samson blue synthetic rope

[blake.meighen]

I just bought my first 125 5/8 rope for a mainline on my cat.I have always used 5/8 swedged main line in the past and just tie a not on end,real simple.I was told nots wont hold on rope so I made an eye threw my end chocker block.After a few days of logging in what I call easy conditions my lock stiching is failing do to chocker slides.Any help from out there would be grateful for.Thanks

[mike_belben]

12 strand braids are very nice in that splices are easy, but theyre very susceptible to abrasion on the ends where you tuck the strands for an eye splice.  A rope with a cover jacket is much harder to splice however much more durable and in my opinion an anchor hitch or double fishermans would do fine for a termination. 

Try a few layers of good quality heat shrink tubing over the tuck area to see if you can get more mileage out of that eye spice. Even electrical tape would help honestly.   Its just gonna fuzz apart if slides keep abrading.

[blake.meighen]

Mike,thanks much this makes sence to me and are you logging with rope?Do you like it?Thanks again

[mike_belben]

No ive only logged here and there with a dozer.  Either using chains or some 3/4 samson braided chokers off the blade. Rope is nice but they arent giving it away

[blake.meighen]

boy you can say that again.Over double the price of cable,just hopeing it works :D

[Bruno of NH]

At the Northern Project 
Woody's had a 3pt winch with synthetic rope 12,000 lb.
It was a nice set up I would like one someday.

[sawguy21]

We tried a rope called Spectra 12 for longlines on helilogging. The crews liked it because it was so light but it created it's own challenges. It stretched so we had to devise a way of attaching cabtire to operate the hook. I prestretched them by hooking to a truck and pulling with a Cat 950 ;D. We encased it in a cordura sleeve that was closed with hook and loop straps. Abrasion as Mike mentioned was a problem at the thimble so the line had to be periodically shortened. We went back to wire rope.

[BargeMonkey]

 Theres an art to splicing 12 strand, making sure the lay is done correctly and tapering the splice, abrasion is the biggest problem like everyone else said, any friction or bends it can be toast. We found for "chafe" gear old firehose worked the best and cheapest. Unless it's really clean conditions I think you can thrash an expensive piece real quick. 
 Which end is failing ? The end attached to the drum or the slide end ? 

[jimparamedic]

If the problem is mainly at the end from the chokers sliding why can't a short piece of cable be tied in kind of like a cable leader on a fishing line. Just a thought

[blake.meighen]

Thanks Bruno,Thanks also Saw Guy,Jim and Bardge Monkey thanks for imput it is the slide end that is giving me fits.Also the chain thought might work.The real disappointment I spent $650 for 125' rope and I get no teck support from Samson.Guss I will learn a nother costly lesson.Thanks again

[Mike_M]

I bought a 125' section of 5/8" of Ultrex synthetic winch line last summer and its worked very well. Like others have said you have to keep it away from anything sharp. We use ring chokers and a toggle T. This is what the small cable yarders use in the Pacific Northwest. The toggle T is a piece of metal connected to a short section of chain and then terminates to a fitting that allows a quick nub to placed when using wire rope. I just took a eye bolt and make a spliced eye around that. The spliced eye wears about the same as a knot or other end termination used in wire rope and its quick to splice when it does break. We use 7/16" wire rope chokers with the steel rings and this has increased our production especially when dragging winch line up hill. The machine operator sets his own chokers. I'm getting ready to buy another section and put the current synthetic rope on the skidder drum.