YMMV).

I'm trying to come up with a solution that uses one of the cod-end knots, but so far am short of that.
...
The cod-end knot looks interesting as well, if this is what you're referring too: http://notableknotindex.webs.com/codendknot.html

No, that's unnotable.  There are various such knots, but to the point above,
there is a general design that works well.  See here, and note how the slip-tuck that
is heavily nipped by load of the binding itself nips --by SET force (i.e., no more than
what one sets it to, not increased by structure loading)-- the ultimate slip-tuck; when
the slip-tuck is pulled out of its nip, it just unwinds its binding of the folded (double)
bight that has strongly nipped the nipping bight that held the slip-tuck -- no matter
how hard that force was, the exterior wraps just fall away, and the loaded bight
is freed, that inner slip-tuck qua toggle left to fall out!  THIS is the neat answer.

http://charles.hamel.free.fr/knots-and-cordages/PICASA_Slideshow/Raban-cul-avril06/index.html

Now, the problem is to work that "answer" into your particular hitching question.

Quote
Still don't see a statement of purpose for the knot -- of what object is intended to be so hitched,
and by what material under what sort of loads.  Since the slip-free aspect requires that one pass
a bight around the object, some structures which will work by repeating this sort of thing can be
material-expensive with a large object (though work fine around a ring, say).

I've used my version for a couple different things, originally I designed it to tie up hammocks.
The slip-free requirement was a deterrent when other people were using it and wouldn't get up.
::) ???  ::)
Huh?  You mean, "Hey, lardbutt, move it, MY turn!"  "No way, Jose', I'm stayin' put!"
"Okay, then you're going DOWN!! "   >:(
-- and, tug, slip-free, whoosh...
>>> WHAM , and the recalcitrant recliner is realigned with reality -- body slammed! ?   :o :o   ;D

(And we are become accessories to the actionable knot use?)

tsk, tsk!

--dl*
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Sweeney

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Re: Quick/easy release hitches
« Reply #12 on: January 13, 2010, 06:44:13 PM »
I have been doing some scanning of old KMs and came across this article back in 2000 (KM 67:20). Seems to work but I haven't swung on it!

Barry

Dan_Lehman

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Re: Quick/easy release hitches
« Reply #13 on: January 14, 2010, 03:31:07 AM »
No, Olivier's (long time unheard from...) knot is quite unwanted here,
as the full load nips the slip-tuck (which further suffers from taking
load around the object -- high frictional cost).  He has another one,
and IIRC, published in KM earlier; but that one seemed not all so
stable, and not that much better for loaded release.

--dl*
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