When it comes to securing your gear safely and securely, you need to know a failsafe method of tying it down with some rope. So we thought we’d show you one of the handiest and most versatile knots in the business: the venerable Truckies Hitch.
1. Secure your rope at one end. Now make two loops in the rope. Double the rope over just beneath these two loops
2. Feed the doubled section up through your two loops
3. Hold the newly formed top loop in one hand and pull the bottom loop to tighten the slippery hitch
4. Run the tag end of the rope around an anchor point and thread it back through the bottom loop of your slippery hitch
5. Pull the tag end as tight as you can (put your entire body weight into it if possible) and hold the tightened rope in place at the loop
6. Run a couple of half hitches over the rope to hold the knot in place.
The beauty of this type of slippery hitch is that it will hold secure with any sort of rope (including hemp and nylon) without coming loose and will easily come undone without binding with a simple tug on either end when we’re ready to pull our space case off our roof.
NB:
There are heaps of types of hitches you can tie which will do the job, as long as it forms a secure loop in your rope. We just like this one as it will come undone without binding with all types of rope
4 comments
Hi Pat
I did a rigging course a few years back & the instructor said that using a truckies hitch was not allowed as they can & do come loose at the top hoops he suggested that we could use a slip knot at the same location you use the double hoop.
If you tried to use the truckies hitch he failed 2 guys on the course this was a work over approved course & we were issued with a rigging certificate at the end of the course
Works for me Dex
I’ve been a truckie for 33yrs and 17 of them was freight and I’ve done rig shifts out in the desert and never once has a s knot come undone the only way they can is if ya load shifts
My truckies hitch is a bit different. The second loop is right next too the first one but positioned over the first. This locks everything in place.