Guy Line cord

[TiredFeet]

I don't know about you, but I go through guy line cord fast.

I have purchased too many of those 50' hanks of BPL dyneema guy line cord at $24 each. My tarps have 4 or more tie outs and I see the new "enclosed winter tarps" can easily have that many and more.

At 10' of guy line cord per tie out, a lot of times 20' and sometimes even more, I can go through a 50' length of guy line cord fast.

If I now count the number of 10' and 20' lengths I have misplaced or not included with the tarp on take down or otherwise lost, that BPL guy line cord is getting downright expensive.

I've tried other alternatives, the Mountain Laural Designs dacron cord I got with one of their products and mason line from Home Deport, but didn't like any of them as well as the BPL dyneema cord.

Some of the problems I've experienced that are minimized with the BPL dyneema cord:

1. knots setting - the MLD dacron cord is good except that if a knot is under load for an hour or two or just tied and left unloaded for a day or so, the knot "sets" in the cord, i.e., the cord stays in the shape of the knot when the knot is untied. This makes it difficult to tie another knot in the same spot on the cord, usually the cord end, and I am constantly trying to tie a new knot and untie the old knot at the same time. I haven't noticed that problem so much with the mason line, but then that line is so cheap that I can just cut and discard. The BPL dyneema cord shakes out the shape of the previous knot fast and this is simply not a knot problem for with that stuff.
2. stretch - all of the mason line I have found is nylon and as everyone knows nylon stretches and stretches and stretches and stretches. Does it ever end. Probably, but having things slack because the guy line cord keeps stretching isn't fun. The BPL dyneema is so low stretch that it seems that it just doesn't stretch.
3. tangle - The MLD dacron cord isn't bad for tangling, but the mason line I tried, braided, is worse. Again it is so cheap that most of the time I cut and toss rather than waste my time untangling. The BPL dyneema cord works great for me here - very seldom tangles and the tangles that do develop because I got in a hurry, come undone easily and fast.
4. stickiness (is that a word??) - I use guy line cord for Prussics, Icicle hitches and other friction hitches on Spyderline and now the Lash-It cord. For a Prussic knot I have read that the Prussoic cord should not exceede 1/2 the diameter of the main cording. I think the same probably applies for all or most friction hitches. For this reason I end up using guy line cord for friction hitches which I seem to use a lot. Thus, I want a guy line cord that will really stick to the main cord for that use. Okay, this is one area where the BPL dyneema cord doesn't shine. Not bad, but it does tend to slide too easily on some cords. Their protective coating is kind of slick.
5. strength - I have read where some people, a lot of people, recommend weak guy line cord so that cord will break before the tarp or whatever will tear. Been there, done that and I have found that for myself, it doesn't work like that. If the guy line cord breaks in a moderate wind, then the tarp is flapping about and I have the hassle of finding new cord or joining the break in the old cord and re-securing the tie out. And all of that while fighting the wind that broke the cord. In my experience, it is better for me to be picky about my site and then make sure that the guy line cord is strong enough to not break. The MLD cord is border line line for my use. The mason line is also. The BPL dyneema cord rates high with me for this aspect. For long guy line runs, say at least 20' and longer, the strength issue just gets worse. Long guy lines seem to break low strength guy line cords in my experience. Some times a really long guy just cannot be avoided. For those I want as much strength in the guy line as I can reasonably get.
6. knot holding - the MLD dacrcon cord and the mason line are very good here. The MLD cord is also fairly easy to untie after it has been loaded heavily. Mason line is not so good here, but then again if the knot is pulled to tight, cutting and tossing is an alternative given the price. The BPL cord is good and bad here. Some knots don't hold well when the crod is brand new. Some do better after the cord has been used a while and the coating roughened up a bit. It can be tricky to untie some knots after a heavy loading.

I don't like the cut and discard alternative - that means that I have to carry more than enough guy line cord for replacements. An option that shouldn't be needed with good guy line cord.

So given all of the above, I have constantly been looking for a good or hopefully better guy line cord. I wanted:

1. price - something about the same price as the mason line - well I can hope. Not too likely I knew
2. strength - something with about the same strength as the BPL dyneema guy line cord. BPL site rates it at 560 lbs.
3. stickiness - something with the stickiness of the MLD dacron or the used BPL cord.

To this end I ordered the APS the Lash-It 1.75 mm diameter cord. A 600' spool.

The price was much better than the BPL dyneema. $123.45 + $5.95 shipping brought the price to less than 1/2 the BPL price. That price (with shipping) beings it to $0.22/ft which is comparable to the MLD price of $0.20/ft for their dacron. Only mason line is cheaper, but then it nylon, what can I tell you??

It is dyneema with a strength rating at 400 lbs that I can use very well.

I figured it should have the benefits of the BPL dyneema with less than 1/2 the price. So I ordered a 600' spool.

It came today.

If you have read my comments on the 3 mm Lash-It in another thread, then you know that I like the Lash-It cord.

Well after the 1.75 mm Lash-It spool came today, I immediately tried it out.

It meets my expectations very well and man that spool seems HUGE.

It holds knots very well and unties easily in all of the knots I have tried and loaded. It works very well for a Prussic on either Spyderline or the 3 mm Lash-It cord. The samthane coating really works very good for what it was designed to do.

I have used it with the small Figure 9s and it works really well with thi=ose. Also, I tried it with the BPL micro-tensioners and it works really well with those also. Didn't somebody on another thread say the BPL micro-tensionersw are the same thing as those micro Line-Loks?? From what I read on the glow-in-the-dark Line-Loks, the 1.75 mm Lash-It is probably too small for those, but the 2.2 mm diameter size might work well.

It is now my favorite guy line cord. And with a 600' spool, I can be lavish in my use of guy line cord instead of hoarding it like I had to do with the BPL dyneema cord.

I don't like garish colors in guy line cord. So the gray color works very well for me. Maybe use the 2.2 mm or 3mm with the glow-in-the-dark Line-Loks??

For those who like bright colors for guy line cord, there is the Zing-It cord. The same thing in bright yellow. That yellow would be visible against the ground.

[Coffee]

Interesting. Nice find on the cord.

You might want to consider a leaker guy line. Pan was talking about this last weekend and it makes sense. The weakest link in the chain is going to break first. With a strong line it maybe that your tarp is the weakest link. Ideally you would want aguy line that is rated just under what the tarp can safely handle. I have no data to back this up, but 100lbs seems right to me. I would prefer to have to fix a guy line in the field in a wind storm than have to deal with a tarp ripped in half.

[warbonnetguy]

how does it compare in size/weight to the bpl and mason line? about the same?

is it braided or twisted?

where is the yellow zing it?

[warbonnetguy]

yeah HE, thats why i use the perimeter loaded design, the pull tabs/lack therof, should hold up to signifigantly higher winds.

[headchange4u]

1.75mm would work fine with the glow in the dark Line-Loks.

[TiredFeet]

Interesting. Nice find on the cord.

You might want to consider a leaker guy line. Pan was talking about this last weekend and it makes sense. .....

I agree - it makes sense.

Just didn't work for me in the field.

Been there, done that.

I have found that if I'm more careful in site selection, the tarp hems or grosgrain or whatever the edges are finished with, will hold a heck of a lot of forces before the tarp itself starts ripping. If the tarp is old and has been subjected to a lot sunshine, then it will rip and not necessarily from the wind.

[TiredFeet]

how does it compare in size/weight to the bpl and mason line? about the same?

is it braided or twisted?

where is the yellow zing it?

I have no figures on the weight or strength of the mason line.

BPL specifies that their dyneema guy line cord is 1.7 mm diameter and weighs 0.018 oz/ft.

The Samson Industrial Rope catalog specifies that the Lash-It is 1.75 mm diameter and weighs 0.12 lbs/100', which comes out to 0.0192 oz/ft.

So the 1.75 mm Lash-It and the BPL dyneema guy line cord are equivalent in size and weight. In holding both in my hand, they are equivalent except for color. I like the coating on the Lash-It much better. Holds a Prussic when brand new much better.

Both the Lash-It and the Zing-It are braided dyneema cords.

All the figures above for the Lash-It are the same for the Zing-It.

I found the Zing-It at Fisheries Supply. They are selling a 180' tube of the 2.2 mm Zing-It for $42.09 + shipping. That comes to $0.23/ft without shipping. Slightly more per foot than the Lash-It from APS. Bt if you don't like the gray color, even $0.23/ft is a good price. The 2.2 mm is rated at 580 lbs, both the Lash-It and the Zing-It.

I haven't tried the 2.2 mm Lash-It or Zing-It. I have read comments on arborist sites that they like the 2.2 mm Zing-It better than the 1.75 mm Zing-It for the sole reason that the 2.2 mm is easier on the hands when pulling the throw cord back through the branches.

The 2.2 mm is specified in the catalog as 0.16 lbs/100' or 0.0256 oz.ft. That's 33% heavier.

[TiredFeet]

Just noticed that APS is having their annual January Rigging Sale. If you buy the 600' spool of Lash-It today or tomorrow, you get 15% off. The 600' spool of 1.75 mm Lash-It came to $104.93 instead of the $123.45. That's even better. Didn't even notice that until I read the invoice closely today. That was a nice surprise.

Of course the 15% discount applies to all of the cordage and not just the Lash-It.

[warbonnetguy]

i'm glad somebody finally bought some of that stuff, i was curious about it, but assumed it was just twisted since they called it "twine". the yale uncovered vectran has a urethane coating on it that does eventually rub off in areas where you frequently knot it, but i like it better after it wears off. then again, i'm not tying friction hitches with it either.

good work, thats a good find, i might end up ordering some now as well. maybe somebody will organize a group buy.

[slowhike]

good work, thats a good find, i might end up ordering some now as well. maybe somebody will organize a group buy.

i'm trying to remember now which thread someone had a picture of a gray cord that i said appeared to be the exact same stuff that i bought from BPL.com as bear bag line.
if that's what yall were talking about buying, i'd like to get some for sure. and i might want some even if it's different.