Fit to be tied

[DayTripper99]

Hey again, my fast weathered friends,

Im having a wee bit of a dilemma. Im looking for about 100ft (or more) of cordage for ridge-lines and other outdoor tasks. It's between Amsteel Blue 1/8" and Dyneema 7/64". Do you any of you have a preference based on knot performance or otherwise functionality? Unfortunately i have no experience with either. My years of outdoor experience have been limited to using para-cord, which i absolutely love but now looking for something lighter and less water absorbent.

Also, i found two Canadian sites that carry both Amsteel and Dynnema - Marine Outfitters and Binnacle.

 

[Cruiser]

I believe dyneema is the fiber and amsteel is a trade name, both use the same fiber.

Having said that, I just bought 100' of amsteel 7/64" for my hammock suspension, at 1600 pound break strength, you don't need to go to 1/8" ... it's both a lot more expensive and a lot heavier. For ridge lines you may want to look at Zing-it or Lash-it, they come in 1.75 or 2.2 mm versions and that would be fine for ridge lines and most outdoor uses.

Brian

 

[DayTripper99]

Ahh ok, i didn't know that. What did you pay for your 100' of Amsteel?

I can also buy 180' of Zing-It 2.2mm for $63.51 shipped.

 

[Bothwell Voyageur]

Both Dyneema and Amsteel are trade names.

Yes, Zing-It or Lash-It if you must but why bother? Get some decent polyester kernmantle cord, it will be much more knot friendly and you can opt for something with a reflective tracer in it so that you don't decapitate yourself when going for a pee at night.

I use Lawson Glowire for all my tie outs. I like being able to colour code things so I can tell my ridge line from my corner ties. Never had to pay any customs fees on my orders from him.

 

[red langford]

I have some 7/64 stuff and it works great. The zing it also works very well. 1/8" is overkill.

The drawback to the finer rope is hard on the hands to pull if you are using it for something other than tying down tarps.

Of note is that there is almost zero stretch in the Dyneema type rope, so make little loops of stretch cord on the loops of your tarp so you don't tear your tarp.

 

[DayTripper99]

Do you use 2mm or 3mm for the Glowwire?

 

[DayTripper99]

The Sampson 7/64 Dyneema is about .50 per foot. But i have to buy 200 feet for free shipping. I think that's a good deal.

 

[boatstall]

Amsteel 7/64. Several choices of color. $0.18 per foot. Shipping might not make it worth it up to you, but I have bought from them several times. No issues.

http://www.go2marine.com/product/383...blue-rope.html

Also recommend Lawson Glowire for tie-outs. He also makes the absolute best pull cord replacements for small engines. Replaced pull cords on everything I own that has one. And Lawson also makes shoe and boot laces that will also never break.

http://lawsonequipment.com
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[MagicPaddler]

DayTripper
Cruiser is correct Zing-it or Lashit is strong enough. I use to have my ridge line made out of Zing-it. I changed to 1/8 amsteel because it hurt my hand to pull that small string tight as I like my ridge line.
https://dutchwaregear.com/product/1-8-amsteel-blue/
The amsteal is about the same as putting the tarp using Para cord but it does not stretch and will still be tight in the morning.

 

[Cruiser]

I just bought it from RipStopByTheRoll with the rest of the hammock materials ... https://ripstopbytheroll.com/collect...oducts/amsteel

I think it works out to $.22 /foot .... I don't think it will come much cheaper.

If you want it reflective, they have https://dutchwaregear.com/product/reflect-it/ ... which is pretty much Lash-it/zing-it with reflective strips ... at 400# break strength .. it is pretty versatle

There are a few knots that work well with amsteel/dyneema/Zing-It/Lash-It type products, it doesn't have to be difficult, you just need to learn those knots. As far as being hard to pull, that is very true ... I did my bear hanging suspension out of 7/64" amsteel and had to replace because it was too small to pull easily ... went to a 5/16" marine cord for the grip. Never wrap those products around your hand and pull, they are just too strong and thin.

Brian

 

[JoeO]

If you need a lot you get better deals off boat/marine site like this http://www.go2marine.com/product/38345F/samson-amsteel-blue-rope.html lots of time shipping may kill you also you need the foot lengths the places mentions are better

 

[Bothwell Voyageur]

Do you use 2mm or 3mm for the Glowwire?

I use 2mm in canoe tripping and hammock camping set up.

For my hammock tarp I don't use knots in the ridgeline, just prussik loops and micro carabiners. Tripping with a group tarp one end attaches with an Evenk hitch and I'll use a trucker's hitch if I need to really get some tension.

one thing to remember with a tight line between two objects the load on the ends is way more than the load pulling down at the middle. This is what is behind the concept of hammock hang angle. This idea can be exploited in rescue situations but an also unintentionally overload the ends of your ridgeline rope. A little sag can be your friend on a windy day.

 

[Guest]

I use the thick line that came with my Clark hammock to tie to trees. It has never harmed one, but this thin line probably would --necessitating straps. I'll stick with what i have.

 

[DayTripper99]

I use the thick line that came with my Clark hammock to tie to trees. It has never harmed one, but this thin line probably would --necessitating straps. I'll stick with what i have.

Do you think if i tied a 7/64 or 1/8th tarp line to a mature tree for two or three days it would kill the tree?

 

[MagicPaddler]

DayTripper
I have seen 1/8 line leave a compressed ring around a tree in one night but not usually. It was a tarp ridge line. If the hammock was hung from it it would have done more damage. Big trees (greater than 12

EDIT
Sorry most pf this post disappeared

 

[MagicPaddler]

Big trees are damaged less and on smaller thinner barked tree protection can be put between the rope and the tree.

 

[Cruiser]

I use straps for the hammock, once loaded there is enough force, for ropes, to mark the tree ... the tarp line doesn't have enough load to damage the tree IMO, so I skip the straps there.


Brian

 

[DayTripper99]

I use straps for the hammock, once loaded there is enough force, for ropes, to mark the tree ... the tarp line doesn't have enough load to damage the tree IMO, so I skip the straps there.


Brian

This is my set-up as well. I didnt think that tarp lines would do any damage, none that i have seen so far.

 

[Seeker]

I use Technora... have no idea if it's a brand name or material name. I just know a friend threw me a spool and said 'take what you want'. So I have 40'. It's slick, but simply tying off another half hitch does it. The prussiks I tie on it are slippery, and an extra loop seems to do the trick there as well.

 

[yellowcanoe]

This is my set-up as well. I didnt think that tarp lines would do any damage, none that i have seen so far.

We thought so too. We were ticketed for a tarp line around a tree in Juniper Springs National Forest. The ostensible reason was the potential for tree damage. I thought the ostensible reason silly