Which knot is best for tying a tire swing?

Question

Using a regular car tire, how do I tie it to a tree limb to make a tire swing?

Answer 1

There are knots specifically designed to be applied around any cylindrial object like a tree limb or around a tire.

For a tree limb:

Timber Hitch, Clove hitch with half hitches, Anchor hitch; Fisherman's bend; Buntline hitch; or any hitch in general.
You want to use a hitch for the tree limb because 'hitches' are semi-permanent and you won't have to re-tie it often.
http://www.realknots.com/knots/hitches.htm

For the tire:

French Bowline; Spanish Bowline; Round-turn and two half-hitches; or a Bowline on a Bite.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spanish_bowline
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bowline_on_a_bight

Use a fairly thick or large diameter rope.

Answer 2

Take a piece of twine that is at least twice the lenght of the branch to the ground, tie on a large socket or something similiar. Fishing string and a lead sinker works very good. Look for an opening that you can throw thru. Stand back a little ways, making sure that you can see the opening. Let the weight hang down about 18" from your hand. Swing the weight back and forth a few times to get the feel of it and then lt it fly. Be careful not to have the string that you are using under your foot. I have always wound it up like an extention cord and hold it in one hand while throwing with the other hand. After a couple of throws, you will get the hang of how hard to throw the weight. Once you have got the weight over the branch, you can tie the string to the rope and pull it up over the branch. Tie an open knot in one end of the rope and then run the other end thru it. This will make a slip knot that you can pull tight up to the branch. Put your body weight into it to make sure it doesn't come loose. You can now tie the rope on the tire. Make sure to use NYLON rope as it is stronger and more weather resistant. Good luck, hope this works for you

Answer 3

mac1hull gives a good answer, but realize that all knots need to be checked regularly.
If the tree limb is high up, use a tying system that brings the knot down to the tire.

Protect the tree from damage, and the rope from sliding over the tree.

A good site for visual instructions is: http://www.animatedknots.com/indexscouting.php?LogoImage=LogoGrog.jpg&Website=www.animatedknots.com
Several of the suggested knots can be found in the scouting section.

If you still have questions about the swing, or want to ask other knot related questions, this is a link to the International Guild of Knot Tyers forum:
http://www.igkt.net/sm/index.php
You will have to register to ask questions but you will find all kinds of knot tyers there.

Answer 4

This Site Might Help You.

RE:
Which knot is best for tying a tire swing?
Using a regular car tire, how do I tie it to a tree limb to make a tire swing?

Answer 5

check out this question cindy, looks like it has what you need :-)
http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20070609090032AAfq90d

otherwise just make sure that the knot is some sort of knot that doesn't tighten. A bowline knot is what you want to tie. Any boyscout should know this useful knot. Try a google search for specific instructions.

Answer 6

"NOT" to have one........................