(Part 2) Best products from r/paracord

For EDC and quick and dirty cord work I carry a Black Ops Delta torch lighter. It is admittedly a little hot for paracord work, and one must be careful not to damage the work when melting ends to finish a piece. In general, a non-torch lighter is more controllable for cord work, but will take longer to seal an end.

My knot kit contains an old Zippo with a butane "flame" (as opposed to "torch") insert that works well for rough work.

When using a lighter I will whenever possible clamp the cord to be cut with a pair of locking "Forceps" (my surgical tech friend tells me they're not actually forceps but…), trim the line along the forcep edge, and apply the heat from the lighter. I usually take the time to trim the core short of the jacket, then trim and heat seal the jacket for the cleanest possible edge.

However, when precision is called for, a hot knife works better than a torch. I've found that most of the "cheap" hot butane hot knives don't really get hot enough for paracord (or take forever to heat up.) For portable use my pick is the Weller P2KC Professional Self-igniting Cordless Butane Soldering Iron Kit Quick & easy to light—it has a built-in ignition. Fast to heat. Burns just a little hotter when charged with ISOPRO stove fuel using a Primus Filling Adapter. (I charge all my Butane lighters with camp stove fuel canisters.)

For bench use in the shop, nothing beats the Engel Heat Cutter HSGM Hot Knife. A remnant of my work rigging racing yachts, and total overkill for paracord, but it is the ultimate tool for cutting line quickly and cleanly. That being said, I probably use the portable Weller 50 times as often as the Engel these days because I'm generally not knotting at my "big" workbench and for small diameter cord, it's just as fast and effective.

https://www.amazon.com/SpeedyJig-XL-Paracord-Bracelet-Adjustable/dp/B01JP43DJQ/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1539101444&sr=8-3&keywords=paracord+jig

https://www.amazon.com/SpeedyJig-Easiest-Projects-Para-Cord-Materials/dp/B01NH0Q638/ref=sr_1_9?ie=UTF8&qid=1539101444&sr=8-9&keywords=paracord+jig

If you were my friend and got me either of these you'd rank up to bestest friend ever!

https://www.amazon.com/Knotters-Aluminum-Different-Needles-Paracord/dp/B01F7NXG8C/ref=sr_1_9?ie=UTF8&qid=1539101304&sr=8-9&keywords=marlin+spike

This should be high on the list too. A marlin Spike is SUPER useful for paracording. I dunno how I managed before I got one.

That's the 1" Alu-max buckle - I've used some different ones but theirs has a great finish and holds up the best. here they are on amazon, but I can't remember where I bought mine

PARACORD PLANET is my go to. Awesome pricing, speedy shipping, and top quality cord. I have tried out a bunch of different places and if you want quality cord that is the best IMO.

Edit: And it is being sold on Amazon, here is a link: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00E8O0CVQ/ref=s9_simh_gw_g200_i17_r?ie=UTF8&fpl=fresh&pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_s=&pf_rd_r=3H1VNHXN0BQPWMQPHYQN&pf_rd_t=36701&pf_rd_p=cca70e28-a3b0-4f0d-b847-0ae9cb54558a&pf_rd_i=desktop&th=1&psc=1

For cutting I use flush cutters, something like this.

I've found split ring pliers to be really useful for digging in there to get things really tight at the end. (I originally got them for actually attaching split rings (aka keyrings) and I actually really like these for making keyrings and attaching charms and such

I'm not sure how to help with the knots coming undone. Are you finishing the ends before you start? Your description of the problem there is a little unclear as I'm not sure if you're talking about the cord fraying (in which case always start with nice clean-melted ends), or if the knot itself is coming untied (a more technical issue that could just need adjustments to the way you hold it and how much initial tightening needs done).

I'm a cigar smoker, and I have carried this Jetline Quad Torch lighter for a couple years, after blowing through a bunch of Xikar single-jet lighters-- Xikars have a lifetime warranty, but I had to get mine replaced twice before I switched away for good.

Jetline is cheap and reliable, and while mine sips fuel, other smokers I know who use them find them to be fuel hungry, but they probably smoke mroe than I do. They definitely make lighters with fewer jets, (3 and 2 for certain; maybe single), but since I'm lighting cigars am after a different amount of heat than you are.

I did get a cheap knock-off at a smokeshop for about $10 last time I travelled to visit my sister's family across country, so that I could leave it there and use it, since I can't fly with a Jetline, no way no how-- neither the TSA nor the FAA will allow it. No idea how long that'll last, but it doesn't have to work hard.

But I think I'm really happy with the Jetline reliability, and considering that, the price is outstanding; I've paid a lot more for a lot worse lighters.

> If I understand it correctly, all I need to do is instead of flipping all three cords up and down every other knot, I flip one up and two down. Then two down and one up (if my explanation makes any sense).

Close, but not exactly.

The first one is technically a single solomon bar with the center (silver) over/under technique used in the video you found. The yellow strand in the first one is woven in afterwards, most likely with a lacing needle. If you zoom in real close, you'll notice the yellow is even a smaller size than the 550.

With that said, even though your description isn't the correct way to do the first one, I think you should still make one using your method. It will look similar to the second, but the deviation in the design will probably look super cool!

Good to know. This is my work flashlight and I think I might wrap it. Thanks for the inspiration!

I find a jet flame lighter works best for paracord. I use this one and love it--and it's cheap.

Just a solomon bar/cobra braid with a gutted Silver/Grey cord woven in between. The Yellow is likely laced in afterwards with Type 1 Cord.

As mentioned, reverse engineering on something like this is your best bet. You'll learn more about the weave/knots that way and can then expand on/customize it to something completely new.

This is the custom 550 paracord watchband that I ordered form Trilobite Tactical (aka TriloTac). for my original black Pebble. You may have seen me talk about this before, but until recently I was rocking a prototype. This is the final version!

You can customize your own Trilotac watchband for Pebble, here: http://shop.trilotac.com/Tactical-Watch-Band-Fits-Pebble-Smart-Watch-432474393847.htm

About my custom order: My band is a Trilobite weave, with black paracord primary, and a secondary paracord that has both reflective, and glow in the dark tracers! The accent rings are anodized red aluminum. The lugs and clasp are powdercoated black. Lastly, there is a waterproof compass that's wove into the band. The compass has glow in the dark markings, as well as three tritium vials for alignment and north, that glow all the time. The compass is very much like this one: http://www.amazon.com/Cammenga-Tritium-Wrist-Compass-Black/dp/B0016SRA58/

NOTE: The magnetic field of the compass, screws with the Pebble's magnetometer pretty bad, so I can't really use the new compass apps. So if that's important to you, don't get a watch band with a compass! I ordered this a year ago though, long before we had such apps.

You can see more of TriloTac's work at these links:

http://www.trilotac.com http://instagram.com/trilotac

http://www.facebook.com/TrilobiteTactical

http://www.ebay.com/usr/kahaila

https://twitter.com/TriloTactical

The wrap I have, is a black Carbon Fiber SlickWrap: http://www.slickwraps.com/Black-Carbon-Pebble-p/sw-pw-cfblk.htm

The watchface I'm using is Glance: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=uk.co.finebyte.pebbleglance

Let me know if you have other questions!

I got the clasps off of Amazon, but as it sits now I wouldn't recommend them. I've tried a few different ones, and even some that don't say "break away" but do give under pressure. They all break free to easily or end up getting weak after time.

I ordered the only actual break away dog collar I've seen and I'm going to test out it's hardware. If it works I'm going to use it on a new collar for him.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B0002H3ZTO/ref=redir_mdp_mobile?keywords=breakaway%20dog%20collar&qid=1409764229&ref_=sr_ph&sr=1

As for the tutorial, I always work best off of pictures instead of videos, so here's the one I used.

http://m.instructables.com/id/The-shark-jaw-bone-bracelet-instructions/

Yes a magnetic detach, I order this one The Original Detachable Keychain by The MountainRiver Co. | Magnetic Key Ring Holder With Strong Magnet And Quick Release | Loss Prevention Keys. Pull Apart Key Chain for Men|Women https://www.amazon.com/dp/B06WVPBSRL/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_7RfVAbB20JBAE

So, I've tried out the soldering iron and I really like it. You do need to regularly clean the tip, but that's not an issue if you have a brass brush or something like this

I'm going to still have to get a jet lighter, but for now the iron will be my go-to.

Perma-lok needles are great, but sometimes I prefer to use plain old needle nose pliers (link is the exact pair I use - I broke them once, just walked in to my local Sears and exchanged them). Also consider a pair of electrician's long-nose pliers (like the ones on the right here, they have textured jaws so you can really yank on the paracord to tighten/loosen it.

As for cutting the cord, some people have recommended sewing scissors. I can't speak for how well they work because I just use the trimmer that I bought to trim my cats' claws. They're tiny so they pack away very easily, and they make a super clean cut. In a pinch you can use angle cutters, the cutter part of a regular pair of needle nose pliers, normal scissors, or a knife - they just won't give you a very clean cut. An exception to this is a knife you don't care about: get it hot and cut the cord on something you don't care about (like a block of scrap wood) at a 45 degree angle; this will "cauterize" the cord and let you thread the newly cut end into a perma-lok needle, the knife doesn't even need to be very sharp.

I use a Bic lighter to singe the ends of my cord, but a butane torch is next on my list of tools to get - I think it'll be faster and cleaner.

For paracord, buy 100' at a time. For some of my projects I buy 1000' spools, but you don't need that to start. If you ever want to make a whip or a hammock though, 100' just won't cut it.