New to sport - need gear recommendations

[Cari 0]

I am really new to skydiving, but am already hooked. Since I'm not independently wealthy, I would like to start getting some of my own gear slowly, and am wondering what would be some good things to start with? I won't be buying my own rig anytime soon since what is good for me now probably won't be good for me in a few months since people tend to downsize as they progress. Right now, I'm looking more at getting the small things (goggles, jumpsuit, etc). I'm pretty small (5'4" 125lbs) and really don't know too much about gear yet...but I'm learning! Any recommendations for good gear for a starter?

[Melt16 0]

Hey Cari,

Welcome to the word of skydiving. I'm also new and doing my AFF at the moment...
I already bought some great gear. This helmet...

www.skysystemsusa.com/helmets/benny.html

is $65 and have done one jump with it, really comfy and it looks cool...

And these goggles are also really cool and comfy...
http://www.skydivestore.com/getitem.cgi?Sorz&08312008143735&Goggles

For me thats a good start so far. I'm probly going to be ordering my jumpsuit from www.deepseed.com as I like the designs.

Anyway good luck with your jumping and keep in touch. Greg

[countzero 7]

start out with the small stuff like helmet, altimeter, gloves, and goggles.

you could hold off on a jumpsuit until after you've got your A and have a better idea of what disipline you want to pursue.

diamonds are a dawgs best friend

[Chubba 0]

My first piece of gear was my Alti-track, it was awesome checking out my freefall speeds/freefall time and where I'm deploying, plus everyone needs an alti

[Cari 0]

Thanks a bunch! I was actually looking into altimeters, helmets, and goggles and will probably buy em in the next week or so. Need to start somewhere, right? :)

[dragon2 0]

Talk with your instructors before buying anything: there may be restrictions on what you can jump for the time being, like no colored goggles, no fullface helmet, no digital altimeter, no audible, stuff like that.

ciel bleu,
Saskia

[Cari 0]

Oh, I'm definitely going to. It's just nice to get outside advice as well :)

[AndyMan 7]

Hi Cari,

At this point in your skydiving career buying simple things like an Altimeter, Goggles, and a Helmet are a great start.

There's some really smart people telling you to take advice from your instructors. Listen to them! Fortunately, I happen to be one of your instructors, I am both an AFF an Tandem instructor at CSC.

For goggles, CSC requires that all students wear clear goggles. That means no sunglasses, which some experienced jumpers like. There are vareity of inexpensive goggles that you can buy for $10-15, CSC has them all available at the same price you'd get anywhere else. Buy the one that you like and fits your budget. I always loose goggles, so I buy cheap ones.

For an Altimeter, the standard issue Altimeter is the Altimaster Galaxy, which the DZ sells for $150. That's a comparable price to what you'd get anywhere else. The advantage of this altimeter is that it doesn't require batteries, so it'll never die in the middle of a jump. You can also spend more money and get an electronic one, that'll add a bunch of bells & whistles like automatic jump logging and audible altitude warnings, but they come with the risk that the battery could fail at any time. They also cost a lot more. Most jumpers eventually buy two different ones, an Analog one for their wrist and then an electronic audible one to mount in their helmet. Start with the analog one.

A helmet is also a good purchase. I'm particular to Bonehead helmets, they've served me better than some of the other manufacturers. A good open face helmet from Bonehead or Cookie will serve you well throughout your skydiving career. A full-face helmet has a plastic shield that will cover your face may also be a good choice, but will cost more money. A full-face helmet is pretty much required if you want to get into 4-way competition. However, as a student we'll ask that you wear an open faced helmet.

Jumpsuits really do have to be purchased through the DZ because they're custom measured. While you can have a friend measure you, it's best for someone who knows about jumpsuits to do the measuring. Jumpsuits are also very particular for the different kind of skydiving you'll want to do - so you may want to wait a few jumps before ordering.

I wouldn't rush out and buy all this right this week. I'd get a good pair of goggles first, then the altimeter, then a helmet and jumpsuit once you have a better idea about what kind of skydiving you'll want to do.

Take care,

_Am

__

You put the fun in "funnel" - craichead.

[LloydDobbler 2]

Hey, Carl -

The advice given on here is good. Especially the stuff from Andy, seeing as how it's pretty applicable to you (none of my instructors were ever on DZ.com).

My biggest advice to you is that you should start off trying to get stuff that's more versatile, then get more specialized stuff as you go along (you don't want your gear to keep you from doing something). A couple of specific bits of advice:

1) Helmets - since you're going through AFF and are not independently wealthy, you might want to grab a Pro-tec. They run about $30-40 (as opposed to $200-plus for most 'nicer' helmets), and are the best head protection you can get (seriously). You can then decide to buy a nicer, cooler-looking open face later...or go to a full face, depending on your preference. (Since most of what I'm doing lately is RW, I upgraded to a full-face Bonehead Mamba...but I still wear my Pro-tec when I want to feel the wind).

2) Goggles - As far as specific brands go, you might look at Sorz goggles. I'm about your size (maybe a few pounds lighter), and they fit my small face really well. You can find them at Para-Gear or Square 1 (just be sure to get the clear ones, like Andy said. Having a clear pair of goggles will come in handy in the future for sunset & night jumps, too).

3) Altimeter - What they said. Another option might be to wait on this one a little longer - I personally used a Galaxy from the school until soon after I got my license, then upgraded to a Neptune (digital). Personally, I prefer the digital display because I can see it better. But that's me. Figure out what works for you.

4) Jumpsuit - You'll have to make a decision at some point which type of jumpsuit you want (not now - give yourself some more time to figure things out). My first jumpsuit was an RW suit with booties & grippers...and looking back, I wish I'd gotten a freefly suit. Reason being, you can fly on your belly in a freefly suit, but it's a lot tougher to sitfly with booties.
Of course, the tradeoff is that given your size, you'd need an RW suit with very little drag...whereas a freefly suit likely won't be as tight, so you'll have to work a little harder to stay down with people when belly-flying.

---

Also, if you're looking for used gear, I'd recommend checking out the classifieds on here every day. Gear in the small and XL sizes tends to go faster than gear in the mid-range.

But again, my general thought with skydiving gear is to start out with more versatile stuff, then get more specific as you discover what you like. Good luck!

Signatures are the new black.

[RMK 3]

For the best deals and quality, find the guys/girls with money burning a hole in the pocket that just have to have the newest and fanciest of gear (admittedly, I’m one of these gadget/gear geeks). For example L&B came out with a load of new gadgets over the past year so you can get “like new” quality ProTracks or Neptunes from people who just have to have the newest of toys. Most would give you a really good price just to help out another new jumper

Don’t buy from the guy who uses something till its knackered and then just wants to offload it on an unsuspecting newcomer.

"Pain is the best instructor, but no one wants to attend his classes"

[bigway 4]

Carl, the only thing you need to worry about buying at the moment is Beer.

After you have bought Beer it means you have your A license and then you can worry about altis etc.... For now, just concentrate on buing beer for all those times you say the word 'First".


Welcome to the drinking club some people know as skydiving.

.Karnage Krew Gear Store
.

[Chrisky 0]

What you might want to look out for when looking at helmets is if they accomodate audible altimeters, and if, how many and where. For example, I prefer helmets that allow for two of them, one either side. That narrows down choices considerably. Get a clear set of goggles, they will always serve you, and if it's only on those occasional darker sunset jumps later.

The mind is like a parachute - it only works once it's open.
From the edge you just see more.
... Not every Swooper hooks & not every Hooker swoops ...

[JayWayAbove 0]

[/email]I'm new as well..on second Tandem @ Calverton.
Please, need guidance in buying new gear
[email]

[bigway 4]

The last thing you need to worry about right now is buying gear.
First you need to get worry about passing your course.

If you want to think about buying gear when you are on your second tandem then go and buy some appropriate shoes and some warm clothing that allows movement.

If you are thinking about buying a jumpsuit, skydiving rig at the stage you are at now then the best advice one could give to you is DONT!

Please understand I am trying to help you and not belittle you. I sell gear full time so dont think i find it easy to tell people not to buy gear.

When you have passed your AFF levels or your tandem progression levels then start looking for gear. Before then though is going to be like going to buy 900 page book without being able to read.

.Karnage Krew Gear Store
.