Saturday, March 17, 2012

How to Tie a Paracord Gaucho Knot Video Tutorial...


I uploaded a video for tying this Gaucho knot with paracord, which starts off with tying a 5 lead 4 bight Turk's head knot, then working from that into a Gaucho knot, paying close attention to the overs/unders to correctly tie the knot.  The 'Encyclopedia of Rawhide and Leather Braiding' by Bruce Grant, also diagrams the tying of this knot, referring to it as a 'running gaucho', tying the interweave pattern from a 5 lead 4 bight Turk's head knot base, to end up with a 9 lead 7 bight knot.

There's also a 'Gaucho of One Pass' in Grant's book that ends up with 8 bights, tied from start to finish without doing a base knot then interweave. 

Marlinspike Knot Works has a promotional video for their DVDs, that gives a bit of history on Turk's head knots and their variations.  I don't have any of their offerings, but for anyone looking to learn more about tying them, the finished examples that they show look very nice.

28 comments:

Unknown said...

I just wanted to thank you for the video. I really enjoy the work you do and your sharing it :)

Matt said...

Great tutorial very easy to follow this was the first time I tied that knot. What an awesome knot. Keep up the great work!!

Matt said...

Is the 5x4 turks head the base for all gaucho knots?

Dan said...

Great video SD! It looks like it was a beautiful day to be sitting outside working with some paracord. And I really like the hands on approach to this video. You really do make this beautiful knot look easy.

Stormdrane said...

@Matt, Gaucho knots can be tied on different Turk's head knots, but the exact rules for 'coding' them are are bit beyond my amateur knot tying skills, lol.

Here's a link that offers more technical rules on tying some Turk's head knot variations.

Phestr said...

Awesome tut! I had no problem following, even though a couple of Bud Brewer's are giving me headaches. Thanx for making me feel I'm not completely hopeless!

Gary Usleaman said...

You do amazing work!

Matt said...

Thanks SD that is enough to make my head explode lol. Great info thanks

Anonymous said...

This is the first video that made the Gaucho knot understandable. Great vid. Excellent.
Thanks

BBQ And Smoking Junction said...

Stormdrain

Always like your paracord instructions. Got a question for you.

How would i implement a usb flash drive for my medical info into a bracelet? Im getting up there in age HA and with T2, HBP and meds. The old school ID bracelets just cant carry all the info.

Thank You

Rick

Stormdrane said...

@Rick, I've not tried adding a flashdrive to a paracord bracelet, but as they're made pretty small nowadays with the 'mini' and 'pico' sized versions, I imagine they could easily fit under the knotwork of a regular Solomon bar/ Portuguese sinnet or king cobra type bracelet.

Maybe just held in place with friction from the knot, being able to slide it in/out for use, or secured with a length of smaller diameter cord from under the knot work, plenty of possibiliites...

A few years ago, a friend had suggested knotting over a USB bracelet, although when I looked at the info on them, it was a 'one size fits all' kinda deal, so I didn't look further being 'oversized' myself, lol, but still may be useful to some folks.

There's a paracord USB keyfob project on instructables, from a couple years back, but that brings me to wondering about the water resistant ability of flashdrives,from persperation, rain, etc...

Anonymous said...

Hello David, sorry for leaving this question here - but do you have a list of the tools you use to tie the knots? thanks

Stormdrane said...

@Anonymous, Common tools I use with knot work are: tape measure, scissors, torch lighter(Zippo body with Z-Plus butane insert), hemostats, clay stylus(makeshift marlinspike/fid) Perma-Lok lacing needles or homemade versions a friend sent me(cut down hollow knitting needles/metal chopsticks), knitting spools/knobbys/corkers

I occasionally use super glue or needle and thread with finishing some knots to further secure the ends along with tucking or melting when/where needed...

Anonymous said...

SD,

What knife is that in the pic?

Stormdrane said...

@Anonymous, The knife in the post photo is a 'Mantis Picker I' utility neck knife.

Home on the Range said...

I really like your videos. I've made several paracord projects with them and my skills at anythingi involving cord, yarn or the like was beyond bad. (My one attempt to knit a scarf as a youngster was so long in being completed it ended up as a tube top for Barbie)

Gr33nShirt said...

Very cool knot. I had a 2 pass turks head wrapped on my Surefire and it never moved. I loike the way this one looks a little more though and it's always fun to try something new.

smet337 said...

Hey Stormdrane,I think I had one of those DING DING moments!On a turks head as in a 5l4b the next line in turn will do the opposite of the previous one? (over under) In the diagram it is showing every thing in front of the cylinder not the back? It becomes a bit confusing for beginners like me. Can you please tell me if this is correct? It is easy to mimic your videos but actually understanding why you do some thing is a whole other thing.Thanks

Stormdrane said...

@smet337, The reason the back of the 5 lead 4 bight knot isn't shown is because you don't need to see it, since the overs/unders are shown on the front side of the knot, and once those are done, the bights are evenly distributed around the circumference of the knot, as shown on page 46 of the example in 'Creative Ropecraft'.

In the example, you can see the path of the cord done in dashes around the back side of the cylinder/mandrel the knot is being tied around.

Anonymous said...

The viedo is not bad your just going a little too fast, and all the cords so close together that its hard to tell which ones your going over and under with.

Anonymous said...

Write the steps down while watching then go for it. I did it and a lot easier.

Unknown said...

Great video Stormdrane,

I followed it (few times, pauses,...) and finaly made it.

Few question though if I may?

1.
What can I use or what would You use(glue,..) to make it stiff.

2.
What lighter do You use to melt/end paracord ?

3.
Since I am fro Europe (Croatia) do You know sites/sellers (can You recomend them) where I can buy paracord and/or other accesories regarding paracord stuff.

Please except my apologies in front for second and third question since they are not related to the theme above.

Kind regards,

Neven Kottnig

Stormdrane said...

@Neven, I've used super/krazy glue on some knot projects to stiffen them up, some folks have used white(Elmer's)glue mixed with water to coat a finished knot project.

I use a torch lighter for melting paracord, a Z-plus insert inside a Zippo lighter body, but any butane type torch lighter can work well. With some projects where the ends are melted in place, i use a wood burning tool or soldering iron.

You might look through the knotting thread in the British Blades forums, for good sources for cord and supplies in Europe.

Unknown said...

Stormdrane,

Thank You very much for Your fast response and help.

Kind regards,

Anonymous said...

Did you know that hair you have on your face makes it look like you just ingested a live squirrel?

Just curious...

Stormdrane said...

@Anonymous, I have eaten squirrel before, although not a live, uncooked, unskinned one.

I imagine if that is the image you see of men with beards, I hope you at least enjoy the thought every time your gaze falls upon one.

Have a gander at Duck Dynasty for more bearded fun. :)

Unknown said...

Morning SD,Can you please help me?When ever I,am finishing off a Gaucho by running the cord back under the knot and tightening I have a big lump at that location,how do you keep that from showing?Appreciate your help as always. Scot

Stormdrane said...

@Scot, Depending on what size cord you're using and how thick a diameter of an object the knot is being tied around, that end strand may not be noticeable or could stand out as a lump.

With paracord tied around something slim, it can tend to stand out, so you can try to wrap that end strand around the core a couple of times before coming out the other side, tricky to do, and it can be a bear to tighten it up as well.

Or you can skip running the strand under the knot and trim it coming out alongside the standing end, then secure it with needle/thread, or strategic super glue application, works for some projects not for others where you're using one strand to continue on with other knotwork...