I've got a hanging chair (kind of like a hammock...but a chair) that has 2 free rope ends. I need to attach them together so that i can then attach it to another rope (or chain) to hang from the ceiling.

So is a knot the best way to connect them? Or is there a type of mechanical fastener that would work better?

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Sheet bend is used to connect two ends of rope together.

A Square knot will do fine.
Right over Left, then Left over Right.

Yes, sheet bend is the best...

[www.animatedknots.com]

unless you can splice

What type of rope are you working with? Three strand would lend itself to splicing a loop into one of the ends and then doing a "backsplice" with the other end just below the eyesplice. You could do the same with double braid, but it's much more work. To simplify this explanation, you would be creating an eyesplice in one end, and then treating the whole rope chair as if it were another eyesplice. The beauty of it would be absence of any knots.

.....hangman....??

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I reject your reality and substitute my own!

if the lines are parallel coming into the knot, i would make a loop using a figure eight. this an easy knot, makes a very strong loop, and is the same as a square knot just is made differently. the use a hook to connect to the chain. the only difficult thing is if you have to exactly set where the two ropes come together.

Another method would be to connect the 2 ends with a small hose clamp. Just overlap the 2 ends and you will be able to put the clamp exactly where you want it. And you could "melt" the 2 ends of the rope to be sure they didn't slip out of the clamp.

LyleH

The sheet bend is very close to the bowline. The bowline is my favorite knot because it does the trick well in about 90% of the situations that you need to tie just one end of a rope to something. It will not release under pressure but is pretty easy to undo when there is no tension on the rope.

[animatedknots.com]

Thanks all!

I'll have to give the knots a try. The rope is maybe 3/8 inch and very stiff which is why I was asking about a mechanical fastener.

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Quote
M>B>
Yes, sheet bend is the best...

[www.animatedknots.com]

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It is #1 on the search and it is now bookmarked.

It is a lot easier to tie 2 rope ends together when you have hostages ~!~

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BCam
A Square knot will do fine.
Right over Left, then Left over Right.

If this knot is going to be holding up a person, the square knot is just about the worst knot you can use -- square knots are not secure. Clifford Ashley, who wrote the bible of knots, said that square knots "have been responsible for more deaths than any knot combined." Stick to a doubled sheet-bend for the important stuff.

Again, to be clear, you have to determine if you are joining two ropes that will be under tension in opposite directions (in which case, use a sheet bend or other method for joining ropes), or do you need these separate ropes to come together in a loop for attaching to the chain, in which case you want to use something like a slice, a mechanical fastner, or you can double them up in the loop itself using a figure either (I don't see this method documented, so maybe I made this one up, but it very simple and does work). Also, you should decide if you ever want to undo this knot. If so, you are going to want to use a knot that can be untied later: the figure eight loop may not be easy to undo later.

Maybe it's better if there is an illustration...


I need to connect the 2 rope ends shown. After they are connected, they will need to be hooked (via s-hook or whatever) to another rope/chain which is attached to the ceiling.

Is that better?

Actually now that i think about it, it seems that a loop in each rope end would be the best. B/c then I can just hook them to the hanging rope/chain much easier.

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Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 05/31/2011 09:45AM by bazookaman.

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thanks for the pic, it is exactly what I thought. We have a sky chair too. A loop on the end of each rope works, and the figure eight knot is the obvious, best, strongest and simplest choice for a loop like that. The problem with two loops on separate ropes is that it will very difficult, maybe impossible, to get them lined up with each other, so one side will be longer than the other.

So separate loops one on each rope if the ropes can be adjusted in length at the chair or can be slipped along the bottom somehow; use single figure eight loops for the loop; or

One doubled up figure eight loop joining the two ropes in the loop if the ropes can't be adjusted for length.

At least, that is what I would do. This page has a pic of the knot. It could not be simpler to tie. The reason so many loop knots are complicated is because they are designed to be tied around something, not just for dropping a loop in the end of a rope.

[www.layhands.com]

"Figure-Eight Loop or Figure-Eight on a Bight or Flemish Loop"

Interesting. Although I have to say that I like the idea of using hose clamps. That way I can get the ropes EXACTLY the same length by looping them over and tightening a couple hoseclamps on them. Then I have 2 loops which just drop right into a hanger.

My mental shopping list is forming.

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