New PD reserve questions and hopefully answers thread. READ THIS THREAD!

[skygod7777 0]

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So hurry up FAA :)

now this thread is supposed to be serious, no jokes!! we all know there is no hurrying with the faa

later

[RTB 0]

I can't wait to get one for my tandem rig. Hope that is on the schedule also.

[Spizzzarko 0]

Kolla,

Thanks for your reply to this thread. i have seen the interview on Youtube with John LeBlanc and found it to be pretty interesting, but I am still wondering if PD has a time table for releasing the optimum larger than the 143. Personally if I was able to pack up a 300' reserve into my container I would. I now jump a 113r and have purchased a jvx so I have to change my container. My new container will be sized for a 143 but like I said if I can get anything bigger in it I would. So now you see my interest in the release date.

[Spizzzarko 0]

Also do yall at PD have any of these that we can demo as mains available yet?

[freeflyfrog 0]

For those who aren't yet aware, the PD Optimum reserve is now available for ordering in sizes from 99 to 143 from PD or your dealer. I received marketing materials from them yesterday detailing flight characteristics and such. The retail price is $1380.

I have been eagerly awaiting this release as I bought a smaller Odyssey at the end of last season in anticipation of not having to downsize my reserve once the Optimum was ready. Rusty at PD even speculated that it may be possible to get a 143 Optimum into my RSK.5 which is set up for a 113. That would be the ideal case for me.

I have no problem being an "early adopter" of a PD product because I know how thoroughly they are tested before releasing to the general public.

I can't wait to hear from Sunpath about which Optimum reserve I can buy...

[Kolla 0]

Hey Grant!

Demos making their rounds already - get in touch with Kim to make arrangements for demos
We will definitely explore building the Optimum in larger sizes, but as of now we do not have an estimate as for when that will be done.
It's a project of a grand scale to design and test a reserve - for the time being the original PD Reserve will continue to cover those that need the larger sizes.

Blue ones,
Kolla

Blue Skies Magazine

[Rover7 0]

Damn I just ordered a new PD126 2 weeks ago. Anyone know what stage PD would be at with my new reserve in 2 weeks? If they haven't started it yet, maybe I could switch my order to the Optima

[isaiah85 0]

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Damn I just ordered a new PD126 2 weeks ago. Anyone know what stage PD would be at with my new reserve in 2 weeks? If they haven't started it yet, maybe I could switch my order to the Optima

Call your dealer and find out what needs to be done. I wouldn't think there should be any problem changing your reserve order, unless you ordered some crazy custom colors. Chances are the canopies you ordered just came from stock.

Isaiah

[pilotdave 0]

At PIA in 2005, I thought PD was showing a 143 packed into a 106 freebag. I know things have changed since then, but does the production optimum reserve pack a lot bigger than the prototypes back then? (Or am I wrong about the sizes in 2005?)

Do you have a comparison chart of what size they "pack like?"

Dave

[Kolla 0]

Hey Rover,

Yeah - exactly what Isaiah said! Give the dealer a call, and ask him/her to contact PD to change. You might very well be able to swap this one around if the original order wasn't too custom.

Oh - and make sure to change your order to an Optimum (an Optima is an audible - a great one at that, but won't look good packed in your reserve tray ).

Blue ones!
Kolla

Blue Skies Magazine

[billvon 2,397]

>At PIA in 2005, I thought PD was showing a 143 packed into a 106 freebag.

I saw the same thing at this year's PIA. Note that although the fabric packs up _approximately_ the same size, the 143 still has more line than the 106. I would suspect that if a rig currently takes a 106 and it's very tight, the 143 might not fit.

[isaiah85 0]

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>At PIA in 2005, I thought PD was showing a 143 packed into a 106 freebag.

I saw the same thing at this year's PIA. Note that although the fabric packs up _approximately_ the same size, the 143 still has more line than the 106. I would suspect that if a rig currently takes a 106 and it's very tight, the 143 might not fit.

Yea, we had a 143 packed in a 106 bag it was tighter then the 106 though.

From what we found, a rig with whatever current reserve in it, if it packs up real tight, you can go one size bigger, if it's medium you can sometimes go two sizes larger. The PIA measuring method has them coming in about 15% smaller in pack volume, but actually packing them it's closer to 30% smaller.

The best part about these canopies is the way they perform though, we have the demo's available now so check them out.

Isaiah

[berchtoldaj 0]

FAQ's and Flight characteristics are up on the PD website for those interested.

www.performancedesigns.com

************
Watch out for planters.

[Rover7 0]

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Hey Rover,

Oh - and make sure to change your order to an Optimum (an Optima is an audible - a great one at that, but won't look good packed in your reserve tray ).

Blue ones!
Kolla

Thanks, I guess it's better if I keep the optima in my helmet instead of in the reserve container. :)

[snafuhere 0]

Isaiah,
what would be the best fit for Javelin Odyssey RSK.5?
I guess 126
how about 143?

https://www.facebook.com/1skydive/

[isaiah85 0]

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Isaiah,
what would be the best fit for Javelin Odyssey RSK.5?
I guess 126
how about 143?

Your best bet is to contact the container manufacturer for sizing.

Sorry I can't give you more info then that...

Isaiah

[freeflyfrog 0]

I just corresponded with Rick at Sunpath. I also have an Odyssey RSK.5. They are recommending the 126 Optimum as the best fit, but I'd be interested to know if anyone does get a 143 in there.

[TMPattersonJr 0]

Well, after this weekend I am EXTREMELY impressed with this product. Isaiah from PD came up to Palatka with a few demo Optima's. He and Scott Roberts from Team Fastrax were up making jumps on the demo canopies. Seeing them doing 450's on a seven cell reserve was a bit impressive!!! Isaiah hooked up a 143 for me to demo, and all I can say is WOW!!!! The stability of this wing is impressive to begin with but also the maneuverability of it far exceeded my expectations... I've only done a few jumps on 7 cells one of which being an intentional cutaway, and this is by far the best I have jumped. Both jumps that I made on it I took about a 10 second delay and the openings were great, a little brisk but what more would you expect from a reserve?!? Input on all the controls (front, rear, and breaks) were quickly responded to, release of any control was immediately responded to, (very little oversteer) and recovery from the dive was short. Stall initiation and recovery were very predictable and managable. This canopy unlike most 7 cells that are by nature sinkers, has a very reasonable glide ratio. on both jumps I did carving 180's to final and having a 15 mph headwind was able to get a little bit of ground with it and still have a very positive flare at the end. Had no doubt that on a no wind day could have sunk it into the peas or someone's backyard if needed. Unfortunately I did not pack it, but the packer who did packed it into my racer which holds my Firebolt 164 tightly, with very very little problems. The we packed it into the demo Racer that I had with me that usually holds a Firebolt 128 or smaller (the 128 is the biggest that we like to put into it, but it will very tightly fit the 146) and it packed into the container very similar as far as tightness to the 128. but with a standard "pro pack." I am pretty sure that a reserve packjob would provide much better results as far as the bulk of the packjob. I'm going to try to fit it into a 300 c.i. Power Racer (as a reserve) soon and will get back to you with my results.....

All in all a very good canopy and will most likely be my next reserve purchase even for the extra little bit that PD is charging for it than the standard PD reserve.

Blue SkiesBlack DeathFacebook
www.PLabsInc.com
www.SkydiveDeLand.com
www.FlyteSkool.ws

[Spizzzarko 0]

Dude!

That is the shit we all want to hear! Unbiased reports from the field. I'm glad you had a positive experience with the canopy. I would expect nothing less from PD. Their original reserve design is great, and I bet it was hard to beat it, but if they did, then everyone is a winner. If they were able to make it where I could get a 300' reserve in my RSK-1 then I would do it. I have jumped the 113 several times and it lands great but every landing does not need to be an event, and if you are on your reserve even more so.

Grant

[superstu 0]

i had a chance to jump the new Optimum this past weekend and think it is absolutely fantastic parachute. currently i own a 126 and have 2 rides on that so i also chose to demo a 126 so i could compare the 2. everything about this new reserve is just great; the openings were exceptional, the flight characteristics were great, and the flair was very very powerful. i will give this canopy 2 thumbs up, PD did a great job in my opinion.

oh and also, a 126 packs up smaller than my velocity 90 and i jumped the 126 at about 1.7 (my competition wingloading).

Slip Stream Air Sports
Do not go softly, do not go quietly, never back down

[Spizzzarko 0]

OK I had a chance to jump two of the new pd optimum reserves this weekend. I got to put one jump on the 113 and one on the 143.

First things first! I am not sponsored or endorsed by PD in any way shape or form. I pay my money to them like the rest of you non sponsored types.

INITIAL IMPRESSION:
Wow! that is all I can say. I am a fan of PD reserves in the first place but PD really made a great canopy in this one. I have several actual landing on the regular PD-113R loaded at 2.0 in Colorado on hot summer days. It landed very nicely to begin with. The one jump I put on the optimum 113r really blew away any reservations I had about that canopy.

PACKING:
The 113R and 143R Optimum pack up very tiny! I have a Jav RSK-1 with a PD-113R in it. I feel that I could easily get a 143R Optimum in the RSK-1 reserve bag and container without a cypres. The 113R Optimum packed up like an 84 Velocity (very small as I pack up my velocities very tightly) The 143r Optimum packed up a little smaller than my 96 velocity.

The first thing I noticed was the weight (or lack there of) of the canopy when I held it in my hands for packing. It was very light weight. The material itself did not feel flimsy or weak but thinner than the regular PD reserve material. I did notice that the rip stop squares in the material were more rectangular than on the regular fabric.

OPENING:
I pro packed the canopy like a tandem reserve by leaving the center cell exposed and loosely rolling the outside three cell towards the center and quartering the slider. The slider looked like the regular PD reserve slider design with the hole in it. I did not pay to much attention to the slider material or the way it was built, but I assume it was built from the new material. My jump on the 113R Optimum was from 8,000' AGL and 13,500' MSL. The opening was quick but not violent or hard. I was probably not at full terminal but the altitude probably made enough of a difference that the force of the opening would have been the same if I was at terminal. I'm sure rolling the nose made a little difference but I did not roll the tail more than once. Either way the opening was a really smooth event and very much on heading. It was really nice and carefree compared to the long snivly seaky openings of the velocity. The 143r Optimum opened comparrable to the 113R Optimum.

FLIGHT CHARACTERISTICS:
After the opening the canopy was very stable with the brakes stowed. It did not want to seak around with harness inputs. I loaded the 113R Optimum at 1.946 on that jump and the 143R Optimum at 1.538.
After releasing the breaks the canopy really began to shine. It has an amazing glide compared to that of the original 113R. The first thing that really became blindingly apparent was the amount of lift the canopy had. I felt that the canopy could really hang up in the sky if needed to. It also felt as if I were flying a much bigger canopy than the 113. The flare stroke on the Optimum is really deep and powerful (sounds like I am describing a vibrator haha) Slow flight was smooth and controlled. I did not perform a breaked approach for landing, but I would feel very comfortable doing one with this canopy as there is quite a bit of flare beyond what you would use in a breaked approach. The control inputs pressure did feel slightly heavier than most mains but not bad. The rear riser response performance on the Optimum felt much more responsive to me than that of the regular 113R. I used the rears to steer the canopy quite a bit and flatten the glide out some more. With rear input your glide really flattens out and you can cover some distance. Front riser input was smooth and did not cause any bucking of the canopy. The recovery from control input was very smooth and positive. It did not dive out excessively from control inputs. I did perform a rear riser stall on the 113R Optimum. It required quite a bit of force to get the canopy to rear stall but the onset of that stall was VERY smooth. Once the stall was established I continued to hold it and found that I was able to hold heading by steering with the rears while still stalled. Return to controlled flight was accomplished with a smooth easing up on the rears. The 113R Optimum did not surge forward to bad or off heading. If I were to describe the stall experience in one word it would be "Smooth".

LANDING IMPRESSIONS:
Both the 113R and 143R Optimum had amazing landing qualities and flare power. I did a fairly straight in approach with some small toggle correction onto final with the 113R Optimum. The canopy did not pendulum excessively or require oversteer. It had a little speed but nothing more than I experienced landing my original 113R. The flare on this canopy is powerfull and deep. I had to take a few steps but got a nice standup landing. There was very little wind when I landed and landing at 5,500' MSL sometimes requires a few steps on a landing that would not be required at lower altitudes (it is probably just because I suck, but I like to blame it on the altitude )

I landed the 143R Optimum differently than the 113R Optimum. On that landing I brought it in with quite a bite more speed from a front riser 90 degree turn. It had a surprisingly long surf for the size of the acnopy and for the material. I am sure if it were ragged out f-111 it would have been quite a bit shorter. Even with the long surf I was able to get a tip toe pop up landing with little top no wind on the 143R Optimum.

OVERALL IMPRESSIONS:
PD has made a winner for us. I honestly think that this canopy will allow you to upsize your reserve without upsizing your container or purchasing missmatched reserve / main containers. Other reserve manufacturers have developed reserves that when loaded highly (above 1.3) are tricky to land and often did not fly very well. I think the thought was to just get you to the ground in one piece. The original PD reserve was the antithesis of that thought process by being very easy to land and fly. The Optimum is the next evolution of this concept. In my opinion you should NEVER settle when you are choosing your reserve, and if you are able to get a bigger reserve into your container you should do it immediately regardless of the price!!!!!!!!!!!!! Some people may question how wise it is to have miss matched reserve and main sizes in the two out situation. The two out phenomenom is getting to be less apparant because of the quality containers being put out on the market today. If you do not go low and get a cypres fire and take care of your reserve closing loop and have your reserve packed correctly with a proper fitting canopy your risk of being in a two out situation becomes miniscule.

I highly recomend that you demo this canopy. I would use it for a main any day of the week because of the carefree and mild mannered characteristics to include it's great glide that it exhibits. Now with this canopy out there you can feel comfortable that you have an all around performer on your back for your last chance.

Again I am not currently sponsored or endorsed by PD or any other skydiving company. I was not paid for this by anyone nor did I recieve any compensation for this testamonial review nor will I accept any. I have always been a fan of PD reserves but I am even more so now. These are exciting times in the canopy market place. PLEASE update your reserve now. You owe it to yourself and your family to have this canopy in your container.

Best of luck out there and please be carefull.
Grant

[RM1 0]

I just got a 143 optimum in the mail today to pack into my 99 NJ. I had a 126 with cypress in there previously and wanted to up size. When i packed it i was nearly laughing at how much smaller it packed! I was easily able to fit the 143 in the bag and in all honesty i think a 160 would fit in the same space. I knew the closing loop would be to long so i took a chance and made the new loop a whole inch shorter! Perfect fit, i couldnt believe it. Well i just thought i would post this so others know what sizes fit into what.

[Spizzzarko 0]

Some people have told me two sizes up is what they are able to pack into their rigs. I believe it after packing those canopies. I did not get a chance to pack it into a free bag though. I might call PD up for a demo just to pack it up in my Free bag and take some pics to post here on line. I was amazed at how much you were able to flatten the material out and how much it just compressed down. It is some cool shit!

[jheadley 0]

I can't wait until these are available in larger sizes...

[freeflyfrog 0]

I just received my 126 Optimum and I am already considering going up to a 143. I'm going to get my rigger's opinion once he sees how the 126 packs into the RSK Odyssey.

From all I have heard so far, it should fit quite nicely.