When halyards and sheets are getting on in years, or when a sail upgrade calls for a material with lower stretch, Dyneema fibre comes into its own. High-strength, virtually no stretch, UV-stable, resistant to kinks and abrasion – the material seems tailor-made for sailors. Unfortunately, however, it is not only the fibre’s performance data that is impressive, but also its price. High-performance rope can easily cost between 6 and 10 euros per metre.
As a result, mass-produced boats are usually fitted as standard with much cheaper polyester rope, and high-performance fibres are also absent from many older cruising yachts. The reality check comes when sailing. Even at the first gust, the luff sags and unsightly creases form. But that’s not all: the sail changes shape. It becomes more bulging, causing greater heel, drag and rudder pressure – characteristics that slow the boat down and make steering uncomfortable. The halyard winch can be used to restore the original trim, but only for a short time, until the line slackens again.
So should we dig deep into our pockets and buy premium cables after all? That would solve the problem, but it would essentially be like using a sledgehammer to crack a nut.
More on the topic of ‘ropes’:
- Sailing Knowledge: Ropes – Everything You Need to Know About Materials, Construction and Use
- Ready-made spliced mooring lines put to the test – a good rope for little money?
- Instructions: How to create textile connections using lashing and loops
- Rope-making: How to make your own soft shackles from Dyneema
- Rope test: Securely moored – these are the best mooring lines
High-performance rope has a much higher breaking strength than is required on cruising yachts. 10-millimetre halyards can easily withstand 5 tonnes. This is a good thing in itself, as it allows you to reduce the diameter of the lines. In theory, a 6-millimetre Dyneema main halyard would be sufficient for a 10-metre yacht.
In practice, however, this has its limitations, as the thinner ropes are difficult to handle by hand. Above all, they tend to slip through the halyard stoppers. So unless you’re prepared to replace the deck fittings as well, you’ll be best off sticking with 10 mm rope and you’ll be fine.
Overview of measurement results
Mid-range ropes are set to bridge the gap
Rope manufacturers now also offer a mid-range product. The aim: to achieve a stretch rate as low as that of a high-performance rope, but at a price only slightly higher than that of polyester. The simplest way to reduce production costs is by using cheaper raw materials. The main factor driving up the price is the Dyneema SK78 fibre.
Depending on the type of line, it is replaced in the mid-range by its significantly cheaper counterpart, the SK38, blended with a different fibre, or its proportion in the rope is reduced by the addition of an intermediate sheath. The latest development is a shift away from the branded product Dyneema towards other UHMWPE fibres. The abbreviation stands for ultra-high-molecular-weight polyethylene and describes the family of materials to which Dyneema and Spectra also belong. Due to the complex production process, these two branded products have, until now, had a virtual monopoly on high-performance fibres. However, there are now significantly cheaper alternatives that come close to matching Dyneema’s performance. One example is ‘Robtec’, an UHMWPE derivative from the Austrian manufacturer Robline.
For our test, we were looking for affordable rigging to upgrade a 10-metre cruising yacht fitted with polyester lines. The ten test products from Gleistein, Liros, Marlow, Maffioli and Robline fall into two groups: eight lines with a polyester sheath and two specialist ropes that combine affordable cores with sophisticated sheath constructions. The more robust sheaths are designed to better withstand the stresses in the halyard stopper, but this is also clearly reflected in the price of the lines.
Two of the ten test products use SK38 fibres and two use other UHMWPE fibres; the remaining lines use SK78, either in combination with an intermediate sheath or blended with polypropylene.
Gleistein’s sister products, Dynalite and Relite; the Cruise XP, which was also manufactured by Gleistein but sold exclusively through SVB; and Liros’s Dynamic Color all feature an intermediate sheath made of coarse polyester staple fibre. This fills out the rope, thereby reducing the proportion of expensive Dyneema fibre, whilst the additional braiding improves the grip between the core and the sheath.
Where fall arresters become a sticking point
When switching to low-stretch rope, the halyard stoppers often become a problem.
In the clamps, only the outer sheath is held in place over a relatively small area. This is not a problem with polyester rope, as the sheath and core bear the load together. With Dyneema, however, the low-stretch core does all the work. If the core starts to slip within the sheath, the outer braid becomes overloaded and breaks.
Liros is also launching the new Speed Vision, which features a blend of SK78 and polypropylene. This reduces the proportion of Dyneema even further, which is reflected in the line’s lower breaking load and price. However, this is irrelevant both in testing and in practice, as all breaking strengths are significantly higher than those of polyester and, moreover, account for only 10 per cent of the overall score.
Polypropylene is also used as an additive in the Easy Cruise by Maffioli, the D2 Club by Marlow and the Sirius XTS by Robline. The PP fibre has a similar effect to an additional braid and also improves the grip between the core and the sheath.
In high-performance ropes, a polyurethane coating is often used in place of the intermediate sheath to accommodate the thickest possible core made from the load-bearing Dyneema material and to achieve the necessary friction despite the soapy fibres. In the test, only the D2 Club and the Globe Pro feature a coated core.
To assess how the lines perform in the stopper, we tested them in a Spinlock XTS cleat designed for diameters of 6 to 10 millimetres. This model is one of the best-selling and can be found on many mass-produced boats. The test at 500 decanewtons showed no noticeable wear, which speaks well for the sheath and the force transmission. At 700 decanewtons, the wheat was separated from the chaff, and only three of the ten lines held. The rest slipped continuously through the clamp, with the braided sheath sustaining varying degrees of damage. On a positive note: unlike in our earlier tests, the sheath did not break on any of the lines.
In theory, the Sirius XTS – which has been specially optimised for the Spinlock cleat – and the Jammer Twin should be significantly superior as fall arresters, as the Technora content in the sheath ensures a higher breaking load, greater friction and increased abrasion resistance.
Our test results did not show this; both lines also slipped at a tensile force of 700 decanewtons, but the braided sheaths showed significantly fewer bite marks than the polyester sheaths of the other lines. Experience shows that Technora’s grip increases with prolonged use, as the fibres first need to be roughened up. The three test runs were not sufficient to produce this effect; the Technora lines therefore underperformed.
When it comes to elongation, the differences are surprisingly small
All lines perform well in the elongation test, which is crucial for fall lines.
It also became clear that this is primarily a fibre property, as the absolute values and variance are very low despite the differing rope constructions. What is striking, however, is the extremely low elongation of the Globe Pro. In terms of weight, this rope has the second-highest fibre content in its core, and the UHMWPE used appears to be superior to Dyneema SK38 and SK78 in terms of breaking load and elongation.
In addition to the working elongation and breaking elongation, we have also determined the increase in stretch per 100 dekanewtons of load increase in the range above 400 dekanewtons. This shows how the leech gives way when the sail is set and how much the trim changes in gusts. Consequently, this value, together with the working elongation, is taken into account in the assessment.
A good example is Liros’ Speed Vision: at 800 decanewtons, the rope stretches by 1.5 per cent, which is more than the competition. At the same time, however, the tension in the rope increases by only 0.15 per cent per 100 decanewtons above 400 decanewtons. This means that, once adjusted, the fall tension hardly changes at all.
The effects can be illustrated more clearly in everyday life on board: on a yacht with a mast height of 13 metres, when the mainsail is set, there is around 15 metres of line between the halyard stopper and the headboard. A 1.5 per cent stretch means that, when setting the sail, 23 centimetres more rope must be pulled through to achieve the required tension. However, with additional wind pressure, the stretch then increases by only 0.15 per cent, so the halyard sags by just 2 centimetres.
The other lines behave in essentially the same way. Although they have a slightly lower working elongation, the differences are virtually negligible in the range relevant to trimming. The variations are so small that they are unlikely to be noticeable or measurable in practice. There is a difference of just 1.5 centimetres in length between the Globe Pro and the Cruise XP.
By way of comparison: with a high-quality polyester rope such as the T90 from Maffioli, the stretch would already be 7.5 centimetres. Cheaper OEM-grade ropes often stretch considerably more than that. This completely ruins any trim, and it becomes clear just how superior the test ropes are compared to polyester products.
Which lines offer the best value for money?
The performance of the ropes is good, but the obvious question of what constitutes a fair price is not so easy to answer. The lowest cost per metre is for the Cruise XP from Gleistein/SVB. At 4.30 euros per metre, it is very close to the price of a polyester rope, which would cost between 3.00 and 3.50 euros for a high-quality version.
Also good value for money are the Speed Vision from Liros and the Dynalite from Gleistein, priced at 4.90 and 4.95 euros respectively – they also offer very good value for money. For just 5 cents more per metre, you can get the Relite, which is technically almost identical to the Dynalite but has a recycled polyester outer layer and therefore uses fewer fossil-based raw materials.
When it comes to the Easy Cruise at 6.35 euros per metre or the D2 Club from Marlow at 7.30 euros, it’s harder to justify the price. They aren’t bad products, but the price seems hardly justified, especially as they are easily outperformed by the cheaper Globe Pro in terms of stretch and breaking load. For this price, with a bit of luck, you can also order a high-performance line made from SK78. Take the Racer from Liros, for example. You can find this product in mail-order shops for just under 6.00 euros per metre. Whilst the higher breaking strength isn’t strictly necessary, it certainly doesn’t do any harm.
The Jammer Twin and Sirius XTS stand out somewhat when it comes to price. The braided sheath drives up the price, but should also significantly reduce wear and tear on the fall arrest device. Over their longer service life, this means they may work out cheaper than their competitors. Naturally, we were unable to verify this in the test.
In terms of points, the Cruise XP and the Dynamic Color come out on top; given their very similar characteristics, it is difficult to pick a winner. You really can’t go wrong with any of the products tested. And the difference compared to polyester rope is definitely noticeable.
Is affordable mid-range rigging the real ‘sweet spot’ for cruising sailors, and is expensive high-performance rigging often over the top? Please share your experiences with halyards, stoppers and low-stretch lines in the comments.
Hauke Schmidt
Test & Technology editor