D handle

[WooHoo 0]

I have ordered a new rig ( a Vector III), and when asked if I wanted a D handle or a soft pud for the reserve, I gave it a few moments thought and went for the soft handle.

A few folk have suggested that with my low jump numbers a d handle would be better. So I'll go with that. ( so you can see I appear to be very suggestable :o) My question is., is it a straightforward exchange. So when I get the rig with the soft handle it is just a straight swap, or do any changes need to be made to the housing and rig.

Thanks

[Reginald 0]

If the rig has not been manufactured yet they can change it out on your order now, probably at no cost. have you talked to the dealer that sold you the rig about it? If you do it after you get your rig you have to buy a extra handle at extra cost. Changing it out is easy for any rigger to do though.

"We've been looking for the enemy for some time now. We've finally found him. We're surrounded. That simplifies things." CP

[brabzzz 0]

iirc, it's ok on most rigs. But, iirc (unlikely) if you have chest rings on an old teardrop sf, there is no room for a metal D.

The low profile metal D's they offer on vectors look the business. Kinda the best of both worlds.

---------------------------------------
Ex-University of Bristol Skydiving Club
www.skydivebristoluni.com

[NWFlyer 2]

Quote

So I'll go with that. ( so you can see I appear to be very suggestable :o)

I hope that's more of a joke than a reality. Not that seeking advice from more experienced folks isn't a good thing... it's the way we all learn. I just hope that you're also asking people to explain *why* they are recommending a particular course of action and that you're getting all the information you need to make an informed decision, not just making one because "so-and-so said it was a good idea."

Not saying this particular case was bad advice, but there can be some questionable-to-bad advice that floats around as "conventional wisdom." (And believe me, I speak from experience here ... I took advice on radically shortening the brake lines on my Spectre from people who were way more experienced than me and who had ratings, etc., that was just plain wrong, and if I'd bothered to read the manual from PD, I would have not only known it was wrong, but *why* it was wrong).

So ... why is a D handle a better choice at your experience level?

"There is only one basic human right, the right to do as you damn well please. And with it comes the only basic human duty, the duty to take the consequences." -P.J. O'Rourke

[WooHoo 0]

So ... why is a D handle a better choice at your experience level?




I am a low jumper, who will probably continue to go aon a couple of week long skydiving vaations a year. I learnt on D handles and I guess it is what I will be looking for, when the time comes.

On a recent two way my buddy ( who had 112 jumps, yep 113 was a mal) had a bad line over, he stayed with it for about ten seconds thinking it was line twists, then he cut away. He told me on the ground that he got his hands on the handles, then for a moment could not remember which one to pull first. I thought he was joking but he said muscle memory took over.

So I am thinking if I have a mal and need to cutaway and am having a moment of brain lock, it is just possible that when my hand s go to the handles, my left hand feeling a pad, may ( and I admit it is unlikely but anything is possible in extremis) pull which we can all agree is a bad option.

So my hand willnever mistake a D handle for a pad.

So I will go for the D, then in a couple of hundred jumps I can always reconsider, which will be in about ten years time at my current rate..


Any thoughts on this ? Given that some of the reports of two outs may have been due to this in the past, I was just wondering>

[NWFlyer 2]

Good explanation that makes a lot of sense to me.

I will defer to those with more experience re: the risk of two out, but I would imagine that the likelihood of catching a D handle would increase if you 1) don't stay aware of handles and protect them as you move around an aircraft and on exit (not becoming complacent can help prevent that) or 2) you are doing jumps in which other jumpers get near enough to your handles to become a snag risk (chest strap grips on exits, hybrid jumps where someone is hanging off the chest strap are two examples I can think of right now). Best way to prevent those is to make sure that everyone on the jump is aware of the (relatively small) risk and plans the jump accordingly.

I don't freefly, so I don't know if there are freefly moves that would present a higher risk of handle snag.

"There is only one basic human right, the right to do as you damn well please. And with it comes the only basic human duty, the duty to take the consequences." -P.J. O'Rourke

[Guest]

Hey!

Yea, having just got my rig, my instructors were reccommending I get the D-handle for a different reason. They said keep it until you have your first cut-away, then decide if you like it or not. If my first cut-away is a hard spinner, I'd much rather the metal loop to hook my thumb through to get a better grip on it rather than fumbling aroudn trying to grab a pillow...just another thought

[brabzzz 0]

D-handles can be pulled with broken bones.

Either with a damaged hand that wouldn't have the strength to grasp and grip a pad or literally with the bones that are sticking out!

They are a bit more of a snag hazard, but poorly mateing the velcro (on either pads or D's) or general gear neglect/lack of checks, is, imho, more likley to get the reserve out prematurely that an actual D snag.

Disclaimer, never had a snag, damaged hand or reserve ride...but thats how i'd rationalise my choice of metal D.

---------------------------------------
Ex-University of Bristol Skydiving Club
www.skydivebristoluni.com

[Guest]

Quote

Either with a damaged hand that wouldn't have the strength to grasp and grip a pad or literally with the bones that are sticking out!

What a wonderful image in my brain. haha. ew.

[Slurp56 0]

If you think there may be a problem remembering which handle to pull first, go with a SOS.

________________________________________
I have proof-read this post 500 times, but I guarantee you'll still manage to find a flaw.

[bob.dino 0]

Bill Booth (billbooth) agrees with you. Do a search for his opinions on pillow reserve handles - he's discussed the issue on here a number of times.

[meandean 0]

If my first cut-away is a hard spinner, I'd much rather the metal loop to hook my thumb through to get a better grip on it rather than fumbling aroudn trying to grab a pillow...just another thought
----------------------------------------------------------

just another thought ....wouldn't you be trying to grab a pillow , to cut-away first, before sticking your thumb... somewhere?

[Guest]

Yea, you would...it gives me some peace of mind. If the harness shifts after cutting-away, it'd be much easier to hook a hand though the d-handle for me anyways.