Hi there, I’ve just joined this forum and am looking for a knot recommendation. I recently had to tie a skipping rope to a rail, creating the classic one person operated skipping rope. I.e one person twirls the free end. My go to knot is a clove hitch, but was quite surprised at the speed at which that knot loosened. (It took only 10-20 twirls). I even added 2 half hitches, the generally accepted way of securing a clove hitch, and they loosened rapidly too!
I reverted to a figure 8 loop, which I wrapped around the rail, then passed the entire rope through that loop. When the rope was pulled taught, the loop end gripped the rail. No issues with this arrangement coming loose.
But it did make me wonder what regular knot can resist loosing from a twirling action such as exhibited by a skipping rope?
I think the cause of the loosening here is that you are using a hitch around the object you’re tying it to, and the rope is moving a lot while the railing is not moving.
So a simple approach is to tie any loop that goes around the rail, rather than attaching to it in a fixed way - for example a figure 8 loop tied using the ‘follow-through’ method (ie climber style, not ‘on the bight’).
That way the knot itself in not subject to much movement relative to itself of the rope, the rope will pivot around the rail.
A good choice for a rope that’s constantly being spun—like the cord of a skipping‑rope—is a knot that tightens under tension and resists slipping.
Two “regular” (i.e., non‑special‑purpose) knots that fit that description are:
1. Constrictor Knot Why it works – The constrictor is essentially a tightened clove‑hitch that bites down on the standing part of the rope. When the rope is pulled (or spun), the knot cinches tighter instead of loosening, acting like a built‑in clamp. It’s simple to tie, holds firmly even under repeated motion, and is commonly used to bind cables, hoses, or rope ends that must stay secure.
How to tie it
Form a loop in the rope so the working end crosses over the standing part.
Bring the working end around the standing part and pass it under the first turn, forming a second crossing.
Pull both ends snug; the two crossing turns lock together, creating the classic “over‑under‑over” shape of the constrictor.
(If you need a visual, a quick image search for “constrictor knot” will show the exact steps.)
2. Double Fisherman’s Knot (or Double Overhand Bend) Why it works – This knot creates two interlocking overhand knots that grip each other tightly. When the rope is twisted or tensioned, each half of the knot pulls the other tighter, making it extremely resistant to loosening. It’s frequently used by climbers and anglers to join two rope ends securely, and it handles repetitive motion well.
How to tie it
Lay the two rope ends parallel, overlapping by a few inches.
With one end, tie an overhand knot around the standing part of the opposite rope, leaving a long tail.
Repeat the same step with the other end, creating a mirror‑image overhand knot.
Dress the knot by pulling all four strands evenly; the two knots slide together into a compact, self‑tightening block.
Both of these knots are “regular” in the sense that they don’t require any exotic tying techniques or additional hardware, yet they excel at staying locked when the rope is subjected to the rapid, cyclic motion of a skipping‑rope.
Quick tip: After you’ve tied either knot, give it a firm tug in both directions before you start using the rope. That pre‑loads the knot and ensures it’s fully seated, which further reduces any chance of it slipping later on.
Hi pacharanero, thanks for your thoughts. It has made me think about minimising movement of the rope relative to the rail. I gave your suggestion a go, being a loose loop on the rail. It does minimise the “undoing” movement, but unfortunately it throws off balance the dynamics of the rope swing. For a fluid swing the rope needs to firmly grip the rail. I’ve tried a couple of other things, which I’ll elaborate on in the reply I’m about to do to Charles.
Hi Charles, the Constrictor works very well. Thank you for that suggestion. In fact it works almost too well. Even though there is only a light tension from the skipping rope, the Constrictor becomes quite hard to undo. It is remarkable that it can lock onto itself with such tenacity! If the skipping rope was used for some hours, I dare say you’d need a screwdriver to pry the knot apart.
So, following on from my testing based on pacharanero, I found that a Bull Hitch is a good compromise. Easy to tie, grips the rail well, does an ok job of not undoing, and is easy to untie when it comes to packing up.
The Constrictor would be the choice if the skipping rope needed to be permanently attached. Thanks for introducing me to it.
My pleasure Peter don’t hesitate to ask on the forum if you have others questions.
Also about the constrictor knot if you are in a emergency situation the constrictor knot can be use as a tourniquet to stop massive bleeding in fact if the constrictor knot is very tight it might work even better than the tourniquet.
This would work, but speaking as a former Emergency Doctor (now GP) we prefer to use a Spanish Windlass because is allows control over the pressure applied. If circulation is completely cut off for many hours then the limb itself would become gangrenous, so a Spanish Windlass lets us tighten the tourniquet to the point the arterial supply is cut off (to save life from bleeding) but we can periodically slacken the tension to allow reperfusion of the limb, under controlled conditions (eg. with IV fluids/blood volume replacement running) to save the limb while waiting for surgical facilities to be ready to fix the bleeding definitively.
All modern trauma tourniquets are of the windlass type now.
Perhaps we need a regular section for debate - “Best knot for a …” - where the OP asks a questions, the community answer, and the OP can choose the best ‘solution’. Discourse even has a ‘Solved’ feature, which I shall enable now.
My bad Marcus i should have added a warning in my reply about the control of the blood flow with the constrictor knot. it just go one way like the hangman knot.
No probs @Charles! This forum is for everyone to share knowledge! I would love to have more topics along the ‘Best knot for a …’ theme - I think that sort of thing will attract lots more visitors as well, because I think it could improve our rankings on search engines.
You can secure the Clove H. by tying an overhand/fig.8/stevedore
stopper in the tail and position it snug to the knot --no Tail can
then feed into/through the clove hitch.
Vice the Constrictor, you might use a “Double Clove H.”
which I’ll name thus for making a 2nd over-arc/-wrap
before finishing the knot with tucking out the Tail.
This should hold like the Constrictor.
The Groundline/Picketling hitch is like but simpler (fewer wraps)
than the leftmost/first-shown hitch in the video.
The center knot is my “Double Clove H.”, simply converted
to the less-smooth, less tightenable Constrictor.
I’ll venture another Clove hitch variation (which I think
might show up under bag/sack hitches somewhere, …).
Tie the Clove hitch but loosely enough so that you can
“shift” the intial (S.Part’s) turn around the object OVER
the finishing turn --i.e., over-around to the other side
from where the Clove hitch began. This will see nipping
of the Tail come with rope-on-rope, and looks secure.
Also, and quite simple, the Timber hitch should work
–you’ll be a good tester!-- if one makes a 2nd or 3rd
turn around the S.Part (loaded part coming to the
object hitched); it is probably best to “cascade” the
away turn of this added coil such that it comes down
around the coil to closer to the object. The point of
the extra turns/coil is getting a friction grip on the
line to keep it tight (once set tight).
Hi Roo, that’s a nifty knot. Thanks for sharing. I did test it and it has a tendency to loosen when subjected to the twirling of a skipping rope. But I can see it will be useful in more straightforward static load situations. Thanks.
@Dan_Lehman I must compliment you on your recommendations. You seem to intuitively appreciate the situational challenges and a knot’s characteristics to meet those challenges.
For fun I’ve included 2 photos of the Ozknot test laboratory. Haha. The all white heavy rope is for the skipping rope test. The white with black fleck rope is to test the ability to tie and untie the knot under load.
Your knot recommendations nailed the brief. My two favourites for the skipping rope use case are the Double Clove H and #1674 Spar Hitch. Both were excellent. (For completeness, the Timber Hitch was the weakest contender as it loses grip on the rail).
If I shift my criteria to more universal application, I am a fan of the Double Clove H because, with a bit of technique, it can be tied and untied under load. That’s what I love about the standard Clove Hitch. The Double delivers as well, albiet requiring a bit more technique and effort to tie and untie under load. But you get a massive uplift in knot security over the the standard Clove Hitch.
Dan, you mentioned “my Double Clove H”. Is it your design? Very impressed. It’s now a favourite in my knot bag. Thank you.
Not my design. Artist Windy Chien figured it for herself,
as apparently some others. It’s rather surprising that it’s
not popping up in the literature. (Note that it dissolves to
an OH absent the hitched object; but both single & double
Constrictor evaporate ; triple C. goes to OH. --an important
aspect for e.g. putting in knots along a series of stakes,
preforming the knot and sliding it down onto the stake,
no ends needed.
MY design for the Clove Hitch though
–likely not elsewhere found-- is this : tie the Clove H.
on (for discussion’s sake here) a horizontal spar, S.Part hanging
down to right or upwards-exiting Tail ;
bring the tail back to go around behind the S.Part and back
up to then tuck back down through the center of the knot
–giving my name “Collared Clove H.” its validity. Loading
should see the S.Part nip the Tail and hold it, with the knot
being easily loosened for untying.
Roo’s suggested Gnat H. can be secure by various means
to redress its loosening --put in an OH stopper, or take
the Tail around the object and tuck it out some way.
As for “spar hitch”, that’s one of those names that best
denotes a group of like knots --a class for tying to objects
moderately larger than rope diameter. #1674 was what
I had in mind, but didn’t find --it’s like the ground-/picket-line
hitch but the Tail reaches across the S.Part to then tuck out
in the opposite direction --and in a position that lets it serve
qua loosening-lever.
As for the Timber H. losing grip on the rail,
the ol’ motto “One Good Turn…” applies --take
your line around the object and then do the
extra turns & dogging of the Tail (but through
only one of your now two turns should suffice).
As you know the clove hitch Dan Lehman idea is a good and simple solution which I always use over that hitch but another solution would be a round turn and two half hitches as again you know and are confident with the clove hitch; this time there is no need for the overhand on top but if there is sufficient in the ropes end you might add another (a third) half hitch
don’t hesitate to ask on the forum if you have others questions.
