Relaxing lines from a spool

[esion]

So I started in on rigging my boat today.  When I went to take some rope line off the spool it kept the shape of the spool having a slight bend every inch or so.  I tried just smoothing it out with my hand but it kept those bends pretty well.

 

How do you relax the line?  Should I soak it? Or iron it? Or soak, hang and weight it?  Or does it not matter since it will be pulled taut anyway?

[Jim Lad]

Esion,

 

Most thread will stretch quite a bit, so it's a good idea to hang it up with weights on it for a while.  This is especially important for shrouds and stays, which have some tension on them on the model.

 

John

[KenW]

I used a hair straightener that I bought from the local pharmacy.

Just let the straightener get too hot.  Worked fine.

[Ulises Victoria]

Have you tried Downy or a similar fabric softener? I remember using that stuff to make realistic looking hanging ropes in one of my builds.

[esion]

Both of those are great suggestions. 

 

I ended up just soaking them and hanging them with weights over a close hanger.  I let them sit overnight and it worked just fine.

[DBorgens]

When I wax the lines, I pass them over one the work lamps (the one with an incandescent bulb) several times with a little hand tension. Works best on the smaller lines.

 

Dave B

Edited January 10, 2014 by DBorgens