A Nylon Keeper, plus some Horn Knots

I had a request for a Keeper that had the ability to be size adjustable. I started with a four strands 6 feet long, found the middle of each strand and started a four strand round braid. I made the four strand round braid about and inch and a half. Then I folded the braid to create an eye, then started an 8 strand round braid. The 8 strand round braid is done for about 16 inches. I then tied a constrictor knot to secure the braid in order to tie a stopper knot. I tied a 4 strand diamond stopper knot, then doubled it with the remaining 4 strands. Now that the stopper knot can be pressed through the eye, with a little force, I wanted to make sure it can be strongly secured. So, I tied a Spanish Ring Knot, tight enough that it wont come undone, but loose enough that it will slide nicely. I then tied a couple more Spanish Ring Knots down the braid from the stopper knot. This will make the size of the Keeper adjustable. In other words you can make the loop of the keeper have smaller diameters.

The cord I used is 1/8" Solid Braided Nylon. A total of 26 feet were used.

I went ahead and included another picture of some horn knots I finished.

Full view of the Keeper

Diamond Stopper knot followed by Spanish Ring Knots

Round braid eye followed by a Spanish Ring Knot

7X8 THK with Gaucho Interwave, used for Horn Knots

The horn knots are tied from 3/32" Solid Braided Nylon.

A Look at the Current Inventory

I've been continuously making new halters, pigging strings, and horn knots. So, I decided to take a picture of all the current products I've put out over the past couple weeks. Everything is made of paracord except for the white halter in the front. It is made from solid braid nylon rope. It's a lot stronger, and I wanted to see if it would be more popular. The last picture is a close up of the flat braid that makes the nose band of the white halter.

A Few Keychains

This weekend I had some leftover line to work with, and some of my brother's friends wanted some new keychains. They were all done the exact same. Four strand round braid, ending with a 4 Strand Matthew Walker Knot. Not much to it, pretty simple.

Piggin Strings

My latest work has been tying a bunch of piggin string to sell. Each of these is tied with the standard 550 paracord. I used nearly 50 feet of cord for each string. I started with a four strand round braid, created a loop, then continued an 8 strand round braid for a short length. I tapered off this 8 strand round braid to continue on with a 4 strand round braid. The total length of the piggin string is 6.5 feet. I finished it off with a square sinnet and a four strand diamond stopper knot. This wasn't a very difficult project, it just takes a bit of time. If I guessed I would say each of these takes about an hour.

Latest Projects

Here is an update on some small projects that I've been working on.

First is wrap around my cell phone charger and the inverter for my truck. The cord is done with a four strand round braid plaited around the cord. The inverter is covered in a 7X6 Turk's Head Knot with a Goucho Interweave.

The next is a couple of knots that I tied to put on a couple of dog leashes. They are both Turk's Head Knots with Herringbone Interweaves.

The last project is a keeper like I have done before, except I used a Spanish Ring Knot to help cinch up the loop.

More Halters

For the past two weeks or so I have been working on making more halter of all different colors. This is the same style of halter that I previously posted, only difference is the colors.

Again I used 4 & 8 strand round braids, Spanish Ring knots, and Crown knots.

Here are some pictures, hope you like it:

Newest Lead Rope for Halter

This weekend I finished another lead rope for the next halter. This one was done just like the last except for the finish. I used a 4 strand round braid to make a loop into an 8 strand round braid. I braided the lead rope for about 8 feet. Then I finished it with a 4 strand diamond knot which I then doubled with the remaining 4 strands.

The color of paracord I used has a special name, but I can't remember it. It is lime greenish with a black camo breakup. The total length of cordage used is about 115 feet of 550 paracord.

Halter for Horse Part 2

So here is a project I completed a couple of weeks ago. I didn't have time to take pictures of it in my shop, but I did go out one evening and get pictures of it on the horse. I think this make it look better and actually show its useful purpose. I used only 8 strand braids and 4 strand braids. It took about 200' of paracord. The paracord I used was some kind of blue camo with a reflective tracer. In the future I am going to try to make several of these halters and sell them. I used a couple of Spanish ring knots and a Turks head knot to connect some of the braid as well as make it aesthetically appealing. This project was very similar to the neck rope I made, only more advanced with the complexity.

Neck Rope

The latest project I finished is a neck rope for my brother. I used regular 550 paracord that was blue camo with a reflective tracer added. This was a very simple project which started with a four strand round braid. I then looped this braid and used the eight strand to make an 8 strand round braid. I worked this for a total length of 3 feet. I ended the braid with a 4 strand diamond stopper know, which I double using the remaining 4 strand.

I added some Turk's Head knots in order to keep the rope in place while being used. I tied two 3X5 Turks Heads towards the end of the neck rope. I also tied a 5X4 Turks head close the the loop to serve as a tightening mechanism to keep the loop from sliding around.

Halter Part 1

So my next big project that I'm currently working on is a horse halter for my brother. He chose the type of paracord which is a blue camo with a reflective tracer braided through it. The reflective tracer actually works and is pretty cool in the night.

Part 1 of this project entails the lead rope portion of the halter. I started with a four strand round braid and worked it about 2.5 inches long. Then I folded it back on itself and continued the length of the lead rope with an 8 strand round braid. Without a core this part ends up working itself into a square/rectangular shape which is pretty cool.

I braided the rope about 7 feet or so until I got to where I wanted to end this part. So next I split the 8 strand round braid into two 4 strand round braids. With each of these 4 strand round braids I tied a diamond stopper knot with two cords, then took the other two cords and doubled it.

In the end it came out real nice, and I will continue to follow this type of process for the main part of the halter.

Key Chain

I previously tied a 4-strand round braid key chain for my younger brother, and after a couple months he ran it over with the lawnmower. The keys survived but the paracord took a hit. So I retied another one for him. The colors are olive drab and tan. I ended the 4-strand round braid with a Matthew Walker knot. This knot isn't easy, but when done right, it looks awesome. Overall this was a very easy project, and took about 15 mins to complete. I used about 4 foot of each color of paracord.

Keepers

My brother had a problem with finding a good quality keeper to pass his rope through. We came up with a few of different ideas on how it should be made. First was using a 6 strand round braid and making two 3 strand braids that split and come back together to form a hole. It would have worked, but it turned  too thick for our purpose. So I settled with a four strand round braid and made the hole by twisting the two ropes together to form a loop.

The last one uses the six strand round braid but I used some leftover microcord, and it satisfied the thickness and look I was originally going for.

Key Chain Lanyard with Buckle

A guy the other day wanted a lanyard that he could attach his keys to but also detach they key when getting ready to start his car. I had seen similar things around the internet that used a buckle at the end of the lanyard for this very reason. The lanyard is done with a four strand round braid of alternating colors and then spliced back on itself closer to the buckle. The bottom is done with a simple solomon braid knot. The colors used are white and caribbean blue.