# is a giant rope worth anything? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [September 26, 2012, 10:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-a-giant-rope-worth-anything/635938 "2012-09-26T22:55:04Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![obbn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/d6d6ee/32.png) [@obbn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/obbn)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2012, 3:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-a-giant-rope-worth-anything/635938/21 "2012-09-27T03:08:22Z")
> [@TriPolar](#): > > How much do you want for it? I don’t have a piece of rope like that, so by definition I now want one. Everyone needs a ginormous rope! I am asking $40 at the moment but have a suspicion it is worth quite a bit more, which is why I posted the question. The thing is so large (at least to me), that short of using it to pull a stuck bulldozer out of the mud I don’t really know what you would do with it. But I suppose if you have a stuck bulldozer it would come in handy. Here is the link to my Craigslist ad that has the picture. PLEASE NOTE, I AM NOT PUTTING IT UP HERE TRYING TO SELL IT. I am including the link for the picture so somebody might tell me what it could be used for and if it has any value. Mods, I am not trying to circumvent any rules, just looking for information. Realistically if someone wanted it they would have to be local. It weighs a ton and couldn’t be shipped. [http://lakeland.craigslist.org/tls/3296922153.html](http://lakeland.craigslist.org/tls/3296922153.html) Does anyone know the proper term for a rope this size? I am just calling it a towing/pulling rope for lack of a proper term. ---
**Author:** ![jayjay](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jayjay/32/6765_2.png) [@jayjay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jayjay)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2012, 3:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-a-giant-rope-worth-anything/635938/22 "2012-09-27T03:15:47Z")
You’ve still got 8.5" DIAMETER on there. And isn’t that actually a cable? ---
**Author:** ![Lukeinva](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lukeinva/32/17872_2.png) [@Lukeinva](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lukeinva)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2012, 3:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-a-giant-rope-worth-anything/635938/23 "2012-09-27T03:25:11Z")
That’s a boat rope for sure… I think. ---
**Author:** ![obbn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/d6d6ee/32.png) [@obbn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/obbn)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2012, 3:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-a-giant-rope-worth-anything/635938/24 "2012-09-27T03:26:08Z")
> [@jayjay](#): > > You’ve still got 8.5" DIAMETER on there. And isn’t that actually a cable? Dammit, I changed it, but I guess it didn’t take. Off to edit it again. Perhaps a cable, one that’s made our of rope. I wish I had put something in the picture for reference. It’s thicker than my arm, so a big rope. I more than anything really wish I knew what one did with a rope that big. ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2012, 3:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-a-giant-rope-worth-anything/635938/25 "2012-09-27T03:36:09Z")
> [@obbn](#): > > Everyone needs a ginormous rope! I am asking $40 at the moment but have a suspicion it is worth quite a bit more, which is why I posted the question. The thing is so large (at least to me), that short of using it to pull a stuck bulldozer out of the mud I don’t really know what you would do with it. But I suppose if you have a stuck bulldozer it would come in handy. > > Here is the link to my Craigslist ad that has the picture. PLEASE NOTE, I AM NOT PUTTING IT UP HERE TRYING TO SELL IT. I am including the link for the picture so somebody might tell me what it could be used for and if it has any value. Mods, I am not trying to circumvent any rules, just looking for information. Realistically if someone wanted it they would have to be local. It weighs a ton and couldn’t be shipped. > > [http://lakeland.craigslist.org/tls/3296922153.html](http://lakeland.craigslist.org/tls/3296922153.html) > > Does anyone know the proper term for a rope this size? I am just calling it a towing/pulling rope for lack of a proper term. I’ll take it. Can you pack it to ship? ---
**Author:** ![obbn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/d6d6ee/32.png) [@obbn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/obbn)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2012, 3:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-a-giant-rope-worth-anything/635938/26 "2012-09-27T03:36:13Z")
Okay, I fixed the ad. It took for times for it to take the changes. Thanks to everyone here who corrected my terminology. ---
**Author:** ![beowulff](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beowulff/32/542_2.png) [@beowulff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/beowulff)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2012, 3:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-a-giant-rope-worth-anything/635938/27 "2012-09-27T03:43:18Z")
I think you need [Mr. Wapcaplet](http://www.madmusic.com/song_details.aspx?SongID=27733) to help sell it! ---
**Author:** ![obbn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/d6d6ee/32.png) [@obbn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/obbn)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2012, 3:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-a-giant-rope-worth-anything/635938/28 "2012-09-27T03:45:14Z")
> [@TriPolar](#): > > I’ll take it. Can you pack it to ship? PM headed your way. ---
**Author:** ![Joey\_P](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/919ad9/32.png) [@Joey\_P](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Joey_P)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2012, 3:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-a-giant-rope-worth-anything/635938/29 "2012-09-27T03:53:23Z")
I’ve been trying to shoe horn in a “but it’s in 3 inch lengths” joke and I can’t seem to find a spot. Oddly, the Craigslist ad almost looks like the rope is only 3 inches long. ETA Damn you beowulff, I can’t believe I spent that long trying to track down the clip (and never found it…but did get side tracked watching plenty of other Monty Python clips). ETA2, since you’re clip was only part of the sketch, here’s the one that I did find. It’s done by someone else, but it’s the whole thing. [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/xxJJzvAhxAI/hqdefault.jpg "String") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xxJJzvAhxAI) ---
**Author:** ![obbn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/d6d6ee/32.png) [@obbn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/obbn)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2012, 4:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-a-giant-rope-worth-anything/635938/30 "2012-09-27T04:00:03Z")
> [@Joey\_P](#): > > I’ve been trying to shoe horn in a “but it’s in 3 inch lengths” joke and I can’t seem to find a spot. Oddly, the Craigslist ad almost looks like the rope is only 3 inches long. > > ETA Damn you beowulff, I can’t believe I spent that long trying to track down the clip (and never found it…but did get side tracked watching plenty of other Monty Python clips). Yeah, I debated taking a close up of a section of the rope or a wide angle showing the entire length. But, the crappy camera in my iPhone makes the thing impossible to see clearly at the distance I needed to get it all in. (yeah, I know, that’s what she said 😃 ) Maybe tomorrow I will pull it our again and add another picture showing the whole thing. ---
**Author:** ![Napier](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/ce73a5/32.png) [@Napier](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Napier)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2012, 12:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-a-giant-rope-worth-anything/635938/31 "2012-09-27T12:50:37Z")
Sounds like a hawser. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2012, 2:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-a-giant-rope-worth-anything/635938/32 "2012-09-27T14:33:58Z")
> [@Napier](#): > > Sounds like a hawser. It’s from Indiana? Still trying to do deadpan in text. ---
**Author:** ![Gagundathar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a183cd/32.png) [@Gagundathar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gagundathar)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2012, 2:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-a-giant-rope-worth-anything/635938/33 "2012-09-27T14:39:55Z")
> [@Napier](#): > > Sounds like a hawser. Yes, my call as well. The banded coloring looks nautical, and the multiple cabling matches what I remember. Goes through what my uncle called the ‘cat-hole’ and is used to tow a vessel. ---
**Author:** ![cjepson](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/a9adbd/32.png) [@cjepson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cjepson)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2012, 3:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-a-giant-rope-worth-anything/635938/34 "2012-09-27T15:58:52Z")
My friend owns a rigging shop. He has a length of rope like that but it’s only about 4 feet long – used as decor. He can probably tell me what a 45-foot length would be worth. And yeah, I would say definitely a hawser. I assume it’s in good condition? ---
**Author:** ![Lukeinva](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lukeinva/32/17872_2.png) [@Lukeinva](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lukeinva)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2012, 4:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-a-giant-rope-worth-anything/635938/35 "2012-09-27T16:10:46Z")
> [@cjepson](#): > > My friend owns a rigging shop. He has a length of rope like that but it’s only about 4 feet long – used as decor. He can probably tell me what a 45-foot length would be worth. And yeah, I would say definitely a hawser. I assume it’s in good condition? [A Hawser passes through a hawsehole.](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hawser) fyi ---
**Author:** ![Francis\_Vaughan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/francis_vaughan/32/3093_2.png) [@Francis\_Vaughan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Francis_Vaughan)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2012, 4:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-a-giant-rope-worth-anything/635938/36 "2012-09-27T16:29:49Z")
It is probably a polypropylene rope, and indeed a hawser. The pattern is often called tiger striped. Poly rope is light, and one attribute is it floats. It is also pretty cheap as ropes go. Brand new it probably cost a few hundred. ---
**Author:** ![SmellMyWort](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ea5d25/32.png) [@SmellMyWort](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SmellMyWort)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2012, 6:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-a-giant-rope-worth-anything/635938/37 "2012-09-27T18:17:02Z")
Those big workout ropes go for a couple hundred (and they are exhausting). I’d call a few local gyms and see if anyone will take it. Or setup your own home gym in the shop. ---
**Author:** ![Napier](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/ce73a5/32.png) [@Napier](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Napier)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2012, 6:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-a-giant-rope-worth-anything/635938/38 "2012-09-27T18:44:56Z")
> [@Johnny\_L.A](#): > > It’s from Indiana? > > Still trying to do deadpan in text. Naw, sir. ---
**Author:** ![SmellMyWort](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ea5d25/32.png) [@SmellMyWort](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SmellMyWort)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2012, 6:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-a-giant-rope-worth-anything/635938/39 "2012-09-27T18:50:48Z")
All you need is a piece of soap the size of a door and you’ve just put yourself on the Roadside Attraction map! ---
**Author:** ![Yllaria](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/yllaria/32/3452_2.png) [@Yllaria](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Yllaria)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2012, 8:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-a-giant-rope-worth-anything/635938/40 "2012-09-27T20:10:38Z")
I’d drive to see that. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-a-giant-rope-worth-anything/635938.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-a-giant-rope-worth-anything/635938.md?page=3)