Offset figure-eight bend

The offset figure-eight bend or flat figure-eight bend^[1] or abnormal figure-eight bend^[2] is a poor knot that has been implicated in the deaths of several rock climbers.^[3]^[4] The knot may invert itself under load, as shown in the figure, and this can happen repeatedly. Each inversion reduces the lengths of the tails. If the tails are used up completely, the knot comes undone.

More secure knots for this purpose are the Flemish bend, offset overhand knot, or double fisherman's knot.

References

^ https://user.xmission.com/~tmoyer/testing/EDK.html
^ http://www.chockstone.org/techtips/JoinRopes.htm
^ T. Moyer, 'Pull Tests of the "Euro Death-Knot,"' 2011, http://user.xmission.com/~tmoyer/testing/EDK.html
^ http://www.rockandice.com/climbing-accidents/rappel-knot-fails-climber-falls-to-death-on-the-goat-wall

Knots

By type

Bends	Adjustable Albright special Ashley's Alpine butterfly Basket weave Beer Blood Carrick Double fisherman's Fisherman's Flemish Grief Halyard Harness Heaving line Hunter's Nail One-sided overhand Racking Sheet Shoelace Shroud Simple Simon under Single carrick Surgeon's Surgeon's loop Triple fisherman's True lover's Water Zeppelin
Binding	Boa Bottle sling Constrictor Corned beef Granny Ground-line hitch Jamming Miller's Packer's Reef Strangle Thief Transom
Climbing	Autoblock Bachmann Beer Bowline on a bight Alpine butterfly Directional figure eight Double bowline Farmer's loop Figure-eight Figure-eight loop Figure-of-nine loop Friction hitch Klemheist Munter hitch Noose Overhand loop Prusik Trident loop Yosemite bowline
Coils & shanks	Chain sinnet Sheepshank
Decorative	Carrick mat Chinese button Celtic button Diamond Fiador Friendship Ghiordes & Senneh Matthew Walker Turk's head Wall and crown (triple crown knot)
Fishing (angling)	Angler's loop Arbor Bimini twist Blood Fisherman's Improved clinch Knotless Nail Palomar Snell Trilene Triple fisherman's Turle Uni
Hitches	Adjustable grip Anchor bend Axle Bachmann Bale sling Barrel Becket Blackwall Blake's Boom Buntline Cat's paw Clove Cow Distel Double overhand noose Falconer's Farrimond friction Friction hitch Garda Ground-line Half Halter Highpoint Highwayman's Hitching tie Icicle Improved clinch Killick Knute Lobster buoy Marlinespike Munter Ossel Pile Pipe Sailor's Snuggle Swing Taut-line Timber Trucker's Tumble
Loop	Angler's Artillery loop Bale sling hitch Bowline Bumper Carrick bend loop Cossack Cowboy bowline Diamond Double bowline Dropper loop Eskimo bowline Fiador Fireman's chair Friendship knot Halter hitch Handcuff Honda Jury mast Overhand Portuguese bowline Rigid double splayed loop in the bight Slippery eight Span Spanish bowline Tom fool's Trident Triple bowline Water bowline Yosemite bowline Zeppelin
Running (slip)	Hangman's Running bowline Running highwayman's hitch Tarbuck
Splices & splicing	Eye Fid Marlinspike Rat-tail T Western Union
Stopper	Ashley's stopper Button Double overhand Figure-eight knot Monkey's fist Overhand Stevedore
Whipping	Common Overhand knot with draw-loop Portuguese Sailmaker's West Country

Lists of knots
Related topics

Lists of knots	Bends Bindings Decorative knots Hitches (friction) Mathematical
Related topics	Chinese knotting Density History International Guild of Knot Tyers Macramé Mizuhiki Norigae Ropework Lashing Splicing Seizing Sennit

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