Mar 14, 2012, 9:10 PM
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Performance Foam
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Curious if any one has any experience with the Performance foam on the leading edge of arm wings (Phantom 3). I believe this is a new option for the Phantom and has been offered on larger wings. Is it worth the extra 50 bucks? Thanks for the input in advance.
I think it is like the foam on the leading edge of tony suits. It is designed to keep the leading edge from deforming so it can maintain optimal shape while flying. I could be wrong though i have not seen it.
Worth is very subjective, and will depend on how you use the suit.
If you are just flocking with your friends I doubt you'll need it, but if you are interested in getting some extra performance at the top end I think the foam will provide it.
I don't have back to back jumps with and without the foam to compare, however I did notice a long time ago that I seemed to have better flights when wearing a heavy fleece than in a t-shirt.
It could have been all in my head, but it seemed to make enough of a difference that I noticed it. I'd expect the foam to have a greater effect and it would be worth €50 to me.
I think it is like the foam on the leading edge of tony suits.
Are you aware of the difference between the leading edges of Phoenix-Fly and Tonysuits? It's probably similar to Phoenix-Fly's other suits (and nothing like Tonysuits) ...
I think it is like the foam on the leading edge of tony suits.
Are you aware of the difference between the leading edges of Phoenix-Fly and Tonysuits? It's probably similar to Phoenix-Fly's other suits (and nothing like Tonysuits) ...
Apparently not. What is the difference?
What I was trying to compare is in Tony suits their is a foam dowel rod thing in the arm to prevent it from deforming or at least that's how it was explained to me.
never jumped a PF suit with it but I am familiar with it (got to rotate it on a V4 in the plane when it had inversed and checked a few suits out on the ground with it) and my tony suit has its version ... the basic principal is the same, which is to maintain the wing shape better. Tony uses tubular foam (and neoprene on some suits) that sits above the arm and PF uses shaped foam that conforms to the arm shape - both raise the leading edge slightly above the arms and are there to add the shape, the rest is semantics really.
is it worth it? If it makes you feel happy get it. I'd argue that unless you're one of the 10 best wingsuit pilots in the world you would get more out of technique and training jumps than the foam will give you and even then it would still be minimal. Be it Tony, PF, Alien et al, it is only a suit, you still have to fly it
I'd argue that unless you're one of the 10 best wingsuit pilots in the world you would get more out of technique and training jumps than the foam will give you ...
Agreed. The performance foam appears to be removable so if you get it and don't like it you can remove it. Is it worth it? Performance, I don't know. Preference, I liked it on my Vampire 3 and wished I had it on my Phantom 2.
If you look at the second figure on the link bellow... you will see a bit of what manufactores are actually trying to achive with the added pad on the leading edge of the wing.
If you look at the second figure on the link bellow... you will see a bit of what manufactores are actually trying to achive with the added pad on the leading edge of the wing.
I think it is like the foam on the leading edge of tony suits.
Are you aware of the difference between the leading edges of Phoenix-Fly and Tonysuits? It's probably similar to Phoenix-Fly's other suits (and nothing like Tonysuits) ...
Apparently not. What is the difference?
What I was trying to compare is in Tony suits their is a foam dowel rod thing in the arm to prevent it from deforming or at least that's how it was explained to me.
Is that not right?
The solid foam in Phoenix suits (at least in the V-range) is cut and shaped to sit over your arm and form the leading edge of the wing. The solid foam in a Tony suit is a long round baton.
At the end of the day they are very similar in function, but the Tony version is a simpler copy.
I find it makes it easier to zip arm wings up/down with foam
this seems to be the foams primary function in the tonysuit every video i see of a tonysuit in a dive shows the leading edge colapsed and usually flailing towards the baggy escape sleeve with the foam doing nothing for overall form. though the initial part of the leading edge in the tonysuit does seem to be sharper with their foam weather this is an advantage at the speeds we fly i dont know.
On all PF suits that offer the Performance Foam, its main function is to provide a smooth leading edge and also marry the sleeve nice and tight against the arm. The foam is cut on the inside to match the curve of the arm so all moves with the arm also translate directly to the wing and there isnt a delay due to a loose fit.
The attached picture of a Venom shows how the leading edge looks in flight. Even with a sub-optimal arm position, like a slightly bent elbow (not in the attached pic) the leading edge will look clean.
I have quite a few jumps on the Phantom3, Shadow2, Venom and a few other new things we're working on, and in all I personally prefer the feel (thats even outside of the actual performance gain) of the foam inserts over that of a normal sleeve. It seems to make my flying a lot more crisp and clean. Combined with the good inflation it also seems to relieve a bit of pressure from the arm in terms of keeping it open/stretched on longer flights.
Here is a clip of the shadow2 with the same performance foam option
I agree with Jarno. I have about 20 jumps on my P3 (with performance foam) and feel overall the suit flies more precise in addition to a slight performance gain.
How noticeable is this performance foam? I got my p3 and forgot if I got that option. My arm sleeves have about 1/4" to 1/2" soft foam sewed in, nothing removeable.
(This post was edited by jpengel on Mar 16, 2012, 10:51 AM)
If you really want to see if there's a difference, fly with the foam removed from one side, and see if you notice any asymmetry in the flight behavior.
The foam is actually easily removable. There is a double layer of fabric you can peel back, which than allows for sliding the foam out of the pocket. Its in there tight, but its easily remove-able.
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