Which knot to use is largely a matter of preference. Why not use the Zeppellin? I have, but prefer the strait bend, esp since many of the old fuddy-duddies I climbed with understood the Alpine Butterfly it is similar to.
The EDK will be a hard sell on this forum among us cordage geeks who love a fair entry and symmetry in a bend. While the EDK may be suitable for some people, simple enough and all that, it isn't pretty, therefore it is unseamanlike, therefore we reject it. Stupid reasons? perhaps, but remember that we are geeks (and I'm probably the least geeky among them).
When rappelling with same-sized ropes, you are feeding the 'pull' rope through the rap rings you are at while pulling it to retrieve the other rope from the rings above. That way when the other rope falls free, the next rappel is ready to go. So (because of which side of the rap rings the bend is on), the alternate rope is the 'pull' rope. The bend is alternately on one side of the rings or the other, so there's no need to untie and re-tie to get the bend on the 'proper' side of the rings, like there is with different diameter ropes.
Would it be proper to note the incongruity in today's youth with being able to split millimeters and not being able to understand a proper bend? Perhaps, as I've always suspected, use of the Metric system kills brain cells.
|