It is well known that Kevlar is very strong but has quite low abrasion resistance. That's why it doesn't make good caving rope. It also has such low stretch that it can be dangerous if you take even a short fall on it. Some stretch is desirable because it absorbs part of the shock load of falling. Kevlar is good for foot loops and rigging slings (runners) under certain circumstances, but it is hardly the be all and end all of cordage.
Mark On Sun, June 22, 2014 12:15 pm, Don Cooper wrote: > When commercially available kevlar first appeared on the scene, small > kevlar cords were put into use on sport parachutes. Before even 100 >uses, some jumpers experienced line-breaks. It was a surprise, as the >very thin kevlar lines were supposed to be over twice the strength of the >polyester lines they replaced. In the end, I believe the failure was >attributed to dirt getting into the uncoated kevlar cord and setting up >deterioration due to abrasion process at a scale too small to visually >observe. --------------------------------------------------------------------- Visit our website: http://texascavers.com To unsubscribe, e-mail: [email protected] For additional commands, e-mail: [email protected]
