The Seizing

A seizing is a binding of small stuff — thin line or wire — wrapped tightly around two parallel ropes or around a rope doubled back on itself to form an eye. The seizing holds the two parts together by external compression. Unlike a splice, which interweaves the strands of the rope into each other, a seizing works entirely from the outside. The rope's internal structure is untouched. The holding comes from the friction of the wraps pressing the parts together.

Hose clamps work on the same principle. A rubber hose pushed over a metal fitting is held in place by a band of metal tightened around the outside. The clamp does not penetrate the hose or the fitting. It compresses the hose against the fitting, creating a friction seal. The clamp can be loosened, the hose removed, and the fitting reused — nothing is permanently altered. The connection is entirely external, entirely reversible, and entirely dependent on compression.

Cable ties — zip ties — are seizings in plastic. A thin nylon strap wraps around a bundle of wires or cables, and a ratcheting pawl in the head prevents the strap from loosening. The bundle is held by external compression. The individual wires are not modified, not joined to each other, not stripped or soldered. The cable tie imposes organization on the bundle without altering any member of the bundle. Remove the tie, and each wire is exactly as it was before.

The seizing is the principle of external binding that does not alter what it binds. A splice is permanent — it modifies the rope's structure. A knot is semi-permanent — it distorts the lay of the rope under load. A seizing wraps around the outside and can be cut away, leaving the rope unmarked. The trade-off is that the seizing is weaker than a splice and less secure than a good knot. But it is the only binding that treats the thing it holds as something that should remain unchanged by the holding.