NASCAR rope failure
- Thread starter TheJollyLogger
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ropensaddle
Feel Lucky
I recon the rope is also subjected to regular uv radiation. It's my bet someones nads are in a chopping block, sure hate to be the responsible party. You can bet similar configurations will get better attention!
climb4fun
ArboristSite Operative
900 lbs at 5 degrees would convert to about 5,000 lbs of line tension. drop the angle to 15 degrees and its about 1700. at 30 degrees its about the same weight as the camera. that does not account for the effects of wind or bouncing of the camera. if it were me, id be using a wire rope rated for 20,000 lbs or more and keep the camera at 15 degrees. however i think it was the control lines, not the suspensions that fell.
ropensaddle
Feel Lucky
I think They will find that the uv radiation deteriorated the rope and led to failure. However I find it hard to believe the engineers responsible never considered it!
climb4fun
ArboristSite Operative
i thought that the article said that it was a new system for them
ropensaddle
Feel Lucky
I don't know I did not read that however it can take very little time for rope fully exposed to sun to begin to break down! I think maybe they might need to replace them monthly.
climb4fun
ArboristSite Operative
or make a point to use materials that wont break down in the sun lol. none the less, #### needs to get fixed.
StrataTree
ArboristSite Operative
From a rock climbers experience, it is worth considering what ropeandsaddle said! A rope exposed to sun all day everyday, can fail in just 3-4 wks for sure! Deaths have occured from climbers leaving ropes on big walls for too long then taking a big whipper(fall) and that's the end of that! Taking big falls is common in rock climbing, most are harmless, just exhilarating. But one can not take the care of their gear for granted! Not that it applies here, but ropes should never be left for any period of time in my opinion, too many "ifs"! Squirrels, chipmunks, raccoons, porcupines, birds, sun, kids, vandals, etc.,etc. NO THANKS!
Having said that, it's possible someone just didnt do the math right, Del and others understand how forces multiply quickly when all the factors are combined. Max. Strength isn't as hard to attain as some would think!
A climber I work with told me today, that a previous employer(landscaper), tried to set him up with rope from Home Depot, WTF! There is no end to the madness!:msp_confused:
Having said that, it's possible someone just didnt do the math right, Del and others understand how forces multiply quickly when all the factors are combined. Max. Strength isn't as hard to attain as some would think!
A climber I work with told me today, that a previous employer(landscaper), tried to set him up with rope from Home Depot, WTF! There is no end to the madness!:msp_confused:
Thay had been using the same strand of dyneema since last june at all the races, right at WLL. Evidently it was the drive rope, i.e. going through a block or pully at high rates of speed for almost a year. Not surprised it failed, fairly impressed it held out this long.
ozzy42
Addicted to ArboristSite
I would suspect all the rigging for the camera is transported,installed and removed from event to event.
Maybe we're overthinking all of this .
Faulty knot at anchor point??
Maybe we're overthinking all of this .
Faulty knot at anchor point??
I thought dyneema had a very high UV resistance, could be wrong though
Is there another article with more details, or did you get that info from somebody more familiar with the situation? Just curious, as I'd be interested in the other articles if so - if not, thanks for sharing what you do know!
Regarding UV: that does certainly degrade ropes, but it sounds like it may not have been a major factor here...just run-of-the-mill abuse will do a rope in as quick as anything!
ropensaddle
Feel Lucky
It's plain to see a combination of all of it reducing safety margin. cycles to load,uv! I'm having a hard time understanding the engineer responsible. It is my bet the absolute truth will not be told publicly. I think maybe smaller aircraft cable might have been a better fit in this application knowing the degradation full exposure has as well as cycle to load characteristics of yarns.
I think the moral of the story is, Dyneema/Amsteel is great stuff, in the right application. Melting point is as impprtant as break strength/ WLL. I did a blowover contract job in Austin about a month ago, and for the final trunk piece they sent me up some cheap bull rope I had never seen or used, just didn't like the looks of it. Went ahead and rigged with it off a high lift fork truck( not my job, just the climber) and just the act of tightening up and lifting the piece was enough to generate enough heat to fuse the rope to the point that we had to cut it off the log. We were well under wll, but the rope had too low a melting point. Friction is a load killer.
