How to Make a Prusik Knot

About the Prusik Knot

Prusik Knot Step 1

Tie the ends of a length of rope together. This makes a "Prusik". Place an arch of the Prusic underneath the main rope.

Every survival expert should know how to make knots for the purpose at hand. One specialized knot that has its place in the knowledge toolkit of every survival expert is known as the “Prusik Knot”.

You may also see this knot referred to as:

Prusik Knot
Prusik Knot
Prussic Knot
Prusik Hitch
Or simply a “Prusik”.

What makes a Prusik knot so valuable is its special ability: a Prusik knot will slide up and down a rope but when a load is applied the knot will grip the rope tightly.

Prusiks Knot

Dr. Karl Prusik 1896 – 1961 was an Austrian mountaineer who was twice named President of the Austrian Mountaineering Club. Doctor Prusik pioneered some seventy climbing routes in the Austrian mountains and so knew something about ropes and useful climbing knots.

In 1931 Prusik described a special knot that he used to safely climb ropes suspended many feet above. This knot is very useful to mountain climbers due to its being a “slide and grip knot”, also known as a “friction hitch”. When a load is applied in either direction the Prusik knot will grip; remove the load the knot will slide.

Prusik Knot Step 2

Loop the knot of the Prusik around the main rope.

Although it is apparent the knot had been used for quite some time by sailors, Prusiks published description of the knot won him the honor of having the knot named after him.

Making a Prusik Knot

It is easy to learn how to make a Prusik Knot. As with any knot making description, a picture is worth a thousand words so be sure to refer to the images in this article.

First make the “Prusik”. A Prusik is simply a loop made by connecting the two ends of a piece of rope or webbing. In mountain climbing, webbing is often preferred. For practice, a good knot for tying two pieces of rope together is a fisherman’s knot, the subject of another Survival Topic. But for practice any type of knot will do. In this case I made my Prusik from a length of 550 paracord about two feet long.
Place the main rope over the Prusik you just made as shown in the picture.
Take the knot portion of the Prusik and loop it around the main rope 3 to 5 times.
Pull the knot of the Prusik through its own loop; this forms a neat wrapping around the main rope.
Dress up the resulting Prusik knot so that it is neat with the main rope.

You now have your Prusik loop connected to the main rope you want to climb.

Using a Prusik Knot

Prusik Knot Step 3

Continue looping the knot of the Prusik around the main rope 3 to 5 times.

The Prusik knot you just made should easily slide up or down the main rope when no force is exerted on the Prusik loop. However when there is a force, the Prusik knot grips tightly on the main rope.

To climb a rope using a Prusik knot, create one longer Prusik into which you place a foot. A second, smaller Prusik is attached to a harness and moved up or down by hand. By alternating which Prussic Knot is taking the load, you can climb the rope using leg power while being essentially attached to it. This allows the climber to carry heavy gear and take rest breaks.

If you can stretch a safety rope across a swift flowing stream, tying yourself to a Prusik knot can help you cross safely; the Prusik will slide across the safety rope as you go, but will grip the rope should you slip and apply pressure to the knot.

More About the Prusik Knot

The rope you use for the Prusik (the loop) should be of smaller diameter than the main rope. The closer in size both ropes are, the less efficient the gripping power of the Prusik Knot. Try to use Prusik ropes that are close to one-half the diameter of the main rope.

Disadvantages of Prusik Knots

Prusik Knot Step 4

On the final loop, draw the knot of the Prusik through its own arch. You have now sucessfully made a Prusik Knot.

Another important consideration when making Prusik Knots is that they will fail on icy ropes because the Prusik will have difficulty in gripping the main rope tightly. If you are likely to encounter icy conditions it is safer to rely upon commercial mechanical rope gripping devices.

Using Prusik Knots to climb ropes is generally slower than using mechanical rope grabbing devices.

Advantages of Prusik Knots

One great advantage of Prusik knots to the wilderness survival is that they are generally always available; that is, if you are carrying your 550 paracord in your survival kit as recommended by Survival Topics. Need a Prusik? Simply make one.

Prusik knots are:

Inexpensive – just a loop of rope
Easy to make
Lightweight
Fast to place
Can be used around two ropes, even if different diameters.

A problem with mechanical rope grabbing devices is that they sometimes damage the rope being climbed; a real danger when you are depending upon a climbing rope for your very survival.

Prusik Knots cause little damage to climbing ropes. If too much force is applied the Prusik knot will slip rather than break into the main rope.

Knots Related to the Prusik

Relatives to the Prusik Knot include the:

French Prusik Knot, also known as the AutoBloc or AutoBlock.
Kleimheist Knot, also known as a Machard Knot.
Bachmann Knot, which uses a carabiner.

These knots will be covered by Survival Topics at a later date.

Knowing how to make a Prusik knot, and other knots, can save your life in a survival situation. It is important that you always have a hank of 550 paracord in your survival kit; you never know when it will come in handy.