The Tarbuck knot was made popular around 1952 by Kenneth Tarbuck, a climber and skier, for use by climbers, and was primarily used with stranded nylon ropes, before the advent of kernmantle ropes made this use both unnecessary and unsafe.[1] [2] It was used when the rope is subject to heavy or sudden loads,[3] as it will slide to a limited extent thus reducing shock (but with kernmantle ropes it can strip the outer sheath).[2] The knot was already employed by 1946 as "the knot" by American tree trimmers.[4]