And, it's a sheet bend, not a sheep bend. :-)

--
"j" ganz @@
www.sailnow.com

"Walt" wrote in message
...
RogueIT wrote:
So I can tie a bowline and a figure 8 but I am not sure what their
primary
uses are on a boat.

1. can anyone tell me what they are used for?
2. what other knots should I know and why are these knots used?

As others have stated, a figure 8 is a stopper knot, it keeps a line from
accidently running through a fitting. A bowline is a fixed size loop at
the end of a line that has many uses.

Note that strictly speaking a "knot" is a line tied to itself. A "bend"
is a line tied to another line. A "hitch" is a line tied to an object.

You should learn at least one good bend and one good hitch. "two half
hitches" is a very good hitch. When a cleat is available, use the cleat
hitch. There are many others hitches, but these two will suffice for most
purposes.

Probably the most common and easiest bend to learn is the sheet bend (not
the sheep bend, as someone called it). Do NOT ever use a square knot (or
reef knot for the Brits) to tie two lines together if it's at all
important that they stay tied. It's called a "knot" rather than a "bend"
for a reason - it's great for it's intended purpose (reefing sails) but
useless or dangerous as a bend.

The bowline makes for a passable hitch, although the loop can catch things
it's not supposed to which makes it unsuitable for some situations. The
bowline also makes a passable bend by tieing the loop of one around the
other. Again, you have two loops that can catch things, making it less
than ideal, but it's definitely better than a square knot for tieing two
lines together. The bowline has many uses, which is I guess why it
doesn't get the qualifier knot-bend-hitch.

So a good set of basics for the sailor's toolkit is:

Figure 8 for a stopper knot
Two half hitches to tie lines to objects
Cleat hitch to tie a line to a horn cleat
Sheet bend to tie two lines together.
Reef knot to reef sails.
Bowline for multi purposes

Those six will go a long way. You'll pick up other specialty knots along
the way, but learn these six first.

//Walt