How Much Paracord Should You Carry?

I carry a 50' hank of 650 cord and two 100' hanks of 550 cord, in addition to 10-15' of heavy nylon rope and miscellaneous fishing line(about 30-50'), polycord(again about 50') and my sewing kit(different types of thread ranging from heavy duty to suture thin).
As for the uses? I can make acceptable natural cordage either S-twist two ply or 3 ply and plaited, but I wouldn't trust it to my weight. I've personally tested the 650cord to hold my weight with a pack on, so strength for size/weight is one major reason I carry it. Versatility would have to be the second; Braided it could make an acceptable rappelling/hoisting line, inner strands can be used for fishing, can make an acceptable snare, small enough to make nets(still dabbling with that now that Doc has sparked my interest). Not to mention all the previously mentioned shelter building and lashing uses. Couple that with possible first-aid uses(such as using the inner strands for sutures) and you've got a multi-use kit item that weighs virtually nothing and takes up very little space if stored properly.
If there were a stronger, more versatile piece of cordage I could carry and trust my life to in a survival situation, I guess I'd be carrying it, until then it's 550 cord or stronger. :thumbup:


Gautier
 
mark greenman said:
Does anyone know of any high quality string/twine that I can carry to supplement 550 cord for lighter tasks? I want something that I can carry alot of in a small package. Thanks!
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Ummm....it's probably sacrilege and all that, but I use mainly cheap@ss gardener's jute twine for pretty much everything. Low tech I know, but knots are tight and the twine is cheap as dirt, biodegradable and I can carry a 200' spool of 1/8" and not know it's there. Granted it's not as strong as para, but it's more than sufficient for the tasks I ask of it (I don't think I've ever actually broken any in use). It would suck for the noose of a snare because of the friction, but that's what the picture wire and guitar strings are for. Plus I like the natural-fibre aspect of it. If I need more strength, it's 'hairy' enough that it braids really well.
 
DeadeyeLefty said:
Ummm....it's probably sacrilege and all that, but I use mainly cheap@ss gardener's jute twine for pretty much everything. Low tech I know, but knots are tight and the twine is cheap as dirt, biodegradable and I can carry a 200' spool of 1/8" and not know it's there. Granted it's not as strong as para, but it's more than sufficient for the tasks I ask of it (I don't think I've ever actually broken any in use). It would suck for the noose of a snare because of the friction, but that's what the picture wire and guitar strings are for. Plus I like the natural-fibre aspect of it. If I need more strength, it's 'hairy' enough that it braids really well.
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Not sacrilege in my books. I use it for all my learning projects - net making, PSK pouch making, etc. Can't beat the price, although it does stink a bit. Should work all right for snares too, depending on the knot you use - it's no different than using natural cordage (which, of course, it is, just (k)not from around here) (sorry, I couldn't resist that :D). Also, if you're using the real fine stuff, you can reverse wrap it and cut off the 'hairies'. This makes it much smoother.

Doc
 
I'm with Doc on this....jute twine is a good idea. It would 'behave' a bit like natural cordage you might make yourself. If you can successfully work within the limitations of this stuff when you are out in the bush, then you could probably do well with cord you'd made yourself.

And I reckon I could probably make successful snares for small animals with it.

The biodegradable/disposable aspect is good.

We are blessed down here to have the NZ Flax plant. I will often carry strips of leaf for odd jobs on my trap line like tying lures into place, and rigging the snare sets themselves. I also use it around home to tie up my tomato plants etc. It doesn't matter if I leave the offcuts in the garden because it will eventually rot away.

But I do like synthetic cordage when I'm seriously attempting to snare bigger animals, or when I need a safety line for climbing or crossing a river.
 
Don't get me wrong, I definitely see the advantages of using synthetics like paracord. Reading about the equipment used by early explorers is really eye-opening. For example, we just take it for granted that when we're climbing we can rely on our protection to arrest a fall. Back in the days of natural fibres, the reliability just wasn't there. The natural ropes would rot from the core outward, making it difficult to assess a rope's condition before relying on it. That, combined with the lack of elasticity, meant that 'roping up' didn't guarantee the safe arrest of a fall to the same degree as today.

In short, I couldn't imagine using the trusty jute twine where safety was an issue and I certainly wouldn't rely on my ability to make natural cordage into safety gear. Otherwise, I haven't run up against any camp chores it couldn't handle.
 
Funny you should mention early explorers and the equipment they used. Not to go too far off topic, but that's sort of what this comes down to. They used the best possible equipment they could get their hands on, and took in factors of weight, and (multi)function of gear and so forth, just as we do.
The key difference, is that unlike them, we have the ability to easily gain insight on certain things based on the experiences of others(good and bad). Coupled with the industrial age(constant improvements made exponentially) that gives a lot of choices all the time, so it's always a good idea to ask and keep up on the improvements of things.


Gautier
 
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