Ropewalk

[Castos]

All this posts are interesting on how to make a rope walk.

 

Questions:

1. Does it make ropes to a certain length or can it make longer ropes - dependent an the size of the machine?

2. Are there any illustrations somewhere that shows how to setup the machine to mark ropes?

 

Thanks in advance for assistance and getting me to understand how it works.

[wefalck]

Ad 1: normally, ropewalks make ropes of a certain maximum length, depending on the length of the rails used; there are more complicated machines, that can make ropes of (quasi) unlimited length.

 

Ad 2: what do you mean by "mark ropes" ?

[Castos]

My Apologies: Typo should be make and not mark

[wefalck]

Which machine ? Normally it is very simple, you attach the thread from which to make the rope on one hook and then lead it from one side of the machine to the other either three or four times, depending on whether you want to make three- or four-strand rope.

 

There are also two building instructions for two types of ropewalks here on the Forum: http://modelshipworldforum.com/ship-model-rigging-and-sails.php. They presumably also have some operating instructions with them.

[mtaylor]

4 hours ago, Castos said:

All this posts are interesting on how to make a rope walk.

 

Questions:

1. Does it make ropes to a certain length or can it make longer ropes - dependent an the size of the machine?

2. Are there any illustrations somewhere that shows how to setup the machine to mark ropes?

 

Thanks in advance for assistance and getting me to understand how it works.

The only one I've seen (and I've not seen them all by any stretch) is the Dominoff one: https://shipworkshop.com/products/tools/pl-3.2-endless-rope-making-machine .  I have this machine but haven't used it yet but I've heard good things about it.    It's a bit pricey though.

[vaddoc]

It is very easy and very cheap to make a rope walk by using whatever left over materials that are lying about and a few bits from ebay, like cogs and a motor. But it does need a fair bit of space, the rope machines available commercially are much more compact.  

 

My set up is in the photos bellow, theoretically I can make rope of any length but I am limited by the length of my garage so I get lengths of about 2 meters. Not elegant but very robust, it still goes strong after 5 years. It cost me something like £10 but many hours of work: rope making is very satisfying but time consuming. I think it produces good rope and I can make adjustments to improve the quality. 

 

 

 

This is an old video, I've since changed the cog for a proper cone.

 

 

I will need lots of rope soon so I set it up last week to play a bit. It is probably more time and even cost efficient to buy Chuck's wonderful rope but I really like rope making, it is a bit of an art!

 

 

Edited October 27, 2018 by vaddoc

[BANYAN]

Hi Castos,

 

Jim Byrnes also has an 'endless' rope walk ; very good quality machine but a little pricy.

 

As to set up, there are many 'base' designs (Kroll, Byrnes, Syren etc etc); every rope walk is different and there are so many variables that proving an overall  set-up for every type of rope etc would be nigh impossible.  The best to ask for is a guide for the type of rope walk you are using.

 

The type and size of the source/stock thread, the end 'lay' of the rope (left or right / S vs Z lay), and the number of strands of the scale rope etc etc will all require different setups no matter what the type of rope walk used.  The only way to really get a grip on all this is trial and error, noting the setups etc as you go along so that when you find a set-up that works for a particular size of rope ,then you have the info to repeat the process.

 

As an example, making left hand lay rope on a Byrnes ropewalk is much easier than right hand lay.  On this machine several factors impact the end result, including: lay of the stock thread, size of the stock thread, distance between the reels and the forming post (angle of the lay), the way the stock is wound onto the reels/spools (consistent tension, direction etc) and the speed at which the rope walk is run.  All, or most, of these factors will affect any ropewalk, but perhaps in different ways.  So what you need to know are several basic set-up requirements, including: lay of the stock thread (to achieve the final lay direction), size of the stock thread (again to achieve the desired made-up size), number of strands required (some shrouds were cable laid in three strand, others in four strands, the angle of lay required, how to set the rope, etc (some research required).

 

As to 'stretch', some stock threads result in rope that stretches more than others.  Some silks and cottons (long staple) are much better for not stretching as much as say man-made thread (such as poly-cotton threads).  I always 'set' my scale ropes by tensioning them, and in some cases manually stretching them, first by hand and then hanging them for a week or so with weights (on swivels) on either end to remove any twist and minimise overall stretch.  I have found that doing this has helped and I have seen little stretch induced by different levels of humidity (mainly seasonal).  Other modellers say they do not have to set their rope; I believe that this is because of the way their ropewalk and technique combine to provide a 'set' rope on manufacture.  Other factors that influence the final result are how much fuzz is imparted by the stock - smooth (glace) finish is best, and if using silk, the amount of 'slubs' present, the less the better) 

 

By 'set' I mean, that  if properly set, the rope will not unravel when it is cut.  I hope all of this shows that, unfortunately, it is impossible to provide the exact set-up for any machine as there are simply too many variables.  The best is to find a 'guide' for the type of ropewalk you intend to/or have purchased/made, then experiment with different stock threads etc.  There are several discussions available in MSW on the different types of rope-walk, threads, setting rope etc.

 

cheers

 

Pat

Edited October 28, 2018 by BANYAN

[wefalck]

Pat, don't frighten the poor guy off

 

You are absolutely right, Pat, that there are so many different factors that come to bear - the best strategy is to give it a try and keep practicing, perhaps at the beginning with some cheap yarns to get a feeling for what is happening.

 

Getting good material will be the main bottle-neck, but when you read the various contributions on the this forum, you will probably find suggestions for sources that are accessible in your respective country.

 

Another important point is to not be afraid and tighten up the strands to near the breaking point, only then you will get a good tight rope.

 

Unravelling or not when cut depends also on the material used, natural fibres have a higher internal friction and tend to stay together, while man-made fibres gives smoother ropes, but because of their smoothness also have a tendency to spring opoen.

[vaddoc]

11 hours ago, wefalck said:

Another important point is to not be afraid and tighten up the strands to near the breaking point, only then you will get a good tight rope.

I think this is really important. This leads to a tighter rope at the small cost of few failures.

 

Isn't rope making great fun?

[BANYAN]

Hi Eberhard, yep you are absolutely right; on rereading my post it does read that it is all too difficult which was not my intention.  As you say, with a bit of practice most of this becomes a lot easier.  Once you find a good stock thread, and get the hang of your ropewalk it all starts to fall into place; I just wanted to put it out there that it was difficult to provide a generic 'set-up' straight out of the box that would work for him.

 

I do encourage all modellers to try and make their own ropes as they look so much better than the standard wares provided with kits.

 

cheers

 

Pat

[paulsutcliffe]

Sometimes I think we make everything to complicated, you can't beat chucks rope rocket for ease and simplicity and it makes some good looking rope after a bit of practice and experimentation, I used to have cones and travellers etc and it all gets a bit fiddly

Regards

Paul