FAQs: Understanding Wire Rope and Fittings

As most cranes are manufactured overseas not all constructions are readily available in Australia. To avoid confusion, you can substitute the wire construction of the wire rope but must maintain the same kN rating or higher. If you are unsure about what wire ropes can be used for your specific application then do not hesitate to contact a certified Ranger technician on 1300SLINGS.

In most cases you can replace a self-coloured wire rope with a galvanised rope. Where there is a corrosive environment the galvanised wire rope should be replaced with a stainless steel rope.

No. Using a fibre core wire rope on a multilayer winch will cause the wire to flatten. To prevent this, the use of an IWRC (Independent Wire Rope Core) wire rope should be used.

Yes. The damaged rope can be cut (cropped). This should be done by a competent person, or a Ranger technician so the damage to the rope can be assessed and you can determine whether the amount of rope remaining is a workable length. The sheave can also be assessed to determine if it is causing the damage.

Fitting a metalling socket (resin socket) should only be done by highly trained technician as the process is complex and if done incorrectly could have serious ramifications. Ranger offer technical services as such, and can fit metal sockets.

If you are unsure you should tag them out of service and contact Ranger who have highly trained technicians who can inspect and advise you what is the best direction moving forward.

Ranger offer specialised services that will extend the service life of wire rope, cleaning and lubricating of wire rope and Magnetic Rope Testing (MRT) of wire rope will increase the service life of wire ropes.

Wire Ropes come in a variety of grades with the most common being Improved Plow Steel and 1960 grade. For many applications these are the grades supplied. The 1570, 1960, 1960, and 2160 values in the ISO grades indicate the number of newton force units required for each square millimetre of area of cross-sectional metal in a rope to make up its minimum breaking force. The associated minimum breaking force values are typically expressed in kilo-newtons (kN) or metric tons of 2,204 lbs. Plow steel is rated the same as 1570 whilst Improved Plow Steel is rated the same as 1960 and Extra Improved Plow Steel is rated the same as 1960.

Some end fittings will most definitely reduce the rated capacity of the wire rope, the amount of reduction does depend on the fitting that will be used.

Wire Rope Grips can be used for guying and rigging applications only and must not be used for lifting applications.

The numbers stand for how many strands there are and how many individual wires are inside each strand. The difference in configurations are the outside wires and inner wires may be of different sizes to make up the same outside diameter. The more wires there are, the more flexible the rope will be. The rope will wear better when there are less wires that are thicker.

Non rotational wire rope is manufactured in a way that it reduces the possibilities of it spinning under load, the internal strands manufactured in the opposite direction left hand lay then the outer strands right hand lay. With this type of wire rope the use of a swivel is not recommended.