Para Cord: How Much Do You Use & For What?

[rhino]

Ya, ya, ya.....all likely uses. But come on, just admit it... You used all your paracord for makeshift tourniquets during all those times that the pointy and / or sharp things attacked you.

HE SEES THROUGH ME!

 

[rhino]

Sorry to thread jack but I’m interested to learn more about this bank line. My son boy scout troop has a slid that they use for their winter campout and it needs to be re lashed. What size bank line would be best?

Here is a guide with a few sizes and the nominal breaking strength, but it only goes up to #36:

https://www.thethreadexchange.com/m...Y&Category_Code=bank-line-cordage-information


You may need to do some research to find what you want.

 

[JeepHammer]

This might or might not help...
I enlisted in the military in '79, when budget cutbacks had us scrambling (military contractors were still making a fortune), and we made gear we didn't have all through the 80s & beyond.

WW II 'Web Belts' weren't webbing, they were cord doubled over and over again sewed together.
Since our WW II belts had seen Korea & Viet Nam, and the brass single tooth buckle wouldn't hold body/load out weight, we made our own from 550 cord. It didn't have rivets, but with a better (cinch) buckle it easily held body/load out weight (we have pulled a loaded 5 ton with them strapped together),
AND,
When you cut a few stitches holding the cord together, it made several yards of cordage for camp duty.

The cinch buckle came from old parachute harnesses, and they were the earliest version of 'Instructors' or 'Operators' belt since the cinch buckle had a ring on it for a carabineer.
We called them 'Last Resort' belts since they were 'Home Made', but they were tough enough to trust.
Some guys stitched paracord into field pants around legs (through crotch) and up to belt loops, and threaded the belt through it.
This made for a really good 'Swiss Seat' for rappelling or climbing, or hanging out of trees/rock faces to get some sleep up off the ground.
Some guys used webbing around legs, but it dug into my crotch, stitched in paracord moves with the pants.

We wrapped EVERYTHING that had a handle in Paracord.
The 'Handles' on knives, bayonet, shovels, even rifles got wrapped since you can get a grip on Paracord even when it's muddy or bloody.
Every hard knife/bayonet sheath was wrapped, and every knife sheath (hard or soft) had a paracord doubled several times and braid wrapped hanging off it.
Some of us preferred shoulder rigs for knives, and paracord provided that shoulder rig even when all other gear had to be abandoned.

Paracord wrapped around tent poles/pegs means we have a way to secure tents when the wind is blowing a gentle 70 MPH!
For those of you that have actually camped when a big storm came through, and the temp is slightly above freezing, you know what I'm talking about!
Keeping the roof over your head is a big deal...

My field pack straps are doubled/stitched paracord to this day.
If I have to strip my pack straps for cordage (not likely at my age) then it's a survival situation anyway and pack/camp is disposable.

For anyone that's had to rough it in a serious way, you know there is no such thing as 'Too Much' cordage, and enough to make a rope that will get you down a cliff face or use as a safety line is a HUGE deal.
Getting up off the ground (climbing) is often WAY better than sitting/sleeping on the ground.
We used to reinforce the Viet Nam (left over and rotted) jungle tents with webbing from discarded equipment parachutes, the weave/braid paracord for hanging them on cliff sides or in trees.
In a triple canopy jungle, get above the second canopy and the bugs/ground crawlers leave you alone, and the ground patrols couldn't see you.
(Hope you aren't afraid of heights!)

Most guys aren't going to stitch or make gear, it's easier to buy the 'Tacti-Cool' stuff, but when your gear fits YOU, and it has several purposes, it's added bulk/weight is justified.
I bought a LOT of beer for the riggers, but it saved me a lot of pain in the long run...

 

[paintman]

It makes an awesome pull cord replacement for chainsaws.

 

[HonkieKowboy]

I’ve used para to tie down a sleeping bag and a mat to my bugout bag (condor II, maxpedition), as well as for attaching keys to a carabiner, makeshift zipper, improvised bore snake, and once I made a sling with it.

 

[BigBoxaJunk]

I've never bought a big spool, but I've lost track of how many of the "walmart" bundles I've gotten. I keep several sizes of short lengths with melted ends in my camping box to use to tie things to my back-pack, and I've got a Free Soldier tarp that I used to use camping, and I got to where I keep a six-foot length on each of the corners.

I also watched a Youtube video and made a kind of webbed netting thing from paracord that I used to compress my old Kelty sleeping bag to make it fit better in my pack. It worked really well to reduce it's size.

Also, the window motor cable on my Jeep broke a few years ago while I was over an hour from home, and I had some paracord in the back, so I got the door panel off, tied a length of cord to the metal part at the bottom of the window, ran that up and out the window slot, then back down the inside of the door and tied it off. Then I put the door panel back on, and it kept that window up for over a year before I got around to fixing it.

 

[307SD]

https://lapolicegear.com/trpa100fole.html

 

[Skullglide]

I just ordered titan survivor cord to try out.

 

[SmileDocHill]

Hm, I love bank line, just didn't know that's what it was called.

I bought this reel at indy gun show a couple years ago. It was very handy the times I've used it, and I can't imagine not having it around now.

I usually add a handful of paracords to my purchase every time I buy from lapg.

Uses: a lot of lashing things to the top of vehicles, like others have said, I go through more of it now that my wife and daughter have realized how handy it is.

 

[jbombelli]

Last night, in a fit of boredom, I figured out how to make Prusik loop restraints. I used 1100 pound cord.

Lol.

 

[PistolBob]

Anyone use it for making snare traps?

 

[DangerousDave]

I haven't used it for snares, but I have used it for throw lines to catch fish. I originally bought it to make survival bracelets, but that fad has kind of died out. So my leftover paracord is being used for throw lines.

 

[rhino]

So new version of para cord with additional types of cordage keep getting made. Now you can get cord with the standard seven inner strands, plus a strand of waxed jute to use as tinder, plus fishing line, and now even metal wire.

I'm curious if tying the cord with wire into different things like bracelets and slings would damage the wire, especially if it were done more than once to the same length of cord.

 

[rhino]

There is a new brand of para cord with a tinder fiber included that is less expensive than the others and the tinder apparently works better than the others, especially after soaking in water.

550 Blaze Cord

50 ft - $5.99
100 ft - $9.99
1000 ft - $99.98

It has what is (apparently) a strand with a really good tinder material plus monofilament fishing line to complement the standard seven internal strands common to all 550 cord. They also include a light duty carbine with the cord when you buy it.


Here is a review of the Blaze Cord and its competitors:

[video=youtube;zgUtNDA-Ank]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zgUtNDA-Ank&t=0s[/video]

 

[jbombelli]

There is a new brand of para cord with a tinder fiber included that is less expensive than the others and the tinder apparently works better than the others, especially after soaking in water.

550 Blaze Cord

50 ft - $5.99
100 ft - $9.99
1000 ft - $99.98

It has what is (apparently) a strand with a really good tinder material plus monofilament fishing line to complement the standard seven internal strands common to all 550 cord. They also include a light duty carbine with the cord when you buy it.


Here is a review of the Blaze Cord and its competitors:

[video=youtube;zgUtNDA-Ank]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zgUtNDA-Ank&t=0s[/video]

I assume you mean CARABINER, not carbine, right?

 

[bwframe]

I thought the market had really fell out the bottom on AR's?

 

[rhino]

I assume you mean CARABINER, not carbine, right?

You are right! Thank you for the correction of my error!

 

[Irukanji]

+1 on Bank Line! I use it far more frequently than para-cord.... not that I don't love para-cord as well!

 

[bdybdall]

On one of the survival you tube shows, they mentioned bank line made out of natural fibers and then tar coated. It was used for normal uses but could also have smaller pieces cut off, frayed, and used as fire starter. Unfortunately, I can't find any non-synthetic bank line. BTW, I've found bank line in the fishing section of Walmart.

 

[bdybdall]

Does any one purchase floral wire to make wire snares with?