English

Etymology

Origin unknown.

Pronunciation

• /fɪd/

Noun

1. A pointed tool without any sharp edges, used in weaving or knotwork to tighten and form up weaves or complex knots; used in sailing ships to open the strands of a rope before splicing.
2. A square bar of wood or iron, with a shoulder at one end, to support the weight of the topmast (on a ship).
3. A plug of oakham for the vent of a gun.
4. A small thick piece of anything.
5. A wooden or metal bar or pin, used to support or steady anything.

Verb

1. To support a topmast using a fid.

A fid is a conical tool made of wood or bone. It is used to work with rope and canvas in marlinespike seamanship. A fid differs from a marlinspike in material and purpose. A marlinespike is used in working with wire rope, may be used to open shackles, and is made of metal. A fid is used to hold open knots and holes in canvas. A fid is used to open the "lays", or strands of rope, synthetic or natural, for splicing said line.

A "fid" is also a unit of measurement equaling approximately 21 or 22 times the rope's diameter. The fid is further divided into a "short" fid and a "long" fid. A short fid is 1/3 the length of the full fid and a long fid is 2/3 the length of the full fid.

This chart shows examples of short, long, and full fid lengths for ropes of almost all diameters.

Rope Diameter (in.)

Rope Circ. (in.) Short Fid (in.) Long Fid (in.)

Full Fid (in.) 3/32" 9/32" 2/3"

1-1/3" 2 1/8" 3/8" 7/8"

1-3/4" 2-5/8" 5/32" 15/32" 1

2-1/5" 3-2/7" 3/16" 9/16" 1-1/3"

2-5/8" 4" 7/32" 21/32" 1-1/2"

3" 4-3/5" 1/4" 3/4" 1-3/4"

3-1/2" 5-1/4" 9/32" 27/32" 2"

4" 6" 5/16" 1" 2-1/5"

4-3/8" 6-4/7" 3/8" 1-1/8" 2-5/8"

5-1/4" 7-7/8" 7/16" 1-1/4" 3"

6-1/8" 9-1/5" 1/2" 1-1/2" 3-1/2"

7" 10-1/2" 9-16" 1-3/4" 4"

7-7/8" 11-4/5" 5/8" 2" 4-3/8"

8-3/4" 13-1/8" 11/16" 2-1/4" 4-4/5"

9-5/8" 14-4/9" 3/4" 2-1/4" 5-1/4"

10-1/2" 15-3/4" 7/8" 2-3/4" 6-1/8"

12-1/4" 18-3/8" 1" 3" 7"

14" 21" 1-1/8" 3-1/2" 7-7/8"

15-3/4" 23-5/8" 1-1/4" 3-3/4" 8-3/4"

17-1/2" 23-1/4" 1-5/16" 4" 9-1/5"

18-3/8" 27-4/7" 1-1/2" 4-1/2" 10-1/2"

21" 31-1/2" 1-5/8" 5" 11-3/8"

22-3/4" 34-1/8" 1-3/4" 5-1/2" 12-1/4"

24-1/2" 36-3/4" 2" 6" 14"

28" 42" 2-1/8" 6-1/4" 14-7/8"

29-3/4" 44-5/8" 2-1/4" 7" 15-3/4"

31-1/2" 47-1/4" 2-1/2" 7-1/2" 17-1/2"

35" 52-1/2" 2-5/8" 8" 18-3/8"

36-3/4" 55-1/8" 2-3/4" 8-1/2" 19-1/4"

38-1/2" 57-3/4" 3" 9" 21"

42" 63" 3-1/4" 10" 22-3/4"

45-1/2" 68-1/4"

External links

• Examples of fids.
• http://www.machovec.com/rope/splicing/splicing.htm for a chart of fid lengths
• Animated splice & image of fid in use