Rope making machine

[Fairlead]

Lindsey,
From “Knights Modern Seamanship” 10th edition (the only US Seamanship manual I have)
Naval Terms and Definitions: " Fox - Two yarns hand twisted or a single yarn twisted against its natural lay; used for light seizings" (hence the twisting tool named a ‘foxer’)
No mention of nettles in there - But from Nares Seamanship (UK) 1897
Foxes - “Short yarns laid up by hand - laid up left handed”.
Nettle Stuff - “2 or 3 left handed yarns laid up right handed” (used as clew lines from the ring to the hammock - hence the name ‘nettles’)
I use the figure of 8 twist over the thumb and little finger a lot (especially when whipping/serving the Pilot Cutter handrails) and was taught how to do that in my naval training at HMS Ganges - not with line, but morse and murray code paper tape! - so that it would feed through the autoheads without twisting and snagging. No name was given as far as I can remember.

Gordon

[Fairlead]

Photo of my “Foxer”

[Willeke]

I did make photos of one of my ‘rope making machines’ today.
It is rather simple, home made with simple tools, but it works.
(There should be a plank under the single hook block, I still have to add it, now you have to hold it manually.)
The counterweight on the moving part is a plastic 2 liter milk jug, with a handle, that can have any weight from a few gramms to 2 kilo’s when using water, today I used about half a liter, so it was about 500 gramms, (near one pound).
Instead of a top I used a branched stick, it is in one of the photos. Worked better for the children, they understood it and could handle it well.
It is a willow branch that I cut some years back, I have used it several times and it still works perfect.

Willeke

---

[asemery]

and another rope twister. Tony

http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y18/asemery/55be8aed.jpg