Wrap twine until it is "square," that is, the whipping is as long as the rope is wide, or even slightly longer. Hold what you have and trim the twine a short distance from the last wrap. Put the cut end of the twine through the loop sticking out from under the wraps and pull on the end sticking out where you started wrapping. This will pull the cut end under the wraps. Just bury the end -- don't pull the loop all the way out from under the wraps. Trim off the end that you pulled close to the whipping and you are done.

GENE BJERKE

Tightly applied, this whipping will hold well, though if the line flogs occasionally and the whipping isn't tight, it may eventually come off.

PALM AND NEEDLE

Palm-and-needle whipping is the most secure. As the name implies, this whipping is actually sewn onto the rope. It was originally developed for laid line, but it can be put onto braid as well (though some experience with putting it on laid line first would be helpful).GENE BJERKE

You'll need a sailmaker's palm, the glove-like leather tool used for stitching heavy materials, and a sail needle sized to accommodate the whipping twine. These items are cheap and readily available and should be in any serious mariner's tool kit anyway.

This illustration will use a piece of laid line. You will start the whipping near the end of the rope and wrap toward the end. Pull off about a half a fathom (three feet) or so of whipping twine and thread the end into the sail needle. Use the twine single; do not double it. Thrust the needle through the middle of one strand of the rope, from groove to groove, against the lay. Pull all but a short piece of the end of the twine through the strand. Lay this end up the rope to be held down by the wrappings.

Wrap the twine tightly around the rope, against the lay, toward the end. Here again, you can put your foot on the needle to help make tight wraps (just don't pull so hard you pull the twine out of the needle). When the wrappings are "square" begin your frapping turns. A frapping turn is what binds things together tightly.

Thrust the needle through a strand just as you did at the beginning. Follow the groove between the strands down the rope and thrust the needle through the next strand at the other end of the wraps. Pull the twine tight, it should follow the groove across the wraps. Follow the next groove to the other end of the wraps. Repeat this process, following the grooves up and down the wraps, for six passes. You should then have two frapping turns for each groove in the rope.

The whipping is almost done. Here is one simple and secure way to finish them off. After you push the needle through the strand to finish the last frapping turn, work it under the next frapping turn backwards (back toward where you just came from). Pass the needle under this piece of twine to make a half-hitch, which you pull down to the end of the whipping. Then, starting close to the end of the whipping, push the needle through the rope to bury the end. If you want to bury it a long ways, angle the needle down the rope. Trim the twine close where it emerges from the rope and the finish will be invisible.

WHIPPING, WEST COUNTRY-STYLE

Lacking a palm and needle, a good, strong whipping for laid or braided line is the West Country (or West County) Whipping.