F-111 Whats it really?

[Springbock 0]

Hello Guys,

I am in the middle of an Static Line Instructors Course and I was asked to explain F111 Fabric

- What does that name mean?
- How is it made?
- anything else special about it

I have tried the last 2 hours to get some more Informastion from the net, but actually with no much success.

Does anyone know more about it or can post a link?

Äh, by the way, I need to know it by tomorrow Night .

Thanks a lot Guys

Martin

Take care up there!

[chuckbrown 0]

Hopefully, someone has Poytner's parachute manual handy. It's explained in there.

[councilman24 36]

F-111 was a brand name, like Kleenex, and is no longer made. Much of the fabric used is from Precision textiles and it's brand name is (or at least was) Exactachute. Generically it's 0-5 cfm 1.2 ounce ripstop nylon. PIA-C-44378 type 1

http://www.precisionfabrics.com/display.asp?ProductLine_id=64

edit: this is the "spec" version. See post below for exactachute specs. My bad!

You should refer to the specific specification rather than a brand name like F-111. But, since it was the first of it's type "F-111" came into common usage for any similar fabric.
Aspirin was also a brand name of acetylsalicylic acid for the Bayer company.

I'm old for my age.
Terry Urban
D-8631
FAA DPRE

[FrogNog 1]

F-111 nowadays is the term used for canopy fabric that is made by weaving nylon, then heat-squishing it (calendering), but not treating it further. The resultant fabric will pass some small amount of air, typically between 0 and 3 cubic feet per minute at a specified air pressure differential when the fabric is new.

This is different from ZP fabric which is similarly weaved and calendered, but is also coated with something like a rubber, plastic, or oil. The resultant fabric will not pass any (or very much) air in the same test.

These terms may indicate the chemical composition / manufactury of the nylon thread other than its size, but I don't believe the terms F-111 or ZP necessarily indicate the denier (thickness) of the threads woven to make the fabric. There may be an industry de facto standard for that.

Please note that I am not a rigger, weaver, materials specialist, canopy manufacturer, or any of that, so while I think I got the main point right, I may have screwed up a detail.

-=-=-=-=-
Pull.

[FrogNog 1]

(Looks like the Exactachute specs allow for .5 to 5 cubic feet of air passed per square foot per minute.)

-=-=-=-=-
Pull.

[councilman24 36]

Wrong version. I knew it didn't look right.

Here is Performance textiles exactachute.
http://www.perftex.com/exatachute_specs.htm

I'm old for my age.
Terry Urban
D-8631
FAA DPRE

[mark 102]

F-111 was made by the George Harris Corporation, now out of business. Around 1980, Mike Furry used it in his then-revolutionary Pegasus at a time when Para-Flite was still transitioning from 1.55-oz fabric (Strato-Cloud, Strato-Star) to a lighter 1.25-oz fabric (Cruisair), both of which packed much bigger than 1.12-oz F-111.

The name comes partly from the weight, but also from the US Air Force F-111 ("Aardvark") which first saw combat service in Southeast Asia, and which was later used in the retaliatory strikes against Libya following the Berlin disco bombings in the 80's. A heavier fabric, B-1 (named for the "Bone"), never caught on in the civilian market.

The late George Harris himself was a WW2 combat veteran who served with the 101st Airborne Division. I remember him for his graciousness and courtesy: he sold me 75 yards of white and 25 yards of red for my first parachute, at a time when his standard order was 5000 yards.

Mark

[gerrcoin 0]

F-111 is a type of Ripstop Nylon woven fabric. That means that the material is woven from Nylon thread in such a way that should a tear appear in the material it will not spread - the fabric is not weakened by a small rip.

As to the name, well here I am just guessing but:
The fabrics are specified by their thread thickness in denier (den), which is thread weight specified over a thread length of 9,000 metres. This means that a 9,000 metre long 600 den thread, for example, would weigh 600 grams. Thus for each 9000m length the nylon thread used in F111 would weigh 111 grams. (please read further before flaming)

From BillVons post #4

Quote

F-111 is a trade name that no one uses any more; it's become a term like 'xerox.' This comes up because the modern fabrics used in reserves (like ExactaChute) do not behave like F-111. This is why the old argument "Does F-111 rip like ZP?" is hard to answer accurately; no one uses F-111, and the type of fabric used is critical in answering that question.

From The Base Jumping Forums:

Quote

Low porosity ripstop nylon fabric (F111, Exactachute, whatever) goes through a process called calendering. This involves passing the woven material through two heated rollers, which press the individual yarns together. This achieves a low fabric porosity. This process is done AFTER the dyeing process. By the way, zero-P fabrics are treated with additional coatings, usually silicon based, to fill the remaining "holes."

With F111-type material, It is known that water submersion will undo the calendering of the fabric and "open up" the small gaps in the weave, increasing porosity and hindering canopy performance. Dyeing may have a similar effect.

It is light and strong and its ripstop capabilities make it invaluable in parachutes. It is also degraded by exposure to water and to UV light (eg from prolonged exposure to direct sunlight) as this breaks down the Nylon polymer. Ripstop fabrics such as F111 were also used in clothes manufacturing and were sometimes seen in shell suits from the 80s.

[darkwing 4]

Look at the fabric used on most modern reserves. It is very much like F-111. Think of it as ZP without the crinkle. As stated above, the term F-111 has roots as a trademarked name, but is almost always used these days to refer to non-ZP parachute fabric. I note that the internal ribs on my Pilot main are F-111-like fabric.

-- Jeff
My Skydiving History

[riggerrob 558]

F-111 fabric fell out of production after George Harris died in the mid-1980s, however we still call most 0 to 3 cfm, calendarized, rip-stop, weighing around 1 ounce per square yard nylon fabric "F-111."
Leading manufacturers are Performance Textiles (USA), Perseverance Textiles (Great Britain) and Gelvenor Textiles (South Africa).
Gelvenor spokesmen brag that their fabric is consistently 0.5 cfm off the production line. At arm's length, new Gelvenor 0-3 cfm fabric looks like ZP. The only way to tell the difference is to wave it until you hear a crinkly noise (ZP characteristic).

[nitrochute 2]

F111 is fluorocarbon (F) treated ripstop nylon fabric which weighs 1.11 oz per square yard hence F111.the fluorocarbon finish is an ultraviolet inhibitor which
makes the fabric last longer. it is calendered(i.e squished under heat and pressure )to an air permeability of 0 to 3 c.f.m.F 111 was trademarked name like xerox but has come into generic use. george harris corp developed F11 nas consequently went out of business after mr harris died.

[nitrochute 2]

also f111 is diferent than other that fabrics that existed before it in that the individual fibers are not twisted before weaving. that is why f111 had that transparent look,but it is the reason harris was able to make it come in at 1.11 oz per square yard.remember that up till F111, all fabrics were woven from fibers that were twisted first,thus they are heavier.

[Springbock 0]

Thank you so much, all of you.

This helped a lot and I could easily accomplish the task with the help of you.

Again many thanks.

Martin

Take care up there!