Tracking line

[cassadee7]

It's time for me to buy a tracking line for Saber. I have looked at a few different ones but can't decide what to buy.

I liked the biothane (3/8" and 33') but it gets a bit heavy and also slips through the hands when wet.

The cotton is lighter but if it slips though your hands it burns, and if it gets wet it is heavier than the biothane. It also seems to snag on vegetation more.

Someone had a nylon, round line which was nice but tangled a lot. I am looking at thicker (5/8") poly lines because they also float and would be nice for dock diving practice in the river.

Trainer says it should be a 40' line if possible.

What do you like best? Also, do you think color matters? Is black fine or is a more visible color beneficial?

[JakodaCD OA]

I like my biothane long lines

[onyx'girl]

2nd that... they are waterproof and clean up quickly compared to fabric.

[JakodaCD OA]

and to add, tho I like the lightness of cotton, when it gets wet like you said, it gets heavy, when it gets mucky, it's a pain to clean up, dry out..biothane just so much easier to clean and really no drying time

[jocoyn]

I have biothane but I do not like the weight. I have also just used static climbing rote with a clip held on by a figure 8 knot. Works great! Just need to get to the rope store. For webbing, tubular webbing (also like they sell in climbing stores) is easier on the hand than flat webbing.

[gagsd]

I like leather.... old school like that. It is heavy, and requires upkeep.
My friend uses the static climbing rote like Nancy said. She gets it from the military supply store, and I think even found it in pink.

[carmspack]

I like lightweight rope from the "marine" or from the "climber's" shops - had a tracking line made for me as a gift once -

Commercially available my favourite lines and leashes come from "Gripper" The Gripper Leash ~ The Ultimate Edge . I do not like their collars though. Great buckles but there are not enough options to sizing , the dog either fits the collar or not , no options to take in or let out . The thing I don't like is that there is not enough tab left after the last hole -- and that can undo the collar.

Carmen
Carmspack Working German Shepherd Dogs

[Hillary_Plog]

Love the biothane...won't go back to anything else!

[SchHGSD]

I use biothane, love it. They adapt to the weight.

[Chris Wild]

I think we have tried every material out there, so here are my personal reviews:

Biothane. Mixed feelings. I like a lot of things about it, but don't care for the weight and how slippery it gets when wet (which since tracking is often an early morning activity with lots of dew, it's likely to be wet often). Since I use my tracking lines also for obedience, the slippery when wet is really more of a problem there than in tracking. But that stuff is so slippery when wet you can stand on it and it'll still pull right out from under your foot.

Leather. Love leather. My favorite leash material of all. But not for tracking. Too much maintenance to keep them from really suffering from constantly getting wet and drying, getting wet and drying, getting wet and drying..... which can lead to damage to the leather and possibly breakage. Even if well maintained they will still stretch over time and next thing you know your 10m line is 12 or 15m.

Cotton. Hate it for anything. Hard on the hands, and they also don't hold up and will dry rot and get weak and potentially break.

Gripper. Love these leads for doing obedience in wet weather. But not for tracking where the line needs to slip smoothly between the hands since their whole design is to keep them from slipping through the hands.

Climbing rope. Light weight and cheap to make your own. But very prone to getting tangled, hard on the hands, and the most nasty rope burn every if it gets caught around an ankle. This stuff will practically amputate a foot.

Nylon. Probably my favorite. Especially tubular nylon, much moreso than regular. Lightweight, strong, maintenance free, doesn't rot like cotton or leather, doesn't get tangled and a nice balance between being easy to hang onto, even when wet, and sliding through the hands when it's supposed to.