Wire Rope: Constructions, Cores and Sizes, Kenya

Bigger and smaller sizes

Can I get wire rope bigger than 12 mm?

Yes. We source 14 mm up to 40 mm to order, and larger if you ask. These are the sizes used on cranes, winches, quarry haulage and heavy lifting. For guy wire, aerials and light pulling, we also source 6 mm and under.

Send the diameter, construction, core, finish, length and what the rope is for. We reply with a price and a date, or tell you if we cannot get it.

We also source wire rope slings, made up with a ferrule-secured eye, winch cable and crane rope, and guy and stay wire, including stay wire for electric poles.

Cutting and delivery

We cut 8, 10 and 12 mm to your length. Both sides of each cut are seized first, so the strands do not spring open. Ask if you want the offcut.

In Nairobi, a rider takes small loads and a van takes heavy or long ones. Upcountry orders go by courier or bus parcel. Uganda and Tanzania are quoted per consignment, with transit confirmed before you pay.

Length and weight decide the vehicle. A 6 m cut fits on a rider. A 60 m length on a drum does not. Send the length and the town, and the delivery cost comes with the price.

Full detail on delivery, and the payment steps on how we work.

Price and lead time on WhatsApp. A quote holds for seven days.

6x19 or 6x36

What is the difference between 6x19 and 6x36 wire rope?

Both have six strands around a core. The second number is roughly how many wires are in each strand. At the same diameter and grade, they differ in how they bend and wear, not in strength.

6x19 has fewer, thicker wires. It resists wear and crushing better, on a quarry edge or a lorry deck. It is stiffer and needs a bigger drum and sheave. Bent too tightly, its inner wires break out of sight.

6x36 has more, thinner wires. It bends easily and winds neatly onto a smaller drum or sheave, but it wears faster on rough surfaces.

Is 6x37 a wire rope construction?

No. 6x37 is a group name for several similar constructions, and 6x36 is one of them. If a quote says only 6x37, ask which rope you are buying.

The drawings explain the numbers. They do not show what is in a particular coil.

Fibre core or IWRC

What does IWRC mean on wire rope?

Every wire rope has a core. A fibre core, FC, is made of fibre. An independent wire rope core, IWRC, is a small wire rope down the middle.

IWRC is stronger at the same diameter and grade. It keeps its shape and stretches less, which matters on a winch drum where layers of rope press on each other. A fibre core flattens there and the rope wears out early.

FC bends more, weighs less and costs less. It suits single-layer pulls, guy lines and light workshop work.

Does a steel core mean the rope is galvanised?

No. Core and finish are separate choices. You can get galvanised rope with a fibre core, and ungalvanised rope with IWRC. Ask for each separately.

The exact difference in strength is on the maker's certificate. Confirm the core on the quote before you pay.

Galvanised or ungalvanised

Is galvanised wire rope stronger than ungalvanised?

No. Galvanising is a zinc coating, a finish and not a grade. It stops rust outdoors, near the coast and where the rope stays wet. It adds no strength, and it does not turn a general rope into a lifting rope.

Ungalvanised, or bright, rope costs less. It suits concrete lifting and work under cover.

Choose by where the rope will work. The zinc also wears off, first where the rope rubs on a sheave or a deck edge.

Why there is no breaking load on this page

We publish a breaking load only when the maker's certificate for that rope is in our hands. For these sizes, it is not with us yet.

Two 10 mm ropes can have different breaking loads, because strength depends on the wire grade, the construction, the core and the maker's testing. For these ropes, construction and grade are not confirmed yet, so we do not guess.

Ask us. If the rope comes with a certificate, we send you the figure with it. If not, we tell you before you pay.

Clips and rope ends

How many wire rope clips do you need on a termination?

Check these four things at every rope end.

• At least three clips on 8 to 12 mm rope. Space them along the tail, not bunched at the thimble. Thicker rope needs more clips, and the clip maker's table gives the number.
• Saddle on the live end, U-bolt on the dead tail. Fitted the other way round, the U-bolt crushes the part of the rope that carries the load. Riggers say never saddle a dead horse.
• Drop-forged clips only. Cast clips look the same and cost less, but they are not rated for load. We do not sell them.
• Seize before you cut. Wrap tape or wire on both sides of the cut, or the rope comes apart at the end.

Tighten the nuts again after the first load. The rope settles and the nuts loosen.

What you will also need

A rope needs fittings before it can work. These are easy to forget:

• Wire rope clips, also called clamps or bulldog grips. Drop-forged, sized to the rope.
• Thimbles. The steel eye that stops the rope crushing itself on the shackle pin.
• Ferrules. For a swaged end instead of a clipped one.
• Bow or D shackles. To connect the eye to the load.
• Turnbuckles. To tension guy and stay wire once it is up.

Put them in the same WhatsApp message and we quote them together. Full list on rigging hardware.

Zip lines

Do you supply wire rope for zip lines?

Yes. We supply zip line cable, the wire rope a zip line runs on, and we build zip lines. The cable size depends on the span, the height drop and the rider weight, so this work is quoted against your job, not sold off a list. Send the span, the height drop, the rider weight range, the anchor type and the town.

For the build itself, see zipline construction. For zipline fittings, see rigging hardware.

Loads and other products

We do not calculate loads. How much a rope may hold is decided by the person in charge of the job, using the maker's figures.

If the job needs webbing rather than steel, see webbing slings. For chain, see Grade 80 lifting chain. To hold cargo down rather than lift it, see ratchet straps and cargo lashing.