[TheForge] Re: rope making

[Dave Brown]

I received the following question from Terry Ridder.  I thought I'd answer 
on line since others may also be interested.  I've also copied lists other 
than TheForge that I thought might find it of interest.

So, without further ado, here goes:

At 00:25 12/04/02 -0600, you wrote:
>hello dave;
>
>at the umba meeting you mentioned that you did the rope
>making for the kids instead of hauling everything to
>conferences. it dawned on me that the braiding of the
>small brass and bronze rods is like rope making. i am
>wondering if the technics to make rope could be adapted
>to making brass and bronze braids. any pointers you may
>have would be greatly appreciated.
>
>--
>Terry L. Ridder ><>

Terry,

Well, it took a while but I finally got some time to answer.

As I said, the short answer to your question is "yes".  The basics, whether 
using steel, brass, bronze, copper, hemp, sisal, cotton, etc..., are 
essentially the same.  Following is a short example:

1.  Cut you material, lets say 3/16" rnd steel rod.  For 3-strand "rope" 
you need 6 (can also be done with 9) pieces of equal length.  In rope 
parlance the individual pieces are called "yarns".  You use yarns to make 
strands.

2.  Separate the 6 pieces into sets of 2.  Each set should then be welded 
at the ends.  If they were fiber yarns we'd just tie knots, but for steel 
welding is easier (or solder if using copper or brass).

3.  Heat each set to a nice bright orange color and twist each one in a 
clockwise manner.  If using brass, copper, etc..., then fully anneal the 
pieces (red heat and quench).  Take care to keep the twist nice and even 
from top to bottom, and be sure that each set is twisted the same number of 
times.  In other words you want all three twisted sets to match.    You now 
have 3 twisted but separate strands.

4.  Now bundle the three twisted strands together and weld them together at 
the very ends.  Take this and heat evenly as in step 3 above.  An even heat 
is very important for this final twist.  Twist this bundle slowly in a 
counter-clockwise (anti-clockwise for the Brits and Aussies on this list 
<grin>).  You will quickly see the "rope" forming.  The number of turns in 
this back twist isn't so much important as is keeping an eye on the result 
and stopping when the "rope" is appealing to the eye.

You can make larger diameter ropes by using 9 (3 yarns per strand) instead 
of the 6 used in the example above.

This makes a nice "rope" that can be used for handles, supports for candle 
trays & cups, decorative elements, etc...

For the crosses that you mentioned in an earlier post you might find it 
easier to make 4-strand rope.  The process is the same except you first 
make 4 strands of 2 yarns each.  Then back twist the four strands 
together.  You could use two strands to form the branches for the cross's 
arms before rejoining to complete the center pole.

Let me know is you have any questions and I'll try to clarify.  Dann 
Johnson, another rope maker on this list, could also be of help.


Dave Brown
Heritage Smithing
Green Bay, WI
ABANA, UMBA, GoM, MODA, ARG