The story of rope

by Plymouth Cordage Company

“TOP TRUCK”—LAYING PROCESS

FORMING MACHINE—MAKING STRAND

CLOSING TARRED RUSSIAN HEMP CABLE 15¾″ CIRCUMFERENCE FOR ARGENTINE BATTLESHIP “RIVADAVIA”

The forming machine—a heavy carriage surmounted by the band-rope wheel into which are geared several spindles and a driving drum—is now drawn up, and each group of yarns is attached to a separate spindle as shown opposite. A rope made fast at either end of the walk is given a few turns around the drum, the band-rope is set in motion and the machine moves off, leaving in its wake the compactly twisted strands.

In the case of a common right-laid rope, the forming twist is left hand. A change to right hand can be made simply by shifting clutches. The amount of turn or twist depends on the diameter of the drum, which is adjustable.

Behind the machine follows a man who swings out the stakes, placed at intervals along the walk, and throws the strands over them. When the process is completed the strands are cut away at either end and transferred to the laying ground, the stakes being pushed back to allow the return of the forming machine for another trip.

INTERIOR OF ROPEWALK, PLYMOUTH CORDAGE COMPANY

The two laying machines stationed at opposite ends of the walk greatly resemble the forming machine. One—usually the “afterturn,” so called—is made fast; the other, or “foreturn,” is braked down but not secured. The strands are attached to separate spindles on each machine and given a little extra twisting from both ends—left hand as in the forming. During this process of putting in the “hard,” so called, as well as in the laying itself, the foreturn machine is drawn slowly ahead by the shortening of the strands.

For the laying, the ends of the strands at the afterturn machine are transferred to a single spindle. The “top”—a cone-shaped block containing a groove for each strand and mounted on a light truck—is backed up to the machine, the strands are inserted and the twisting recommenced, the direction of the afterturn spindles now being reversed. The resulting tendency of the strands to untwist is counteracted, partly by a left-hand revolution of the foreturn spindles, and partly by the presence of the “hard” or surplus twist just described.