ESEE Para-Cord ?

M

mmyron1

Joined
Jan 14, 2007
Messages
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This might be a dumb question but is the small piece of cord that comes with the knives themselves 550 cord? I have a spool of 550 cord I leave in my truck and it doesn't feel the same as the stuff that came with my RC-3. Not that I am intending to use it for anything but the lanyard that it is being used for. Just curious is all.
 
It might be "550 paracord" but it won't hold anywhere near 550 pounds. I have never had the true stuff so I can't offer a definitive answer.

I do however know that its the same stuff as 95% of the market.
 
The "real" 550 (lb) cord has, I've been told, a 7 strand core. The commercial grade paracord is usually 5 strand. Take FWIW. Also, that's breaking strength, not working strength. BIG difference.
 
I’ve never cut in to it, but it seems the ESEE stuff is either 5 strand or has had strands removed to ease in getting through the cord lock. I usually swap mine out for black 7-strand 550 that I keep on hand.
 
bushflyr said:
The "real" 550 (lb) cord has, I've been told, a 7 strand core. The commercial grade paracord is usually 5 strand.
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SOME of the cheap commercial stuff just has poly fluff inside, no individual strands.
 
adaman04 said:
I’ve never cut in to it, but it seems the ESEE stuff is either 5 strand or has had strands removed to ease in getting through the cord lock. I usually swap mine out for black 7-strand 550 that I keep on hand.
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I have never cut into mine either and like I said not a big deal. Just a curiousity of mine. I know the spool I have has 7 strands and isn't as soft or as easy to wrap is all. Mine is OD green from a local store I found the other day. Makes sense about the cord lock though as the 550 I have on hand would be kind of difficult to get through that lock.
 
It is paracord, but, not military grade 550. The cord I use to make bracelets is military grade and actually has 14 strand core count. Some may say 7, but, there are actually 2 strands there, not one.
 
took mine off too - replaced with my own supply of issue stuff.
I can get mine thru supply, but supplycaptain.com has the good stuff too if anyone is interested and didn't know of a good source.
 
OD #550-CORD purchased from the Command Post ARMY SURPLUS in my area. It is the exact same stuff that shipped w/my ESEE Knives. a 100' bag costs me 6.99. the bag states, "contains seven (7) removable inner Strands for Emergency Fishing Line, Sewing Thread, Trip-Wire, and Other Survival Situations. ULTRA-STRONG. WILL NOT ROT.
 
TAGannon said:
It is paracord, but, not military grade 550. The cord I use to make bracelets is military grade and actually has 14 strand core count. Some may say 7, but, there are actually 2 strands there, not one.
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It's seven twisted strands.

If you pull it apart you'll see seven defined strands. Each of which can be unrolled into two additional strands.

I wouldn't say there are 14 strands in it simply because you can break the initial seven down into smaller strands.
 
mat_890 said:
It might be "550 paracord" but it won't hold anywhere near 550 pounds.
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bushflyr said:
Also, that's breaking strength, not working strength. BIG difference.
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"550 paracord" has a minimum breaking strength of… 550 pounds. It will hold 550 pounds. There are many types parachute cord but I will leave those details to wikipedia. MBS (minimum breaking strength) is the only number you need. Its up to you to decide what sort of safety factor factor you want.
 
I use the 550 paracord I bought at Cabelas to hang my hammock and it holds my 250 pound butt just fine. ;) I've even had three of my boys in it with me once... that's an extra 120 lbs. I don't know what other people do with their paracord that would require it to hold over 500 lbs but it's strong enough for my purposes. :thumbup:
 
jameseilers said:
"550 paracord" has a minimum breaking strength of… 550 pounds. It will hold 550 pounds. There are many types parachute cord but I will leave those details to wikipedia. MBS (minimum breaking strength) is the only number you need. Its up to you to decide what sort of safety factor factor you want.
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Oh, well its not 550 paracord then. Anybody know where to get the real stuff? I get my 7/14 strand stuff from eBay, holds round about 300 pounds but I wouldn't repel with it.
 
mat_890 said:
Oh, well its not 550 paracord then. Anybody know where to get the real stuff? I get my 7/14 strand stuff from eBay, holds round about 300 pounds but I wouldn't repel with it.
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What's not 550 paracord? :confused:

I wouldn't repel with anything but climbing rope. 550 cord is not for that. You would burn the kernmantel away in ten feet and enjoy the rest of the trip looking at some frayed end.

You can get "550" cord from a variety of places. CountyComm has a nice selection.
 
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