I got interested in 3/8" cable for pulling. There are tons of cable fixtures and the splicing typically slips before the cable breaks. Gives you a little warning. The weakest 3/8" cable I could find had a break strength of 10,498#. The strongest I found had a break strength of 18,000#. They cost, per foot, $1.55 and $1.37 respectively (yeah, the stronger one is 302 stainless and costs less...go figure). Contrastingly, chain of this strength is 1/2" grade 100 to 5/8" grade 80. It costs $6.60/foot and 11.84/foot respectively. Now consider that a 20 foot length of the 5/8" weighs 75 pounds. I think cable is a good low stretch alternative to nylon. It costs less, weighs less, and is stronger than chain. To keep it from being a 20' steel bullwhip if it breaks I've heard of people tying split bike inner tubes along the cable; in a fashion similar to bow string silencers. I've only seen one cable break, and I'm glad no one was in its path. We were sailing, and it was the mainstay cable that holds the mast up. I remember when it broke it sounded like one of the blaster cannons from Star Wars.