Bull hitch

In this tutorial I show you three distinct ways of tying the Bull hitch.

The Bull hitch is a knot with similar utility to the Cow hitch/Lark’s head knot. Both are used to attach cord onto items, be it buckles, rings, carabiners, etc. The Bull hitch is less prone to slipping and is defined by an “X” shape at the top. So if you want to spice your projects up or just want a new, practical knot this may be a nice knot for you.

Below I will show you three distinct ways of tying the Bull hitch. Personally I consider the Bull hitch a dressed Piwich knot. By making the “X” we transform the Piwich knot into the Bull hitch.

Tying method 1

The first way of tying the Bull hitch is to tie a Lark’s head knot, then upgrade it.

Fold your cord in half and feed your cord through an item (in this case a ring).

Feed the ends through the bight, essentially tying the Lark’s head knot.

Twist the bight into a loop.

Pass the bight over the item (ring).

Tying the Piwich knot.

Pass the lower of the two horizontal cords over the top one and tighten up to get the “X” shape.

Tying method 2

The second method of tying the hitch is by tying it with a single end. This is quite a handy one to know.

Feed one end of your cord through an item (in this case a buckle).

Tie a hitch as shown. So over the standing end and through the loop.

Pass over the standing end and through the item, bottom up.

Finally, through the two loops/under the two horizontal cords.

Tighten up, again dressing the knot to get the “X” shape.

Tying method 3

The final way of tying the Bull hitch is to clip you item into it. Usually this is done with climbing, so a carabiner is used for the demonstration.

Tie a Girth hitch.

Enlarge the left ear by pulling slack from the right one.

Wrap the left ear around the back, around the right ear. Picture below makes the process a lot clearer.

Like this.

This ties the Bull hitch.

Clip a carabiner into the hitch.

Tighten up.

A video tutorial on all three ways of tying is available below:

So guys, those are 3 ways of tying the Bull hitch. All work and you use each depending on the situation.

Till next time, happy tying!