Step #2: A Quick Tip (optional)
For ropes with woven nylon on the outside and an inside core, you'll need to pull out the inside in order to better seal the ends of the rope. Pull about 1 in. of the inside core out, cut it 1/2 in. from the end, and work it back in by holding one end of the rope and sliding the outside nylon part back over the end of the core. Then, proceed on to the next step.
Step #3: Melting the Rope
- Once you have made a clean cut, hold the flame of your match or lighter (we used a lighter) up to the end of the rope for 3-6 seconds.
- Tip: Have your glass or other container of water ready -- the rope will smolder or burn.
- Caution: This technique should not be used on ropes made with natural fibers as it is unlikely to solve the problem and may catch the rope on fire. Rope made with natural fibers tends to burn, while synthetic rope will melt. However, if there is a small flame on the end of your synthetic rope, don't be alarmed. That happens very often, and is generally unavoidable.
- Quickly douse the burned or melted end in a glass or container of cool water.
- Tip: Immediately after removing the rope from the flame, dip it in the water. Otherwise, it will continue to smolder and may drip melted fibers on your working surface.
Step #5: Finished Product
This is the end of the rope we repaired. We have done it many times, and every time we did it, it worked perfectly. It is a very efficient and cost-effective way of repairing the frayed ends of a synthetic rope.
Good job, Matthew, to the point and easy to follow! 2 thumbs up!