Survival Bracelet

Step 2: Now take the two working ends (Working Ends= the two loose ends) and feed these through the loop you created and pull tight so that you create a hitch.

Step 1: Find the centre of the cord and double it over at this point. Now feed the bend through the top of one of the slots on the buckle so that about an inch is poking out from the bottom of the buckle.

Step 3: Now take your two working ends (Note: I've put a orange tip on one of mine for ease of following in this tutorial) and feed them back up from the bottom to the opposite side of the outer slot of the buckle

Step 4: Bring the working ends back around now and feed these back through the hitch you made in Step 3.

Step 5: Unsnap the buckle and adjust the length of cord in between the two pieces. Remember to account for the buckle length and allow for the bracelet to have room to move on your wrist. At this point you may want to take a small piece of cotton thread, dental floss, twisty tie or even a short strand of the inner core of the paracord and tie this around the cord so that it won't move once you begin the braid. (Note: I've not done this, as after making a few you'll get the hang of it and can skip this step).

Step 6: Now feed the working ends back through the top of the slot and snug the hitch you created in Step 4 down around all 4 strands. Make sure that this hitch stays tight and it will also help to hold your cord at the right length.

Step 7: Now you should have your two working ends and you want to place them on either side of the 4 middle strands (or core) of the bracelet. Take the left working end and bring it over the top of the 4 inner cores. But under the right working end. Leave a small loop on the left hand side.

Step 8: Now take the right hand working end and bring this under the left working ends and the 4 middle cores and bring it up through the left hand loop that you left in Step 7. Now slowly take any slack out and pull the two working ends so that they tighten up around the inner cores of the bracelet. Basically you have just created a square knot with the 4 cores in the centre.

Step 9: Now take the cord that is on top and bring it back across the top to the left. Leaving a small loop on the right hand side. Then bring the left hand cord back under and back up through the loop you left on the right hand side. draw it all tight.

Step 10: Continue to repeat steps 9 making a zig-zag pattern over the middle cores of the bracelet.

Step 11: Once you have reached the end of the bracelet take the two working ends and bring these back over the top of the buckle and into the same outer slot as the other cord is already in. (Note: You won't be using the second inner slot on the buckle.)

Step 12: Now instead of cutting the ends off and melting it all together you want to work the working ends up under the zig-zags. I normally try to work them back up under a series of 4 of them. So you will need at this time to loosen a few of the bottom/back zig zag stitches back up.

Step 13: feed the pliers up under the loose zig-zags. Latch onto one end of the cord and feed it through. Repeat for the other working end.

Step 14: Now using your pliers go back and pull the cord tight again along your zig-zags. This should provide you with slack on the working ends and you'll want to pull this tight under the zig-zags. Once you have done this and you are happy with the bracelet cut the cord off leaving just enough to tuck up under a zig-zag.

Step 15: Now this is where the turbo flame lighter shows its worth. It is able to melt the ends quickly, but not effect the surrounding cord. A standard bic or zippo lighter flame could scorch the surrounding the cord due to the wider flame and being so close, so be careful if using this type of lighter. To help reduce this you can bend the bracelet so that the ends poke out and the rest of the cord is in your hand. Using the lighter melt one end and take your pliers and while still hot, squish it down to make it flat. Repeat for the other cord end.

Step 16: Finally take the two ends and work them up under the final zig-zag. This zig-zag won't/shouldn't be loose so you may have to slip something up under to help pry and lift it up. The use of a small flathead screwdriver or even working the tip of the pliers up under will normally do the trick. Slip the ends up under and your done!

Step 17: Enjoy your new paracord bracelet which CAN be undone should you need the length of cord in an emergency