Over the years you’ve more than likely come to the conclusion that different tools you have around the house can be used for more than one purpose. Sometimes, we figure this out by necessity in an urgent situation and other times a light bulb goes off in our heads as we look at something and think up a new idea. The latter is what happened to me one day while I was looking at coiled Type 3 Paracord sitting on my desk.

As I looked at the loose paracord and a tool I had within reach, I pondered a way that would help me make a better use of the unused cord. Tools and rope have gone hand-in-hand for a long time. Rope work can require the use of tools, like marlinspikes and fids, when it comes to rope manufacturing, splicing or repair. Even though paracord isn’t quite the same as rope, I wondered if the this idea would transmogrify.

Type 3 Paracord Storage Mat

I’ve mentioned in previous articles that one of my hobbies is to crochet. I have a rather large collection of crochet hooks in all sizes that I’ve accumulated over the years and it occurred to me that one of my large crochet hooks would be a great tool to transform this loose coil of paracord into something more secure. I gave it a shot and it worked!

I found that by crocheting a simple chain, followed by slip stitches, I was able to create square or rectangle shapes that made paracord storage more utilitarian. (Check out the video below for instructions) It’s no secret that a  large coiled loop of cordage can come undone or get tangled. With this new “crocheted” configuration, paracord can be stored almost anywhere and lay flat.

A section of 100 feet of Type 3 Paracord can be transformed into a small mat that would store well in a trunk or a “go bag” without worry of  becoming a tangled mess when you need to use it. Smaller sections of 20 – 30 feet make great coaster size squares, which could easily be stored on a shelf, in a drawer, or in the small compartment of your car door.

Another thing that’s great about storing paracord after its been crocheted, is that it can easily be unraveled for use and you don’t have to worry about knots or tangles in your line.

Don’t have a crochet hook? You can also make these stitches using your fingers. The result may be a little less uniform, but with practice you can perfect your work.

Once I realized crocheting Type 3 Paracord would work well as a storage solution, I started thinking about other ways I store fine/thin yarns that would translate into alternatives for Type 1 Paracord storage. Sure, I could crochet the finer weight of cordage with a smaller crochet hook, however another idea quickly popped into my head.

Type 1 Paracord Storage Nest

When I unravel a crocheted or knitted project, sometimes it’s easiest to rewind the yarn into a center-pull ball using my thumb. This works really well for small amounts of yarn and creates a small nest that can be reused by pulling the working end strand from the center.

I’ve found that winding the Type 1 Paracord on my thumb can be a bit fiddly at first , however with a little practice it becomes easier to manage. The nest of cord would probably store best in a location where it wouldn’t get jostled around, but if you have a piece of netting to go over the nest, it will hold everything together firmly. You can buy yarn/cord nets or save the netting that comes on apples and pears when you buy produce, or on certain types of flowers at your local flower shop.

These are just a couple of ideas for you to consider for paracord storage, if you’re looking to eliminate coils of cord hanging around here and there. Do you have other ways of storing paracord that works well for you? If so, please share them in the comments below and check out the other storage methods we’ve shown here on ITS linked below.

For this week’s Knot of the Week, we’ll be showing you how to create your own Pace Count Beads. This simple device will enable you to accurately keep track of your distance traveled by using a time-tested technique.

Pace Count Beads

The premise behind Pace Count Beads is to pull down a bead from the bottom stack of nine beads each time you hit your “Pace Count.” Your Pace Count needs to be determined prior to setting off on your trek and we’ve got a great article here on ITS that explains how to determine your Pace Count.

The single bead pulled from the bottom represents 100 meters traveled. At each 100 meter increment another bead is pulled down. After the ninth bead is pulled down, the next 100 meters traveled (1000 meters total / 1 Kilometer total / 1 Klick total) resets the stack of nine beads and a single bead from the top stack of four is pulled down.

Once 5000 meters are traveled, the top and bottom stack of beads can be reset and the process can start all over again.

How to Make Your Pace Count Beads

For this project you’ll need a 26″ length of Paracord and 13 beads. There’s quite a few options available as far as what kind of beads to use. What’s show here are simple plastic craft beads from the hobby store.

Through the video and photos below you should be able to follow along with the creation process for making your own Pace Count Beads. The use of one of the guts from your 26″ strand of Paracord will help tremendously when you go to thread them on.

Simply girth hitching the Pace Count Beads onto a backpack strap or belt loop will keep them readily accessible when you need to track your distance traveled.

We were recently contacted by one of our readers, Nick, who had a great idea to utilize a small nail fused onto the the working end of a length of paracord.

This not only provides a better tip than fused paracord alone, but will give you a helping hand to weave paracord, somewhat similar to a fid or a marlinspike in traditional ropework.

Nick started with a medium sized bullet-head nail that he filed the tip on, to avoid snagging. He then inserted the nail into the working end of the paracord sheath and fused the sheath to the nail.

We’d like to thank Nick for providing the tip and hope that everyone got something out of it! Try it on your next paracord project!

In this week’s Knot of the Week we’ll show you how to coil a climbing rope so that you can easily carry it on your back. Not only is this method quick, but it will also allow you to easily deploy the rope for use.

While we use the term coiling, the real definition of this method is called flaking. Flaking allows the rope to be gathered in the natural way it lies and doesn’t add any unnecessary twists to the rope. Twists can kink over time reducing the life of the rope fibers, as well as lead to knotting when undoing the rope.

Carrying a rope in this configuration will allow a climber to move with the least amount of weight possible to reach their destination. Carrying the rope like this also helps a climber maintain a good center of gravity. Trying to free-climb with a backpack full of rope adds unnecessary risk to an already dangerous task.

Rope Coil » Misc.

(Strength: 2/Security: 2/Stability: 2/Difficulty: 2)

Please refer to our Knot of the Week introduction post for a description of what these ratings mean.

Make sure to leave at least six feet of rope on the working end to make the turns and have enough to tie around your body.

Uses:

• Carrying a rope while climbing
• Storing a rope in a natural configuration

Instructions:

1. Find the center of the rope
2. Lay the bight of the center across your left hand hanging down
3. Flake the rope forwards and backwards trying to reach the same low point each time
4. When you get to the last six feet or so, wrap a few turns around the upper part of the flakes
5. Pull the working end through the loop you’ve made with the flakes
6. *At this point you can tie off the working end for storage or continue for carry*
7. Separate the working ends across the base of your neck
8. Pull the working ends to the small of your back and cross them
9. Bring the working ends to your waist and tie off with a square knot
10. Go climb!

View The Full Gallery of Step-by-Step Photos on Flickr

Picking back up with our Knot of the Week series, today I’d like to show everyone how to build a Knot Tying Station to either practice your knots or race your friends.

This Knot Tying Station is modeled after one I saw at Boy Scout Summer Camp this year when I attended with my son as an adult volunteer. I’ve been involved in his troop for a few years now as an Assistant Scoutmaster and it’s been very rewarding to help teach the next generation what I know.

One of the events this year at camp was a knot tying race, where two competitions took place, one on the scouts side and one on the adult leader side. The objective was to tie the six Boy Scout knots in the fastest time. We utilized one of these Knot Tying Stations to compete on and I loved it so much I constructed one for our troop the next weekend.

Making notes on how I put one together, I thought it would be excellent to share with everyone at ITS, so let’s get into how to build your own!

DIY Knot Tying Station

First off, let me explain the six Boy Scout knots, as it will help you understand the premise behind the seven ropes shown on the station. The first two pieces of cordage on the far left, are used to tie the Square Knot. Working from left to right, the next four strands are for the four hitches; Taut-Line Hitch, Timber Hitch, Clove Hitch and Two Half Hitches. The far right strand is for the Bowline.

The hitching post is what truly makes this Knot Tying Station, as it’s always difficult to find something to hitch on to when practicing your knots. You can always use your fingers to tie around for some of these hitches, but what’s great about this station is that it’s all there for you.

At summer camp, the supposed camp record is 13 seconds, but I finding that hard to believe. I recorded the fastest adult time of 30:36 and there was a scout there that beat my time by a second. Now that I’ve constructed one of these for myself, I’ve been able to lower my time, but certainly not down to 13 seconds.

To highlight even more versatility from this station, it can also be used to tie the five BUD/s knots that are tied by Navy SEAL candidates in the Underwater Knot Tying Test. Those knots are slightly similar to the Boy Scout knots with a few changes. The Square Knot is still utilized, as are the Clove Hitch and Bowline. Added are the Becket’s Bend (Sheet Bend) and the Right Angle, which is essentially a Clove Hitch with an extra turn.

For SEAL candidates, these knots may seem simple, but let me tell you that with all the stress that’s added onto you during this evolution and the multiple times you’re heading down to the bottom of a 15 ft. pool on a breath hold, it can certainly be challenging. Not to mention that the instructor checking your knot for approval can take his sweet time, causing you to do the funky chicken while you patiently wait to be able to untie it and ascend.

As for the simplicity, these knots are chosen due to their use underwater to rig demo in beach clearing operations. The knots in the test are utilized on det cord to link sections together, tie off to a trunk line, or to tie on objects to be detonated. The primary mission of the UDTs (Underwater Demolition Teams) was to clear obstacles such as coral and jap scullys (horned scullys) so that amphibious landings were unhindered.

If you’re interested in more information on the BUD/s Underwater Knot Tying Test, we put together a video where I go through the whole test underwater, check it out here!

Creating Your Knot Tying Station

Now that you understand the functionality and purpose behind the Knot Tying Station, let’s get into how you can make your own. The video embedded below goes over the step-by-step instruction for creating your own and rather than put into words what the video does a great job explaining, I’ll refer you to this for starters.

Below, I’ll list the required materials and some notes on the cuts and measurements you’ll see described in the video. This should give you a good reference for what to gather and how to mark your cuts on assembly.

Materials

• 1″ x 12″ x 10′ pine board – have the hardware store cut it in half, making two 5′ long sections (Home Depot and Lowes both will cut this for you)
• 41″ long by 1 1/4″ or preferably 1 1/2″ diameter dowel rod (poplar) – These come in 6′ and 8′ lengths
• (3) 7 1/2″ long sections of 5/8″ dowel rod (poplar) – Purchased in 4′ section.
• (2) 23″ lengths of rope  (no larger than 1/2″ in diameter)
• (5) 36″ lengths of rope (no larger than 1/2″ in diameter)
• Rope Cutting Gun (optional) – This will save you an immense amount of time on this and future projects, it both cuts and fuses synthetic rope simultaneously.
• Box of 1 5/8″ screws
• 5/8″ Speedbor Spade Bit
• 1/2″ drill bit (optional, can use 5/8 Speedbore Bit for cleaner holes)
• 7/64″ drill bit for pilot holes
• Countersink set (optional)
• Power Drill
• Hacksaw (to cut 5/8″ and 1 1/4″ – 1 1/2″ dowel rod)
• Wood Glue
• Sandpaper (optional – 180 and 220 grit)
• Measuring Tape
• Pencil
• Spray Paint or Stain (optional – either/or – used flat black spray paint and Maxim Canyon Brown Stain in video)

Measurements

• Two 5′ lengths of pine are assembled with screws drilled with pilot holes and counter sunk at approx. 6″ intervals and a 1/4″ from the edge.
• Pilot holes for the 5/8″ dowel rod sections are drilled through the bottom at 12″, 30″ and 48″ approx. 4 1/2″ from front edge.
• From the top those holes are then routed out with the 5/8″ Speedbor Bit (don’t drill too far!)
• 5/8″ Speedbor holes are drilled in the 1 1/4″ – 1 1/2″ dowel rod at 2 1/2″, 20 1/2″ and 38 1/2″ (ensure they’re kept in line and at the top of the dowel)
• 5/8″ Speedbor holes are drilled in the backside of the Knot Tying Station 1 1/2″ from the top edge at 3″, 8″, 18″, 26″, 34″, 42″ and 54″ to create the holes your rope will be fed through.

Notes

In all this project shouldn’t take you anymore than about an hour and a half of total construction time. As mentioned, Home Depot and Lowes will gladly cut that 10 ft. piece of lumber for you at no charge and I’d highly recommend you take them up on that.

Total cost was right around $40 and could even be cheaper if you don’t want to use the better pine that I did for the 5 ft. sections. That cost is also based on you having some of the tools already, like the drill, hacksaw, tape measure and pencil. I hope you’ve enjoyed the DIY on the Knot Tying Station, I’d love to see photos of yours once you build it!

Feel free to leave any questions here in the comments and I’ll help you out however I can. There’s a little incentive for you to build your own Knot Tying Station too, there will be a contest soon on ITS, so start practicing!

In our newest Knot of the Week, we’ll be taking a look at a way to add a leash to the lid from your Liberty Bottle so it doesn’t grow legs and walk away.

One thing that I felt was missing from the US made ITS Liberty Bottles that we sell in our store, was a way to lanyard in the lid so it didn’t get lost. As I started taking Liberty Bottles with me while hiking and climbing, I quickly missed the ability to drink one-handed after removing the lid; which can be done with Nalgenes.

With a couple of easy knots and some Type 1 Paracord or the guts from standard Type III Paracord, you’ll be able to create your own Liberty Bottle Leash in no time!

Liberty Bottle Leash » Loops/Bends

(Strength: 5/Security: 5/Stability: 4/Difficulty: 3)

Please refer to our Knot of the Week introduction post for a description of what these ratings mean.

We’ll be using the Double Fisherman’s Knot and the Bowline for this Liberty Bottle Leash. Both are knots we’ve already gone over in our Knot of the Week series and while we show them being tied in the photos and video below, for a detailed look at each knot’s tying instructions, please refer to the following articles on the Bowline and Double Fisherman’s Knot.

Tying Instructions

• Start with a 24″ section of Type 1 Paracord, or a strand from the guts of Type III Paracord and follow along with the video or photos below.
• For detailed instructions on tying either the Bowline or Double Fisherman’s Knot, please refer to our articles for more info.