The Monkey Fist

[Aedon]

Shot with Photosmart M525 at 2007-06-27

A wonderful little knot used for heaving line, the monkeyfist was also used as a "concealed weapon" shoreside in a shorter form.

Using about 5'-6' of rope, the knot is tied and weighted and the rest of the line braided until around a foot of line remains. This is spliced back into the braid and thus made into a lanyard. While useful as a swung weight, it was often used thrown into the vulnerable areas of an opponent's body from a hidden position to surprise and stun before their continued beating or your... dashing escape.

Details for constuction to follow shortly, let me post this before I screw it up.

[Manglin' Maggi Maloney]

Excellent! Thanks for posting this. My dad used to make them eons ago. I hadn't heard the term for many years, before you mentioned it on another thread a while ago. I'de also forgotten how to make them in all this time, so this will be lovely learnin'!

Thanks!

[Abrams]

I think that would be a splendid addition to my garb! Let's see those construction details.

[Rumba Rue]

I made one eons ago, it's a great cat toy.....

[roytheodd]

I made this one yesterday after seeing this thread. It's the first time I've made anything using rope. It took me about an hour: five minutes to make the knot and fill it with weight, fifty minutes to learn to splice rope, and five minutes to actually splice it. In the future it'll be a lot easier to make one. I think I used the wrong rope though. I used 3/8", which is probably too thick, and it has a metal wire running through each of the three cords, so that too probably detracts. Nevertheless it's what I had and I'm really happy with it.

Anyone know where to look for lead to fill it with, like what kind of stores would carry lead? I used an aluminum foil ball stuffed with 30 pennies for weight. It's about 16" long.

[Patrick Hand]

A lead musket ball works....

This morning I was looking through American Merchant Seaman's Manual

Heaving Line is a light, fleable line with a heavy knot (monkey fist) in one end which helps get distance and accuracy tn the heave. ....

Then under Monkey Fist...

a core of old nuts, bolts or metal to make weight is inserted

in The Arts of the Sailor by Hervey Garrett Smith...

But bulk alone is not enough- it must be weighted to achieve the disired distance and accuracy by enclosing within it a ball or some sort- of rubber, wood or metal as your fancy dictates. A ball or lead has often been used, but since it then becomes a leathal weapon to the man who tries to catch it there's a question of how much weight is sporting. I prefed a ball of wood or rubber, since it will float in the water. This is quite important when the heaving line is thrown to a man overboard, for otherwise the line would quickly sink out of sight.

[BluePuppy]

ahhh that's awesome :) i'd love to make one of these (this flood has given me plenty of time to try ... stuff...)

[William Blydes]

I've made them out of lighter line and whip the ends.

Take a small piece of nylon stocking with catnip inside and put it in the monkey fist before tightening..

... and there you have a cat toy

[Aedon]

Aye, in use for heaving line a wood ball is best so as not be killed when it's pitched to ye. But in this, more... piratical shoreside use, I loves me lead shot.

[Skull pyrate Carter]

still waiting for directions.

[Capt Grey]

Me too.

Our Cub Scout Day Camp this year was pirate-themed and it would have been fun to have the boys make these. I'd like to have my Den learn since knot tying is very important when they graduate to Boy Scouts.

[roytheodd]

Instructions

I made mine following the diagrams in The Marlinespike Sailor by Hervey Garrett Smith, so I don't know how easy it'll be to follow the instructions I linked.

[Capt Grey]

Thanks. That's a nicely illustrated set of instructions.