Ultrahigh molecular weight polyethylene (UHMWPE) fibers such as Dyneema and Spectra are seeing more use in lightweight armor applications due to higher tensile strength and lower density compared to aramid fibers such as Kevlar and Twaron. Numerical modeling is used to improve the design of fiber-based composite protective systems. Material response such as tensile stress-strain of different constituents of composites must be studied under experimental conditions similar to strain rates experienced during ballistic events. UHMWPE fibers are difficult to grip by adhesive methods typically used for other fibers due to low surface energy. Based on previous studies, the ability to grip UHMWPE fibers using traditional adhesive methods is dependent on fiber diameter and is limited to smaller diameter fibers which could affect reported stress values. To avoid diameter restrictions and surface energy problems, a direct gripping method has been used to characterize Dyneema SK76 single fibers at quasistatic, intermediate, and high strain rates of 0.001, 1, and 1,000 s -1 , respectively. In an effort to understand the effect of defect distribution along a fiber on its tensile response, multiple gage length samples were studied at the different strain rates. In this paper, the dependence of fiber diameter and gage-length on failure strength is discussed as well as success rate of failures in the gage section with this gripping technique. A comparison of the tensile properties to previous studies is also explored in this study.