Shibari How To: Lesson 9/Basic Rope Info

From  http://www.bdsm-chicago.com/cram:

BASIC ROPE INFO
By MorTis

Now when dealing with rope bondage, one of the most important things if to figure out what kind of rope you want to use! (duh!) Now almost any kind of rope can be used for bondage. Nylon and cotton are the most commonly used in the US, Hemp and Jute are the most common used in Japanese bondage photos, and in Japan. The only thing you want to stay away from is rope that is hard (like normal plastic), or rope that is cored (meaning it has one material on the outside, and is plastic center in it).

The qualities that make up the most important properties of selecting rope is the material , its strength, length, size (diameter), tooth and feel overall feel of the rope.

Material: Rope can be made out of almost any kind of natural or syntheic fibers. Every fiber has its own characteristics.

Length: how long is the rope you want to use?

Size (diameter): How large / wide is the rope. (i.e. 1/4″, 5/16″, 5/8″ or 4mm, 6mm,or 8mm etc.)

Strength: How much weight the rope can hold under a load. For static bondage, this is not a very important factor, but for suspension bondage this is a very important factor!

Tooth: How the surface of the rope feels, how well the surface helps the rope keep knots

Finishing the ends: When Cutting rope, you have to make sure the ropes end will not unravel.