Rope for DIY soft shackles

[mm58]

I want to make a couple of my own soft shackles, so I'm looking for a source for the proper kind of rope to start with.

Thanks

 

[fawndog]

Boat supply like West Marine.

 

[Low_Sky]

Boat supply, industrial rigging/rope supply, some hardware stores, Amazon, eBay, good sections of worn-out winch ropes.


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[mm58]

Thanks for the replies and recommendations!

 

[Johnston]

Wesspur. Tree climbing CO. They sell mill ends under "Specials" then clearance rope.

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[hemifoot]

anyone know what the rating is for climbing rope is? i have around 100 feet of rope from a rollgliss hanging in my garage.

 

[greengreer]

The cheapest good option would be a 12 strand hollow braid. Whether you want polyester or something more exotic like dyneema is up to you. I would look at Samson ropes tenex tec in at least 5/8" diameter. Someone mentioned wesspur, they're a great company to deal with. Most arborist suppliers are as well. There's also knot and rope supply in Ohio for bulk and custom length cordage.
Splicing instructions should be available online. Just remember if you use a high modulus fiber rope like dyneema or technora you need to find the right specs for a class ii splice.

 

[MartinDWhite]

Climbing rope has about 17kn to 22kn break strength. 17kn is about 3800 lbs. Old rope loses up to 50% of its strength. a knot reduces about 50% more. Using old climbing rope to make a soft shackle could leave you with something in the 800 lb to 1600 lb range. Be very careful using old climbing rope for a soft shackle.

 

[Low_Sky]

Climbing rope is not the right rope for this.

12-strand, single hollow braid Dyneema/Spectra/Kevlar/Vectran/Samson Blue/UHMPE/superfiberwinchropestuff is what you want. The kind where a 3/8” rope is in the ~18k lbs breaking strength ballpark. 7/16” rope is about 22k lbs. 1/2” rope is about 30k lbs.


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[hemifoot]

i use lifting straps for soft shackles or tree straps.our dumptruck/crane operators are always swapping lifting straps out every year.,and i try and cherrypick the best ones.i wouldn't try and use the rope for shackles.i'm just curious is all.my winch has the good old fashioned wire cable.

 

[Low_Sky]

i use lifting straps for soft shackles or tree straps.our dumptruck/crane operators are always swapping lifting straps out every year.,and i try and cherrypick the best ones.i wouldn't try and use the rope for shackles.i'm just curious is all.my winch has the good old fashioned wire cable.

Soft shackles are not the same as slings. They replace the metal screw pin shackles (“D-rings”) that most are familiar with. They are made of rope. They are lighter. They float. They are not as durable as metal.


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[hemifoot]

please excuse my ignorance.i didn't know soft shackles were a thing.i honestly can't see why anyone would swap a rope shackle for a metal one.but,to each his own i guess.

 

[highwest]

Soft shackles for recovery applications?

I would think that UHMWPE (dyneema, spectra, etc.) is the only way to go. Easy to splice too.

 

[mm58]

Wow you guys are really chiming in with some great info here!

 

[Low_Sky]

please excuse my ignorance.i didn't know soft shackles were a thing.i honestly can't see why anyone would swap a rope shackle for a metal one.but,to each his own i guess.

Ever drop a metal shackle in deep mud, water or snow, or handle one that’s 0 degrees Fahrenheit? Have you ever lost a screw pin? How many shackles do you keep in your recovery kit and how much do they weigh? Just some thought provoking rhetorical questions. Soft shackles aren’t the best fit all the time. I keep soft and metal shackles in my recovery kit and use both fairly equally.


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