Thread: Synthetic winch rope - life span

90@ and cupabillytea, feels like I should know you two, I was born in Balmain, lived in Fitzroy Ave. next to Dawn Fraser pool (also worked there in Summer).
I have worked at Howard Smiths, Storey and Keers and Cockatoo Island, sadly all gone now, also Garden Island, my mate Michael Ryan worked at Sydney Ferries for years, I always wanted to get a job on the Tugs, but I believe the waiting list was years long, my name was Frank Gibson back then, changed it for family reasons 30 years back.
If you ever have a reunion let me know would be interesting to meet up, Regards Frank.

Originally Posted by 90@

G'day, cuppabillytea,
Sort of off topic, but your tug pictures look like they are of one of the former Harbour Lighterage tugs?
Leveret or Fern Bay?
I grew up playing on them and later working on them, I knew them from the mid 70's until the Harbour Lighterage business was shut down and the tugs sold off at auction.

I have worked on most of them...
leveret, Fern Bay, Betts Bay, White Bay, Utah, Sydport, Throsby, George H Weyerhauser, Mort Bay, Seaport, Van, Valiant, and many others over the years.

But when the company shut down I went overseas to the UK to work at Land Rover and my Life then took a different direction......

My father also spent 37 years working for HL on the same tugs and he was the last employee when the company finally shut.

Regards,
Mike.

Yep.I lived at 9 Lookes ave Balmain East. Billy Toohey. Haven't Changed my name Yet. Phone: 0419608221.

Originally Posted by Redback

Is there any benefit in Plasma over Dyneema, apart from price.

Baz.

Hi Baz. Both these ropes have similar qualities. Plasma has better strength and performance but has a lower fiction coefficient than some (not all) Dyneema ropes. So if you want a straight replacement for steel, go Plasma. If you want something you can tie or hitch with occasionally, go Dyneema. Both have low recoil, so are safer than wire, but if you use them in conjunction with a sling tree protector or messenger etc, the recoil will depend on the elasticity of those things.
Tip. On Sips, to prevent chafing they run the line through a section of off cut fire hose. This would be a good idea for use in recovery because the fire hose would act as a recoil damper. I haven't tried this because I don't have a winch, but you could stitch a weight bag to each end of the section of fire hose to hold it in position.

Originally Posted by cuppabillytea

Hi Baz. Both these ropes have similar qualities. Plasma has better strength and performance but has a lower fiction coefficient than some (not all) Dyneema ropes. So if you want a straight replacement for steel, go Plasma. If you want something you can tie or hitch with occasionally, go Dyneema. Both have low recoil, so are safer than wire, but if you use them in conjunction with a sling tree protector or messenger etc, the recoil will depend on the elasticity of those things.
Tip. On Sips, to prevent chafing they run the line through a section of off cut fire hose. This would be a good idea for use in recovery because the fire hose would act as a recoil damper. I haven't tried this because I don't have a winch, but you could stitch a weight bag to each end of the section of fire hose to hold it in position.

Having been 'whipped' by Dyneema - aside from an eye strike (I always wear glasses) - its not much worse than a "tea towel whip"...

Dyneema and a sleeve that is run out with the rope and positioned where any abrasive wear can occur is fine... Been running Dyneema since my Plasma broke years ago and havent had a problem.

I'm sure Dyneema is fine for the job Tombie. The two products are almost the same. The only difference is in the method of producing the fibre. Dyneema lends itsef more to a variety of uses. Plasma is stronger but has a lower friction coefficient, which means that splicing eyes and thimbles etc into it is difficult and could create weak points. I have lots of experience in Marine Recovery but absolutely none in vehicle recovery (using gear that is) Neither have I handled either of these two products in any application other than Ship Assist. So I can only comment on the qualities of the materials.
Cheers Billy.

Agree. All I was saying is that I see no gain between the 2...

Dyneema is well up to the task if treated with respect.

Neither do I. It's a matter for personal preference. I don't know which one I would choose myself. I do know I have a hatred for steel rope but thats just me.
I did want to highlight though, that even if there is no backlash in a winch rope backlash can still come from the gear you might be using in conjunction with it.
Cheers Billy.

Thanks Billy, I have Dyneema on the current winch and was thinking I might replace it, I need a more compact winch extension also, so might go plasma for the winch extension and Dyneema to replace the winch rope.

By the way, I worked as a rigger at Stewart & Llyods and BHP Newcastle in the early 70s, then AIS Wollongong as an overhead Crane Driver, so I have a small rigging background, about 6 or 7yrs, just a pup in terms of experience.

Baz.