Paracord garter ties?

[Angstrom]

Yes, I'm nuts, but in a good way.......

I've been wearing a kilt for hiking. I was looking at traditional knit garter ties, and thought "I wonder if you could braid one out of a single piece of paracord?" Then, in case of a calamity requiring a quick lashing, one could undo one's garter and save the day.

Unlikely, to be sure. But it might just be a fun project, and a conversation piece.

Any comments/suggestions? If I do attempt this I'll keep you posted.

[artificer]

usually garter ties have some stretch to them in the knit. This allows them to hold firm but not cut off circulation. Given the slightly slick nature of paracord, and it's complete lack of elasticity, I'd say that it wouldn't be a particularly good match.

That said, the cord is cheap enough, you could buy a few yards and give it a try.

ith:

[CDNSushi]

Well, if Big Mikey can have an entire kilt belt made of paracord, then why not garter ties? In fact, you may want to ask him about it... He may have already tried what you propose.

[AKScott]

I agree with Artificer, at first blush not stretchy enough to be comfortable.

But if you braid it just so you might come up with a narrow that would have a little stretch to it. The problem is braiding a thing with one really long piece of paracord. It would be a challenge with several individual pieces, I am thinking of a six or eight strand flat braid. I don't see braiding that up from a single piece without starting with an enormously long piece and having a basketball sized tangle at one end when your done.

Maybe though. The color would be great with a lot of different hose colors.

[Truitt]

I used to braid rifle slings with paracord. I used a Conquistador braid which resulted in considerable stretch, and it is braided from a single strand. The problem with that braid, considering the original purpose stated, is that it does not unravel. But I may have to try this myself. I will probably use a utility cord with a smaller diameter than paracord, though.

[Pleater]

I thought that the military grade paracord was fairly elastic.


It is fairly easy to make a braid which will undo easily if you make a series of long loops securing them to one end of the cord - tie a stop knot at the end then make larks heads and pass them over the knot. It is easy to loosen the larks heads to adjust the loops to be the same length, then thread the end of the cord through in the opposite direction to the start of it and make a stop knot.

Then plait the loops keeping the two cords untwisted. When it is all plaited take a separate length, fold it double and thread it through the loops, then put the two ends through the middle and pull it up to make a loop. Have the middle close to the loops and use the rest to form a buttonhole edging around the loop and across between the loops, then hide the end, but no too well.

The other end of the strap can be passed through the loop and tied.

Anne the Pleater :ootd:

[Angstrom]

It was an interesting experiment -- negative results but fun & educational. I tried daisy-chain, 3, 4, and 6-strand braids, and a plain weave. All were too stiff and bulky to work well as a tied garter.

Guess I'll have to find another way to indulge my inner MacGyver....

[artificer]

It was an interesting experiment -- negative results but fun & educational. I tried daisy-chain, 3, 4, and 6-strand braids, and a plain weave. All were too stiff and bulky to work well as a tied garter.

Guess I'll have to find another way to indulge my inner MacGyver....

did you try it w/o the inner (and removable) stranded core? That would reduce both bulk and stiffness.

ith:

[Angstrom]

I didn't try pulling the core. I'll put that on my list of rainy-day projects.

[Drac]

Having played a bit with paracord a lot will deal with the type of knots you tie. Check out - http://fusionknots.com/

Awesome instruction and a mind blowing amount of different knots!!! I've done quite a few and they can be works of art in of themselves.

Jim