Fingerloop braid vs. lucet cord

 I was in need of a string and since I didn't have anything better to do I decided to do a comparison between making a fingerloop braid and a lucet cord.

They are both techniques that have been used historically to make strings. Lucet forks have been found from the viking age. Fingerloop braiding can be seen in medieval manuscripts and there are extant fingerloop braids from the 15th century and onwards. I have definitely seen discussions on which kind of cord is the most accurate for a specific time period, but I don't know enough of it myself. I have used both kinds of cords, especially for lacing my kirtles.

To learn how to fingerbraid I watched this video from Morgan Donner. 

Here is a video tutorial on how to make lucet cord. To make a lucet cord you must have a tool. Lucet forks can be bought, and they are pretty common at viking/medieval markets, but you can make do with something as simple as a plastic fork that you remove the middle parts of so you end up with just the two outer pegs.

I used the same yarn for both strings, a wool yarn I picked up in Visby when I had to cut off the lacing to my kirtle and needed to make a new lacing cord.

I first made the fingerloop braid and it took me around 40 minutes, I then made a lucet cord for 40 minutes to see how long it would get.

As you can see I'm much faster with the fingerloop braid than the lucet. The fingerloop braid ended up 66 cm and the lucet cord 18 cm. The fingerloop is thicker at 3 mm while the lucet cord is just 1,5 mm. They have about the same stretch in them, the lucet cord is a bit more springy but it's not a big difference.

For me the main difference is how long I want the cord to be. With fingerloop braiding you worked with fixed loops, and for myself I can't make make a braid that is longer than my arms can stretch it out while braiding. The 66 cm is how long I can make it comfortably. In Visby me and Emma worked a braid together and then we could make a lot longer cord, but it also took quite some time. The lucet cord can be worked continously until I have a cord that is exactly how long I want it. I can also put down the lucet and pick it up later, while with the fingerloop braiding I have to finish the braid in one session. That's not really a problem nowadays when I've gotten quite fast with the braiding. 

There is also a difference if the yarn or string that is used breaks. With fingerloop braiding it is possible to tie the ends together and continue, even if it will be a bit uncomfortable with one loop being smaller than the other. If the string for the lucet breaks I can't do that. On the other hand I can just unravel the lucet cord without a problem and restart. 

So there you have a comparison. I prefer to make fingerloop braids nowadays, unless I need a really long cord. I have been nown to bring the lucet with me when doing other stuff though so if I want something to just keep my hands busy that's a simple craft too bring along.