Here in Indiana we’ve had over a foot of rain in the last week or so, well I got my 3/4 ton F250 Ford work van stuck in the mud. The two back tires were half way buried in some serious mud cake. I called my friend with a full size, 4X4 pickup truck and we set about pulling this thing out. He had a tow rope but it wasn’t long enough, so I told him I would bend my strongest rope to his tow rope and try that.
Long story short, I ended tying the Zeppelin Bend and two buntlines at the anchor points. The buntline under my van finally slipped after I was pulled out and on the way to solid ground because I wasn’t able to get a long enough tag end…the tag end was only an inch or so. The Zeppelin Bend came right undone and didn’t slip an inch, now the other buntline was a PITA to get undone…had to cut it off. There was a TREMENDOUS amount of force being put on those two ropes and the knots, they held beautifully. It pays to learn a little about knots, definitely saved me from calling a tow truck driver. I still can’t believe how that Zeppelin Bend held up, what a tremendous workhorse of a bend.
Given that you could foresee the considerable force that would
arise, why did you use a buntline vs. some non-jamming hitch,
such as the fisherman’s bend? --or a bowline?
In such short-duration-of-loading circumstances, I’d feel comfortable
with short tails on Rosenthal’s or Ashley’s #1452/1408 bends
–and for strength, would favor #1452.
What were the ropes? (Did it occur to you that they could part,
and that you might want to guard against snap-back somehow?!)
Dan,
I didn’t want to use the buntline but the way the vehicle was sitting in the mud, I could barely get access to throw the rope over a proper anchor point. My mind was telling me to make a round turn but I could barely get the rope around the van’s anchor point once and in a fit of frustration and impatience just quickly threw a buntline in. At first, I attempted the round turn and two half hitches, just couldn’t reach far enough under the van to properly dress that hitch. I guess it was probably the easiest hitch for me to tie at that point is what I’m trying to say.
I was definitely concerned about the rope breaking and snapping back…big time. I was sort of crouched down as far as possible behind the steering wheel while still being able to see the tension and knowing when to hit the gas. This rope system held for over a hundred yards of pure truck power pull, I’m a believer in the Zeppelin Bend for sure. As I stated, the buntline under the van eventually gave way but I was on more solid ground by that point. The reason it gave way was because I simply couldn’t reach the anchor point well enough to put a proper tag end or working end on the hitch.
If you were having a problem with rope length, I can certainly sympathize. It’s strange how often it seems that the situation doesn’t permit the extra few inches needed. One of the most rope-length efficient hitches is the Timber Hitch (or something near to it), which just happens to be amiable to removal after use.
I don’t know why I didn’t tie the slipped buntline…that would’ve been the ticket. If I had better access, I probably would’ve went with a round turn and two half hitches as Budworth suggests in his Encyclopedia of Knots. Budworth claims it’s the go to hitch in this situation, of course there are alternatives as my case proves beyond a doubt. I really wish I could’ve video taped the actual event, the amount of stress and force had to have been tremendous. I just couldn’t manuever well enough to even get a round turn over the anchor point.
The main reason I tied the Zeppelin Bend was because I once saw a you tube clip of a man putting the Zeppelin Bend to a great amount of force and he proved it didn’t slip one bit…that’s stuck in my mind.
Yes, I wish you’d had a slipped buntline hitch in the system, and then
maybe we’d see the real value (maybe zilch) of that slipping.
As for Rosendahl’s bend not slipping, I’m surprised that you were at
all expecting anything less? --it’s been well attested to (here, e.g.).
So, too, for various other knots. (And what counts as “slippage”
in any claim should be analyzed for significance --inevitable adjustment
resulting from compression of the knot and elongation of material
should not be regarded as the knot failing to hold,
THOUGH maybe they nevertheless might be important enough
behaviors to urge the choosing of one knot over another.
AND we still haven’t learned WHAT ROPES YOU WERE USING
–size (approx.), construction, material.
