I was browsing through Grogs Animated Knots (bedtime reading
) and I found two new additions: the EStar Hitch and the EStar Stopper.
Evans Starzinger briefly posted about the hitch in the middle of one of his threads early this year, but it is the first time I have seen the stopper.
The EStar Hitch is described and animated under Details of a Buntline Hitch here:
Buntline Hitch | How to tie a Buntline Hitch | Boating Knots
And the EStar Stopper can be found here:
EStar Stopper | How to tie an EStar Stopper Knot | Boating Knots
I have a query for Evans or anyone else. The animated version shows the initial clove hitch reversed in an odd way. I've never seen a Buntline started like this and the quick animation confused me to no end at first. Is the
knot equally strong if the clove hitch is started by passing under the standing end when this has been taken over the top of the bar from the front, as opposed to the traditional passing it over?
In the animation of the stopper, it is shown going the traditional way.
Just curious
.
If the answer is unknown, personally I would stick with the traditional Buntline as a starting point rather than what Grog has shown
. It looks as if it would be weaker, particularly if the object it was passing around was of any significant thickness.
Anyway, for those of you who haven't seen this
knot before, if tied correctly it is the most secure "easy" way known at the moment to tie a hitch using slippery
Dyneema. From memory Evans reported that it did not slip, but broke at 54% of line strength. It is a very useful knot to know if you are using
Dyneema on board and need to attach it reasonably securely to something in a hurry.
This is the frozen image from the animation at the step before a Buntline is extended to form the EStar. This is not like any Buntline I have seen. Has Grog shown this incorrectly?