Zeppelin bend
| Zeppelin bend | |
|---|---|
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| Names | Zeppelin bend, Rosendahl bend, Rosendahl's knot |
| Category | Bend |
| Related | Zeppelin loop, Hunter's bend, Ashley's bend, Alpine butterfly bend |
| Releasing | Non-jamming |
| Typical use | Connecting two ropes |
| Instructions | [1] |
A Zeppelin bend (also Rosendahl bend) is a general-purpose bend knot. It is a secure, easily tied, and jam-resistant way to connect two ropes. Though its simplicity and security may be matched by other bends, it is unique in the ease with which it is untied, even after heavy loading by pulling the opposing bridges away from each other.
Front view
Back view
Loosening / untying
Both names for this knot stem from its alleged use to moor airships: a Zeppelin being a rigid-bodied type of airship, and Charles Rosendahl being the US Navy officer who allegedly insisted it be used to moor airships under his command. Such allegations, however, were seriously challenged when, upon seeking permission for reprinting the Paine article, it was disclosed that Rosendahl had responded to the original article to correct one location of training and he indicated no familiarity with the knot. Beyond the story, there is no evidence that this knot was ever used (and it's unclear why one would even need such a knot in mooring).
Despite being praised by some sources as a nearly ideal bend knot, it is not very well known;Clifford Ashley, author of The Ashley Book of Knots, was apparently unaware of this bend. Budworth (1998) names a similar-looking decorative knot the "blimp knot".
Another method of remembering this knot is to visualize a "69". To tie the knot, follow the steps below:
Another method of tying a zeppelin bend was discovered by Robert Narracci in 2010. As opposed to the "69 Method" in which both ropes are slack, the "Clover Method" allows the knot to be tied with one rope in tension.
One more practical method starts by holding the two ends together, throwing the tips up and over to the either sides of the main parts, bringing the far away end up in between the two main parts, then letting the two ends continue to pass through the double loop in opposing directions.
A double Zeppelin bend can be "made by repeating the final tucks", i.e. rather than just take each working end around and through once, do that twice for each of them.
Having on both ends, an elbow of the end rather than the end itself, cross the knot center, gives a single or double slipped version. This results in a knot where the curvature carrying the most weight is around twice as thick a core (thus with less curvature, giving possibly a higher break strength), but also a bulkier knot. It is still easier to untie by pulling the opposing bridges away from each other rather than by pulling the slipped end(s).
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Wikipedia