Rope Break In?
 

I just bought a proline LG package with the sk line.

Do these take some time to "break in" because it has alot of sponge/stretch to it. :confused:
Its my first coated line. do they all do this?

Thanks-

uhhh, a if it's a non-stretch rope it shouldn't stretch at all or need to be broken in. I've never heard of that.

They list it as a non-stretch. All the other ropes I have bought have been straightline, all have been non-stretch from day one.
I have never heard of it either, but i figured I would ask.
This really pisses me off.

Your local shop should have a rope stretcher you can use.

This is very similar to the pole stretcher that we used to have at the ski shop when I was a rental slackey.

Seriously though, you shouldn't need to break it in at all. Double check that it is non stretch.

The proline ropes actually do have some stretch in them. There was a thread on this a while back where a guy actually attatched the rope to his car and got a couple extra feet out of it. I think the higher end coated prolines don" but the SK's do.

I have had many many many different lines in my time. Accurate, Straightline, Hardline, Nevin, Proline, coated, non-coated, poly-e.... pretty much you name it and I have had it. Every time I set a brand new rope and handle up I definitely notice a bit of stretch in them all the first few runs. Usually I like to go out and just rail in as hard as I can every trick for the first run to get the stretch out. I tend to use a rope until it breaks on my and then I'll tie a knot in it and use it again.

Hey Ethan....I bought that rope/handle last year and had the same issue. I used it 3 or 4 times and now it just hangs in my garage. I had never experienced this before with any other rope/handle combination either. Kind of gets in your head when you are working on load and release tricks that require a lot of tension!

I've seen it a couple of times with different brands. I took a proline vapor series back last year because it had so much stretch and just used my old line all season. Another buddy got one that was stretchy from liquid force and after a couple of rides it was fine. I think the reason they stretch is that jacket isn't tight on the rope and the jacket is actually pulling you most of the time until the plastic stretches out enough that it's tight on the rope. Give it a couple of more tries or have some big guys ride it.
I do agree it's bs that you buy a non stretch rope and it's like a rubber band for a few rides. They should pre-stretch them or something at the factory.

Thanks for the responses, I will use it a few more times if that doesn't do anything I guess I will have to contact proline. Its like riding with a ski rope, it sucks big time.

Jason...how the hell do you break your lines? I've heard of people chopping them up by accident but never tearing one wakeboarding.

I think I remember the Proline guys saying (from that car stretching thread) that after a few sets you shouldn't notice it, but I agree if you drop that much cash on a non-stretch it should not ever stretch.

Part of the stretching "feeling" are the knots and the loops simply tightening up on each other. I personally run 1 poly E link to add a little give (myself included) on my A-line.

I like my rope to have a little bit of stretch, granted it shouldn't be recoiling on you but a little give is perfect. We even add a 3 foot section of Poly-P. If you guys have ever experienced the tennis elbow phenomenon from wakeboarding, add a small section of Poly-P and you have found your answer. You can also just train yourself to not land with your arms extended.

As for the Proline stretching, mine stretched the first couple rides and is now solid and works great!

Yup.... Like a lot of these guys have said.... The Pro-Lines will stretch a bit when they're new. I know some guys that trip on it. Doesn't really cause me any problems. Send that thing on over.... I'll stretch it out for you. Ha, ha, ha.

I have had some accurates that didn't stretch at all, but they weren't coated. I'm not sure what makes them feel springy at first. Maybe the coating giving on the line. I don't know. I do know that they only take a few rides for that to go away. Do some big raleys. Stretch it out.

Also, there are a few of the old guys on here (he, he) that add a section of ski rope to help with tennis elbow. From what I understand it helps a lot having that bit of give.

Should have bought Accurate...

Evan, you make a great point about the coatings that I didnt even think about. It likely depends on how they coat the rope, with or without load (likely without I imagine). This means that line is going to "stretch" inside that coating initially, until the coating stretches to match the rope's "loaded" length..

BTW, good points Heavy and Evan on the Poly P...that's what I use...not poly e.

Bahaha. Shameless plugg there Riley. Love it.

Justin- I dont know. They usually break at the sections. Been a few times where cutting in for a raley it just snaps. Its kind of funny when it happens. I guess Im just hard on my gear. Ride it hard and push the limits of myself and even more so the gear. :)

Yeah I also ride with the poly rope section for my shoulder. I honestly don't notice the stretch at all with it inline, but I certainly noticed the stretch of the new coated rope. I can handle it but don't care for it.

When I bought a PL coated line last year, it felt a little stretchy or 'soft' and thought it must have been in my head or something. I mean non-stretch (spectra) is supposed to be non-stretch at wakeboarding loads. We hardly ever use that line / handle because it just doesn't feel right and after reading this post suspect not all non-stretch lines are created equal.

On a 80ft non-stretch rope I would quess you will get an extra ~1/2ft out of it after everything is said and done.


I'll usually tie it up a tree or something and just lean on it for a while....I've seen people hook it took a tree and a truck, they'll put it in gear and just let that stretch it out for them

I tie mine to the railing at the top of the steps and lean on it pretty heavy.

The fibers don't streach (much), but the weave does.

After a few rides it should be done. I've seen the truck and tree method go terribly wrong.

I have spliced cut up lines into 5' and 2.5' sections and used the "truck method" to tighten up the knots and "field test" the strength. Dont get TOO crazy with the "truck test" as these ropes are not cables. You barely want to add any tension to the line with a car. Simply putting an F-250 into gear and barely letting off the brake was enough to snap a line.