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vRigger Learning Center

This also applies to cable, chain, and webbing.

Gear that is anchored includes anchors, rocks, trees, tripods, trucks, etc.

A "bight" is a simple loop in a rope that does not cross itself.

A "bend" is a knot that joins two ropes together. Bends can only be attached to the end of a rope.

A "hitch" is a type of knot that must be tied around another object.

"Descending devices" (e.g., ATCs, Brake Bar Racks, Figure 8s, Rescue 8s, etc) create friction as their primary purpose. The friction in descending devices is always considered when calculating forces.

The "Safety Factor" is the ratio between the gear's breaking strength and the maximum load applied to the gear (e.g., 5:1).

Working with Rope

This page explains how to work with ropes. These instructions also apply to cable, chain, and webbing.

What do you want to do?

Add a rope to the workspace

Do one of the following:

  • Type rope and then drag the rope from the Gear Finder. Or even faster, type rope (which displays the Gear Finder) and press Enter (which inserts the rope and closes the Gear Finder). (If the Gear Finder doesn't appear when you begin typing, first click on the workspace.)
  • Drag the Rope icon from the Knots & Ropes section of a gear pane.
  • Select Rope from the Knots and Ropes section of the Gear toolbar.

Connect a rope to other gear

  • Click anywhere on a rope and drop it on a piece of gear (e.g., a carabiner or pulley). (The rope must be dropped on the other gear—you can't drop gear on ropes.)

When you drag the middle of a rope, a red dot appears to show you that you are dragging the rope. Similarly, red dots identify the ends of ropes. Some gear, such as bends and rope joiners, can only connect to the end of a rope.

Display a rope's shortcut menu

Click your right mouse button on a rope to display its shortcut menu.

Change the color, diameter, strength, etc of a rope

You can change properties such as the color, diameter, strength, etc of a rope in the Appearance section of the properties pane. Knots that are attached to ropes are displayed in the same color as the rope.

Disconnect a rope from other gear

Do one of the following:

  • Select an item and then choose Disconnect from the Home toolbar.
  • Click your right mouse button on the gear or rope and choose Disconnect from the shortcut menu.

Reverse Rope Routing

Learn how to reverse the routing of rope through gear.

Tips for working with ropes

You can use slack points to route ropes anywhere.

You can use rope joiners to invisibly connect the ends of ropes.

You can rope benders to create curves in rope.

Learn about knots.