Nothing wrong with the Nite-ize. There are lighter, less bulky options but that green stuff is strong, non-stretchy, super reflective, holds a knot and does the job.
Nothing wrong with the Nite-ize. There are lighter, less bulky options but that green stuff is strong, non-stretchy, super reflective, holds a knot and does the job.
My problem with Nite-ize, (and all my guylines are made from it) is those little "flakes" that make it reflective interfere with wraps - like those used with the prusik, tautline hitch, and others. they also catch on various hardware when they have to slide through a hole. So a straight connection from tarp to the ground stake; no problem. But for making slippery hitches and playing nice with other hardware, there are better choices.
Last edited by cougarmeat; 09-22-2021 at 12:43.
In order to see what few have seen, you must go where few have gone. And DO what few have done.
hmm, so i hear: this line is fine, as a guyline rope, as long as you're ok to not use hardware, or knots (in particular friction hitches), as the reflective tracers woven into it interfere with it being ..ahem.. rope. except if you're ok to not use knots, friction hitches or hardware, and intend to use it as a straight connection from tarp to stakes, preferably a splice. except it can't be spliced either.
sorry, couldn't help myself. what i mean to say is: you definitely deserve better guyline rope.
in the meantime, the enthusiastic praise for lawson glowire (in multiple separate threads) just won't stop. it is truly fascinating (and i mean it in the sense i'll have to buy some, come my next salary)
Lawson glowire is the cat's pajamas. Nothing like it.
When one considers that life is short, and then thinks " I deserve a few good things in life" - Lawson has you covered, glowing like nothing else.
Last edited by Pavel; 10-03-2021 at 20:42.
Got a new tarp and got it rigged up with the 2mm Lawson Glowire in blue. That stuff is great for the tarp ends, and helps keep me from tripping over line at night!
Unfortunately I thought it would work with a couple of Dutchware Stingerz but you must need hollow cordage for those. I could barely get the line ran through and couldnt get it to cinch down at all. Does any of Lawsons stuff work with Dutch bling? Or am I better off just going with a hollow cord for the ridgeline or top tarp tie outs?
It works well with plastic hardware like LL3s but not with Dutch bling which is optimized for 1.75mm UHMWPE.
Just as Zing-it and the like don't get along well with friction knots/hitches, Lawson's cordage doesn't work well with hardware.
So yeah, if you want to use bling for the ridgeline stick with Zing-it.
Five Basic Principles of Going Lighter (not me... the great Cam Honan of OZ)
“If everybody is thinking alike, then somebody isn't thinking.” ~ Gen. George S Patton
Good to know and thanks for confirming. Usually I use a continuous ridgeline and hang all my tarps from it but wanted to give cordage off of the ends of a tarp a shot just to try out.
I am good with knots. Maybe I'll just try a bowline to the tarp end and then a truckers hitch or something around the tree instead. Though it is my winter tarp and I try to come down on the side of simplicity in winter to minimize my time without gloves.
Of course there's 1.7 gazillion different ways to do it.
Here are some of the simple knots I use year 'round... thanks to cougarmeat's suggestion there is an index in the description if you expand the little window with "Show More"
Five Basic Principles of Going Lighter (not me... the great Cam Honan of OZ)
“If everybody is thinking alike, then somebody isn't thinking.” ~ Gen. George S Patton
sideshowraheem, you can find solutions that don’t require removing gloves. Or you can wear an over-mitt with a thin glove liner. Or a Glitten (a mitten with a cover that slips off exposing just the finger tips - like a glove). The reason for hardware - metal or plastic - is not to have to deal with knots. Knots are fun and, to me, part of a base learning level - things outdoor people know. But, they are more fun on a warm sunny day than in freezing rain. Dutchware hardware is fun but for me has a certain limit - they seem to be designed to work with 1.75 Amsteel. There are other devices, plastic toggles, Loop Aliens, etc. that work with a wider range of cord.
I would keep the 1.75mm cord for my ridgeline, but I might consider an metal mitten hook with the gate removed, rather than the little Dutch hook, for the first tree wrap . And I might consider a plastic toggle or Figure-9 rather than something like a wasp for the other tree end. They are all good. And they all have trade offs.
But for the guylines - I’m in transition there. These days I’m more prone to keep the guylines separate from the tarp and, when the time comes, use the clip-lineloc to attach them to a little bungee loop on the tarp D-Rings. It would be a different matter if I just had one tarp. But having a bag-o-shepard hooks, and a ziplock bag with 12 guylines (10 “regular” length and 2 a little longer for porch mode setups), covers any tarp I use (3 guys per side and 4 panel pulls, 6+4=10). If I keep Figure-9’s on the lines, the “jaw” on the Figure-9’s like to hook on others. I think the plastic linelocs will be better behaved.
In order to see what few have seen, you must go where few have gone. And DO what few have done.
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