Which slackline should I buy?

Which slackline should I buy? Which slackline is the right one for me? Or: Which slackline set is the right one to give as a present. Or: Which slackline for a beginner is the right one? And so one. There are so many different slackline sets out there. Its very hard for a beginner to find the right slackline. That’s why you might ask yourself these questions. Well, in this blog post I try to answer this questions for a couple of you. If you can’t get you questions answered feel free to send me an email to [email protected] with your specific enquiry and I’ll give my best to help you out!

But anyways, here I tried to create a table which gives you an rough overview for whom our main products are made for, I call it the Slackline-Consultant.

At first we have the most significant difference in length of the slackline webbing and then in the width of the slackline webbing, the slackline webbing material and the tensioning system.

The length:

Slackline Newbies or Slackline Learner really can’t go wrong with the one ratchet 50mm 15 meter Slackline set. This one is also really popular as a birthday present or christmas gift. This set will just get you guys started on a really fair price! The 25 meter is just the following up version of the 15 meter and the good part about it is you can of course set it up as short as you want. With the 25 meter slackline set you’ll probably have a long time fun with it! The 30 meter slackline kit with the double ratchets is also adjustable to any length, but you really want to go over 15 meter at least to feel the extra bounce put on from the extra ratchet. Also a big benefit are the anchor round slings and the shackles which hold the webbing flat and helps a lot to get started with jumping on the slackline and do tricks. The 30 meter double ratchets is definitely for experts or those who want to become one! Slackline webbing length over 30 meter are better to setup and carry with a 25mm wideness. Read about that in next paragraph.

The width:

The 15 meter, 25 meter and the 30 meter slackline ratchet sets are all with the 50mm width slacklineshop classic webbing which are perfect for learners and Trickline performers. Due to the good width it is really stable and bouncy if you put energy in it. The other option is the 25mm width slackline kits or 25 mm slackline webbings. The feeling is really different to a wider webbing. You need this extra bit of training to walk them, especially because most of the thinner webbings are set up to walk longer distances over 30 meter.

The Construction:

There are mainly two different shaped slackline webbings, which are flat construction or tubular construction. Tubular means the slackline webbing is build like a hose and the inside is empty – you could look right through it if its short enough. Flat webbing means its what it says. Flat and solid. Here it is really up to you and what you prefer. Some people say they love the tubular feeling on their feet, because it is closer to tight rope walking due to it’s more round shaped character. Flat webbing is probably more direct due to its flat foot feeling. Try and find it out!

The Tensioning System:

Most simple is of course the single ratchet. Easy to set up. Easy to transport only the two pieces. The next option is to use 2 ratchets with long slings on each end of the webbing. You can make it more advanced with adding a shackle and a round anchor sling to each ratchet and use a short sling with the ratchet. It stops the slackline from twisting it self, that is really important if you want to do tricks and jumping. The other option is to put tension to the webbing with a primitive pulley. The technique comes from Jeff Ellington, more about him in the wikipedia article about slacklining in the section ”history”. We at slacklineshop.co.nz give you the option to set up a pulley with shackles or carabiners. The main difference is the setup comfort and price. If you don’t mind the extra weight and the two-hand twisting technique of a shackle you will save some money. The other option are the carabiner: easier to set up and lighter. Both do have the same effectiveness to build the pulley system.

Hope you know more about the different systems and webbings now and I also hope you can’t wait to get on a slackline and get hooked to this amazing balancing and mind acrobatic sport. Trust me it will take your body-mind experience to another dimension and makes you better sportsman and balanced out person!

Thank you for reading.

Patrick