- The Terminal Knot

Probably the most frequently asked question is how to end a braid and while there are many choices of knots the Terminal knot is the easiest to teach and the bases of several variations of this foundation knot. The Terminal knot is also know as a Wall or Crown knot in the nautical world and if you are looking for variations of this knot the Ashley Book of Knots has many.

For this page I'm using a 8 strand Herringbone braid and using only 4 of the 8 strands, using all 8 strands would make for a rather large knot that would be confusing to make. The same knot can be used with 4 and 6 strand braids and on up the scale and it serves to secure the ends as well as giving a step for a cover knot to tied over. All the images below can be clicked on for a larger view.

I start by securing my braid with some waxed string just below where I would like my knot. I select the four strands that are on the same side of the braid, we want the strands to all be pointing the same direction as the knot is tied.

I separate out the four strands and tie the others off to keep them out of the way.

The knot is started by bringing each strand over the next with the last strand going through the hoop of the first.

The next step is to bring each strand forward and under the X created in the first step. Here's a couple of photos that I hope explains it better. In knot tying terms you would be going over one and then up and under two.

Once all four strands are brought around and up and tighten a little it should look like this. the second photo is the knot well tighten.

At this point the knot looks pretty good but its purpose is to hold the four strands we haven't been working with tight so the braid won't unravel so we need to get the knot a little tighter. First I remove the string and then give the four strands we haven't work with a tug to make sure they are tight. Then with my awl I go around to each strand and bring the strands tight.

The finished knot is now just a little larger then the diameter of the braid and has secured the four strands inside. This gives a nice step for a cover knot to grab on to.