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Has anyone used a Sharpie brand pen to mark the middle of their climbing rope? Is it safe?
No manufacturer will condone the use of permanent marking ink on the middle mark of a climbing rope.
This would require the chemical analysis of the ink (which might be different over
time) by the rope manufacturer. Bluewater sells a (non-permanent) marking pen
with a Ph only approved for their own ropes.
The option of marking the middle of a climbing rope with tape is also questionable. How does the adhesive in the electrical or athletic tape react over time with the materials of the rope?
One climbing rope wholesale representative states that the Ph of athletic
tape may not
damage the rope but points out that tape can come loose quickly and slide away
from the original placement.
The traditional and best way to mark the middle of the rope is to get a rope woven in two patterns in the first place.
A second way is to wrap the center two inches of the rope with white nylon thread, every few wraps with a wrap carefully woven into the weave of the rope.
Beware an older rope someone has marked with tape. The tape can come loose over time and shift position even several feet. This give even more reason to follow the traditional
mountaineering practice of tying the ends of the rappel rope together before you throw it out and down to the next belay station. More than one unfortunate has rappelled off the short end of their rope:
read about this in many of The American Alpine Club's fifty-four annual reports
on Accidents in North American Mountaineering.
--On Belay, Bob Speik
Copyright© 2000-2002 by Robert Speik. All Rights Reserved.
The TraditionalMountaineers' coil
