has contributed 58 reviews

(Review ID:2219)

2 of 45 people found the following review helpful:

Sabre 190 @ 1.11

Rated by: Justin_Mac on 2009-07-24 (user profile) (user reviews)

Review of: Sabre in Unknown Tag: 'cat_linked'

Pros: good flying good landing canopy
Cons: not as responsive as other canopies, wierd brake design

I have put several jumps now on a nice Sabre 190 that I bought with 500 or so jumps on it. It does not open hard compared to student gear...but it opens harder than my Golden Knights PD 235 C. It Flies smoother and faster and has a longer flater landing arch than the 7 Cell PD, and I like that...I jump both canopies interchangeably and like the flexibility, different characteristics and opportunities presented by both canopies.

v/r
Justin

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(Review ID:2189)

12 of 40 people found the following review helpful:

great beginner canopy

Rated by: Fdriver on 2009-05-28 (user profile) (user reviews)

Review of: Sabre in Unknown Tag: 'cat_linked'

Pros: On heading, soft opening, good beginner main
Cons: Occational hard opening

At about 35 jumps I bought a sabre 170 as my 1st canopy, been jumping solo 230 and pilot 190 prior to the purchase.
considering weight to surface have a wingloading of 1.16 and it is great to fly. I actually got my A and B license using this canopy. the openings are soft and on heading, however you need to pay a lot of attention to the pack job, in particular to nesting the nose in the pack and making the cocoon. if at this point you loose a bit of focus, you'll be prone to a hard opening.
as to flying the sabre, it is great, still being a rectangular canopy it is really responsive on the controls. I can surely recommend this canopy as a starter for those who are looking for their 1st rig.

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(Review ID:2163)

0 of 25 people found the following review helpful:

Sabre 170.

Rated by: Willi91 on 2009-04-10 (user profile) (user reviews)

Review of: Sabre in Unknown Tag: 'cat_linked'

Pros: Well flying beginner-canopy, fine openings ...
Cons: ... but can sometimes slam your ass in opening.

After achieving my C-license, I borrowed a Sabre 170 from a friend and made two jumps in it. It opened like thunder and lightning.
Afterwards a visited my rigger to see, if he had some gear that fitted my needs. He had a Sabre 170, which I bought, 'cause it was fine in price and was in great condition. I was afraid, that it would open in the same way as my friend's but I've made almost 30 jumps in it now, and have only had one or two openings i would prefere to call hard. All openings besides those two have been fine. It opens fast but smooth. Not fast as in painful. As far as I know, PD also put bigger sliders on the late models, which mine is. I'm not sure though.
So if you're a beginner who's looking for an affordable canopy, I would strongly recommend this one.

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(Review ID:2149)

12 of 56 people found the following review helpful:

Used Sabre 170 Review

Rated by: humbled1 on 2009-03-09 (user profile) (user reviews)

Review of: Sabre in Unknown Tag: 'cat_linked'

Pros: Opens Nicely, Easy to Pack, Flares Great
Cons: None that I have found

This is my first canopy that I have actually owned. I had 77 jumps on student and pro shop rental gear prior to jumping this main. I currently have 110 jumps on my Sabre.

It was GIVEN to me by a packer at Elsinore when he realized I had a container/reserve but no main. It was his original first canopy so he had it shipped down from Washington. It had about 850 jumps on it, I got a new line set right away.

It does not have a pocket slider, but I do roll the nose and flip the slider in the front. I have 2 packers that sometimes pack my main, I do my share of packing but sometimes I get lazy about it. I have had a couple of "snappy" openings but NOTHING compared to the slammers I had on some of the rental gear I had used.

I am a huge fan of the Sabre so far, I intend on jumping this main till I have 300 jumps total. At that point I will be looking for a Sabre 150.

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(Review ID:2146)

24 of 95 people found the following review helpful:

Avoid this dinosaur

Rated by: uscallesen on 2009-02-28 (user profile) (user reviews)

Review of: Sabre in Unknown Tag: 'cat_linked'

Pros: Lots of cheap used ones out there, Great in most aspects
Cons: Terrible openings

I bought a used Sabre 170 after getting my C license - Been jumping PD Navigator 220 before that. I found one with brand new lines at an excellent price.

Did 40 jumps on it until I realized that the terrible, terrible hard openings was overshadowing the thrill of jumping. Twice it opened so hard I nearly blacked out. I tried all the techniques with rolling the nose etc.. And I was able to improve the openings but never to the point where I was comfortable releasing the 'chute at maximum velocity.

I ordered a brand new 7-cell PD instead..

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(Review ID:2144)

4 of 25 people found the following review helpful:

Sabre (the original)

Rated by: dobber on 2009-02-21 (user profile) (user reviews)

Review of: Sabre in Unknown Tag: 'cat_linked'

Pros: It will always open
Cons: Can't use packers

I recently, and regretfully, sold my sabre 170. On mine, until I rolled the nose and shoved it in the center cell, it would open EXTREMELY hard. One opening broke a control line, blew out my left stabilizer cell, and knocked me out. After packing it the way I just described, it opens nice. It isn't a velocity, but it is an amazing canopy. However, packers think they are experts on canopies and are scared to pack it this way. Therefore, if you own a sabre, pack it yourself. Your life depends on it. It is worth the effort however, as it is a beautiful work of art which will never fail you. P.S. I was knocked out and scared on the aforementioned hard opening, and low when I woke up. I landed it without incident. I don't recommend this reaction, but it is an example of the well designed nature of this canopy.

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(Review ID:2066)

0 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

If you can pack it right it's a great ride!

Rated by: FourSideDean on 2008-09-16 (user profile) (user reviews)

Review of: Sabre in Unknown Tag: 'cat_linked'

Pros: Very responsive, fun to fly, Easy to land
Cons: hard openings if not packed right

I am relatively new to the sport and needed to save some scratch if I were to get a rig. I found a Sabre 170 and had it relined. All together cost a fair price of $700. Great condition with one patch.

I was consistantly having hard openings... I was packing the way the manufacturer suggested and did what other people suggested but still got hard openings. My neck was sore from all the hard openings... I finally tried the psycho pack. When the canopy was on the floor I rolled the nose like PD suggested but tighter. I think this way I have more control of the rolls and it stayed rolled for the remainder of the pack job. This fixed my opening problem. I also think the psycho pack kept my slider better in place as well. I think a pro-pack is fine as long as you can keep that roll and slider in place.

Now that it opens nice and soft I am very happy!
Make sure you know how to pack well. Wether you use a pro-pack or psycho pack. If you have problems talk with an instructor/coach/rigger and have them watch you pack it so they can give you pointers.

Once it opens I have a great ride. I am 130 lbs and I have a 170 sq ft... So it is a very low wing load. I'm new so I am most interested in landing safely. But I will fly it around and I have a great time.

Landings have been very nice. No problem with flaring. It has a bit of forward motion but I kind of like that... it's like a mini-swoop... I don't know how to swoop but I like the feeling of floating along the ground...

I think this a great canopy as long as you can pack it right. I'm a bit strapped for cash so I went for the Sabre1 but if you can afford it got for a Sabre2. I hear that those are nice and don't have the hard openings... I imagine my next main will be a Sabre2 150.

I still love this canopy and since I am still relatively new to the sport I get giddy everytime I think about skydiving...

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