“What type of rope should I use?” If rope bondage instructors had a nickel for every time they’re asked that question…they’d have a lot of nickels. The answer is actually quite simple, but it’s also easy to make it complex. Like coffee, wine, or cigars, there are a lot of different kinds of rope that cater to people’s tastes.
Some of the first rope used by many people is nylon, such as the kind used by Jay Wiseman in his double-column and body harness videos. Also known as “MFP” (for Multi-filament Polypropylene) you can get this kind of rope at any hardware store, and you usually want it in lengths of 1/4″ or larger. Graydancer uses this kind of rope in his “Tie ‘Em Up & Fuck ‘Em” quick harness system, but in a very large 1/2″ or thicker size, as well as in his water bondage videos.
There are several advantages to this type of rope:
• It is cheap.
• It can be cleaned easily of body fluids.
• It can easily be dyed bright colors (take a look at Erin Houdini’s rope for some amazing hues)
• It has a soft and silky feeling right out of the package – though this is also a disadvantage, since it can make holding knots a bit more tricky.
• It doesn’t stretch very much the way climbing rope and cotton rope sometimes will.
However, many rope enthusiasts at some point try out organic rope, and often that’s a point of no return. The feeling of cotton or hemp in the hands of a rigger and on the body of a bottom has a different kind of intensity – a greater weight, a particular warmth, a certain texture that many feel is immensely more preferable to artificial fibers. This is in spite of several limitations of organic rope such as hemp.
What kinds of limitations? Allergies are the top of the list, as many people who get bad hay fever or are sensitive to certain oils may have a reaction to the ropes. Organic ropes also cannot be accurately load-rated which can make suspensions less certain, and being organic they wear out more quickly (an active rigger will need to replace her organic suspension ropes as often as every six months, depending on use). Unlike nylon, when organic rope gets wet it will expand and also stiffen up, making it more difficult to tie or untie. And the process of conditioning and dying organic rope means that it sells at a premium price – sometimes as much as $5 per foot for more rare materials.
Cleaning organic rope such as hemp is also a more complex process, and it is impossible to truly sterilize a piece of hemp, silk, cotton, or jute rope without also damaging the fibers that make it up. Many rope bondage enthusiasts who enjoy crotch ties will bring along their own special lengths of silk, hemp, or even (if they’re masochistic) coconut for their play partner to use only with them. While there haven’t been any recorded incidents of STI’s caught from sharing rope, nobody wants to be the first.
With so many complications, why do people choose that kind of rope? As mentioned, there is the simple matter of “It just feels better…” For some, the artisan-quality workmanship that comes with rope from places like Maui Kink makes it worth the investment. There is also a feeling of tradition with organic rope – while there is a great deal of debate about the actual history of shibari and kinbaku, the popular belief is that traditional Japanese “nawashi” (rope masters) use jute rope for their work, which is lighter and thinner than hemp while still providing a great deal of strength and “tooth” to hold knots well. It’s very common for riggers to spend several hundred dollars on a single set of good ropes, not to mention a lot more for the carabiners, rings, and other paraphenalia associated with bondage.
The type of rope you choose can also vary based on the purpose of it. If you’re looking at doing suspension, using the type of 6mm and 8mm rope that Topologist demonstrate’s is probably best. On the other hand, if you’re planning on following along with the Leather Yenta as she does cock and ball bondage, some nylon paracord in your favorite color is just the thing, cheap and easily disposable.
In the end, though, the answer to the question “What kind of rope should I use?” is not complicated at all. You try things out, you watch videos and other people playing, and at the end of the day, it’s exactly the same as any other kink:
Use the rope that turns you both on.
And use it a lot.