Sharpie on Nylon

This

That document appears to be dated in 2009. Can you confidently demonstrate that Sharpie has not changed the formula of their markers in the last 6 years? If not, then this isn't particularly useful information.

Why would you mess around with standard sharpies at all, when the "rub-a-dub" sharpie is being made? It's a permanent marker specifically designed for use on fabrics, including nylon and other synthetic fabrics.

I've been using regular sharpies on my ropes for years and I've never had any of my ropes break. Is there even a single documented case of a rope failing due to Sharpie ink or any other ink? I doubt it.

Thanks for the post OP.

Bill Shubert wrote:Why would you mess around with standard sharpies at all, when the "rub-a-dub" sharpie is being made? It's a permanent marker specifically designed for use on fabrics, including nylon and other synthetic fabrics.

And designed specifically to not fade during repeated washings. There is nothing to indicate that it is any better or safer than regular Sharpies when used on rope in a safety critical application.

Ryan Strickland wrote:I've been using regular sharpies on my ropes for years and I've never had any of my ropes break.

Irrelevant. Did you subject the rope to a FF 1.8 fall with the Sharpie mark of the rope on the biner that caught the fall? What about passing over an edge?

Ryan Strickland wrote:Is there even a single documented case of a rope failing due to Sharpie ink or any other ink? I doubt it.

I agree.

Unless the ink is permeating through the sheath and into the core, I don't see how the ink would affect the load bearing portion of the rope in the FF 1.8 situation. Definitely a possibility for premature sheath failure, but I don't think this has been tested.

Interesting read from a BD engineer on the subject:
blackdiamondequipment.com/e…

Bill Shubert wrote:Why would you mess around with standard sharpies at all, when the "rub-a-dub" sharpie is being made? It's a permanent marker specifically designed for use on fabrics, including nylon and other synthetic fabrics.

This is what blue water says to mark their rope with.

Matt Stroebel wrote:Interesting read from a BD engineer on the subject: blackdiamondequipment.com/e…

The key comment in that piece:
"I don't think Sharpies or any other permanent markers have really been proven to actually damage nylon—short-term or long-term. However, I can't recommend them for use on rope either because the manufacturers will not and cannot guarantee that the marker will always be free of possibly harmful chemical ingredients. In other words, they can change the formula on a whim and none of us would be the wiser."

I really don't think that was the key comment. That sounded like one of the sentences that BD's lawyer wrote so that they couldn't be sued. Especially when the rest of the article reads like "I'm a BD engineer, the UIAA test was ridiculous and didn't test real world application. So we pull tested it and what do you know, it had no effect on breaking strength."

We are all going to die

I heard that marking ropes with Sharpies attracts microfractures. The microfractures can smell the pretroleum!

Sharpie? Yer gonna dye!

Hey OP, let's rename this thread "this thread is about nothing, don't read. Go climb instead."

I actually appreciated this thread's short life because we all know marking with a sharpie is fine, but nobody has the balls to say it. So a published article is noteworthy to some extent... but then gibbs had to get all litigious and fear-monger.

I just threw out all my climbing ropes, harness, shoes... sigh [microfractures]

Merely intended this to be food for thought for those still chewing. Key point being simply that DuPont, the inventor of nylon, said the Sharpie brand of markers ink had no ill-effects on nylon or polyester, and that they provided this information to a company making life-safety products. You do you.

Greg Urbanski wrote:Merely intended this to be food for thought for those still chewing. Key point being simply that DuPont, the inventor of nylon, said the Sharpie brand of markers ink had no ill-effects on nylon or polyester, and that they provided this information to a company making life-safety products. You do you.

Are the ingredients in a 2015 Sharpie the same as in 2009?

Ryan Strickland wrote:I've been using regular sharpies on my ropes for years and I've never had any of my ropes break. Is there even a single documented case of a rope failing due to Sharpie ink or any other ink? I doubt it. Thanks for the post OP.

Myself as well, and same with a number of my friends. Black Diamond has tested it, I have tested it, others have tested it.

Marc801 wrote: Irrelevant. Did you subject the rope to a FF 1.8 fall with the Sharpie mark of the rope on the biner that caught the fall?

Has anyone stopped to think what sort of situation would place the middle of the rope on a biner in a 1.78 FF fall?

For those who are worried, Sharpie makes a T.E.C. (trace element certified) marker that the aerospace industry uses. Apparently, BlueWater endorses it.

Gunkiemike wrote: Has anyone stopped to think what sort of situation would place the middle of the rope on a biner in a 1.78 FF fall?

Short fixing on a big wall could do it (but I'm too lazy to do the arithmetic). I was more going after the flawed rationale of "well, I use a sharpie and none of my ropes have ever failed".

And for the record, no, I do not believe the use of Sharpies on rope or other soft goods is dangerous in any manner.