Tags :: §suspension (Shibari)
An "upline" is a rope connecting a suspended person to one or more §suspension hardpoints. In suspension there is often a "main line" which bears most of the person's weight, often connected to a robust §suspension harness with a §suspension hanger. The line will be finished with a §suspension lock-off appropriate to the rope material, remaining length, and the type of hardpoint. . Other "auxiliary" or "support" lines may not hold or be capable of holding as much weight, and may be attached directly to a limb, hair, or a less bomb-proof harness.
When choosing §rope material for uplines, there are different considerations. Foremost is strength: is the rope strong enough to withstand the weight of the person being suspended? Another concern is upline jamming, which is one of the more serious "no-fault" failures which can occur; high-friction ropes are more likely to jam. Even worse is for your suspension lock-off to come undone, which could happen due to low-friction rope, but there are alternative methods which reduce the risk of this.
For this purpose, I strongly recommend using §load-rated §synthetic rope. My personal preference is §POSH, but §hempex is also popular.
§natural fibre rope is not very strong, and may have a real safe working load (SWL) 30lbs or lower. Much worse than this, the actual SWL of a given rope is unknown and unknowable. The variance of strength based on rope construction, manufacturing process, treatment, age, care, and luck is too great for any manufacturer to give a marked, reliable rating. Therefore, suspending with natural fibre rope should be seen as a roll of the dice.
That said, many people insist on using natural fibres, and there are steps you can take to minimise the risks associated with this:
Personally, I find it baffling that people would choose to sacrifice safety for a purely aesthetic concern, especially with the existence of natural-looking load-rated synthetic materials like POSH and hempex.