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FAQ - another interesting questions that repeat

Group Moderator
 

Ropes and the sea salt - is it true, that in the marine air will collect sea salt in the rope braids and eventually will become conductive?

  • That is correct - it is true that once the rope gets wet from salt water, it can start to become partially conductive, which can affect the electrical performance of antenna systems. This is an occasional problem with insulators, by the way. However, in the 14 years of Mastrant's existence, we have satisfied hundreds of customers with antennas right on the shoreline, and as far as I know, this temporary change in conductivity has never caused a loss of satisfaction or confidence in our ropes.

Are the BAYCO monofilament ropes better than your Mastrant ropes for guywiring a tower? It looks like the Bayco do not absorbe water.

  • Mastrant ropes are developed for anchoring masts, and the fibres from which they are made (Polyester, Dyneema) do not absorb water in the same way as monofilament. However, water can get into the rope, which is made of thousands of individual fibres. This occurs in a situation where the rope is "loose" - if it is taut, the wetting of the inside of the rope is negligible. The essential difference in favour of Mastrant type ropes is their mechanical properties and therefore their handling, ending, tensioning etc. It is therefore impossible to decide in general terms which solution is better for anchoring antennas. We recommend asking about the experience of users of our ropes in Italy.

I am guying a vertical and was only able to buy the 2mm Mastrant-P (larger sizes sold out). My intention is to use a double length on each guy folded back to the common fixing point. As I now have two lengths running in parallel with a strength equivalent to 4mm rope. 1) Will the rope still have the same percentage stretch or is it increased?2) As I will be running 2 in parallel, is it advisable to leave them running side by side or with a small twist?

 

  • If you use two 2mm ropes in parallel, you WILL NOT get the strength of 4 mm rope (440 daN). You will theoretically get a strength two times the strength of 2 mm rope, which is 2x 100 daN. Practically the strength will be slightly lower because you will never get the optimal spread of tensions like in the single rope.

    Regarding your questions:

    1) The percentage stretch will not change - it remains the same because the material and construction of the ropes remain the same. You will get a lower absolute stretch. This means that if you load the rope with a force of, for example, 30 daN, it will lengthen approximately half as much as if you use a single rope.

    2) It does not matter at all. Choose what is more practical for you.

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 73!
The Mastrant Team

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