Which is better for plowing steel or synthetic rope?? I broke my cable today and i was wondering if i should go and buy synthetic cable?? Any one know what is the best?? And where to get it. And if ya know the breaking strenths and stuff please post it!! Thanks, Polaris man with issues

 

I would go with synthetic for sure, especially if you plowing, but for plowing, you could get a short 10 or 12' section just for plowing if you wanted.
I have amsteel rope, I've heard nothing bad about it, it's not cheap, but it is very good quality, and I'm not positive, but I belive 3/8" has a breaking strength of about 9,000 lbs.
I wouldn't get the gorrilla rope for sure, it came on my winch, and it was ok, but it was no where near the quality of the amsteel, I think if I remember correctly I got my rope off ebay, but with amsteel, there isn't too much fluxuation in price

 

Synthetic is definitely better. It handles the bending angles much better than wire rope. Keep in mind though, they do recommend changing out your fairlead when switching to synthetic. Either to a new roller or an aluminum hawse. That is just to ensure there aren't any burrs or sharp edges to cut or snag the rope.

 

You need to search this topic as there has been much said on this. Most people are saying to use a short piece of Synthetic Cable you can get made up from eBay. I’m formally from western New York now in Florida so as you can guess I do not need a plow. I do have a friend in Niagara Falls that was always busting his wench line to his plow and finely he took off all the cable from his winch and used a short piece of 2” strap and hook from an H/D ratchet strap and spooled it on his winch. How he secured it to the drum, I am not sure.

 

I've had both, and prefer the Amsteel Blue synthetic rope.

There are two important factors to keep in mind with synthetic rope...

First, keep it clean... occasionally pull it all out and wash it with warm soapy water. Secondly, make sure the fairlead is designed for synthetic rope, and you keep it scratch and burr free. If you don't it well fray and break.

I got a nice deal on Ebay for the rope and machined aluminum fairlead. Here's what I did... Instead of buying the 3/16" rope, I went up a size to the 1/4" rope. Then, I cut off 15' feet of the rope for plowing and put a new hook on it for plowing. I save the 35' for the summer riding season. That way I always have good rope on the machine. Beside, you can only get about 35' of the 1/4" rope on the winch, and I always carry another section of rope when we are on the trails anyway.

The only thing to note is that the 1/4" rope can be a little tricky to attach to the winch spool depending on how it connects. However, I've got it down to a "science". So, if you decide to go with the 1/4" rope, let me know and I can give you the scoop on attaching it.

BTW, here's a couple of links to the place that I got mine (I think LOL) ...

eBay Store - BLITZKRUEG products LLC: winch acessories, misc., ATV winchlines

1/4 AMSTEEL BLUE 50' winch saver & uhmw fairlead:eBay Motors (item 280433277604 end time Dec-13-09 12:30:42 PST)

You may be able to find a better price on Ebay or someplace else.

 

These guys are right on with their info........I switched mine over after breaking the original wire with the synthetic.....I do switch to a short piece for plowing though...I have the Amsteel but another brand that is just as good is Masterpull........

John

 

ill agree with DCT on buying from that guy on ebay for synthetic rope. as i got a 10' piece for plowing. i just used it for plowing and its been good so far. i evon used it about a month ago for pulling my b-pillar on my truck back out as a friking deer hit me. i did a few pulls with it. all it did was flatten and streach the rope a bit. but it didnt break.

before i put the rope on my winch i took a file and steel wool to smooth out the winch drum from any burs and what not from the steel cable. i also got a plastic roller fairlead for it. and replace my other one. been good so far.

 

Synthetic. Much safer too when using it for winching, etc. Make sure to change your existing fairlead.