Which one is better, for building a shelter(lean-to)? Which one will hold up better to the wind, rain & snow?Which will will hold longer, if the shelter is to be used for longer than one night?

Para-cord is just too useful not to carry. It is adaptable to a wide variety of situations. But zip-ties do not require any knot tying ability to use.

I carry lots of both!

Para cord is a multi tasker and a must have. Zip ties are nice, buy I'd take the para cord over the zip ties. Para cord is also usable many times.

Dave

Dunno, I have seen plastic get brittle and break apart when frozen though. The reuseability of the zip-ties would come into question. If the wind blew against your shelter would it give any because of inflexibilty of the zip-ties?. Would this cause your shelter to be more susceptible to wind damage? Would this cause an effect similar to what happens to a cheap tarp tied tightly down to a pickup truck bed after going a hundred miles down the interstate?-- It goes to shreds. I'm just asking these things because I would like to know myself. I would definitely choose paracord if I had to choose between the two just to be safe. But you can always bring both!

Don't think there's any issue with flexabilty of para cord vs. zip ties. If the wind is hitting your shelter like going 100 on the freeway, you have bigger issues to contend with.

Dave

But don't zip-ties only bend easily in one back-and-forth direction, not side-to-side? Or am I missing something here?

Oh, okay, never mind, you edited your post. No, just using that as an example of wear, but admittedly it was a poor example. I didn't mean to imply you would be in that severe a situation 100 mph winds, it was the distance of 100 miles down the interstate. Heck the old truck I was driving was doing barely over 50 anyway.

Given a choice of one or the other, I would definitely choose paracord over zip ties. Here are a few reasons...

1. Paracord can be untied and removed, zip tips must be cut and trashed (Moving camp perhaps, or expanding your shelter, or rebuilding after some damage)
2. Excess paracord can be cut off and used for something else, extra tag on a zip tie isn't so useful
3. Lashing beats the security of zip ties any day. I don't know how you would make a very secure tripod (for a shelter per say) with just zipties.
4. On the whole, a length/weight of paracord seems more useful and multi purpose (bow and drill fire, wrapping bandages, sewing/fishing with inner strands, leash for your dog, etc) than an equal length/weight of zipties. I personally don't have any zip ties whatsoever in my kits, but then again I am competent in knots and lashing. Here are 2 tips I've learned for those of you that might not be able to lash together poles for a shelter:
a) take that survival saw of yours and begin to cut a small (about 2-4" dia, 12-15' tall), straight tree at thigh height. Instead of cutting all the way through, leave a little "hinge" that, once the top of the tree falls, will still secure your new "ridgepole" to the thigh high stump. Strip the branches on the ridgepole and begin to cover will all that nice leaves/bark/branches/dirt that makes a good water and wind resistant derbris shelter
b) find a "v" in a tree or where a branch meets the trunk at an appropriate height. Place your ridgepole in the v (you can place a log/rock on top of the far end of the ridgepole - or bury it - to keep it from slipping out of the v) and build your shelter.

Hope that helps

Matt

I agree with the paracord, though I have both in the bob and the truck. When you consider the 7 strands in the paracord that can be used for fishing line, sewing, snares, dental floss.. lol, not to mention tieing things. I get a lot more use out of the paracord than zip ties.

I think if you are talking about versatility vs. weight/space carry concerns, the paracord is going to win. Zipties are much lower on the multi-tasking scale. However, for BOBs and other longer term (read bigger kits) situations, a quality ziptie may be the way to go.

For starters, let me clear up a common misconception. For most quality zipties you can re-use them by using a small tool to release the catch. On to the job at hand. I've used zip ties to attach a brass grommetted nylon cloth to a pole, and despite fairly unbelievable abuse, they've held up over the long haul. It's taken literally years to break the plastic in what I would consider extreme circumstances.

They are easy to use, even with pretty cold/numb hands (don't ask!). You just have to steady your arms somehow and use larger motor skills to get it started. They can be tied with one hand and a little ingenuity. They won't flex as much, which can be detrimental or beneficial depending on the situation. They require no skill to lash down. They have a very high tensile strength. They won't rot. They don't care if they get wet.

They might care if they get really cold, but again, my own experiments bear out -10 deg. F or worse conditions under heavy wind loads. I will say, that when mine have failed after years of service, it's been in the winter!. The newest set I'm using are UV resistant and I'm using two in place of one... they've already outlasted the old set. They are FAST to setup.

I'd say from the one-handedness and no-thought or skill requried, they deserve a place in your kit. Real 550 Paracord is great, doesn't rot and is very versatile, and certainly you can lash with one hand. But can you do it one handed in 20 knot winds blowing your tarp in 10 below weather? Anyway, I'd vote for both. If I had limited space and weight, probably go with paracord. But I'm guessing that even over weeks, you wouldn't notice much difference between the two if you have quality lashings in the rope and quality outdoor (UV stable) zipties.

I carry both in my GHB and Jeep.
While Para-cord can have more uses, zip ties weigh almost nothing ao a couple dozen don't add to weigh and take up almost no room.

For a shelter, I would use cord. However, zip ties are very usefull to have. On a recent backpacking trip, one of our group members hip belt quick disconnect split lengthwise, preventing the buckle from latching. Para cord would not have helped. A zip tie pinched the break together well enough that it lasted 8 days with a 50 lb pack. I usually carry a few in a pack repair kit with a couple of pins, split rings, duct tape, & needle and nylon thread.

The previous posts have pretty much tied and zipped your question. I would only once again admonish all to have confidence in what you have. A cheap painter's tarp and bargain hank of that white utility clothesline makes a mighty welcoming shelter and confidence builder to someone with a limited budget or slowly 'upgrading' to paracord or technical climbing line.

I've used zip ties extensively most of my adult life. There are myriad versions that have different applications. I've used them for lashings for heavy heliax along radio tower legs right down to binding 24 gauge wire in bundles inside mic connectors. They are versatile and quickly deployed. The last emergency shelter I built used willow branches, clear plastic garbage bags, duct tape and zip ties, and the zip ties held up well and expedited the set up. I could've used lashings of paracord just as well, only it would've taken more time, and if I were encumbered or disabled might have been more problematic. I can lash a zip tie with one hand, which would not be possible with zip cord without pre-engineering some sort of fastening setup first. In a survival situation, that could be a significant issue. The type of zip ties I would carry with me for survival work will hold a static load of 100-130 lbs, and should hold up to normal wear and tear and ambient UV for at least 2 years once deployed.

I made a 30 foot chain of zip ties once to hoist an antenna up a pole. It was a waste, but I had no choice, and it worked. The antenna weighed about 20 lbs, and was well below the load limit of the chain.

I replaced the shoelaces in my favorite hiking boots a year and a half ago with paracord, and it is holding up much better than the laces did. The only complaint is I have to double knot the bow or the knot won't hold.

I used to keep a few zip ties around my wrist till one time I was prying the latch open on one to remove it and darned near slit my wrist!!! Now I just keep em in my EDC.

I think the ideal EDC size is the foot long ones in black that are about 4 or 5 mm wide. I'd actually EDC about a dozen or so of those, then a couple about half that size and maybe one or two that are really big, but the big ones tend to get a bit unwieldy to stow. If you need to zip tie something bigger than one zip tie will handle, they do gang easy enough. You can even use zip ties as trip snares if you know what you are doing. They have too much friction in the latch to work as noose snares, though.

Zip ties got used a lot by soldiers for adding gear to belts and packs in Iraq I noticed.

Remove the 7 inner strands from your paralaces , cut and melt tips on an angle for rapid lacing. They wont slip.

Hmm, that'd leave flat shells, which ought to bind up nicely. Good idea.

I've gotten so used to double tying my hikers now that I think I prefer it. I also think that with that pair I prefer to keep the cordage whole, the idea of disassembly is abhorrant for some reason. However for other footwear applications I will heed your advice.

If I could only have one, paracord wins hands down.

But keep in mind that it is possible to build a leanto with neither of them. Find two trees side by side about a foot (or more) farther apart than you are tall, with branches at about the same level above the ground. Put your ridgepole into the fork of those branches. Then cut some branches long enough to extend from above the ridgepole to the ground at an angle, and leave a smaller branch sticking out enough to hook over the ridge pole. Do a bunch of those close together, then add more layers and you have your leanto...

Thank you all for the replies. I really enjoyed reading them all, and learned alot from doing so.I guess i'll do what i was doing all along, carrying both.

On the subject of zip-ties, I carry the re-usable type (you can squeeze the latch and they re-open).

eeph