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I currently have a heavy bag mount I built from 4x4 posts to hold up a 100lbs punching bag. It currently has a nice swivel bracket holding it up, which has been working great so far. The only problem here is that sometimes I need the extra space in the garage, and need to take the bag down.

Is there a safe hitch or knot I could use for mounting, hanging, and taking down the bag? I tried using a clove hitch to hold on to the bag, and then a trucker's hitch to raise the bag up into position, and some half-hitches to hold it in place. This doesn't work as well as I'd hoped, as the trucker's hitch sometimes loosens when I hit the bag really hard and send it swinging, so I'm trying to find a better alternative.

Is there a better set of knots/hitches I could use with some 750lbs type IV paracord, or some stronger rope that would fit into the mounting bracket's loop? This current system would be great if the hitch wasn't loosening and posing a safety risk, as it's a real pain to get up on a step ladder and do a one-armed military press of a 100lbs bag to mount it. I've nearly crushed my fingertips twice while doing this.

Thanks!

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  • If you could use a couple of pulleys it would make lifting the bag easier, and put less tension on the end of the rope when tying it off.
    – JPhi1618
    Commented Dec 23, 2015 at 18:42
  • I have mine attached to 4 links of chain. When I need to remove it I lift it off the swivels hook.
    – ojait
    Commented Dec 23, 2015 at 21:37

2 Answers 2

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One setup which would be easy to setup and take down would be a combination of a ceiling mounted punching bag carabiner, swivel pulley, and boat cleat.

Start by bolting the carabiner to the ceiling. A solid wooden beam would be perfect for this. After that, mount the boat hitch to a solid vertical surface such as a wall or vertical beam.

Then attach the swivel pulley to the carabiner, and tie one end of a piece of rope to the punching bag. You can use an anchor bend knot to attach the rope to the metal ring. Fish the other end of the rope through the pulley and lift the bag into place with the rope.

Tie the rope off on the boat cleat by using a cleat hitch. This setup will easily allow you to take the bag down and set it up without using any tools. The cleat and knots are designed to hold a boat, so a punching bag would be no problem.

Swivel Pulley

Swivel pulley

Cleat Hitch & Knot

Cleat Hitch Knot

Punching bag carabiner

Carabiner

Anchor Bend Knot

Anchor Bend

The cleat can be purchased at any marine supply store, or boat dealer. Just about every cleat on the market will be strong enough to support a heavy bag.

There are two main styles of cleats. There are ones which have 2 screw holes which go through the center, and others with 4 holes. The ones with the 2 center holes will take more abuse before failing than the 4 holed varieties.

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  • Be careful that your anchor point, pulley, and mounting hardware (carabiner) are strong enough. When you use a mechanical advantage like that to lift, you double the load on the anchor point and hardware (100 lbs. for the bag + 100 lbs. of you pulling on it... so 200 lb. rating minimum).
    – Jimmy Fix-it
    Commented Dec 23, 2015 at 20:35
  • I wouldn't recommend using any equipment that is rated less than 4 times the dead weight of the bag itself, which would be 400 lbs. I personally would use a minimum of 1/2" climbing rope or dock line for this. Rope like this is rated from ~5000 - ~8000 pounds. You don't want the rope to fray or stretch very much. Be sure to use adequately sized fasteners. With the amount of weight involved, I would be more concerned with the fasteners failing by either pulling out or breaking off. Most carabiners that are rated for climbing will work. These also screw together to prevent them from opening up.
    – Jason Hutchinson
    Commented Dec 23, 2015 at 21:03
  • Thank you. I like this a lot. I'll likely add a bag spring between the carabiner and the pulley to reduce noise and vibrations, but this is awesome. Thanks again!
    – Cloud
    Commented Dec 23, 2015 at 21:09
  • Could you please fix the dead imgur link under "Cleat Hitch & Knot"?
    – bcsteeve
    Commented Nov 20, 2016 at 2:45
  • @bcsteeve fixed.
    – Jason Hutchinson
    Commented Nov 20, 2016 at 17:02
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Look to the rock climbers.

For attaching, a figure-8 followthrough is a serious no-slip knot (and you can tie the tail in for extra insurance.) I pull out my instruction sheet for that knot when tying a static line onto a tree to keep me from falling off a roof. I might not need the sheet, but I am betting my life on the knot, so I make sure I haven't forgotten. Not associated with sites linked, just some decent images that came up in searching.

Figure 8 followthorugh

For hanging, a pulley would be far preferable, and then a cleat (look to the boat folks - wind a figure-8 and flip the second loop so it holds itself) to hold the line. Evidently called a cleat hitch.cleat hitch

There probably are clever rope tricks as well, but hardware will be simpler and also easier on the rope (clever rope tricks can be somewhat wearing)

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