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Learn the Sea
Rope & its uses
learnthesea.com
Two questions for any rope: how much does it stretch, and does it float? Match the rope to the job and it lasts and behaves.
| Fibre | Stretch | Floats? | Use it for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Polyester (Terylene) | Low | No | Sheets and halyards — low stretch holds sail shape |
| Nylon (polyamide) | High | No | Anchor warps & mooring lines — stretch absorbs snatch loads |
| Polypropylene | Medium | Yes | Throwing & rescue lines (it floats); UV-weak, little else |
| Dyneema / HMPE | Almost none | Yes | Halyards, strops, racing — stronger than steel for its weight |
| Three-strand vs braid | — | — | Three-strand is cheap & splices easily; braid runs sweetly through blocks |
Whip or heat-seal every cut end. Mind chafe at fairleads and the bow roller — chafe is what kills mooring and anchor lines.