Knots in Wire Rope

Practical Knots
1

Another thread, concerning knot names, made me thing of the “Foy Knot” and I thought I would share this article with the group:

http://tdt.usitt.org/getpdf.aspx?pdf=47-2knotsinwirerope

The first knot in the article (the “circus hitch”) is the most common of those shown. It has another name, not included in the article, despite the fact that I’m certain Mr. Hall would knot this name: The “Foy Knot”. (or “Foy Hitch” as it is in fact a hitch)

Foy; from Flying by Foy, the performer flying company founded by Peter Foy. While the circus hitch has been in use in the entertainment industry for decades, I believe the linked article is it’s first publication. I first learned the knot by the name “Foy Knot”. The knot has become known and popular withing the theatre rigging community due to it’s use by Foy (the company and the man). However, the riggers of Flying by Foy strictly call this knot the “circus hitch” and never “Foy knot”. Why? According to a reliable source (Foy’s grandson), Peter Foy hated people calling this knot the “Foy knot” because he didn’t invent it. If fact, despite that he used it extensively, he didn’t want his name attached to it!

But of course, he (nor any individual) can control how others behave, neither what the call a knot, or how they use it.

Out of respect to the wishes of my friend’s grandfather, I generally only call it a “circus hitch” now. Although I find it of great irony that when I started working with a circus, none of the riggers knew this knot at all!

Back to the article: I’ve used most of these knots, and seem them used “in the wild”, with the exceptions of the “general purpose knot” and double sheet bend (in wire rope). I’ve also seen other names and slight variations in finishing the “Flemish eye”. And there is one further knot to add to the list: ABoK #1074, the Bowline with a bight. A retired trapeze artist, who is now a rigger, showed me this knot used in wire rope. He used it extensively while touring as trapeze artist. Different venues, of different sizes, require different lengths of guy lines. Traditional circus performers are frugal of necessity, and rather than a new length of wire rope per venue, a long lenght was used all season, and knotted to the necessary size per venue.

I personally find the name “Bowline with a bight” to be confusing in practice. (understandably confused with bowline on a bight) My trapeze artist friend didn’t have a specific name for this knot (other than "the way I tye a bowline in wire rope) but I prefer “clip two bowline” to reinforce the necessity of loading both loops. I also believe this knot to be fairly strong, even in wire rope, given the wide radius of the nipping turn around 4 parts of line.

cheers
andy

2

Thanks for the article. I have heard of something similar to the circus knot being used to for hanging ceiling tiles using small cable IIRC.

I was very pleased to see what the article referred to as the “general purpose knot”. I have experience with this knot, used as a field expedient for attaching a broken winch line to a bull hook when skidding logs. This was the first time I have seen a reference to this knot. In my experience, however, this knot does, however, remain set when the line is slackened after heavy loading. One nice quality of this knot in wire rope (my experience with it was with cables between 5/8" - 3/4", swaged and unswaged) is that it essentially dresses itself when the hook is attached to a load and and the cable is tightened slowly. One man merely has to hold the working end while the skidder operator slowly applies tension with the winch. The equipment and the load do all the work.

JP

http://igkt.net/sm/index.php?topic=4315.msg26906#msg26906

3

I was amazed to realize that most of the eyes made in
galvanized cable supporting utility-poles were in fact
separate pieces of I think the same-size cable, but
with the lay being opened so that the two ends of the
eye cable could jointly wrap around what would become
the “S.Part” --though separate, solid/not-opened cable
supporting the pole. I watched one pair of workmen
install such an eye : the one man made a few wraps
with the eye piece --wrapping away from the eye, up
the solid (i.e., not opened, but yes laid) cable about
half-way, then instructed his assistant to release some
tension into the line (maybe not fully, but at least
some, IIRC), at which point he then made the final
wraps. !!

–dl*

4

Something like this?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lpKcYEQ6Yb4

JP

5

Yes, James, something like that. (It appeared to me
that early on the wrapping skips a groove, but … .)

But these guys put it on quickly in one fell soup ( ;D ),
whereas the fellows I saw seemed to go in two steps
per tension. (Though perhaps i misunderstood their
apparent increase of tension mid-way --maybe the point
wasn’t tension per se, but something else!?)

Still surprises me that this works!

–dl*

6
I have heard of something similar to the circus knot being used to for hanging ceiling tiles using small cable IIRC.

I can confirm that ceiling tile is generally held up by solid wire cable twisted to form a termination. I poke my head above ceiling tiles to install event rigging. Both this application, and the guy lines of utility pole use stiff solid cable, as opposed to the flexible 7x19 wire rope used in entertainment rigging, but the techniques are close cousins IMO.

JP, thanks for sharing the use of a knot in wire rope by your father. “big john knot” is a much more fun name than “general purpose knot”. really, how generic!

cheers
andy