Tying the regular knots
Since the Knots Library was introduced you have felt all the time that mathematics were just around the corner haven't you?
I am pretty sure that you did not know most of the knots in the table. The reason is that they do not come from our usual climbing knots books or boating or fishing (etc...). They come from mathematics.
In other words, there is a new way to think our bondages. A new way to design them, and a new way to tie them.
You will find here after some illustrations that will help you to tie three of the regular knots.
Key knots
Key knots are the easiest of the regular knots. I called them "key" because each branch, just like a "key stone", holds the entire knot.
Follow those steps to build them :
- Lay down the ropes.
- Bend one branch.
- Flip the next branch over the previous one.
- Bend the last one over the previous one, into the loop left by the first one.
These beautiful and yet very simple knots deserve a few remarks.
Key knots belong to a family. They are not limited to order 3. Of course you can repeat the same principle to obtain key-knots of higher order. The family is well represented in the knots library (regular knots section).
Those knots are oriented. You will notice that most of regular knots are. During the elaboration of key knots, you will make this choice when you first flip one branch over the next one. (As flipping the first branch to the left or to the right makes no difference for knots of order 3, the choice has to be made upon flipping the second branch.)
Torus knots
From mathematics to bondage...
In the mathematical field, a knot is simply a closed loop. Closed loops can be very complex but also take the form of beautiful regular curves. Some particular examples of such knots are called "torus knots". Indeed a way to define them is to wrap a rope for several loops around an imaginary torus.
By pulling on the rope at specifically chosen points you will modify the shape of the torus knot and turn it into one of the regular knots.
Torus 3-5 stands for 3 runs around the pole covering 5 different cardinal points. Such knots are mathematically defined. Many do exist although very few are useful to us as riggers. The Torus 3-4 is very useful as well. The other torus knots can be used but are quite big in volume and I don't recommend them for obvious visual criteria.
Triskelion Knots
A variation of key knots will lead to Triskelion knots which allow different connections for a consistent number of branches.
(made with KnotPlot™ and Photoshop™)
Note a necessary adjustment in the 4th tying step. You can also easily compare the "outputs" of the triskelion knot with respect to the Key knot that we studied a few minutes ago.
Flip the knot over to enjoy the beautiful Triskelion shape.
Of course tying actual bondages that include Triskelion knots requires specific skills that you will discover in the book.
Beyond the table: enabling rules to unique bondage
We shall now discover the irregular knots and then try to understand how those beautiful knots can be connected to form a consistend and beautiful bondage.
