>I suppose in theory there must be a point at which the weight of the rope
>is so great that the pay-load becomes too small to be viable, or where the
>rope would not be strong enough to support its own weight without breaking,
>but I assume that these depths would be enormous.
Don't forget that long (hemp) ropes were often tapered to alleviate the
depth versus weight issue.
In answer to Lyle - the take up of wire rope was not rapid. In particular
there were fears about such ropes breaking, whereas chains could be 'easily'
examined for elongation of links etc. John Taylor reported (favourably) on
them in 1838 and 1842, and the superiority of wire rope was demonstrated at
court cases (usually colliers vs coal owners) - see Vol.2, pages 330-333 of
Galloway's - Annals of Coal Mining and the Coal Trade. In the UK, they seem
to have come into wider use in the early 1860s.
Regards,
Mike Gill
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