Ropes for the sailing sport
History of ropes
In a salt mine in Hallstatt a rope with a diameter of 4 cm made of lime bast around 1500 B.C. was discovered and is considered to be the oldest rope find, but the first pictures of ropemakers already originate from ancient Egypt. In the Middle Ages, the ropemaker profession, which still exists today, developed in larger quantities and for commercial purposes in order to produce better and more professional ropes, and the importance of seafaring for trade and the military grew more and more. The production of industrially manufactured ropes began in the 19th century, using materials other than hemp (e.g. sisal fibres, later wire and synthetic fibres).
Applications in water sports
In water sports and sailing in particular, a large number of different lines and ropes are required for the most varied requirements. Sailors need mooring lines, anchor lines, towing lines, halyards, rigging yarn, rubber ropes, flag lines, lifelines, rope shackles and of course the obvious lines, which are constantly in the hand - sheets and trim lines. The ropes have successfully replaced the original wire ropes at one point or another, such as the halyards or a backstay. The latest technical developments have an equally high breaking load, but weigh less in comparison.
Materials and ropes
Ropes are divided into three rough material categories: natural fibre ropes, synthetic fibre ropes, metal or wire ropes.
Natural fibre ropes are made from the following fibre plants: (cotton), flax, hemp, coconut, manila and
sisalAramid (Technora/Twaron/Nomex/Kevlar), polyester, polyamide (nylon, DeDeRon, Perlon), polypropylene, polyethylene (Dyneema/Spectra) and poly(p-phenylene-2,6-benzobisoxazole)
metal or wire ropes are made
from steel or stainless steel.