Favorite reflective tarp tie-out cordage?

**rweb82** · 07-26-2021, 16:02

You can add one more to the Lawson Glowire fan list!

**schwad** · 07-26-2021, 17:07

Originally Posted by cmoulder

Also lotsa love here for Glowire. Has just the right amount of stiffness to resist tangling and is perfect for tying and holding knots.

Which diameter of Glowire are you referring to?

I'd like to keep the weight down without sacrificing those "just right" qualitative properties. According to the specs, 100' of even the 2mm Glowire weighs 3.9oz!

**cmoulder** · 07-26-2021, 18:01

Originally Posted by schwad

Which diameter of Glowire are you referring to?

I'd like to keep the weight down without sacrificing those "just right" qualitative properties. According to the specs, 100' of even the 2mm Glowire weighs 3.9oz!

I use 2mm. 30' for ridgeline and 6' each for guylines. So by that spec the cord weight should be a tick over 2oz for 54'.

There are a few places where weight does not trump utility (within reason!), and having dallied with some thinner cords and dealing with their drawbacks I'm happy to carry a few more grams for a cord that handles well and works great with a few carefully selected simple knots that I can tie even while wearing 200wt polartec gloves.

So while I'm a firm believer in UL you won't find me using fishing line for tarps, or gauze hammocks or marginally rated suspension webbing, yet pack weight is still quite low.

**Recalc** · 07-26-2021, 18:59

Originally Posted by cmoulder

I use 2mm. 30' for ridgeline and 6' each for guylines. So by that spec the cord weight should be a tick over 2oz for 54'.

There are a few places where weight does not trump utility (within reason!), and having dallied with some thinner cords and dealing with their drawbacks I'm happy to carry a few more grams for a cord that handles well and works great with a few carefully selected simple knots that I can tie even while wearing 200wt polartec gloves.

So while I'm a firm believer in UL you won't find me using fishing line for tarps, or gauze hammocks or marginally rated suspension webbing, yet pack weight is still quite low.

Used Atwood 1.2mm reflective cord in the past but switched to Lawson Glowire 2mm two years ago. The Glowire stiffness makes the cord so much easier to pack up. Superior visibility means I'm no longer tripping over tie outs. Each 6 foot Glowire tie out is equipped with a Blake's Hitch. My praise for the Blake's Hitch matches that of the Glowire

**cmoulder** · 07-26-2021, 19:09

Originally Posted by Recalc

Used Atwood 1.2mm reflective cord in the past but switched to Lawson Glowire 2mm two years ago. The Glowire stiffness makes the cord so much easier to pack up. Superior visibility means I'm no longer tripping over tie outs. Each 6 foot Glowire tie out is equipped with a Blake's Hitch. My praise for the Blake's Hitch matches that of the Glowire

LOL heck yeah, loops with Blake's hitch on the tarp D-rings are DA BOMB!

**schwad** · 07-26-2021, 21:23

Originally Posted by cmoulder

I use 2mm. 30' for ridgeline and 6' each for guylines. So by that spec the cord weight should be a tick over 2oz for 54'.

So I guess I was upsold to 100' by this video from Warbonnet, which was referenced in this other thread. The weight of 100' of cordage is part of what convinced me to go with Warbonnet's 1.75mm guylines (which I'm assuming is similar to Zing-It, at 0.021oz/ft; TBD) instead of Lawson Glowire 2mm guylines at 0.039oz/ft. The other reason I decided to start with Warbonnet's guyline is that I can always get Lawson Glowire later with free shipping.

Getting away with less length is nice, and will make the change to 2mm Glowire less of a weight penalty.

Originally Posted by cmoulder

There are a few places where weight does not trump utility (within reason!), and having dallied with some thinner cords and dealing with their drawbacks I'm happy to carry a few more grams for a cord that handles well and works great with a few carefully selected simple knots that I can tie even while wearing 200wt polartec gloves.

So while I'm a firm believer in UL you won't find me using fishing line for tarps, or gauze hammocks or marginally rated suspension webbing, yet pack weight is still quite low.

I completely agree that there are places where utility trumps weight, and I like your style. I'm glad to hear that 2mm Glowire is the sweet spot (as opposed to something even heavier). If the 1.75mm guylines from Warbonnet displease me, I'll know exactly what to buy next.

**cmoulder** · 07-27-2021, 05:55

It's not a bad idea to have 100' of cord so that you're not caught short. I've found that a 30' ridge line comes in handy after trying somewhat shorter ones that occasionally left me wanting. And slightly long-ish 6' guy lines are preferred for porch mode, even though I normally pitch rather low compared to most. Also, I carry another 8' section of cord with an adjustable loop to use with a side-panel pullout. So a standard 50' hank is not going to be enough anyway.

The Warbonnet guyline is UHMWPE which doesn't hold most knots well, therefore obviously not the best for non-hardware application.

**uninjured** · 07-27-2021, 08:47

Originally Posted by cmoulder

It's not a bad idea to have 100' of cord so that you're not caught short. I've found that a 30' ridge line comes in handy after trying somewhat shorter ones that occasionally left me wanting. And slightly long-ish 6' guy lines are preferred for porch mode, even though I normally pitch rather low compared to most. Also, I carry another 8' section of cord with an adjustable loop to use with a side-panel pullout. So a standard 50' hank is not going to be enough anyway.

The Warbonnet guyline is UHMWPE which doesn't hold most knots well, therefore obviously not the best for non-hardware application.

Since I read you are using glowire for your ridgeline as well, I'm curious how you compare it against lashit/zingit especially w.r.t sretch, grippability and longevity?

**cmoulder** · 07-27-2021, 09:11

Being no-hardware, the first consideration for me is good holding power with simple friction hitches, for which UHMWPE isn't good. With Glowire, a simple 2-wrap Midshipman's hitch doesn't slip.

Stretch is similar, both quite acceptable IMHO. Lash/zing-it (1.75mm) are rated at about 400lbs and Glowire around 250lbs, but that's still gobs-n-gobs more than is needed for the job.

Longevity is rather subjective — lotsa hardware, operator, conditions variables in there — but suffice to say I've used my 11' hex quite a bit and there are still no problems with it. What does happen is that the reflective material will wear off in high-use areas, but overall there's still enough to shine like a light saber when you point a 40 lumen headlamp at it.

**OneClick** · 07-27-2021, 09:36

The reflective stuff is really cool. It does nothing for me regarding tripping. I trip on a line because I'm not looking down, not paying attention, or preoccupied by something else like carrying a boiling pot of water trying not to get burned or whatever.

But it gives me a good marker to find my camp if I get turned around while out doing paper work or hanging a food bag.