Figure-8 Stopper
A bulk stopper: the figure-eight body is wide enough not to pass the opening it is set against, and that is the whole mechanism. It carries no useful load itself and jams hard once it has been pulled through a fairlead under tension. In slick fibre it walks — that is what the EStar exists for.
Beginner · Polyester / Nylon rope / Polypropylene / Natural fibre / Dyneema / HMPE
Connection card
Figure-8 Stopper
For stopper in the end.
Compact figure-eight in the tail, larger than the block or fairlead after dress.
This card does not say how strong the knot is. A retention figure comes from a bench, in one material, at one diameter, tied by somebody who ties it all day — and the line in your hand is none of those. What it does tell you is whether the thing you have just tied is the thing the record describes.
What this plate is telling you
A bulk stopper: the figure-eight body is wide enough not to pass the opening it is set against, and that is the whole mechanism. It carries no useful load itself and jams hard once it has been pulled through a fairlead under tension. In slick fibre it walks — that is what the EStar exists for.
Save this as a picture and it works with a dead signal and a nearly dead battery, which is when a joint is most often tied badly. The rest of this page — the steps, the seating sequence, the failure modes and the bench — is for the evening before.
Before you start
- ·It is a stopper only. It keeps the line from running out through a fitting and is not made to join two ropes.
- ·Check the set knot against the block or fairlead it has to stop at. In thin line an eight can be too small for a large opening, so a larger stopper knot is needed.
- ·Leave a tail at least a hand's length beyond the knot. A shorter tail can let it capsize or shake out on a flogging line.
Step 1 of 4 · move 1 of 1. Lay the tail over the standing part to make a small loop
swipe to step
01.1
Lay the tail over the standing part to make a small loop
- Hold:
- Left hand holds the rope where it crosses itself
- Move:
- Right hand brings the tail round and over the standing part
You should now see: A small loop near the end of the rope, with the tail crossing on top of the standing part.
Make a loop near the end of the line with the working end crossing over the standing part, then take the working end around behind the standing part.
A loop with the working end lying over the standing part and then wrapped around behind it, pointing back toward the loop.
Skipping the pass behind the standing part and going straight through the loop. That makes an overhand knot, which is smaller and can jam hard.
Fix: Pull the end back out and take it around behind the standing part before it goes anywhere near the loop.
Why: The wrap behind the standing part is the difference between an eight and an overhand. Animated Knots notes the eight does not bind as badly after being pulled hard against something, so it is easier to untie.
- Overhand instead of a figure-eight — Jammier stopper, harder to inspect. The eight is the hitch.
arrow keys work
Tying procedure — Figure-8 Stopper
Step 01 / 4
Make a loop near the end of the line with the working end crossing over the standing part, then take the working end around behind the standing part.
You should now see: A loop with the working end lying over the standing part and then wrapped around behind it, pointing back toward the loop.
If it goes wrong: Skipping the pass behind the standing part and going straight through the loop. That makes an overhand knot, which is smaller and can jam hard.
Fix: Pull the end back out and take it around behind the standing part before it goes anywhere near the loop.
Why: The wrap behind the standing part is the difference between an eight and an overhand. Animated Knots notes the eight does not bind as badly after being pulled hard against something, so it is easier to untie.
1Small loop2Standing partStep 1 of 4 · move 1 of 1
Lay the tail over the standing part to make a small loop
Hold: Left hand holds the rope where it crosses itself. Move: Right hand brings the tail round and over the standing part.
You should now see: A small loop near the end of the rope, with the tail crossing on top of the standing part.
Step 02 / 4
Bring the working end back over the front and down through the loop, then pull the tail and the standing part just enough to close it loosely.
You should now see: A loose knot that clearly shows the figure-eight shape, with the tail coming out through the loop.
If it goes wrong: Yanking the tail tight straight away. A wrong pass gets locked in before you can see it, and the knot comes out as a lump instead of a clear eight.
Fix: Loosen it while it is still soft, trace its path against an eight, and correct the pass before setting it.
Why: A loosely closed knot shows its shape. A mistake is easier to spot now than after the stopper has been pulled against a block.
1Behind the standing partStep 2 of 4 · move 1 of 2
Take the tail round the outside of the loop and behind the standing part
Hold: Left hand holds the small loop. Move: Right hand takes the tail down, up the outside, and round behind the standing part.
- 1Down through the loop
Step 2 of 4 · move 2 of 2
Bring the tail down through the small loop from the front
Hold: Left hand holds the loop open. Move: Right hand pushes the tail down through the small loop and pulls it through.
You should now see: A loose figure-eight: the tail round behind the standing part and down through the small loop.
Step 03 / 4
Pull the standing part and tail together to set the knot, working the crossings flat, and hold it against the block or fairlead it has to stop at.
You should now see: A compact eight with flat crossings, clearly larger than the opening in the block or fairlead.
If it goes wrong: A stopper too small for the opening, or set so loosely it can squeeze through. If it starts to enter the hole when you press it in, it will pull through under load.
Fix: Untie it and use a larger stopper knot for that fitting. In thin line, a figure-eight can be too small for a large fairlead.
Why: The knot only works if it is bigger than the hole once it is set. Working the crossings flat keeps it compact but does not make it bigger, so size comes from the line diameter and the knot you choose.
Step 3 of 4 · move 1 of 1
Pull the tail and the standing part to draw the eight up compact
Hold: Left hand pulls the standing part. Move: Right hand pulls the tail the other way until the loops close up.
You should now see: A compact figure-eight with no loose loops, bigger than the block or fairlead it has to stop at.
Step 04 / 4
Leave a tail at least a hand's length beyond the knot, and use the knot only to stop the line running out through the fitting.
You should now see: A set eight at the end of the line with a tail about a hand's length or more, sitting where it will meet the block.
If it goes wrong: Trimming the tail short, or using a stopper to hold two ropes together. A short tail can let the knot capsize or shake out on a flogging line.
Fix: Retie with more tail. To join two ropes, use a bend made for it, such as a sheet bend.
Why: A stopper is shaped to jam against a fitting, not to carry load between two ropes. A tail much longer than needed only leaves loose rope flapping.
Step 4 of 4 · move 1 of 1
Leave a short tail beyond the knot
Hold: Left hand holds the standing part. Move: Right hand checks the tail is short but not cut flush with the knot.
You should now see: A compact figure-eight with a short tail, sitting where it stops the rope at the block.
Watch the tie
How to tie a Figure 8 knot (stopper)AnimatedKnots · Opens on YouTubeExternal video from a creator we follow — not produced by us. Nothing on this page loads from YouTube until you follow the link.
Seating sequence — where failures are born
The step list compresses the finish. Run these phases in order, one at a time.
01 Form
Build the structure loose enough to see every turn.
None. Shape first.
02 Dress
Nest every turn. Crossed parts will walk or jam.
Light — hold the shape.
03 Set
Load the standing part so the intended turns take the strain.
Working load, not a snatch.
04 Check
Confirm the lock still breaks or inspects as the job requires.
None extra.
05 Commit
Only load it after the structure reads correct. Wrong means remake.
Working load, not a snatch.
Finished structure — what correct looks like
Drawn from a rope model of this knot: which strand passes over which comes from where the rope actually lies.
- ·Compact figure-eight in the tail, larger than the block or fairlead after dress
- ·Dressed compact so it cannot pull through
- ·Short tail. This is not loaded as a join
- ·A true eight, not an overhand
Verify before you load it
Every line is pass or fail. One fail means retie — do not load a knot you argued with.
- 01Compact figure-eight in the tail, larger than the block or fairlead after dress
- 02Dressed compact so it cannot pull through
- 03Short tail. This is not loaded as a join
- 04A true eight, not an overhand
- 05A loose or unfinished eight pulls through
- 06Larger than the opening. Stopper only
Field notes — dark, cold, gloves
- ·Dress is the lock. A pretty knot that is not dressed is not finished.
- ·HMPE usually wants a splice, not a hitch you learned in polyester.
- ·If you cannot break or inspect it under the load you expect, it is the wrong job.
When this family fails, it fails as these. The recovered end still outranks the name.
Bulk at the tail, larger than the opening — not a join.
- !Body smaller than the block or fairlead after dress
- !Asked to join two ropes
- !Figure-8 used in HMPE where Estar extra turns were the stopper, or Ashley left as a two-lobe overhand
- !The set knot is smaller than the opening in the block or fairlead, so it pulls through under load
- !It is set loosely enough to squeeze into the opening
- !The tail is shorter than a hand's length, so the knot capsizes or shakes out on a flogging line
- !It is left unchecked on a working line. Animated Knots notes a figure-eight can occasionally come undone.
Overhand instead of a figure-eight
Jammier stopper, harder to inspect
The eight is the hitch · step 01
Undersized or loose eight
Pulls through the block
Size after dress is the job · step 03
Asked to join two ropes
A stopper is not a bend
Pick a sheet bend or Zeppelin if you needed a join · step 04
Stopper pulls through the block
Check
- ?Compact eight larger than the opening
Then
- →Retie larger
- →Do not substitute an unfinished overhand on a running sheet
Overhand instead of a figure-eight
Check
- ?Jammier stopper, harder to inspect
- ?Inspect step 01
Then
- →Retie. Do not dress a defective structure and call it seated.
Undersized or loose eight
Check
- ?Pulls through the block
- ?Inspect step 03
Then
- →Retie. Do not dress a defective structure and call it seated.
Asked to join two ropes
Check
- ?A stopper is not a bend
- ?Inspect step 04
Then
- →Retie. Do not dress a defective structure and call it seated.
Same failure class, different geometry. Open the plates — Diagnose still starts from the symptom.
Get it right with everything in your favour0/5 clean
Good light, dry hands, a table. Until the sequence is automatic here there is nothing for the harder rungs to test — you would only be learning that difficult conditions are difficult, which you already knew.
How · Tie it, check it against the list, log it. Five clean and the ladder opens.
Nothing marked. Log it clean, or mark what happened first.
Not ideal for
- ×Any load-bearing join
- ×A stopper that must be tiny (use an overhand, knowing it jams harder)
Strength, and where the number comes from
49.2–56.1% of the weaker line
Measureda single figure 8 tied in line and pulled end to end in rope, 3 published samples — this is what the knot costs the rope's strength, not what a stopper holds, which is how the knot is actually used
A Review of Knot Strength Testing (2016) — Thomas Evans, SAR3
Percentages come from published tests on their own line, their own knot-tyer and their own pull rate. Yours is a different system. Treat a figure as a reason to test, not as a result you already have.
Record reviewed 2026-08-14
Vetted references
- Animated Knots — Figure 8
Animated Knots by Grog
- How to tie a Figure 8 knot (stopper)
AnimatedKnots
Check the finished knot against what correct looks like before you load it.