Cutaway Cable cleaning?

[BoostedXT 0]

I want to flex my 3 rings seeing how I am coming up on 30 days and I havent been able to find the teflon cleaner at stores. I do have a can of WD40....is that ok to use? or is the Teflon stuff a lot better to use?

Thanks
joe

For long as you live and high you fly and smiles you'll give and tears you'll cry and all that you touch and all that you see is all your life will ever be.
Pedro Offers you his Protection.

[sundevil777 94]

Flexing the 3 rings (webbing) has nothing to do with cleaning and lubricating the cables.

You don't need cleaner, just a rag for the cables. Use a pure silicon lube without oil on the cables, definitely not WD40.

People are sick and tired of being told that ordinary and decent people are fed up in this country with being sick and tired. I’m certainly not, and I’m sick and tired of being told that I am

[BoostedXT 0]

Ok great. Thanks for the help.

Thanks
Joe
PS-I love this place....

For long as you live and high you fly and smiles you'll give and tears you'll cry and all that you touch and all that you see is all your life will ever be.
Pedro Offers you his Protection.

[D22369 0]

definitely not WD40***



Why not? I have been using WD40 for years with no trouble, it cleans and lubricates well, and is safe for all plastics and teflon.

Roy

They say I suffer from insanity.... But I actually enjoy it.

[mjosparky 3]

Quote

definitely not WD40***



Why not? I have been using WD40 for years with no trouble, it cleans and lubricates well, and is safe for all plastics and teflon.

Roy

In 6+ years of racing M/C and almost 20 in parachute testing, I have yet to find anything that WD-40 is really good for.
Sparky

My idea of a fair fight is clubbing baby seals

[slotperfect 7]

Lots of discussion on this subject in the forums before . . . a quick search for the words "cutaway cables" produced these results.

Arrive Safely

John

[D22369 0]

In 6+ years of racing M/C and almost 20 in parachute testing, I have yet to find anything that WD-40 is really good for. ***

You have more time in skydiving than I do, I will grant you that, but I have over 20 yrs experience in motorcross and hare scrambles racing, It workes well for cables and chains, So this is another example of people having different opinions. I will stick with it and suggest to others to use it, you will obviously suggest they never try it.

Roy

They say I suffer from insanity.... But I actually enjoy it.

[sundevil777 94]

WD40 attracts dirt, that's why it should not be used.

People are sick and tired of being told that ordinary and decent people are fed up in this country with being sick and tired. I’m certainly not, and I’m sick and tired of being told that I am

[hookitt 0]

WD40 also works rather well to remove adhesive tape residue and gum from the floor after pulling up the carpet to find a nice hard wood floor.

Ace Silicon Spray <== That's the ticket right there.

Read this

My grammar sometimes resembles that of magnetic refrigerator poetry... Ghetto

[rushmc 18]

Use a rag or towel with WD-40 on it to clean the cable. Wipe in this way until no more dirt shows. Then us use a clean dry towel to wipe it down until the cable appears dry. This still leaves enough to lubricate but not enough to collect dirt. At least that is my experience.

"America will never be destroyed from the outside,
if we falter and lose our freedoms,
it will be because we destroyed ourselves."
Abraham Lincoln

[rushmc 18]

Another choice is a product called Break Free. It is used in the gun idustry to clean and lubricate because it is non-corrosive. It sure smells funny though.

"America will never be destroyed from the outside,
if we falter and lose our freedoms,
it will be because we destroyed ourselves."
Abraham Lincoln

[Hooknswoop 19]

I have used several different products to clean cutaway cables. WD-40 always resulted in very black cables after 30 days, increasing cutaway forces, same for CLP/Break free. I think oily lubricants attact dirt and gum up the cables.

What I found that does work, and tried it because RWS recommended it, was Ace Pure Silicone Lubricant, available at Ace Hardware Stores. It cleans the cables, not as well as WD-40 and I have used WD-40 to clean very dirty cables, then the Silicone afterwards. The Silicone drys quickly and leaves a dry film that dirt doesn't stick to. Cutaway forces after 30+ days remain very low and following th 30-day cleaning cycle keeps pull forces very low, even in dusty/sandy enviroments.

As a rigger, I wouldn't use anything else.

Derek

[riggerrob 558]

WD-40 is primarily a penetrating oil/cleaning agent.
Don't trust it to lubricate after more than a few days.
Mind you, dry Teflon cables slide just fine.

[darkwing 4]

Whatever "other people" say, why not just use what the manufacturer recommends, which is usually the Ace Pure Silicone spray. Just because somebody has "used X for years" doesn't mean it is a good choice. There is absolutely no reason to deviate from the manufacturers recommendations. There are many reasons not to deviate from them.

-- Jeff
My Skydiving History

[AggieDave 6]

Do you know what Break Free really is?

Its basically carb cleaner/starting spray that's been "watered" down a bit. I wouldn't recommend that for anything near anyones gear. Very harsh stuff!

--"When I die, may I be surrounded by scattered chrome and burning gasoline."

[flyboy62000 0]

I clean the cables with a mild detergent and water to remove dirt and grime and then put a very light coat of CYPRES silicon on them. I doesn't seem to attract dirt and lubricates a little bit. I figure it decreases friction at the closing loop, why not at the cutway cable. I don't think it would have any significant impact on cutway force, but I still do it anyway.

Blue Skies,
Adam
I fly because it releases my mind from the tyranny of petty things . . . — Antoine de Saint-Exupéry

[CanuckInUSA 0]

Joe ... the fact that you are thinking about flexing your 3 rings and wanting to clean you cutaway cables tells us you are aware that your gear needs a certain amount of maintenance. Good job!!!

I use a silicon spray to clean my cutaway cables (just cleaned them the other day).

Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

[hookitt 0]

Quote

put a very light coat of CYPRES silicon on them

Ah yes. That too is a good option.

My grammar sometimes resembles that of magnetic refrigerator poetry... Ghetto

[cvfd1399 0]

I agree. It is made to eat away lead and powder foweling from firearms.

[teason 0]

Quote

I want to flex my 3 rings seeing how I am coming up on 30 days and I havent been able to find the teflon cleaner at stores.

Are these Teflon cables?
There are two dfferent types of cutaway cables; lolon and teflon.
Teflon are red and do not require lubrication. I don't think, however, that the Infinity uses teflon cables.

Lolon are the yellow cables and require cleaning with either silicon lubricant or 3 in 1 machine oil.
Do not use WD-40 as it is not designed for long term lubrication.

p.s. Silicon V. 3 in 1 machine oil is also a subject of great debate among riggers

I would rather be a superb meteor, every atom of me in magnificent glow, than a sleepy and permanent planet.

[mjosparky 3]

Quote

p.s. Silicon V. 3 in 1 machine oil is also a subject of great debate among riggers

I would try to keep any petroleum based product away for parachute equipment. I don't think it is good for nylon. That is one reason we use a vegetable oil on sewing machines.
Sparky

My idea of a fair fight is clubbing baby seals

[masterrig 1]

What Sparky said. 3-in-1 oil gets 'tacky' and will attract dirt. To clean really dirty 'blackened' cables, I'll spray some WD-40 on a rag (old T-shirt), wipe the cables clean then wipe the cables again with the clean part of the cloth to remove any residue. I'll wipe the cables down with pure silicon like that used on Cypres closing loops.

Chuck

[ukJump 0]

Sorry to bring up an old thread, but in the light of recent events, I want to be sure that if/when I need to cutaway, I don't have any problems... Anyone tried Teflon spray?? The type that I have is made by Weldtite and is called TF2.. I don't think we can get the Ace Silicon stuff in the UK!

[billbooth 10]

Teflon spray is OK. It just doesn't seem to (pardon the pun) "stick"around as long as silicone spray, so you have to do it more often.

[ukJump 0]

*** Teflon spray is OK. It just doesn't seem to (pardon the pun) "stick"around as long as silicone spray, so you have to do it more often. ***


Dunnit. Seems to work ok and cables don't seem to have any residue. I'll see how it goes in 30 days!!

Thanks for the advice!