At Marlow, we know what our ropes will do. How well they can be expected to perform. How long they are likely to last and under what conditions. That`s our business. The fact remains that the best ropes in the world deserve to be well looked-after in order to preserve their reliability, durability and performance.

Coiling and Uncoiling	This is not always as simple as it sounds. Pulling wrongly from a coil can cause kinks (where one strand turns over into a tight loop and stands out like a vein) much reducing the strength of the rope. The answer is to coax out the kink before any damage is done.
Nipping	A sharp bend is something to avoid. It means that only about half of the rope`s fibre are taking the load (the remaining fibres being rendered ineffective by compression. This in turn puts undue strain on the remaining fibres.
Wear	There is no problem in storing modern synthetic ropes in a wet state. The risk of deterioration is minimal. The real risk is if they remain in the same position for long periods of use. If signs of wear are there to see, the rope can be reversed one end to the other in order to spread the wear. Alternatively, use slightly longer ropes than needed in the first place and periodically move the bearing position a few inches. The furry look of a well used synthetic rope may indicate a slight strength loss however the hairy surface helps to protect the rope against further abrasion. If the rope shows excessive wear ie. A plaited cover worn right though, the rope will need to be replaced or repaired.
Abrasion	Something to watch for with every rope. Seeing the blocks, cleats and fairleads allow the rope to pass freely minimises the risk, although many problems are often due to using the wrong size of ropes for the fitting. Ratchets and stoppers are particularly hard on the outer surface of ropes. Only regular inspection will keep you out of trouble. Seized blocks and swivels quickly spell ruin to ropes.
Heat Damage	Friction can cause strands to melt both externally and internally. But as the melting point of most ropes is between 130°-260°C the risk of real damage is slight. If you think a rope has overloaded, open the strands to check for heat damage (fusing of strands).
Splicing	A correctly spliced rope has between 90-95% of the strength of the unspliced rope. Regular inspection of splices makes sense, particularly in such a case as, for example, a plaited rope splice where new fibres sometimes appear at the neck. If the rope eye appears to be moving and showing clean rope, have a word with a professional rigging.
End of Season	Salt crystals will affect the life and efficiency of ropes so, at the end of each season, soak them in fresh warm water.
Deck Gear	Rope performance in deck gear is usually best served by trying to keep the rope as circular in cross section as possible. Other deck gear should not distort the structure of the rope unduly and would ideal not inflict a radius of less than 6 times of the rope diameter. Where the rope is gripped, such as in a clam cleat, the cover should be held over as long a distance as possible to avoid overstressing the cover relative to the core. This consideration is especially relevant to Dyneema ropes, where load transfer between cover and core is particularly difficult.

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