🔍 Key Concepts

• Difference between left-hand laid and right-hand laid rope construction • How coiling direction affects kinks, hockles, and strength of a rope • The relationship between the lay direction of the strands and the safest coiling direction

💭 Think About

• Visualize how the strands of a left-hand laid rope twist: if you look along the rope, which way do the strands spiral? • If you coil the rope in the same direction as the lay, does that tend to tighten or loosen the strands? What effect does that have on kinking? • Think about what happens to the rope if you coil it opposite to its natural lay—does it want to lie flat, or does it try to twist and form loops?

✅ Before You Answer

• Be clear on what left-hand laid means: which way do the strands slope when the rope is held vertically? • Consider which coiling direction will follow the rope’s natural twist rather than fight against it • Eliminate any options that would obviously increase kinks and hockles in a left-hand laid rope.