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ROPES | | |
|  Evening view westwards from the summit of Black Crag,
Ennerdale, The Lake District, England.
(Sally Baxendale) |
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| | Once upon a time climbing ropes were either 11mm single or 9mm half (or confusingly, double) - no more! But firstly a few basics. Ropes are either Dynamic (stretchy) or Static (non-stretchy). For climbing we only use Dynamic ropes as a fall onto a Static rope could cause serious injury due to the lack of bounce. A Single rope is one that has been tested as safe to use on its own. Currently they can range in diameter from 8.9mm to 11mm. A Half (or Double) rope has been tested as safe to use in a pair where each rope is clipped alternately into the protection. They can be from 8.1mm - 9mm in diameter. Twin ropes are those that are tested to be safe only when both ropes are clipped through every protection point. In addition ropes can be either Standard (also refered to as Classic) or Dry-Treated (also refered to as Superdry), the latter being suitable for winter and alpine climbers as the extra treatment helps stop the rope from becoming waterlogged. Good quality dry-treatments as used by both Mammut and Beal involves proofing both the fibres prior to constuction of the rope, and then proofing the complete rope as well. In reality there is no absolutely safe rope and what is offered are varying degrees of safety. Broadly speaking, the thicker the rope, the less likely it is to be cut on a sharp edge. There is no absolute reason why a climber should not lead a route on a single 8mm rope but there is a greater risk of the rope being damaged or cut in a fall. In certain circumstances this risk is slight and so single 9mm ropes or less are often recommended for ski-touring, glacier travel, easy alpine routes and scrambling, but not for rock-climbing. Using a pair of double ropes (Double Rope Technique) is common practice in the UK where most routes involve natural protection, but little known in many other parts of the world where bolt runners are the norm. Double Rope Technique involves leading on two ropes and clipping them into separate runners. Nominally this is done alternately, but in practice several runners in a line may be clipped to one rope before the next runner (somewhere off to the side) is clipped to the other. The advantages of Double Rope Technique are many - the main ones are: there is less chance of both ropes being chopped in a fall or cut by rockfall, it is easier to protect the second on traverse pitches, there is less likelyhood of rope drag or gear being lifted out by rope movement, and you can use many more protection points. You can also abseil twice as far if you have to abandon the route. Finally - Length. Virtually all ropes come in standard 50m lengths these days and this is the best length for most people. However if you are a regular vistor to bolted continental rock you may find a 60m (or even 70m) single rope a great benefit as many pitches are over 25m long, and of course you need double the length of the pitch to lower back to the ground. For double ropes, 60m ropes are a good idea for many hard winter and alpine routes but be warned you will need two as you will seldom find anyone else who has one! 99% of climbers will find 50m double ropes the best choice. Also please note that different ropes work best with different Belay Devices. For fat ropes (10.5mm/11mm) a belay device such as an ATC is ideal whereas for narrow ropes (8.1mm/8.5mm) the ATC XP offer much better braking effect. Please see Belay Devices for a fuller explanation. Fall Factor = Height of Fall/Length of Rope which Holds It. In normal circumstances the maximum possible is Fall Factor 2, sustained when a climber falls off with no gear in and doesn't hit anything on the way down. Falls = the number of Factor 2 falls that the rope will survive in a standard UIAA rope test using an 80Kg weight for single ropes or a 50Kg weight for double and twin ropes. Bear in mind that most climbing falls are less than Factor 1 (f=Height of the fall/Length of rope where f = the fall factor, so that a climber who falls of with 5m of rope out and a runner at 2.5m generates a Factor 1 fall). However, please note that the test for the number of factor 2 falls is only an indication of one aspect of a ropes "strength". Abrasion resistance and the ability to pass a sharp edge test are possibly more important. Most climbers would consider retiring a rope after only one factor 2 fall - and many would probably themselves retire after such a fall! There are also several test houses for ropes, and one in particular was extremely generous with it's test ratings a few years ago. There are still a few ropes out there with unlikely-looking test results and this can explain the large differences in fall factors between otherwise similar ropes. Impact Force, measured in kilo-Newtons (kN), = the force actually transmitted to the climber, rope, and belay components. The lower this force is the better. It is reduced by friction, but increased with rope use and falls sustained. This is a major factor to consider when deciding when to retire your rope.Sharp Edge Test, is a test designed to mimic a weighted stretched rope falling across a sharp edge of rock. The test used involves a Factor 1.77 fall over an edge of radius of 0.75mm. Unfortunately this test is no longer done. However the safest way of avoiding your rope being cut is to use double ropes. There is a good explanation of fall factors and so on at GearReview.com, and also on the Beal and Mammut websites. NB Nearly all our rope prices are around 15% off standard retail. | | |
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Bargain Single Ropes : | | |
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Single Ropes : | | |
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Half (or Double) Ropes : | | |
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Canyoning Ropes : | | |
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Static Ropes : | | |
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Cords : | | |
Most climbing cords are static in construction and are designed for threading hexes and nuts, using as prusik loops, abseil tat and a host of other mountain related uses. They are not designed for leading, though the thicker diameters (7mm, 8mm) may be safely used to safeguard a second as long as there is no slack allowed in the rope - they can thus make quite good light scrambling and hill-walking safety ropes. The breaking strain is given in kiloNewtons which is a measurement of force. To give a rough equivalent in weight, add two zeros to the figure to give an approximation in Kilograms (eg 5.5kN is approximately 550kg). Cord comes in the diameters listed below and is sold per metre. If you order, say, 20 metres then you will get one 20 metre length. To order, click "Add", and then select the number of metres that you want. Unfortunately the software we use amalgamates orders, so if you actually want 2 x 10m lengths please order 20m and then write what lengths you want it cut into in the "Special Instructions" box as you check out. It is cut with a "hot-knife" that seals it as well. If you need to cut it again then you will need to find a friendly shop that has a hot-knife to do it for you. If you want specific lengths and diameters suitable for restringing Hexes and other nuts, please see below. If you want specific lengths and diameters suitable for Prusik loops, please see below. The best knot for securely joining cord is the Double Fisherman's. | |
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Ropes Accessories : | | |
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