Do throwlines wear out?

Benjo75

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Nov 8, 2016
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Malvern, Arkansas
I know that sounds like a dumb question. I have 200 ft of Zing It that I've been using for a couple years. It's still in good shape but the stupid thing gets in the worst knotted up mess nearly every time I use it lately and it seems to be getting worse. It is very pliable and not firm like it was when new. I have several new pieces I guess I'm gonna try. I just hate to throw something away if there is still life left in it. The newer lines seem to be stiffer and don't collapse on their self like this one is doing. I guess it makes sense for a softer line to tangle worse than a slightly stiffer one. This one is getting like an old wash rag. I hesitate to use the word limp on this site but that's what's happening.
 
The older, more used line will get wind knots easier in my experience. Back in my climbing days I replaced mine when I got tired of picking knots out of it. Of course I haven't used my current throw line but maybe 5 times in the last 10 years but I'm a bucket slug now.

I still have the old, knotted line saved in the truck as backup in case the 'new' line gets trashed or stuck. :lol:
 
Old line gets put into reserve, as Brian said, and the retired into the garden or something.
The line does eventually wear out. It's tensile strength does degrade with use.
Makes good string line for projects.
 
I have some throw line that looks like parachute cord I bought from KK many years ago. I just bought a Bigshot a year ago and bought some Zing it to go with it. Not real happy with it. Too thin on the fingers and didn't fly that much better. Prone to snarling as well.

I found 1200 ft. of real military parachute cord on craiglist recently for 20 some dollars. I was shocked how much better it worked than my old worn old glazed up stuff.
 
I disliked the standard 1.8mm Zing-It right from the beginning. I always used the 2.2mm Zing-It. Fat enough to not cut your hands as easily, doesn't cut through the bark and get wedged as easily, doesn't tangle as easily and still light enough to enable high placement.
 
Zing-it does have a coating that will wear off over time. It also has a memory so over time, as the number of locations where knots occurred increase, things get worse. You can sometimes refurbish an old line and remove those knot locations by stretching it out in a straight line with a couple hundred pounds tension and letting it set for a few hours.
I will do this with a new line too, makes it much smoother.
 
I will have to give that tension thing a try. The parachute cord pretty much unsnarled it self if you just shook it around a bit. Anyone else using it?

I did buy the heavy zing it but it cuts in hands way more than the p.c.. 550 line it is sometimes called.
 
Some folks like the Dynaglide. Worth a try.
It grew on me. Still use the 2.2mm zingit.
Tried some other stuff, but was not sold on it. Ya know, just checking out new offers and such.
 
Until I learned the tension between two Trees at home trick I always thought New line unruly for awhile then worked great ... At the end of it's useful life goes back to unruly
 
Zing-it does have a coating that will wear off over time. It also has a memory so over time, as the number of locations where knots occurred increase, things get worse. You can sometimes refurbish an old line and remove those knot locations by stretching it out in a straight line with a couple hundred pounds tension and letting it set for a few hours.
I will do this with a new line too, makes it much smoother.

Or drag it down the gravel driveway a few times with some weight at the end :D
 
Turn wrenches on an old one or drag your throwlines down the road, so much fun!
 
I just recently bought 300M of it. We use it regularly. Shoot, Wednesday I used it twice to commit tops into the face cuts even. Pull hangers, set redirects, advancing tie ins etc.
 
I just recently bought 300M of it. We use it regularly. Shoot, Wednesday I used it twice to commit tops into the face cuts even. Pull hangers, set redirects, advancing tie ins etc.

Does that mean you actually pulled the top with a throw line? That's how I read it.
 
Tensioning it will help a bit but they do wear out.
I’ve toppled small trees with just the throw line. The first one was because it got stuck and I tried to break the line. The tree moved enough for me to be comfortable pulling it over. It’s a hell of a tangled mess though afterwards.
 
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Like getting a throwline stuck then hitting the top with a second line. Then pulling the tree over with the first one hanging in it. It's always a mess getting that one back.
 
I did buy the heavy zing it but it cuts in hands way more than the p.c.. 550 line it is sometimes called.

I always use a tool or a stick to wrap the Zing-It around before I pull on it. That way the tool takes the pressure and not my hands. Fairly early on when I started to learn to climb, I felt numbness in my hands at the point of contact with the Zing-It, when I tried to pull ropes in using bare hands. That did not have to happen very many times before I switched to using a tool to pull with. I keep a pair of lineman's side cutters in my climbing systems box so that I always have them handy when pulling ropes in.

Tim
 
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