Question about paracord.

I've heard that not all paracord is the same. That civilian paracord, while more common, is not as strong as official military paracord.

Id like to purchase the strongest paracord possible, for my hurricane kit, so any info, on this subject, would be appreciated.

There are mostly two available. 550lb 7 strand and 450lb 4 strand. 550lb being the strongest of course. You can get it form hundreds of store online but I would get it from Lighhound----> Lighthound Paracord

Some parachute shops call it MIL-C-5040H, so is that what most 550 cord is?

You could always get Spectra or Kevlar...It's used in sport parachuting quite a bit -- higher strength than standard 550...

JM-99

A good source to buy it is from
http://www.supplycaptain.com/

I bought a month ago and i'm very satisfied.

Also lightbound sells 450 in a lot of colors

sorry for the dumb question. what is paracord used for? i see it being mentioned as essential stuff for emergency bail out bag. thanks.

You want the 7 strand 550 lbs test cord.

Get it at...
www.ubraidit.com
www.countycomm.com
www.supplycaptain.com

You should not have to pay over 7 cents a foot.

~John

Spectra and Kevlar are stronger than 550 cord.

Depends on your application, I suppose...I make my lanyards out of 550 cord -- for higher strength applications, Spectra.

JM-99

amlim said:

sorry for the dumb question. what is paracord used for? i see it being mentioned as essential stuff for emergency bail out bag. thanks.

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Not a dumb question.
Paracord is an all-around great material for tying things up. Think of it as twine that is REALLY strong. Or think of it as a strong rope that is really thin.
The key to 550 paracord is that each foot equals 8 feet of good twine.
It is composed of a hollow woven nylon tube that is quite strong. Inside the tube are 7 internal "threads" that are also quite strong on their own. Together, the hollow tube and the internal threads can hold 550 pounds.
In a survival situation, you could pull out one of the internal threads and use it for a fishing line. Or you could use one thread to tie up a tarp shelter.

450 cord has only 4 internal threads.---Marc

Exactly right - the big thing about the 550 7-strand paracord is that it breaks down into amazingly useful components. The whole paracord is good for 550lbs (working load lower, of course). Then the outer sheath by itself is very supple, and good for something like 200lbs.

The seven internal strands are good for light twine or very heavy thread usage, and each of those breaks down into (3?) fineer strands which are good for all kinds of normal thread-type uses. I understand they've been used for stitches, repair work on tarps, cloth, etc, and for snares, and other outdoor needs.

Even a few feet of 550 cord will supply an amazing amount of material for various emergency/survival needs.

The 'civilian' clothesline-style cord doesn't have all the layered cords, just a weak outer sheath, and a fuzzy bunch of hair-thin fibers inside - USELESS for any of the above needs.

amlim said:

sorry for the dumb question. what is paracord used for? i see it being mentioned as essential stuff for emergency bail out bag. thanks.

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As the name implies, it was originally used in military parachutes. What you use it for is only limited by your imagination.

Michael

Well, I'm already beginning my prep work for the next hurricane season, and a few hundred feet of paracord might come in very handy.

Just remember, it won't hold up a person if you're rappeling,etc

DUQ said:

There are mostly two available. 550lb 7 strand and 450lb 4 strand. 550lb being the strongest of course. You can get it form hundreds of store online but I would get it from Lighhound----> Lighthound Paracord

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I ordered some 550 OD paracord from Lighthound. It's the civillian stuff, thin hair-like fibers inside. Still handy though. Does LH even sell the 7-strand stuff?

Paragear has the mil-spec 550 in limited colors:
www.paragear.com
Item: W9690 -- TYPE III NYLON CORD
White, black, OD green, and red.

JM-99
(Not affiliated with them...I've ordered from them before...)

I have also dealt with ParaGear and would recommend them.. They also have a great selection of the stronger lines as well.

I have also found lots of the mil-spec 550 cord on eBay.

Michael

GarageBoy said:

Just remember, it won't hold up a person if you're rappeling,etc

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why not? its called 550 lbs paracord. or is you must use a minimum number of paracords to hold 550 lbs? thanks.

thanks to all who have kindly replied. cheers :rock:

Amim, it looks like others answered you privately, but I'll just put it on here for everyone.

550lbs is the rated BREAKING strength of the line - the amount of static weight that it will hold before breaking under ideal conditions. Safe Working Loads are generally considered to be 10% of Breaking strength, and that goes down a bit more if you're using block and tackle, or knots, or running it around corners, or whatever.

Real-world, dynamic situations are so much more stressful, and having loads drop because of line failure is so bad, that the 90% cushion is absolutely required. If you're doing things that involve suspending people, or suspending objects over people, or anything that relates to safety, it's not a bad idea to cut that in half again - that's one of the reasons that strength ratings on carabiners and other climing gear is so high - the idea is that even a maximum real-world dynamic load comes nowhere even CLOSE to the breaking strength of the gear involved.

Jumpmaster said:

Spectra and Kevlar are stronger than 550 cord.

Depends on your application, I suppose...I make my lanyards out of 550 cord -- for higher strength applications, Spectra.

JM-99

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Where can you find spectra cord? Most climbing shops have it in 5.5mm for climbers, but I thought that paracord was thinner, like around 3mm? Or am I just not thinking right now?