Paracord Monkey Fist

The Monkey Fist knot has a long history since 1800's, main purpose as a weight at the end of a rope or  just for decorative use.
The monkey fist was also used as a melee weapon among sailors  and gangs.

In this guide I will show how to make the Monkey Fist using a marble inside the knot.

The first few attempts could go wrong - this knot needs a LOT of patience so take your time and especially the final tightening part, do it slowly and you will get a cool Monkey  fist.

Everyone are welcomed to vist my blog for more paracord guides and projects: 
http://paracord-projects.blogspot.com/

Step 1 Option 1, Monkey Fist guide

Step-1 Many objects could be used inside the knot preferably round or square, I chose to use a marble. The marble is light weight and you can get it in different sizes. It is possible to use metal balls but they are heavy and will  "upset" metal detectors. 
For this project you will need 4-5feet paracord , scissors, lighter, pointy object and a bit of  
patience.
In this guide I used a small marble so 3 times around every side is enough to cover the marble.

Comments

[hottie_mchottson]

Monkey Fist in action: Check out the movie Inception when the Eames character is skiing away from the badguys towards the end of the movie. There is about a one second shot where Eames throws a rope weighted at the end with a monkey fist and catches it between the branches of a tree thereby creating a taut line that the bad guys ski into. It could totally happen.

And btw, I always make my Monkey Fists without a core.

[PerfectPantaloons]

First of all: EPIC MOVIE
Second of All: I think they look different when they don't have a core... Idk

[triumphman]

If the ball or marble shows through after tightening, do I need to make the wraps 4 strands instead of two ? Sounds logical, yes

[djackson25]

There is a video on you tube that tells you a very helpful piece of advice, heres the URL. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X95RKTxIHFY I think you will recognize what you are doing wrong when he mentions it.


watch the whole vid. athough two wraps may not be enough :/

[triumphman]

Oops, forgot to ask, what is the size of the boards, how far apart are the nails, what size nails, just so I can obtain some accuracy! Thanks again!

[venom1539]

I made a monkey fist before and i don't think it really matters how far apart they are.

[koby_elian]

it is like the same way they used to make volleyballs, sort of...

[jc88]

Does anyone know how to adapt one of these for a cub scout neckerchief slide? I would assume you add a short tube in the middle.

[trazodone]

This is really cool. I made mine without a marble or a center and it came out perfect!

[jade1234]

hmmm... never tried it with out a core

[triumphman]

Very nice!

[tkäkelä]

I keep messing up the whole knot because I cannot figure where the loose end here goes, the one which is now topmost on vertical axis. The next picture is a bit obscure since we cannot see how it turns "inside" the knot - which way it comes out?

[freakyqwerty]

What size paracord did you use for the demostration pictures?

[ThE_mAgIcIaN53]

Thanks for your guide... I used the Hot Glue gun to stick the rope not to scatter apart

[lyonpridej]

The monkey fist is my favorite knot & the easiest I've ever done! I've NEVER been able to tie knots-my dad taught knot tying, my 3 boys are in Boy Scouts, I was a Cub Scout Leader. I've had people try to teach me over & over. I don't know if it's being left-handed or if my brain just isn't wired right, but if I could even make heads or tails out of what they were showing me, I coudn't remember long enough to do it a 2nd time. I always loved the look of the monkey fist & was thoroughly intimidated to even try it for years, since I can barely get past a square knot. Then I saw an instructable & thought I'd give it a try. Imagine my surprise & delight when within an hour. I had completed my 1st monkey fist just by looking at the photo & instructions over & over! My next one went even faster & by the time I made the 3rd one I didn't even need instructions to follow!WOW! My favorite is the stretch paracord(?) I got at the surplus store, because it's very forgiving & you can stretch it as tight as you need but go back & loosen it if you need to. Instead of a marbe in the center, I bought a bag of jingle bells at the craft store & I use a pair of pliers to crimp the metal hanger loop down to make it round. I made about 2 doz. jingle monkey fists for my boys to take to Trapper's Rendevous in Kansas to trade. I also used them as pulls on my ceiling fan (see photo) & made some for my nephew to play with - but I never knew how to end them neatly.
I love this instructable, especially the cool way to end the knots & the contraption you built to make them! I can't wait to try some of these! Thanks!

[NutandBolt]

I am very happy you liked my Ible. Well done with your monkey fist.
When I learned how to make the monkey fist knot I looked at many web sites and didn’t really find a good guide. That is why I tried to make a very clear and easy to follow steps.
Thanks again for your kind comment.
You get  Monkey Fist MASTER Patch from me.

[lyonpridej]

Thank you, my 1st patch!

[skirmishmonkey]

I am now on my 12th lanyard.
However, I was finding that melting the ends of the chord with a lighter was a little unsightly so I experimented with other things.
UHU glue (Methylacetate) gives a neat finish. It is also good for finishing the braiding. I give a squeeze around the final row of braiding.
I found UHU to be perfect because unlike superglue, it can be seperated if you need to use the chord in an emergency but it holds it well enough so the braiding doesn't come apart. It also finished the ends of the chord neatly. As it is also highly flammable, in a survival situation, you could use it as kindling to start a fire. Just cut a centimetre or so off the ends of the chord.

[skirmishmonkey]

I have been trying for years to tie one of these knots from various book references all to no avail.
Thanks to NutandBolt's 'able I have now made a perfect monkeyfist lanyard for my leatherman after only the 3rd attempt. My marble needed 5 turns and I started with 3 and then 4 otherwise it would have been first time!

Many thanks NutandBolt. I have a feeling my family and friends will be getting monkeyfist keyfobs from now on.

I am one happy monkey!

[tmurray1369]

Can you do an instructional on how to do the Snake knot with diamond knot that looks really cool.

[Plo Koon]

I don't have any stupid paracord!! ARRRRRRGGGGHHH!!

[NaturalCrafter]

I would love to share your project and website with my Natural Crafts hand make group. Thanks for such great detail. I rate this one with a high grade.

[seddine]

dude ur amazing thnx :)

[instructablesam]

Great instructable.  About how much cord is used to make the average Monkey Fist knot keychain shown?

[NutandBolt]

Thank you, You will need about 4feet for the small marble (as in the guide 3 times around each side) that will leave enough cord for some decorative finish. For the big marbles you will need twice the amount (6 times around).

[baneat]

Hey I'm looking to replace my current keychain for one with a bit more utility to it. Can any of these keychains be taken apart quickly to get a hold of the paracord?

[theperson2]

someone should try a rubberband ball as the core

[big-jamie]

using a tennis ball or rubber ball would make a great throw-ey toy for a dog, if you make a handle like the picture with the baby =)

[robbied]

When using smaller diameter cords or threads, I have used a large paper clip, to try this method do the following:
1.hold the paperclip by the end where the two loops meet, the single loop end facing away from you.
2.push the inner loop away from you until it is about vertical.
3.hold the paperclip where the big loop finishes (you might need pliers if you aren't strong).
4.bend the gap piece from the two loops up towards you until the two loops are parallel but separated by a gap. I've used this tool to make monkey fists with tent 'guyrope' line for my backpack.

[NutandBolt]

Thank you for your comment, will be great if you can add a image or two to make it a bit more easy to visual it.

[thepelton]

I was in the Navy from 1971 to 1975.  I don't recall monkey fists being used as weapons, but rather as weights at the end of heaving lines so that they would overcome wind resistance, and could be tossed from one ship to another or from a ship to the dock to allow heavier lines to be lashed to them and hauled across.

[g.petinati]

I have a keychain I made with a mouse ball instead of a marble. If I'd used a longer lanyard it could hurt quite a bit.

[NutandBolt]

I used a few mouse balls when I was running out of marbles. They can definitely cause some damage if used as a weapon.

[NutandBolt]

Hi Thepelton, thank you for your reply. No offence to sailors and you are correct about the part that the monkey fist was used as a weight at the end of the heaving line but The Monkey Fist  was also used as a weapon the only thing is it was way before you where in the navy . As I wrote at my intro it has a long history since the 1800's but i'm sure its not used as a weapon in our current times.

[toogers]

me and my friends have wars with these.

[thepelton]

The last recorded time of hand-to-hand warfare on a ship was during world war 2. I think that would probably have been the last time the monkey fist was swung in combat.

[rhaubejoi]

When I was single I used to keep a really pretty pink one under the seat of my truck.  It had a loop on the end large enough to slip onto my wrist so no one could take it away from me.  I used to sing karaoke every weekend and always was careful about where I went, and who with and who I socialized with, but a girl alone can't be too careful.  I was cautious enough that I never had to use it, but it was there if I needed it.

[NutandBolt]

I agree,  it can be used as a great self defence weapon in case of emergency. The great thing about it's small enough and not heavy.

[Dr Qui]

Nice post,

I'm going to try this with leather thong rather than cord.

You can get a nice lightweight marble for old paint spray cans.

[Dr Qui]

Got round to doing this, frustratingly good fun and addictive.

I used braided cord, a leather shoe lace and the shiny one is leather thong.

Found the leather to be easier to work with.