Page 474 - The Ashley Book of Knots

ODD SPLICES

out fanlike and the three strands are combined and tucked as a unit,

four or five times full. If the splice is seized, three tucks are enough.

The tucks should be parallel with the length of the rope, not at right

angles to the lay, as the latter method tends to twist when pull is

exerted.

Buoy ropes and heaving lines are often spliced to larger rope in

this manner. 2832 2833

2832. The name CUT SPLICE is mentioned in Phillips' Dictionary

of 1658. Other book names for the splice are CONT, BIGHT and ANTl-

GALLIGAN. The splice is put in standing rigging for pendants, jib

guys, breast backstays and odd shrouds. The slit passes around

a spar or block and the ends are side spliced each to the standing

part of the opposite end, and the ends are secured with racking

seizings or else the splice is served over.

2833. This CUT SPLICE bulks only one strand larger than the rope

itself. One strand at each end is laid back for a distance greater than

the splice. One of the two remaining strands at each end is then laid

2B34
into the opposite rope for some distance and spliced to the opposite

end that was laid out. The two ends that were left, one at each

straddle, are tucked where they lie over and under, three and a half

times. Seize e:.ch end of the splIce with racking turns (~3403). Com-

pare with the REEVING EYE SPLICE (~2747) in the last chapter.

2834. The HORSESHOE or SPAN SPLICE is used in standin rigging

when the lead of either shrouds or sta s diverges too much or a seiz-

ing. The two ends of a short piece 0 rope are side spliced as ~2827.

2835. The early EARING CRINGLE was side spliced to the head and

leech ropes of a square sail. Later EARING CRINGLES are given on page .... --------, 2 835""

4 68 . "\

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2836. Square-sail clews of 1847. The clew rope of courses and top-

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sails on ships of over five hundred tons was the same size as the bolt- I

rope. On other square sails it was one inch larger in circumference. ,

Staysail clews were half an inch larger than the boltrope. The clew

itself was fourteen lays of the rope in length. It was stoutly seized ,

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and then the legs were side spliced to the boltrope. The whole splice

and the eye itself were parceled and served. Eyelet holes were 28,6

worked into the tablings of the sails, and the clew was marled to the

boltrope for the length of the service.

2837. In 1794 the clew rope of the topsails and courses was spliced

into the leech at the lower BOWLINE CRINGLE and to the footrope at

the first BUNTLINE CRINGLE. It was necessary to marl the sail to the

boltrope because the service was too hard to thrust a roping needle

through. But in all small sails of this period the clews were seized

directly into the boltrope itself, requiring no splices.

2838. A bull earing, also called a head earing, is the rope which

lashes the upper corner of a square sail to its yard or jackstay.

It is interestingly tapered by means of a series of SIDE SPLICES. The

end of a long rope is first laid back and side spliced (~2 8 26) to the

standing part at the desired length of the taper. The doubled length

is next divided into thirds and marked with chalk. A short piece of

the same size rope is laid parallel with the eye already formed and is

side spliced at the marked points. An eye is seized in and the whole 2838

splice parceled, marled and served over.