So, you've made your monkey fist from our DIY post and now you want to know how to make a homemade rope dart. Here, we'll show you how to take that beautiful monkey fist and turn it into a fantastic DIY rope dart. Alternatively, you can check out our DIY poi!
For those who don't have the time, patience or resources to make our DIY monkey fist rope dart, a super simple option to get started on your journey to spinning rope dart is a homemade tennis ball rope dart.
- Grab a tennis ball and some soft, braided rope.
- Make two holes on opposite sides of the tennis ball, ensuring they're big enough to fit your rope through.
- Pass the rope all the way through the ball and tie a knot at the end to stop it coming back out again.
- Measure out the length of rope you need (check out our size guide for detailed info on this), cut to size and away you go!
- (Scroll down to step 6 to see how to tie a wrist loop for your tether.)
Materials for DIY Rope Dart:
- Your completed monkey fist
- 3m of soft, braided rope for your tether – we suggest braided cotton (shibari rope works great!) roughly 6-8mm diameter
- A swivel (optional but recommended) – we suggest a ball bearing swivel with a welded ring for extra strength. Ensure the rings are big enough to fit your rope through
- A ruler or tape measure
- A lighter – to melt the ends of your rope
- Scissors
Method for DIY Rope Dart:
2. Cut the other end with enough length to be able to easily tie an
overhand knot, plus an extra approx. 5cm.
3. Attached your swivel, approx. 5cm from the monkey fist head, by tying an overhand knot to one of the rings. You can cut the excess rope once you’ve secured your swivel and melt the cut end of rope.
4. Attach your soft tether rope to the other ring on your swivel. Use the same overhand knot to secure it and trim any excess rope. If you’re using 100% cotton rope, you won’t be able to melt the end.
Optional: you can tape or glue the end to stop it from fraying.
5. Measure out approx. 3m of your soft tether rope (the ideal tether length for a rope dart is the distance from the ground to your shoulders + your wingspan).
6. At the loose end of the 3m tether rope, create a wrist loop.
The best knot to use for this is a noose knot. You should be able to slide this knot along the tether, giving you an adjustable wrist loop.
7. Trim of any excess rope and check that your knots are secure.
8. Attach the loop to your wrist and check your sizing
(the head should be just above the ground with your arms stretched out).
