CMU School of Drama


Wednesday, March 30, 2016

Knot of the Week Video: Reinforce Your Angles with Diagonal Lashings

ITS Tactical: When building structures and using lashings, the Diagonal Lashing a worthwhile addition to your toolbox. As spars cross on diagonal angles from 90˚ to 45˚, utilize this variation to increase the stability.

2 comments:

Drew H said...

I was a camp counselor so I have tied my fair share of lashings on overnight camping trips. Did I do or teach them the way that is shown in this video? Not exactly, but I used the same concept and explained how diagonal, and horizontal are not the same style of lashing because they do different things, so I guess I didn’t totally fail my campers. I think this article is fairly timely since we were just assigned the knot assignment. I don’t think this would be an approved knot because we would never use it in theater, because we have these things called screws. This is not to say we shouldn’t learn it because who is to say we will never be stranded somewhere with only sticks and rope, its unlikely, but not an impossible situation to be in. I also believe that there is more than one way to tie lashing because if it works, it works… Also, this is too much to remember, just tie it so it makes your shelter stand.

Daniel S said...

This lashing is really interesting. It is one that I haven’t seen before. The lashings I’m used to seeing have typically ben used to lash pieces together at specific angles or even parallel to each other. Granted, with any lashing unless done very well will have some slippage from a set angle. This diagonal lashing seems to combine a couple different types of lashing. I can’t see where this would be particularly useful in a theatrical setting, but I think the video demonstrates a key aspect of knot tying. The fact that the author is sure to keep the rope tight and in line is very demonstrative of his knowledge of rope and knots. This idea is one of the keys of knot tying. Not only does keeping the lines straight produce a cleaner looking knot, but it helps to ensure that the knot is tied properly. Also, worth noting is that it will be easier to undo the knot.