Ropework
The various bights should then be drawn snugly until there is no slack and the completed knot fits tightly about the rod. A variation of this knot may be formed by making the first part as directed and then by slipping the knot to the end of the rod work one side tighter than the other until the plaits form a complete cap (Fig. 33 D). This makes a fine finish for the ends of stanchions, poles, flagstaffs, etc., and it may be kept in position by a few tacks or small nails driven through the inner strands into the woodwork.
Ropes that are to be used as handlines, stanchions, manropes, lifelines, shrouds or, in fact, for any purpose where appearances count, are usually wormed, served and parcelled. Worming consists of twisting a small line or filler into the grooves and making the rope smooth and ready for parcelling or serving. Parcelling is done by wrapping the wormed line with a narrow strip of canvas (Fig. 34 B), and finally the whole is served by being wrapped tightly with marline or spun yarn (Fig. 34 C).
Although all this may be done by hand the serving is usually accomplished by means of a tool known as a serving mallet (Fig. 34 D). This instrument enables one to work much more evenly and tightly than is possible by hand serving, but whether a mallet is used or you depend upon hand serving, the rope to be treated must be stretched tightly between two uprights or the result will never be satisfactory. Sometimes a rope is served without either worming or parcelling and for ordinary purposes the parcelling is not necessary; although the results obtained by performing all these operations are very much more satisfactory.
A variation in serving is made by means of half-hitch work as shown in Fig. 35. This is very ornamental when well done and is very simple and easy to accomplish. To make this covering, take a half-hitch with the small line about the rope, then another below it, draw snug, take another half-hitch and continue in this way until the rope or other object, is covered and the half-hitches form a spiral row of knots running around the covered object. Bottles, jugs, ropes, stanchions, fenders and many other articles may be covered with this half-hitch work and as you become expert you will be able to cover objects with several alternating rows of half-hitches.
Four-strand braiding is also highly ornamental and is very simple. To do this (Fig. 36), merely cross the opposite strands of small lines as illustrated in A, B, Fig. 36 B, first crossing A to the left of B, then crossing C and D above A and B and continue in this way until the braid is the desired length.
Still more decorative is a crown braid, which is made by forming one crown knot over another.
A wall braid may be made by forming a series of single wall knots in the same way and either the crown or wall braiding may be done with any number of strands or lines desired; the more strands used the finer and more ornamental will be the braid produced.
Sometimes the monkey chain, Fig. 38, is used for ornamental work, but it is more useful as a means of shortening rope in such a manner that it may be quickly lengthened out for use. To make the monkey chain draw a loop of the rope through its own bight as at A, B, Fig. 38; draw another loop through this (C, Fig. 38), another through this (D, Fig. 38), and continue in this way until the rope is shortened as much as desired, when the end may then be passed through the last bight as shown at E, Fig. 38. If left in this way the chain will never come loose and yet the rope may be lengthened instantly by slipping out the end and pulling upon it whereupon the entire chain will ravel.