Guy line far Tarps

[Stir Fry]

I found braded spectra fishing line. 80lb test. Less then 1mm in diameter. Can anyone think of a reason it would not work as a tarp guy line.

[Jersey Tim]

Might loosen during the night, depending on what knot you use. I like to use a taut-line hitch, and it might be too slick for that kind of knot to really bite into.

[Country Roads]

It does have a bit of stretch, but should work. I prefer light guy lines. I would rather have a guy line fail, than a tarp failure.

[Stir Fry]

Just replased the guy lines with the spectra fishing line 80 lb test, Tarp, guy lines, ridge line, and 6 staeks was 10.87oz before change, 8.66 oz after the change. it a 10.5" X 8.5" cuben tarp.

[grayfox]

I found braded spectra fishing line. 80lb test. Less then 1mm in diameter. Can anyone think of a reason it would not work as a tarp guy line.

Just be really careful not to get your fingers, or any other part of yourself, entwined in this line. It is impossible to break free, and nearly imposible to cut yourself free, once you get caught in it. Keep your lines as short as you can and be mindful of the danger if the wind picks up enough to pull the tarp out of your hands.

[dla]

I found braded spectra fishing line. 80lb test. Less then 1mm in diameter. Can anyone think of a reason it would not work as a tarp guy line.

I use Power Pro 250lb test Spectran line. It won't stretch. As other noted though, it will slice you. I bought a 150yd spool and I would imagine it is going to last me a really long time.

The only downside I can think of is knots and tensioners. Don't tie a granny and expect to get it out later. You'll probably find that a taut line hitch requires more loops to hold. And I don't believe there is a line lock made that will work for line that small.

[Stir Fry]

I use Power Pro 250lb test Spectran line. It won't stretch. As other noted though, it will slice you. I bought a 150yd spool and I would imagine it is going to last me a really long time.

The only downside I can think of is knots and tensioners. Don't tie a granny and expect to get it out later. You'll probably find that a taut line hitch requires more loops to hold. And I don't believe there is a line lock made that will work for line that small.

I tried it with ther line locks from ZPACKS and it works great. It does seem to tangle a little easer then 1.25 mm z line, but I can deal with it. At $12.95 for 175 yards I'll replace it if needed.

[bwendel07]

You will never see it when it is streched. it will be tripped over. But it is small and light.

[Tinker]

Thin lines will saw their way through webbing loops faster than thicker lines. If it's tied directly through the loop, it's not a problem, but if it passes through the loop to an inline adjustor, there is more movement between line and loop. Movement between two items under tension or pressure equals friction. Smaller surface areas increase the friction.

I use very thin Spectra lines on my summer hammock tarp, but they're tied to the pullout loops on the tarp and are non-adjustable. They have several loops tied into them that I can use.

[Harald Hope]

I've been using z-packs and Lawson cord, but want to check out other cords, those are pretty expensive, 10 to 14 a 50 foot roll. Where do you guys find spectra/dyneema core fishing lines? And what are the ranges you can get? Can you get the dacron covered types that zpacks sells? I was doing some knot testing/learning, and found that the zpacks 1.25 mm cord can be made to hold a prusick, and probably maybe a taughtline hitch, but it's really hard to get knots that are that complicated to actually get the right shape, which if I failed (usually), made them not work. But I'm also curious how small / light you can go. One easy solution to the problem of thin lines slicing the tie out point webbing, which it will do, is to just tie a short piece of thicker spectra type cord then tie the actual guyline to that. The zpacks microline locs work fine on their 1.25mm cord, but that cord has a woven dacron cover, which gives it some grip, don't know if it wiil hold a slick cord.