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[wampidy]

I am loving your experimenting mind-set Jim. You are motivating me.  I find that I am captivated by this post and the route you are taking.

Now that you are playing with color you need to ask yourself a few questions.  What is your focal point, the spectacular stone or cord?  One can overpower the other.  Taking pictures and then looking at them for record was a brilliant idea.  Now you can scroll down and decide which you like best.

You are making a lot of sense here. Something I don't do very often.

I really do not like the wire wraps that have a pile of extra wire frills on them so it makes a lot of sense to look at what is drawing the eye. Looks like I will never be using white braid on any stones because that is all I see when I look at the photos with white cord.
Jim

[drnihili]

Ok, I like the look but have some concerns.

Rope and cord have a tendency to stretch over time.  Unless that is in a deep groove AND that wire wrap around it is extremely tight, the stone will fall out.  I think it's just a question of when, not if.

I've thought about doing something similar, but I don't think you can get the cord sufficiently tight the way you've gone.  I think you'll need to use a decorative knot at the top rather than wire.  You can work a knot tight enough with pliers, but you'll still need a fairly deep groove.  A doubled diamond, footrope, or  Matthew Walker would look nice at the top.  I've also wondered about using Hei Toki, but that would probably require a different pendant.

[Enchantra]

OK Jim, I may be the one to spoil the party going on here.
I do love the experimenting and the colors.  Color is always a good thing.
However I foresee one minor problem with this wrapping strategy.  Cord, over time will stretch.  This means that cord you have wrapped around that stone, could indeed stretch out enough with wear to eventually be to loose to hold the stone.  I've seen cording that supposedly had "No stretch" eventually stretch out a bit.  This is why I try to prestretch any thread I bead with because nylon and other seed beading threads despite saying they don't stretch, will stretch over time.  It's why a beaded peyote stitch bezel I made three years ago has a bit of give to it now.

And looking back through the postings it appears drnihili has the same concerns I do.

[Helene Fielder]

A good example of why I love this forum.  People with same passions learning from one another.

Metal wrap may be the best bet, since you have done all the labor in making the channel grove.  It would most likely be just as fast to wrap.

I have a piece as an example that I did using metal.  May I share it here Jim?

[wampidy]

Okay, a couple of things that some of you are not taking into consideration.

First off is the fact that this cord is designed to hold over 100 pounds safely and probably 200 in an emergency. This cord is holding 0 pounds and 0 ounces. The weight of the cab is actually held up by being glued to the cord at the top so what is going to cause it to stretch? Water has no effect on nylon like it does on cotton or some other natural fibers so that is a non thing. I milked cows as a kid and picked up a lot of steel most of my life so I have very strong hands which I exercise every day so when I say the cord was pulled tight you can take it to the bank that it is extremely tight.

I believe I stated earlier that the wire was added to hide the cord where it has been glued together because the glue makes the cord darker. So the wire is a non thing as far as holding the cab in place. The only way the cord could come off the cab is if someone put a lot
of force where it is glued on and even then I am not so sure if anyone could get it off.

Lastly, I can not believe that anyone who knows me would think I did not think all this through. I ask for opinions  and suggestions all the time but to flat out tell me that something won't work for mechanical reasons is a bit irritating.

Now that I have probably shot my ...... off I want to thank the people that brought to light my shortcomings in the color and brightness area. For those that I probably pissed off I am sorry but I want you to know that on the mechanical side of things I am as sharp as a potato and have things covered there. I love criticism as long as it does not criticize me.
Jim

[wampidy]

A good example of why I love this forum.  People with same passions learning from one another.

Metal wrap may be the best bet, since you have done all the labor in making the channel grove.  It would most likely be just as fast to wrap.

I have a piece as an example that I did using metal.  May I share it here Jim?

Of course Helene.

I have done all kinds of groove wraps with wire and I am just trying to come up with something new here.
Jim

[drnihili]

Jim, I missed the glue part.  So long as the glue itself holds, you should be fine.  In essence that makes the cord purely decorative, sorry if I missed that in an earlier post.

With that said, the strength of the cord is largely irrelevant to the issue of stretching.  Rock climbing rope is more than strong enough to hold a pendant, but would do a poor job  as the rope is designed to be elastic.  The worry is how much a cord will stretch, not how much weight it will bear before breaking.  Most cords designed to hold a load are designed to stretch some, elasticity reduces the shock to the rope and the load. 

Another idea if you want a more "pure" cord look, but don't want a decorative knot on top.  Find some strong thread the same color as the cord and stitch the cord together.  Since the pendant is actually held by the glue, and not by tension, this should be sufficient.

[wampidy]

I have considered thread and may go to that because the wire has not gone over to well and I do not like it either. Some knots would work but a know where one side is pulling forward and the other back like in an overhand know will not work. I think a knot would still have to be glued to keep it from coming loose. Plus, I think it would be difficult to get it even close to as tight as I have it with the glue.

I am also thinking about wetting the entire length of cord with HXTAL which would make it very permanent.
Jim

[Helene Fielder]

You make me want to play with this new concept.  I like the simplicity of the approach.  It keeps your focus on the stone.

Making me think how you could incorporate your rope, outside the box idea into a bracelet.

Thanks for putting me straight, it's in your title, "Ain't wire but is an outside the box wrap"   Often I don't focus well on what the conversation is actually about. 

[LithicStrings]

I like your idea of sewing the cord together with similar color thread. I have been doing that with my kumihimo cords to secure the ends. After taking a few stitches through both cords, you can hide the end the thread by passing it into the center of the cord and cutting it close at the exit.   I also have used hypo cement to secure knots - it doesn't seem to discolor the cord once its dry.

[Enchantra]

Jim, I missed the glue part.  So long as the glue itself holds, you should be fine.  In essence that makes the cord purely decorative, sorry if I missed that in an earlier post.

I missed the glue part too.
Having re-read the original posts though, I don't see mention of glue.   

[wampidy]

Jim, I missed the glue part.  So long as the glue itself holds, you should be fine.  In essence that makes the cord purely decorative, sorry if I missed that in an earlier post.

I missed the glue part too.
Having re-read the original posts though, I don't see mention of glue.   

Well geeze Enchantra, make a liar out of me. ;) What I meant to say was "I thought I mentioned glue". The crow kind of puts a bad taste in my mouth. Sorry. I posted this on two forums and may have used the word glue in the other one. I can come up with an excuse for just about everything.
Jim

[Itsandbits]

Jim, I missed the glue part.  So long as the glue itself holds, you should be fine.  In essence that makes the cord purely decorative, sorry if I missed that in an earlier post.

What I meant to say was "I thought I mentioned glue". The crow kind of puts a bad taste in my mouth. Sorry. I posted this on two forums and may have used the word glue in the other one. I can come up with an excuse for just about everything.
Jim

I usually have my crow with a good shot of HP sauce, it kills the gamey flavour, LOL; I saw some mention of glue/epoxy but thought you were just using it at the top to keep the cord tight. I'm guessing that laying a thin bead of epoxy in the groove then wrapping the cord, wouldn't discolour the cord if it was applied sparingly.

[wampidy]

Jim, I missed the glue part.  So long as the glue itself holds, you should be fine.  In essence that makes the cord purely decorative, sorry if I missed that in an earlier post.

What I meant to say was "I thought I mentioned glue". The crow kind of puts a bad taste in my mouth. Sorry. I posted this on two forums and may have used the word glue in the other one. I can come up with an excuse for just about everything.
Jim

I usually have my crow with a good shot of HP sauce, it kills the gamey flavour, LOL; I saw some mention of glue/epoxy but thought you were just using it at the top to keep the cord tight. I'm guessing that laying a thin bead of epoxy in the groove then wrapping the cord, wouldn't discolour the cord if it was applied sparingly.

he

Yes, that is what I did at the top but did not want to press my luck going all the way around. I use my drill press to make the groove so the depth is not perfectly even either which is a bit of a determining factor also. I am playing with other things now so the wraps will be back burner for a while.
Jim

[wampidy]

I took the recommendation of not using wire with the cord wrap and this is what I ended up with. I like it a lot better this way. The stone is what you see first.
Jim