Strands with a core

Most, if not all the rope made in Japan seem to be constructed this way. The strands of such ropes are made of yarns twisted around 1 or 2 central core yarns. As the core yarns are not affected by the twisting, they are always shorter than the outer yarns. Their function is to provide a physical axis around which the outer yarns lay parallel to one another, forming a virtual ribbon of yarns wrapped around the central axis.

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The strands of the ropes we use can be constructed in two ways: with or without a core.

Most jute ropes coming from Japan are made with cored strands, while standard  ropes found in Europe and elsewhere in the Western world are made with core-less strands. *

The examples and tips on this pages should help you in spotting which kind of rope you’re dealing with.

Bunched strands

This is the type of rope made with traditional rope-making machine: a certain number of yarns are bunched together, and twisted under tension, as shown below. To make the structure easier to see, 2 of the 12 yarns are black.

Schematic diagram describing the position of the core and outer yarns.

Below: close-up photos showing the strand core yarn(s)

* this situation is now changing, as some rope sellers are now offering ropes made in Europe, yet constructed the same way as Japanese ropes.

How to make both kinds of strands: click here