Knot Tying Jig

A few people have now asked me about my knot tying jig. I created this particular jig in order to be able to practice the knots that I have learnt. The main specification for me, it had to be the right size to show when creating my YouTube Knotting Videos.

Knot Tying Jig Dimensions

In my world everything has to be as simple as possible, so I decided to make my knotting jig from some old plumbing pipe that I had left over from when the plumbers fitted a new bathroom for me.

So I had the pipe, but what I did not have was the fittings to give me the basic shape for my knotting jig. I drew out on a piece of paper the the shape that I wanted my knot tying jig to be. From this drawing I was able to establish what shape fittings I needed.

I chose this particular shape, as it would give me to upright poles to tie knots onto. This way I could practice combination knots between the two uprights. For example I could tie at one end the Evenk Hitch and then on the other end the Farrimond Friction Hitch. This way I would be able to demonstrate one of the methods of setting up a ridge line for a tarpaulin.

You will also notice that the uprights are two different lengths. Well, it seemed like a good idea at the time, but not sure that it actually serves any real purpose.

Knot Tying Jig Construction

So I had my 20mm pipe, all I needed to do now was look at my drawing to see exactly what fittings I need to get the shape that I wanted. So I knew that I would need 4 x T pieces. I also wanted the knot tying jig to look pleasing, so I decided to cap the ends with 6 x end caps. It turns out that by adding the end caps they actually performed a useful function.

When at first I put the jig together, I felt that it would benefit from some additional weight. Luckily I had some scrap lead that I had been saving for a special occasion. So I rammed as much lead into the base or my jig as I could.

Now you would think that I would solder the whole lot together, sadly I did not have the equipments to do that. The solution for me was just to use some hot glue! Well the knot tying jig has worked well and only now and again needs re-gluing. However, when the timing is right, I will get it properly soldered.

Brass Bull Nose Ring

Another addition to my knot tying jig, was that I also wanted to be able to demonstrate tying rope onto a ring. So the simple solution to that would be to get hold of Brass Bull Nose Ring. Now the reason I chose that was firstly the rings are quite large, but they are also hinged and held together with a grub screw. The size of the ring that I settled for was 90mm, which has proven to be a good size to suite my knotting needs.