Page 19 - Peter Randall - The Craft of the Knot

Chapter 1

SIMPLE STOPPERS

The best place to start learning knots is with stopper knots, or knots that are tied at the
end of a cord. Stopper knots have many uses and provide an excellent learning base for
practicing a wide variety of other knots.

STOPPING AND MORE

Stopper knots, also known as terminal knots or knob knots, are tied at the end of a

cord. In its strictest sense, the use of the word knot refers to a stopper knot.
A rope with a knot tied in the end of it is a completely different object than a rope
without one. It is easier to hang on to, it cannot be pulled through the same size

openings, the end will be less inclined to come unraveled, and it will look different, too.
All these changes in the properties of the rope are accomplished with a simple stopper
knot.

Basic Usage

To stop a cord’s end from running through a small opening is part of how a stopper

knot earns its name. By “stopping” the rope, the knot allows us to suspend something
from it. If the cord runs through a lead or pulley, a stopper knot can keep the line from
running all the way out, or unreeving. This is commonly done on a sailboat, where the
Figure Eight Knot is used for this purpose. It also stops the end of thread from passing

through cloth and similar materials in needlework.
A simple stopper knot is often used to make cordage easier to grasp, whether you

make it with the string doubled through the end of a zipper, or with larger rope to get a
better grip. Several stopper knots can be tied, and spaced out, to give many handholds.
When tied in the ends of many cords as if all one cord, it provides a way to keep them
gathered.