Bought some climbing rope (11mm from Field & Trek) when I was about 17, it barely got used as I went off to uni the next year and then got forgotten about….its about 20 years+ old now.

I’d like to take my son to do some climbing, nothing to challenging (Top rope climbs like at Harrison’s rocks, bit of abseiling) and was considering using the rope. I’ve checked it all over and it looks fine, no evidence of wear or damage as it has been barely used but I wondered whether rope had a ‘use by date’ as it were?

Err, I wouldn’t trust it. Chemical change that you can’t see could have happened.

Prolly be fine… But why take the risk?

use it to practice knots demonstrate techniques etc, don’t use it for safety critical tasks. why take the risk as tom says.^^

What’s the worst that can happen?
What size is your bike?
Can I have it when the rope snaps?

I’d be happy using rope like that for top roping if done properly (i.e. with an atttentive belayer who doesn’t leave loads of slack). Wouldn’t use it for anything dynamic or for leading though

Rope can be had pretty cheap. Same can not be said for your legs/neck/son. As said above, use it to practise knots.

While I might be confident it could hold a toprope fall even at that age, in reality I really, really wouldn’t feel happy sticking someone on the end of it, even a lightweight like your son.

The usual recommendation for ‘soft’ climbing equipment is something like seven years, as nylon degrades over time. Obviously that varies with how hard a life it’s had, but even what you describe doesn’t justify using it after 20+ years.

You can pick up a shortish length of static rope pretty cheap for Harrison’s. Would be better for the rock, too.

UV degradation is the biggest issue.
Chemical changes (mainly through spilling other chemicals / cleaning) would be another issue.
Loss of elasticity would also be a concern, core unwinding over time or being left to ‘kink’ through storage.

Usual climbing soft kit retirement is either when worn / damaged or 3yrs in outdoor centre use, 5-10 year personal use.

I would be hesitant to use such an old rope. I had a confidence rope that I had barely used in 12 years, stored in a dark room etc etc. I used it for myself, but still retired it as I just had niggling doubts.

Buy a new one.

After 20 years, you should only consider doing this with the old one:
[video]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uX9DJp_pfgM[/video]

I’d use it for abseiling – in fact I have a similar age rope I use just for that – but not for climbing, not even top roping. Even with an attentive belayer the magnitude of the forces are much higher.

Thanks chaps…clear consensus on not worth risking. I’m now looking at… http://gearjunkie.com/climbing-rope-creations

Would the same be true for any of my other old equipment (karabiners, slings, harnesses)?

timb34, you’ve filled my evening for tonight, that’s ace.

Would the same be true for any of my other old equipment (karabiners, slings, harnesses)?

‘fraid so.

I have a bag of old gear which I can’t get around to binning due to sentimental reasons, but there’s no way I can use it again.

Bum. Better safe than sorry I guess. Thanks Martin

So with regard static rope (I don’t recall this when I was into climbing in my teens), it has no give and is suitable for top roping & abseiling? I’m not expecting to get back into lead climbing so its sounding like a good option. From a bit of googling, what about semi-static?

I wouldn’t use static for top-roping – semi-static would be better.

Semi-static is probably better on reflection, especially if your belay technique hasn’t been used in anger for a few years.

Things are also a bit ‘stricter’ on southern sandstone because of all the erosion caused by ropes running over the edge. Abseiling is a frowned upon too, and people are encouraged to rig top-ropes in a certain way too.

http://www.ukclimbing.com/articles/page.php?id=5432

Thanks again. Yep, sounds like I’m behind the times…bit to catch up and a few things to buy before a trip to Stone Farm

I haven’t climbed on southern sandstone for 20 years either. Mainly because I hated the stuff!

Martin, you’ve really retired all your old hardware? All the advice I’ve seen from manufacturers suggests a pretty much unlimited lifetime for karabiners (if no cracks or excessive oxidation can be seen), but about 5 years for soft gear like slings, harnesses, ropes and quickdraws.

Not shoes though – if you’re the MartinH who was at Manchester Uni then you’d’ve been proud to see your old friend Markie rocking his 20-year old Ballets whilst bouldering near Lyon last weekend!

Thanks Tim, I”ve got about 3 or 4 rugs worth of old climbing rope so that youtube vid is very useful!

On the subject of using old ropes. In my climbing days my general rules of thumb were…

>10 years old: only good for tree swings and general tat (or making doormats as I’ve now found out)
<10 years old: Ok for top roping as long as not contaminated and still stretchy.
<5 years old: Ok for leading at the wall as long as it’s been kept clean and stored in the dark.
<2 years old: ok for everything as long as no damage.

This may or may not be correct but I never had any incidents. I think if I were taking my kids climbing outdoors I’d be buying a new one if I didn’t have anything less than a couple of years old.

As above really. Metal components can be used if free from wear or damage especially moving/locking mechanisms. Some cracks or damage can be very hard to spot unless you’re familiar with how the items operate. Textile components usually have a 10 year “shelf life” if still in manufacturers packaging, but this reduces to 5 years in use (not exceeding the original 10 year life). I inspect all the PPE stuff at work at least 6 monthly (more frequently depending on the user).

<5 years old: Ok for leading at the wall as long as it’s been kept clean and stored in the dark.

not sure why would differentiate use at climbing wall from outside

with some exceptions most falls on walls are with relatively short length of rope available to absorb the fall and so the fall factor is relatively high

Yes rope has a “use by date” as such. It’s particularly affectd by UV which in your case isn’t so much of an issue. Personally I wouldn’t use it, you won’t be thanking yourself for making a cost saving if there is an accident.

Whilst the answer is clearly “buy a new rope”; I’ve been using a 25-year-old 11mm for top roping having first tested it with a factor 1.5 jump from the first runner of a climb. If it survives that it’s not going to break just hanging around on it.

Martin, you’ve really retired all your old hardware?

Just the soft stuff.

Regarding the other stuff, I agree with others that there’s no reason to retire the metal stuff – though I recently retired my belay krab, not due to age (>10 yrs) but because it was showing noticeable signs of wear and reduced amount of metal at the contact point. Had been used for a lot of abseiling.

I have a lot of almost pristine kit which hasn’t been touched in 10 or 15 years, but now just getting back into climbing so it might see the light of day soon (am going to get some training and get certified in lead climbing at the wall I go to, with the aim to now what I’m doing properly before I go outside). Hadn’t really thought about retiring all the slings which look in perfect condition and have been kept out of the light, but I guess I should – presumably also my quickdraws?

I’ve still got an ex-War Department steel karabiner, must be 60 years old at least and still going strong. Ropes & harnesses however are a different matter………………

“slings which look in perfect condition and have been kept out of the light, but I guess I should – presumably also my quickdraws?”

UV accelerates deterioration big time but that doesn’t mean that it ain’t happening stuck in a dark cupboard – all them polymers are at it cross bonding while we are out riding bikes

this BMC video is more up to date than my knowledge but for me sound isn’t working 😯

https://www.thebmc.co.uk/Caring_for_climbing_equipment

Sell it on the classified then replace.

simples.

not sure why would differentiate use at climbing wall from outside
with some exceptions most falls on walls are with relatively short length of rope available to absorb the fall and so the fall factor is relatively high

Its probably short hand for single pitch. I haven’t been to a wall where you could have a fall factor of more than 1

If you did have a factor 1 fall on the wall its likely it wouldn’t be from very far up the wall…

having just read this had a mental look at my gear:
whillans sit harness 1977 ish
wooden ice axe
various rocks on wire and crabs same age
EBs 1979 still in good nick
tent 1 1980 water proof as a tea bag
tent 2 1986 vango alpha great tent but needs some tlc
I dont think I will be using the climbing stuff again! cant get rid though hope im still around to say the same of my bikes 😥