Author Topic: Nautical Knot Board  (Read 4894 times)

TMCD

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Nautical Knot Board
« on: July 13, 2012, 12:03:37 AM »
We've all seen those cool looking nautical knot boards with the bowlines, spanish bowlines, sheetbends, anchor hitch etc. My dad wants one of these to hang on his wall. We go to Panama City Beach Florida every year and the particular condo we stay in has one of these hanging in the living room. He comments on it every year and two years ago I promised him one from me, made by me.

Where can I get the material to pull this off? Has anyone here ever made one of these boards and are the materials available? The blue felt and frame is the easy part to acquire but proper cord, knot identification labels, and who knows what else could be hard to come by. Of course I could easily purchase one on the internet for 100-150 bucks and dad would be happy but I'd feel cheated. Any thoughts?

Sweeney

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Re: Nautical Knot Board
« Reply #1 on: July 13, 2012, 09:44:43 AM »
I would suggest laid cotton cord (the thickness depends on the size of the board) and to seal the ends either a simple whipping (which is time consuming on thin stuff) or heat shrink tubing which comes in many colours and sizes and works with a hair dryer to shrink it. If your worried about this coming off slide the tubing up the cord away from the end, add a spot of contact glue, slide the tube over the glue and then heat. In the UK you can buy tubing with built in adhesive but it's 3 times the price. I use this method on braided rope to seal the ends - safer than melting and doesn't leave sharp bits. Can't help you with the labels though a friend of mine did say that a local undertaker once made him some! (Used the machine they use for engraving coffin plates, apparently, and brass strip).

Barry

TMCD

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Re: Nautical Knot Board
« Reply #2 on: July 13, 2012, 12:47:14 PM »
Thanks for the response Sweeney! Hmmm, I'm starting to wonder if I really want to tackle this project. It's looking like I just might have to order one from the internet because this would be costly and time consuming. I really wanted to build this myself too but I'm realizing it's not in the cards.

Darkknight0667

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Re: Nautical Knot Board
« Reply #3 on: July 13, 2012, 01:22:05 PM »
Yeah, it's costly and time consuming, but so were you (not trying to be snarky, just making a point).

This would be a great way to repay your father for all that he did for and with you when you were growing up.  You could even make it a project that the two of you can work on together, if you want.  Or, if you have a child, you can get him/her to help.  By doing this yourself, you're not just giving your dad a gift to hang on the wall, but you're creating a family heirloom that can be handed down for generations, inspiring future generations of your family to learn knotting.

Marty Combs is a great source for the cotton cord.

Here's a site with some good information on preserving the knots, once they're tied.

I'd encourage you to do this.  Take your time and you'll never regret it.  If you buy it, I can almost guarantee that it'll bother you every time you see it, knowing that you could have done it yourself.

 

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