ROPE AND STRING



IF YOU ARE INTERESTED IN LEARNING HOW TO MAKE ROPE AND STRING
THE OLD WAY HERE IS SOME PICS AND POINTERS.

FIRSTLY YOU ARE GOING TO WANT A GOOD SUPPLY OF STRONG FIBEROUS
MATERIAL THERE ARE MANY PLANTS THAT PROVIDE GOOD ROPEMAKING
BUT UNLESS SOMEONE POINTS THEM OUT TO YOU YOU ARE GOING TO HAVE TO EXPERIMENT THE ONE I AM USING FOR THIS TUTE IS CALLED YUCCA
AND IS VERY ABUNDANT IN SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA.GET TO KNOW YOUR
PLANTS WELL IF YOU WANT TO BE ABLE TO USE THIS SKILL IN AN
EMERGENCY.

ALSO THE METHODS I USE HERE ARE VERY MUCH THE SAME AS IF YOU WERE
GOING TO USE ANIMAL SINEW WHICH IS THE STRONGEST MATERIAL THAT
EARTH PEOPLE HAD FOR ROPE AND STRING MANUFACTURE BUT IT IS AFFECTED
BY MOISTURE SEVERLY. MAKING RAWHIDE ROPE AND STRING USES A
SLIGHTLY DIFFERENT TECHNIQUE WHICH ILL POST HERE A BIT LATER


HERE IS A YUCCA AT 2 DIFFERENT STAGES YOUNG AND DEAD




IT IS A GOOD SOURCE OF FIBER ALIVE OR DEAD CUT A FEW LEAVES
OF A LIVE ONE SO AS NOT TO DAMAGE IT TO SEVERELY.



I AM GOING TO USE A FEW LIVE LEAVES. AFTER YOU HAVE COLLECTED WHAT
YOU NEED GENTLY POUND THE LEAVES TO SEPERATE THE FIBERS DEPENDING
ON WHAT PLANT YOU USE THIS MAY NOT BE THE BEST METHOD
TO USE ONE THAT I USED REGULARILY IN AUSTRALIA I COLLECTED
BY PEELING THE INNER BARK.







RUBBING THE FIBERS BETWEEN YOUR PALMS ALSO HELPS TO
BREAK DOWN THE FIBERS.

TO PUT IT SIMPLY THE LONGER,FINER,AND STRONGER THE INDIVIDUAL FIBERS
YOU USE THE BETTER YOUR ROPE IS GOING TO BE.



YOU SHOULD NOW HAVE A LARGE BUNDLE OF FINE QUALITY FIBER.
THERE ARE A FEW DIFFERENT METHODS YOU CAN USE TO TWIST THE FIBERS
TOGETHER THE ONE I USE IS PROBABLY THE SLOWEST BUT IT IS EASIER
TO LEARN AND IT HAS THE ADVANTAGE OF NOT RIPPING OUT YOUR LEG HAIRS.

I START BY ATTACHING ONE END OF A SMALL BUNDLE OF FIBER
TO A ANCHOR OF SOME SORT AND TWIST
USING MY FINGERS YOU CAN ALSO USE YOUR PALMS GRADUALLY WORKING
TOWARDS THE END OF THE BUNDLE BEFORE YOU GET THERE ADD
IN ANOTHER BUNDLE OF FIBRE AND KEEP TWISTING YOU WILL NOTICE
THAT THE TWIST GIVES ENOUGH STRENGTH TO HOLD THE 2 BUNDLES TOGETHER
BUT JUST BARELY .

THE TRICK HERE IS TO KEEP THE BUNDLES AS EVEN IN THICKNESS SO THAT
YOUR STRING DOES NOT HAVE HUGE LUMPS IN IT THIS WEAKENS THE
STRING/ROPE CONSIDERABLY.

THE PIC BELOW SHOWS FIBER BUNDLES READY TO TWIST/SPLICE



THE COMPLETED TWIST/SPLICE



NOW YOU HAVE A LENGTH OF FIBER BUNDLES CONECTED TOGETHER BY
TWIST/SPLICES.DOUBLE THIS BACK ON ITSELF PUT BOTH ENDS TOGETHER
YOU WILL NOTICE THAT IT HAS A NATURAL TENDENCY TO TWIST BACK ON
ITSELF THIS IS WHAT HOLDS IT TOGETHER AND GIVES IT STRENGTH.



A LENGTH OF STRING



TO MAKE STRING INTO ROPE YOU COULD KEEP TWIST DOUBLING YOUR
STRING BUT YOU WILL NEED TO START OUT WITH A VERY LONG PIECE
OF FIBER BUNDLES TO BEGIN WITH.

OR YOU COULD BRAID INDIVIDUAL STRINGS INTO ROPE

OR YOU CAN CONSTRUCT LENGTHS OF STRING THAT ARE TWISTED TOGETHER
IN SUCH A WAY THAT THEY TWIST TOGETHER LIKE IN THE DOUBLEING

AND NOW THAT YOU KNOW HOW TO MAKE STRING AND ROPE I BET YOU
CARRY A BIT MORE NEXT TIME YOU GET OUT ADVENTURING.

DON