Weird Marks on Rope, Thoughts?

I have had this rope, a 9.4 Trango Diamond, in storage for most of the last two years. I brought it out because I am trying to sell some gear, and I noticed it has a really weird pattern of marks on it. I had it coiled into a backpack coil while in storage, and now the areas of the rope that were exposed have a dark mark on them, going all or most of the way around the sheath. The areas of the rope that were within the coil aren't marked at all and look normal...

Here is a photo:

Weird rope marks from storage

This rope has been stored in a sealed Rubbermaid storage bin for most of the last two years, with a little time out of the bin when I re-organized gear to move to a new place. The bin was clean and new when the rope went in, and there we're never any chemicals or other substances put into the bin with the rope, only other climbing gear and mostly softgoods, like slings.

Has anyone ever seen anything like this? Does this make the rope potentially sketchy? I really want to sell to a friend, but don't want to jeopardize anyone's safety. Thanks!

Mold? Mildew (usually white-ish color, I think)?

Have you tried washing it? It still could be dirt.

Well, the marks weren't there when it went into storage, but either way, it sounds like washing it couldn't hurt.

I'll wash it tonight and post updates.

Your probably right, but if what ever it is washes off, I would be 100% confident it is not damaged

How does it smell?

was it a new Rubbermaid tub? Maybe it leeched dye or oils from the plastic over the years? Seems unlikely but who knows.

Was the tub transparent? If so, then maybe it was stored where it could have been exposed to the sun for a long time?

If it were exposed to the sun, it would be lighter marks not darker marks. my guess is that the tub got really hot and some of the dyes seeped out onto the rope. i'd wash it inspect it very thoroughly. if you deem it okay, talk to your friend and be 100% transparent about it.

eli poss wrote:If it were exposed to the sun, it would be lighter marks not darker marks. my guess is that the tub got really hot and some of the dyes seeped out onto the rope. i'd wash it inspect it very thoroughly. if you deem it okay, talk to your friend and be 100% transparent about it.

Valid point, but then why wouldn't the internal coils of rope be discolored just like the outside if it was just due to heat?

i'm not suggesting the marks were due to heat but rather that heat caused the dyes from the storage bin to rub off on the rope. although i would think that the dyes would have gotten on more of the rope than shown if this were the case. this is definitely a mystery. if you end up retiring it, you should send the rope to it's manufacturer to see if they can figure it out

Chris Dickson wrote:I have had this rope, a 9.4 Trango Diamond, in storage for most of the last two years. I brought it out because I am trying to sell some gear, and I noticed it has a really weird pattern of marks on it. I had it coiled into a backpack coil while in storage, and now the areas of the rope that were exposed have a dark mark on them, going all or most of the way around the sheath. The areas of the rope that were within the coil aren't marked at all and look normal... Here is a photo: This rope has been stored in a sealed Rubbermaid storage bin for most of the last two years, with a little time out of the bin when I re-organized gear to move to a new place. The bin was clean and new when the rope went in, and there we're never any chemicals or other substances put into the bin with the rope, only other climbing gear and mostly softgoods, like slings. Has anyone ever seen anything like this? Does this make the rope potentially sketchy? I really want to sell to a friend, but don't want to jeopardize anyone's safety. Thanks!

The dark color looks exactly like the color that rope gets after rubbing over biners (aluminum oxide). It's a bit of a stretch, as theories go, but another possibility is that the aluminum rubbed into the exposed part oxidized much more than the part that was coiled up, turning a darker color.

GO

GabeO, that was what my friend thought. That perhaps the parts of the rope that were exposed oxidized the aluminum rubbed into the rope from 'biner wear.

To answer some of the other questions, it was a brand new blue opaque Rubbermaid bin, which had the lid on for most of the time, but was lidless for a brief period when I was moving/reorganizing. Maybe the dyes could have leeched out of the plastic, but it was never in extremely hot temperatures... Still haven't gotten a chance to wash it yet, but will update here after I do.

Thanks for the discussion, everyone!

GabeO wrote: The dark color looks exactly like the color that rope gets after rubbing over biners (aluminum oxide). It's a bit of a stretch, as theories go, but another possibility is that the aluminum rubbed into the exposed part oxidized much more than the part that was coiled up, turning a darker color. GO

This seems pretty believable. I've seen a rope with similar markings that was just due to the aluminum.