# Why don't ropes come untwisted? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [September 19, 2016, 12:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-ropes-come-untwisted/766320 "2016-09-19T00:53:06Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 15\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![CookingWithGas](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cookingwithgas/32/485_2.png) [@CookingWithGas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CookingWithGas)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2016, 12:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-ropes-come-untwisted/766320/1 "2016-09-19T00:53:06Z")
I was looking at a rope today and, like all ropes, it was made with strands that are twisted together. I grabbed it and tried to see if it would untwist, and the strands didn’t even separate. So not only do ropes not come untwisted through time and use, you can’t do it if you tried. So how are they made that they don’t untwist? ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2016, 12:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-ropes-come-untwisted/766320/2 "2016-09-19T00:56:39Z")
Ropes are made of several layers of twisted material. The twist of lower order levels fights against the “untwisting” tendency of higher levels. At the lowest levels, the friction in the individual strands and the interlocking of fibers tends to keep it from untwisting. Back in Boy Scouts, for the _Pioneering_ merit badge, we had to build rope=-making machines and make our own rope. I’ve since participated in “rope walks” at pioneer recreation-type places. ---
**Author:** ![Lumpy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lumpy/32/446_2.png) [@Lumpy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lumpy)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2016, 1:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-ropes-come-untwisted/766320/3 "2016-09-19T01:03:24Z")
The ends do tend to unravel if not knotted or [whipped](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Whipping_knot). You know how telephone cords tend to get twisted up? It’s because most people unconsciously turn the receiver in their hands more one way than the other, building up a twist. The same principle applies to spun rope and and fibers: each strand has a twist in it that causes it to form a spiral; and since all the strands are twisted the same way they spiral around each other. To pull a rope apart you need to eliminate the spiraling by untwisting each strand. ---
**Author:** ![jjakucyk](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/3d9bf3/32.png) [@jjakucyk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jjakucyk)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2016, 2:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-ropes-come-untwisted/766320/4 "2016-09-19T02:14:11Z")
Nylon rope is much slipperier than hemp, jute, or cotton, so if it’s not secured at the end (I think nylon is usually fused/melted) it absolutely will untwist itself. ---
**Author:** ![snfaulkner](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snfaulkner/32/433_2.png) [@snfaulkner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/snfaulkner)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2016, 2:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-ropes-come-untwisted/766320/5 "2016-09-19T02:20:58Z")
> [@Lumpy](#): > > The ends do tend to unravel if not knotted or [whipped](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Whipping_knot). > > You know how telephone cords tend to get twisted up? It’s because most people unconsciously turn the receiver in their hands more one way than the other, building up a twist. The same principle applies to spun rope and and fibers: each strand has a twist in it that causes it to form a spiral; and since all the strands are twisted the same way they spiral around each other. To pull a rope apart you need to eliminate the spiraling by untwisting each strand. What’s a telephone “cord”? ---
**Author:** ![Tangent](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tangent/32/3098_2.png) [@Tangent](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tangent)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2016, 2:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-ropes-come-untwisted/766320/6 "2016-09-19T02:26:43Z")
> [@snfaulkner](#): > > What’s a telephone “cord”? It’s what you use to charge your phone. Duh! ---
**Author:** ![Xema](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/x/9de053/32.png) [@Xema](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Xema)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2016, 2:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-ropes-come-untwisted/766320/7 "2016-09-19T02:26:49Z")
> [@CookingWithGas](#): > > … like all ropes, it was made with strands that are twisted together. By no means all ropes consist of strands twisted together. Many are braided, using various schemes including hollow braid, double braid, and kernmantle. ---
**Author:** ![HoneyBadgerDC](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/honeybadgerdc/32/1033_2.png) [@HoneyBadgerDC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HoneyBadgerDC)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2016, 2:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-ropes-come-untwisted/766320/8 "2016-09-19T02:49:42Z")
No one mentioned the reverse twist that is used. When making rope or twine you take your bundles and twist the bundle to the right before overlapping the other bundles to the left. I would expect that on a rope they use very hot water to set the twist or steam. ---
**Author:** ![bob\_2](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bob_2/32/3341_2.png) [@bob\_2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bob_2)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2016, 10:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-ropes-come-untwisted/766320/9 "2016-09-19T10:33:55Z")
Here is a great video about how modern rope is made: And here is one from Chatham Dockyard where they made ropes for Nelson’s navy. It still works - I have been there. [![]( " - YouTube") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a9O_kGbEsW8) ---
**Author:** ![N9IWP](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/n9iwp/32/3154_2.png) [@N9IWP](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/N9IWP)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2016, 10:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-ropes-come-untwisted/766320/10 "2016-09-19T10:49:25Z")
[quote=“bob\_2, post:9, topic:766320”] Here is a great video about how modern rope is made: And here is one from Chatham Dockyard where they made ropes for Nelson’s navy. It still works - I have been there. [/QUOTE] Second video is on chains Brian ---
**Author:** ![bob\_2](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bob_2/32/3341_2.png) [@bob\_2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bob_2)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2016, 10:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-ropes-come-untwisted/766320/11 "2016-09-19T10:52:35Z")
No idea how that happened - Chatham ropewalk: [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/2M5mo2I2c0Q/hqdefault.jpg "Chatham rope walk.") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2M5mo2I2c0Q) ---
**Author:** ![naita](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/naita/32/5862_2.png) [@naita](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/naita)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2016, 10:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-ropes-come-untwisted/766320/12 "2016-09-19T10:52:42Z")
> [@HoneyBadgerDC](#): > > No one mentioned the reverse twist that is used. When making rope or twine you take your bundles and twist the bundle to the right before overlapping the other bundles to the left. I would expect that on a rope they use very hot water to set the twist or steam. No need for setting a twist. You start with one strand and twist it. When doubled the two strands will try to untwist themselves, but as they do so they twist together. Except at the ends this is stable. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2016, 11:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-ropes-come-untwisted/766320/13 "2016-09-19T11:17:07Z")
When I buy rope/line/sheets at the marina store, the first thing I do is whip the ends. If I’m buying nylon lines the salesman melts the ends. ---
**Author:** ![scr4](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/59ef9b/32.png) [@scr4](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scr4)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2016, 11:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-ropes-come-untwisted/766320/14 "2016-09-19T11:55:28Z")
> [@naita](#): > > No need for setting a twist. You start with one strand and twist it. When doubled the two strands will try to untwist themselves, but as they do so they twist together. Except at the ends this is stable. Exactly. You can see the process more clearly in [this video](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=toyOKOi0DsM) - in this case, the device at one end twists the 3 individual strands one way (1:50 in the video). Then the strands are wound around each other in the opposite direction (4:08). If you didn’t do this, and just take parallel strands and twist them all together, it would quickly become undone. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2016, 1:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-ropes-come-untwisted/766320/15 "2016-09-19T13:10:35Z")
Whipping and fusing still both tend to come undone, with time. If you _really_ want to secure the end of a rope against fraying, you end-splice it. It takes more time, but it lasts next best thing to forever.