6/27 Monday's Question of the Week answered

Paul · Post by **Paul** » Mon Jun 27, 2011 3:42 pm

By now many of you have broken in your latest set of sailing gloves and are having a great time. Those of us whose boats are in the pre-floating condition envy you and enjoy your posts. My work on the rudder is slowly progressing.

On page 28 of Brian Gilbert's book, The Complete Tailer Sailor he says, "Rope is the raw material that comes on a spool in 600-foot lengths. Once the reope is cut off hte spool and given a specific job, it;s called a line" (empaasis his).

Do you believe this to be true? Can you think of any exceptions (Gilbert lists 2).

Have a great week!

J. Austin · Post by **J. Austin** » Mon Jun 27, 2011 4:08 pm

Haven't read that one yet.
Without cheating, I shall weather a guess that line is not line when it is "rode" for ground tackle, and when it is made from wire, ie, wire rope. Like stays and lifelines.

Great question.

mcrandall · Post by **mcrandall** » Mon Jun 27, 2011 4:19 pm

I throw "sheet" into the fray.

CaptainScott · Post by **CaptainScott** » Mon Jun 27, 2011 7:22 pm

There are two basic schools of thought.

1) On the dock it is a rope. On the boat it is a line.
2) Same as one but must also be given a job on the boat. EG rope in a bucket in a lazerette with no purpose is but a rope.

I prefer to subscribe to #1. Easier to remember and explain when asked! LOL!

Scott

mariner · Post by **mariner** » Tue Jun 28, 2011 5:43 pm

If it costs more than a dollar a lin ft it's a line, less and it's a rope!

mcrandall · Post by **mcrandall** » Tue Jun 28, 2011 6:36 pm

Ha-ha-haa! Good one, Mariner!

Paul · Post by **Paul** » Tue Jun 28, 2011 7:47 pm

Just to keep the creative jucies flowing. One exception is the boltrope sewn into your sails.

Now, put these in order:

1) hawser

2) yarn

3) rope

4) line

5) thread

J. Austin · Post by **J. Austin** » Tue Jun 28, 2011 8:11 pm

I'm gonna go tensile strength: weakest to strongest.

Yarn
Thread
Line
Rope
Hawser

TravisJ · Post by **TravisJ** » Thu Jun 30, 2011 6:34 am

Bhacurly · Post by **Bhacurly** » Thu Jun 30, 2011 6:31 pm

Hmmm... Creative ya say...

Hawser... Actually it's howitzer an think that's a Big gun...

Yarn is kinda like a story... With more color an less facts...

Rope... What a cowboy gets strung up with when he goes to town an comes back with the wrong salsa...

Line is what connects two dots...

Thread holds the buttons on your shirt...

Paul · Post by **Paul** » Thu Jun 30, 2011 6:38 pm

Great Job, Travis. I contacted New England Ropes and invited them to answer as a guest on the site. In Coast Guard & Navy boot camp we were taught that anything below 1" circumfrance was called "small stuff". 1" - 2.5" is rope, 2.5" and above is hawser.

I gave you one exception to the line defination proposed by the aforementioned author (I'm too lazy to scroll back up and find it). His second exception is "bell rope".

As for the order of things - this has to do with laid rope.
threads are woven together to form yarns
the yarns are wrapped, or laid together to form a rope
large ropes are known as hawsers
line was not in the lingo for rope making.

Now that we've made this subject clear as mud. I hope you thoroughly enjoy the weekend of the 4th. I greatly appreciate the freedoms afforded me in this country and gladly celebrate that it was gained through our independence and the establishment of our country!