Rope basics
Ropes have five main characteristics:
- Material (hemp, cotton, various plastics)
- Structure (twisted, braided)
- Diameter (usually 6 or 8 mm)
- Ends
- Static (stiff) Dynamic (stretchy)
Don't use climbing rope for knots, see more on chapter safety Safety
Everybody has differnt prefferences, I mostly use 8mm braided PolyPropylen rope with ???wrapped?? and melted ends.
Not all rope serves the same purpose.
Suspension requires extra attention but floor work can usually be done with general purpose rope.
An easy way is to buy "good" bondage rope from a dedicated rope store, but that gets expensive quickly.
Cheap Chinese paracord "rope" can be used, but I have more joy when I work with ‘good’ ropes.
In my opinion, the best option is to buy a 50m or 100m roll of rope from a quality manufacturer, cut it to length and make the ends yourself.
Chain stitching dirty rope
1. Make a girth hitch.
2. Put your hand trough the bite.
3. Grab the rope.
4. Put your fingers through the loop.
5. Release the girth-hitch.
6. Grab through the side of the girth hitch.
7. Grab the rope.
8. Pull a new loop.
9. Repeat the last two steps to pull your second loop.
Washing Poly-Propylen (PP) rope
Prepare Rope
1. Use uncoiled rope or make a chain stich to prevent the rope from tangeling.
Place in Container
2. Put your rope in a bowl, the sink or bathtub.
Add Warm Water and Soap
3. Fill the bowl with warm water ~30-35°C until the rope is coverd.
Put in a drop of dish soap or another mild detergent.
Agitate and Wait
4. Agitate your rope a bit, wait 30min-4h.
The enzymes in the detergent need time to process any organic material. Leaving it overnight is also an option
Rinse Thoroughly
5. Pour away the soapy water and add fresh water.
Repeat until the soap is gone.
Hang to Dry
6. Hang your rope to dry.
The rope should not be bunched up to allow sufficient access to air.
Don't hang it in the sun, UV-Rays damage PP.