cameronp47•3mo ago

My line snapped halfway through a chimney rebuild in Cleveland last week.

It was an old nylon line, frayed where it rubbed on the scaffold. Anyone got a brand that holds up better?

4 comments

4 Comments

xena_bailey183mo ago

Check the sheath rating for abrasion resistance before you buy.

murphy.tessa3mo ago

But what about the sheath's own wear on everything it touches? I had a line with a super tough sheath that ended up chewing through the plastic coating on my ladder rungs. It was like sandpaper, left these ugly gray scrapes everywhere. Sometimes the thing that's tough on the outside is also tough on your other gear.

jessica7073mo ago

Wait, is nylon still the go-to for that kind of work? Tbh, I switched to a braided polyester line a few years back and it was a total game changer. It doesn't stretch like nylon does when it's wet, which means less surprise slack. The cover also seems to handle abrasion from the scaffold tubes way better. I haven't had a single one fray on me yet.

aaron_perry28d ago

Oh man, I feel your pain. Nothing worse than that sinking feeling when the line lets go halfway through a job, especially on something as tricky as a chimney rebuild. You're up there thinking everything's solid and then snap, you're left holding a floppy end while the rest of it's dangling somewhere in the flue. It's super frustrating and honestly a little scary when you think about what could've happened if it gave out at a worse moment. I've been there with the fraying on scaffold edges. That constant rubbing back and forth is brutal. It's like the metal just slowly chews through the fibers over time. You don't even notice it until it's too late and you see that little fuzzy spot that's actually a deep cut. I switched to a line with a really tight braided cover, like one of those ones that feels almost waxy or slick to the touch. It's a lot less grabby on the scaffold tubes and it's held up way better for me. Nylon's good for some stuff but yeah, that wet stretch will get you every time. Hope you got the rest of the rebuild done without too much more trouble.