What tells you a rope should be retired?

Hello guys! New-ish climber here, and first post! So I’m buying all the basic climbing gear that I need. I have a harness, belay device, shoes, and chalk bag. All I think i need is a rope, helmet, and QuickDraws. Of course there’s a lot more stuff I’ll need to get but these are the bare essentials I think.

So im buying a rope and helmet off my Uncle who gave up rappelling after he took a 100ft fall that should have killed him. I know the rope has been used so I just wanna make sure that im not buying a rope that won’t last. What do you look for in a rope to see how much time it’s got left in it

If he used the rope for rappelling, you first need to check that the rope is a dynamic rope and not a static line. 

A climbing rope should be dynamic, right?

Russell Springerwrote:

A climbing rope should be dynamic, right?

Yes, especially if you're leading with it.  A top rope scenario doesn't necessarily require a dynamic rope, but it's a good idea that if anyone is going to be falling on a rope, it's dynamic.

In addition to making sure it’s dynamic, ask how old it is. It’s not going to disintegrate the day that the clock strikes midnight on the 10th year, but if it is old, it just is not worth paying money for it, imo.

I know the price tag of all the gear seems really high, when you are a new climber. But how much are you saving by buying this old rope? A quick Google search finds a 60m Edelrid for $159, and you would likely use it longer than this old rope that your uncle used for rappeling

What are you buying this rope for? Do you already know how to lead, and are planning on climbing outside? Do you need it for the gym, with no plan to climb outside? (You can buy shorter gym length rope for even less)

Same with the helmet. There’s been a lot of advancement in making lighter/more comfortable helmets in the past decade. If your uncle is giving you this stuff for free, cool. But I wouldn’t buy an old helmet for anything more than a couple bucks. 

Your uncle gave up rappelling but wants to make a profit off selling you his old gear? A used rope and helmet are fairly worthless to begin with plus you're family, tell him it should be free

Don't buy your uncle's rope. But a new one. You should know the complete history of your ropes. Don't lend them to anyone. Be cautious about who you let use your rope at the crag.

Consider: after your brain, that rope will be the single most important safety device in your system, once you leave the ground.

Russell Springerwrote:

 gave up rappelling after he took a 100ft fall that should have killed him.

Also, wtf.

If the rope end labels are intact it can tell you a lot about the rope, it's length, diameter, single/double, and whether it is dynamic (EN892). I would only buy it if it is a dynamic single rope which is a standard climbing workhorse. If the rope is really fuzzy, is really stiff, shows any of the white core through the outer sheath, or has any soft spots I would not buy it. Run the entire length of the rope through your hands and look and feel for wear. I probably wouldn't spend more than $75 for a used rope in good condition.

I'd really be interested in hearing this 100ft fall story. Any details would be appreciated. Was he tied in and saved from a ground fall with this rope, or did he fall 100ft to the ground?

And… was he caught by the rope you are thinking of buying from him?

Alright guys! I ended up not buying the rope and helmet. Gonna order one in the next few days

alright so about his fall. I just heard the story and I was wrong about the height. It was 100ft, not 100 meters. Pretty big difference, I’m sorry bout that. It’s still not a small fall though.

The story goes that they were doing multiple rappels in Zions National Park and they got to a rappel that they wanted to do a single line down so it would be faster. I’m doing this though you have one side that if you pull it will slide free and another that is secure. Unfortunately my uncle made the mistake of clipping into the wrong side. (Please, I don’t want to hear comments flaming him about this. It was a big oversight and he could have died because of it but this was like 8 years ago and I’m sure he knows he needed to be more careful.) anyways, he clipped in, leaned back, and the rope came with him. He started to fall and as he did so he grabbed the other side of the rope. He said he was wearing gloves and was able to slow his fall by doing this. About fifty feet from the bottom he ran out of rope since I think he was still pulling rope from the other side as he fell(?). He fell to the ground onto a deep patch of sand. He said there was rock all around and that if he landed anywhere else it would have been bad. He was completely uninjured and that was a miracle. No way should he have gotten out of that without any injuries let alone his life, but fortunately he fell feet first and was able to grab onto the rope for half the fall. Still SUPER SUPER scary and I’m honestly just glad he’s alive. This isn’t the first time he had escaped death but since this fall he stopped all thrill seeking adventures and hopefully he’ll be with us for years and years to come

Russell Springerwrote:

Alright guys! I ended up not buying the rope and helmet. Gonna order one in the next few days

alright so about his fall. I just heard the story and I was wrong about the height. It was 100ft, not 100 meters. Pretty big difference, I’m sorry bout that. It’s still not a small fall though.

The story goes that they were doing multiple rappels in Zions National Park and they got to a rappel that they wanted to do a single line down so it would be faster. I’m doing this though you have one side that if you pull it will slide free and another that is secure. Unfortunately my uncle made the mistake of clipping into the wrong side. (Please, I don’t want to hear comments flaming him about this. It was a big oversight and he could have died because of it but this was like 8 years ago and I’m sure he knows he needed to be more careful.) anyways, he clipped in, leaned back, and the rope came with him. He started to fall and as he did so he grabbed the other side of the rope. He said he was wearing gloves and was able to slow his fall by doing this. About fifty feet from the bottom he ran out of rope since I think he was still pulling rope from the other side as he fell(?). He fell to the ground onto a deep patch of sand. He said there was rock all around and that if he landed anywhere else it would have been bad. He was completely uninjured and that was a miracle. No way should he have gotten out of that without any injuries let alone his life, but fortunately he fell feet first and was able to grab onto the rope for half the fall. Still SUPER SUPER scary and I’m honestly just glad he’s alive. This isn’t the first time he had escaped death but since this fall he stopped all thrill seeking adventures and hopefully he’ll be with us for years and years to come

That's incredible! Thanks for sharing.

Russell Springer, to address your original question, there are lots of threads which you can read, and lots of resources on the internet, that discuss when you need to think about retiring a rope. In brief, there are 3 major reasons: 1. exceeding UIAA fall rating for your brand of rope (usually between 5-12). This is very rare. 2.  Getting a “core shot” - an incident which cuts the sheath and some part of the core. 3. Longer term damage to the core from regular use and typical falls. This is by far the most common occurance and why I have retired all of my ropes. I assess this by feel. When You pass the rope through your fingers and it starts to have  “flat” or “soft” sections, it’s getting time to retire ( or shorten at the damage).  Someone with experience can show you in person. 

phylp phylpwrote:

1. exceeding UIAA fall rating for your brand of rope (usually between 5-12). This is very rare. 

??? Please explain.

i have had to retire a few ropes due to core shots, or cut them at the shot and use them for other purposes. the vast majority of the ropes i have retired are usually due to them getting really fuzzy and just annoying to use.

BTW, I won't cut a rope until a bit of the white core is showing. Ropes last a good long time with this approach. I wouldnt suggest this if you're in the multi pitch game, but single pitch climbers can get away with this for sure. 

Matthew Jaggerswrote:

??? Please explain.

A UIAA fall for the purposes of rope rating is a FF 1.77. Ropes are rated to withstand a certain number of UIAA falls. 

It would be a pretty amazing feat for someone to actually exceed the rated number of UIAA falls for their rope.

Aaron Kwrote:

A UIAA fall for the purposes of rope rating is a FF 1.77. Ropes are rated to withstand a certain number of UIAA falls. 

It would be a pretty amazing feat for someone to actually exceed the rated number of UIAA falls for their rope.

Thanks. 1.77 would be impossible to put 7 times in the same spot of the rope over its lifespan, but noted!

Just to be clear… your rope will be rated to a certain number of UIAA “falls”, which are extremely harsh drop tests in reality (as Aaron K pointed out.) So, if your rope is rated to 7 falls, this doesn’t mean you retire it after you have taken 7 falls on it. A rope will last through hundreds of short, low FF falls.

Also, just me personally, but I retire or cut a rope shorter well before I start seeing the white core show through.

No one has yet mentioned the pinch test… has the rope become so soft that you can double it over flat with your fingers? This often appears first on the ends after lots of use. That’s when I’ll cut an equal amount off the ends (and re-label the rope so I remember it’s true length).

+1 on the pinch test.  If you pinch it hard, and you can't make the 2 sides touch, then you're good to go:

(left=bad, right=good)