Colored Cave Line

[fxb]

Hi all, I am looking for some #24 or #18 nylon braided "cave line" in colors other than white, orange, and yellow. (Blue, actually.) Does anyone know where I might be able to order line like this in a variety of colors?

Now, I don't necessarily want to get into the whole "which color line should you use in overhead" discussion. This is primarily for gear identification as I tend to currently use plain white cave line to attach bolt snaps to things, etc. I wanted to mark my double enders somehow and thought about using a distinct color of electrical tape, but then I remembered this video from ISE and thought I might give that a try, but with a special color (not white or orange).

 

[Zef]

Here you go:

https://www.amazon.com/OX-Builders-...ided+builders+line&qid=1580688896&sr=8-1&th=1

-Z

 

[tbone1004]

#textile engineer hat being put on. If it's nylon, it won't last. The color fastness of nylon is quite poor, especially in the sun. If you want it to last, it has to be polyester that's been batch died, as in it was a color when it was extruded, vs. something that was vat dyed after it was turned into a fiber.
The ox tools stuff linked is dyed nylon and won't last, especially in the sun. Most PET stuff you'll see is branded as Dacron

 

[Scuba Cobra]

I use Dacron "kite string" from amazon. A spool of 100' is like $8 and it holds up extremely well.

 

[Zef]

Ok, here is polyester:

Braided Polyester Mason Line#18 1 lb / 900 ft / Royal Blue

-Z

 

[fxb]

Wow, thanks for all the replies everyone! @tbone1004 I did consider that when I thought about dying the white line I already have, it looked like the dyes available were iffy for nylon. Anyone know the buoyancy characteristics of polyester line? I like the nylon because it is ever so slightly negative.

 

[tbone1004]

@fxb PET is slightly more negative than nylon. It has a specific gravity of 1.38 vs nylon at 1.14 and the salty stuff at 1.03. It's not really noticeable in real world use though and it's certainly not like polypro that floats

 

[fxb]

Any thoughts on braided UHMWPE or Kevlar for use in Scuba?

 

[tbone1004]

Any thoughts on braided UHMWPE or Kevlar for use in Scuba?

kevlar degrades nearly instantly in water and is incredibly hydrophilic. If you use it in the salty stuff, the salt crystals will actually be absorbed into the fiber itself and abrade it from the inside. It's about the worst fiber out there to take underwater.
UHMWPE is fine, but since you want the line to be relatively thick to be reasonable to touch with your fingers. Sure it's much stronger than normal PET or Nylon, but #18 PET has a test strength of 150lbs. Even assuming you are using a really bad knot that cuts the strength in half, how often are you pulling more than 75lbs on the line?

 

[BabyDuck]

I think I love you, Tom. I wanna be a textile engineer when I grow up.