The Book of Knots: How to Tie 200 Practical Knots [Paperback]

Geoffrey Budworth (Author), Jason Dalton (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 2003

Which is stronger, an Englishman's Loop or a Spanish Bowline? When mountaineering, should you trust your life to a Bachman Knot or a Clove Hitch? What's more permanent, a Needle Knot or a Butterfly Bend? Well, even if you can't tell an Icicle Hitch from a Frost Knot, you'll soon know these answers cold with this fully illustrated guide to more than 200 practical knots. Basic bends, loops and hitches are shown, along with specialized lashings, coils, stoppers, whippings and splices suitable for purposes as diverse as tying livestock, securing small boats and raising heavy loads. Learning to tie these knots is a cinch, with hundreds of color illustrations that demonstrate every bend, tuck and twist of the rope. Knots are rated for strength, security, and ease of both tying and untying, and concise historical information is also included, explaining both the origin and specific uses for the knots.

Product Details

• Paperback: 320 pages
• Publisher: Distribution (May 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1586637843
• ISBN-13: 978-1586637842
• Product Dimensions: 6.5 x 6.4 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #433,408 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

19 of 22 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Poorly Done--Far Shy of Expectations, January 19, 2004

By A Customer

This review is from: The Book of Knots: How to Tie 200 Practical Knots (Paperback)

One should expect an excellent work from two knots-savvy
authors collaborating on a book; sadly, this book is worse
in various ways than other Budworth books, and far short of
expectations.

General comments:

It's amazing that one has to HUNT down the explanation of
the knots-rating colored numbered dots. Their most brief
explanation is on the inside of an inner COVER page, before
the Introduction, with publishing information!
There's no explanation of how these ratings were made: who
decided and by what basis how "secure" or "strong" each
knot is?

It's bad that the small-format book (roughly 5.5"x6.5")
comes with needlessly small font & rating-symbols, and yet
leaves a great deal of empty space that ought to contain
better, more detailed explanation of the knots.

The illustrations are of poor quality, mostly, and there
are many errors. (One would think that after doing THIS
many books, Budworth would have things figured out!)

There's no indication of what contribution each author
made to the book. We've seen many Budworth books, and
their content is pretty much the same. Dalton is said to
be a research engineer and knots instructor to both scouts
and rescue personnel. One should expect much more in a
knots book from persons with such credentials.

It appears that only in one case does the book advise one
to moisten angling line when tying a knot--advice that is
common in books on fishing knots, and important(...)

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars I use it more than I use The Ashley Book of Knots, December 21, 2010

By 

Joshua R. Hewlett "dilettante par exellence" (Huntsville, AL) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Book of Knots: How to Tie 200 Practical Knots (Paperback)

I've owned several knot books including the much ballyhooed Ashley Book of Knots. When I go to brush up on my knot list or learn new knots, this is the book that I consult. Most knot books, like math textbooks, fail to effectively convey the subject matter. This is due to the fact that experts are more often than not bored with the elementary theories and examples within their respective fields and offer cursory treatment of basic subject matter at best. They will often skip the steps that they deem to be intuitive/boring, leaving the rest of us to scratch our heads and read the same sentences over and over again or fruitlessly scan and re-scan a series of complicated images or examples. This is not the case with The Book of Knots.

The diagrams for the most part are clear and easy to follow and do not suffer from the confusing clutter that plagues the example diagrams in other knot books. The author has chosen to use very clear drawings instead of photographic images which have a tendency to suffer from poor lighting, low resolution, and the optical illusions played by rope and cord textures. The clarity and thoroughness of the steps and illustrations result in a gratifying knot-tying experience and confidence in the finished product. That's not to say that your mind will not be put through its paces when tying some of the more complicated knots. However, you will not find yourself consulting another resource only to find that a crucial step was either skipped or hidden beneath a spaghetti tangle of meandering arrows.

The Book of Knots employs a very useful knot-rating system that enables the reader to quickly assess a knot's suitability for the task at hand. This feature lends itself to an often overlooked rule of knot-tying. That is, understanding a knot's limitations is equally as important as knowing its uses and how to tie it. The knot-rating system provides an ever-present reminder of this.

While superior to most other knot books out there, this book is by no means perfect. I have come across illustrations wherein a section of rope or cord mistakenly passes over instead of under another section or vice-versa. However, in the few instances that I have seen, these erroneously illustrated sections are not located near the working end of the cord or rope and are thus not likely to result in confusion or improper tying.

The Book of Knots is compact, ruggedly bound, and it is printed on tough, thick pages. However, the nature of the binding is not well suited to the book's application. The book will not stay open on its own and this poses a bit of a problem when you are trying to consult it whilst wrestling with a tedious hitch or splice. It would be much more handy if it were spiral-bound instead.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Outward Bound instructor Dees is right., February 20, 2009

By 

K. Hammel (Spring Vly, IL United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: The Book of Knots: How to Tie 200 Practical Knots (Paperback)

200 knots is the right amount for me in my lifetime. I studied knots 35 years ago in scouting and now I have a job where I get to use knots using manila HEMP rope daily. I was looking for a good refresher knot book. Of the 9 odd knot books I have seen including Ashley Book of Knots, this one is well executed & most useful. I would give up all the others ahead of this one. Unfortunately, the price on the paperback 2003 edition is actually $12.95 and not knowing that I paid double that used. I still got a bargain. It's that good.