Rope for Uplines

Unless your specific kink is “risking debilitating or deadly falls due to hanging yourself from the ceiling with woven grass clippings,” I simply don't see any reason to not use rated rope for your critical uplines. Self-suspension involves many unavoidable risks, but weak upline material seems to me like an imminently avoidable one.  More about why I feel so strongly about this can be found here; for another perspective on support line selection and material I recommend this article by Topologist.

To quickly define terms, critical uplines (sometimes called "main support lines") are the lines that are keeping your head from rapidly and unceremoniously meeting the ground. For secondary lines (adding support for a foot, when you already have the chest and/or hip harness secured) or other non-critical applications, using whatever you use for your harnesses is fine. For keeping your brain and spine intact, a higher safety standard is called for.

A safety margin of 10 times the weight of the person being lifted is pretty standard for rescue, construction, and professional rigging involving lifting humans (such as circus apparatuses). This seems like a reasonable standard to carry over into suspension bondage.

You’ll often see rope listed with a “breaking strength” and a “working load.” To quickly define terms, “breaking strength” is exactly what it sounds like – this is the amount of weight that causes the rope to break. “Working load” means something quite different – this is the amount of weight that the rope can support, with a safety factor already built in. Keep in mind that knots weaken rope, and when lifting into suspension, especially doing stunts like drop lifts or other dynamic maneuvers, you will routinely apply much more force to the rope than your weight. Additionally, “working loads” for rope intended for non-human use may only include a safety factor of x3 to x5, rather than the x10 standard for human safety.

There are many documented cases of 5mm or 6mm jute uplines breaking during suspension; there are also documented cases of 6mm hemp uplines breaking. I have not personally heard a case of 8mm hemp uplines breaking, therefore if you really must use all natural fibers in your rope kit, 8mm hemp is what I would recommend for your critical uplines. Personally, I find it bulky, stiff, and difficult to manage… why struggle with it when there are so many wonderful options for rated rope?

Some in the bondage community have expressed concern about synthetic uplines melting in certain bondage situations, such as with high friction or when exposed to bright stage lights. While it is possible to break cheap synthetic rope with friction, practically speaking, this is not an issue for the high-quality synthetics I’ll be discussing here. If you have concerns, test your rope by making a static loop (around your foot or through your point) and vigorously rubbing a length of the rope back and forth through that loop. Cheap nylon rope or paracord can rather easily be cut this way; in my trials with all the materials listed here, I’ve only seen a very slight amount of melting/flattening, and only after extremely vigorous rubbing of a sort that would be impossible to achieve in a realistic bondage situation. Even then, it didn’t seem to alter the structural integrity of the rope in a meaningful way.

A standard length for uplines is about 30'. While this can seem like a lot of rope, the idea is to have enough line to lower yourself (or be lowered) to the ground, if needed (for example, if you passed out), while maintaining a 3:1 pulley. In some of the below pictures (like the nylon), my rope is shorter (in that case, simply because I don't actually use nylon for uplines and don't have 30' lengths). I do in fact use shorter lengths of amsteel for uplines because amsteel is close to useless for pulleys, anyway – it is ridiculously slippery and almost impossible to grip under load. When I'm using amsteel, I'm making the decision to prioritize that aesthetic over the safety considerations for an upline like a 30' piece of POSH, and I have alternative "emergency exit plans."

POSH (6mm)

Breaking strength: 1200lbs

Pros:

• Fits in reasonably well with natural fiber rope (can generally be purchased in a natural light brown color or black)
• Has a good “hand-feel” – comfortable for gripping and lifting
• Machine washable/dryable (see “care” section below)
• Holds frictions reasonably well

Cons:

• Somewhat stiff, which can occasionally make it more prone to jamming (this is especially noticeable when the rope is new, it does break in with use and can be put through the wash to speed up this process)
• Has a hard feeling against the skin, and therefore isn't optimal to use for harnesses 
• Occasionally has manufacturing defects that show as bulges along in the strands—I'm not sure how this would impact the strength, but if I see visible issues I discard the rope

Where to obtain it: Twisted Monk carries this as part of their “Stefanos & Shay kit” or for individual sale. It can also be found at rwrope.com and other boating supply outlets

Amsteel (⅛ inch)

A note on thickness: I generally use ⅛ inch (which is about 4mm) thickness amsteel. I find that thicker amsteel becomes more unpleasantly wire-like (this rope was created to replace wire in some types of pulleys), and magnifies the “cons” of this material without adding any “pros.” Amsteel is already ridiculously strong, so the extra strength that comes with thicker rope is in this case irrelevant.

Breaking strength: 2300lbs (size for size, amsteel is the same strength as steel)

Pros:

• Very lightweight
• Thin and soft feeling
• Modern, minimalistic, distinct look
• Durable and very wear-resistant, even in high friction applications
• Useful for uplines that you will not be adjusting (raising or lowering) during your suspension. For example, I use it to tie off my lines for my “triangle” suspension and when I tie 2-point dynamic suspensions.
• Because it is so thin and strong, it lends itself to unique performance applications – I’ve done a performance where I laced my boots with amsteel, then unlaced them and used my “shoelaces” as uplines.

Cons:

• Terrible hand-feel – if you attempt to lift yourself using amsteel, it will bite into your hands like wire, while also trying to slip through your grip.
• Extremely slippery and doesn't hold frictions
• VERY prone to jamming and therefore requires special tie-off techniques

Where to obtain it: Westmarine.com and other boating supply stores

Regatta braid (6mm)

Breaking strength: 1900lbs

Pros:

• Wonderful hand-feel – it has a textured surface that grips comfortably and doesn’t slip through your fingers
• Hold knots and frictions reasonably well
• Soft and flexible

Cons:

• Doesn’t fit in with any sort of rope kit, and most people don’t consider it aesthetically pleasing, especially in photographs (I’ve tried to dye it to make it look a little better, but it didn’t hold the dye at all, unfortunately)
• Somewhat bulky and heavy

Where to obtain it: Westmarine.com, New England Rope, and other boating supply stores. This is the upline material commonly recommended by Suspended Animation, an excellent organization based in Seattle.

Of course, there are other possible upline materials – this chart by Topologist goes through the properties of some other options. An acceptable synthetic you might sometimes see is Hempex — I find that this rope started gaining popularity before POSH came onto the scene, and most people have moved away from it and toward POSH. 6mm hempex has a breaking strength of 1100lbs, so it is plenty strong. However, in my opinion it is inferior to POSH in pretty much every way. It tends to have a fuzzy appearance and can feel "splinter-y" in your hands, it isn't as comfortable to use for pulleys, and it tends to look quite distinct when compared to hemp or jute, especially in photographs. 

There are also people making reinforced jute – every manufacturer is different, therefore I don’t feel comfortable recommending or making generalized statements about this type of upline.

This article goes into more detail about the process involved in deciding how to tie off your critical support lines, because while rated rope is important, it's only one "link" in the safety chain (and doesn't do you any good if it's tied off insecurely).