For the first time I am going to use rope to tie things down. I picket up some ship building rope that looks to be the right scale. the question I have is what type of knots do everyone use when tying things to a vehicle. Thanks for the help all

Hi,

You can look here - Ropers Knots Page.

There is a Field Manual - FM 5-125 Rigging Techniques -- ropes, knots, wire rope (steel cable) but, the server is down (see the tread about Techical Manuals on CD.

Hope this helps.

José,

That FM 5-125 is just FABULOUS !
No, the server is not down anymore and yes, this is incredibly interesting information.

I do not want to spoil the content for others, but I like to quote this phrase :
"Chains are made up of a series of links fastened though eachother. Each link is made of a rod of wire bent into an oval shape and welded at one or two points".

But serious now : although they break down the simples house and garden techniques and make them sound like rocket science (yes, true US army language), this document shows every little detail on how to tie down things, how to make knots, how to fasten cables and chains, hoists, winches and Spanish windlasses ... to name but a few items.

Interesting stuff !!!

Jan

Thanks for the great links and help guys. So if I understand correctly a person would use some type of hitch knot to tie sotwage to a vehicle. If I understand incorrectly please let me know.

Hi Andrew,

On boats and ships yes we use a hitch knot to tie things.
At Army I am not sure but, you can confirm at the FM or one of our tankers could give their idea.

All,
The Knot FM is great, however, I am an active duty artillery officer in the US Army and will tell you that we simply tie things on with straps or ropes however they will stay. Some things you just do. The Army has manuals on everything, not all are actually used. The best method is to just tie them onto the model in a way that looks natural. Soldiers in the field do not referance a manual on how to tie down their equipment. Hope this helps.

This is great, I will now defer any questions regarding US artillery to you. Tanks & Brads I know, APCs are easy, Hummers are everywhere, but I know virtually nothing about howitzers save for the fact that I'm signed for a couple of M109s, M102s and M198s.

I'll help where I can.

Sure must be frustrating to write those manuals, if field soldiers don't give a * about your instructions !
Then again, I once stayed the night in a USAF hotel (Ramstein AFB, Germany), and the sink actually had a sign that said "to run water, turn tap clockwise. To stop running water, turn tap anticlockwise" or something of that nature. Only when meeting active US soldiers in a joint field ex, (Reforger), I discovered that EVERY single form of action is prescribed and regulated in books and manuals. Really funny if you are used to a makeshift lifestyle like we had in our army... !

We just tied stuff on. For the most part, we liked to use straps of various kinds, since they had buckles and were a lot easier to untie. When we had cord or rope (not often), the knots tended towards the ol' square knot. We considered knots to be a sort of art form, and practised 'abstract expressionism'. In other words, any old knot that held the stuff and stayed (more-or-less) tight was fair game. Most had no name, and no one would dare name them. Others were better left unnamed!

Often the knots had to accomodate the desire to not cut the rope/cord, since that left you with two shorter lengths with a lower theoretical potential usefullness that the single longer piece. Picture one long rope used to tie down 4-5 different items...

Keep in mind that rope is not a common item in most US Army units, and most modern vehicles use it only rarely. (Rope that is left in the sun/rain/etc tends to fall apart and become useless. The less expensive the rope, the more rapidly it deteriorates. The Army is a budget driven organization, and units will normally purchase the cheapest rope available unless otherwise specified.) In modern use, the nylon or cotton web strap with a metal buckle is much more common.