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Nelyubin

Soft Reserve Handle

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I had no problems viewing the picture.

The sharp edge in the insert tube indicates sloppy work. There's no reason not to take two minutes and smooth those edges over.

The real question is if the webbing going through the tubing was cut, would it separate the reserve cable from the rest of the handle?

If so, then yes, it's very dangerous.

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You are right this way ...



Well, Im no rigger but theres no way in hell I would use it.
For some reason they have put the chamfer on the outer of the steel tubing meaning that the inner edge will be razor sharp looking at it.

And its the inner edge that the webbing runs through.... it could have already started cutting it if there has been friction applied unknowingly.

Where is it from?!

I would guess it will 'likely' be ok,but for the cost of a proper soft handle setup, and the fact that its my reserve... I would take no chances!

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I think it would take many cycles to get the handle to actually fail, but it is apparent that the workmanship on the metal insert leaves a little to be desired.

I've attached a picture of how we do our inserts for reference.
-Tony
(253) 445-8790
Velocity Sports Equipment

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Call me old-fashioned, but I still prefer metal to metal contact at the end of a ripcord. Preferably a contact that will withstand a 300 pound pull (TSO C23E) or (600 pounds under TSO C23D).

This is especially important when you install an RSL, to prevent the ball end from getting sucked back up the housing.
Without metal-to-metal contact - in a worst case scenario - you would end up with the RSL doing its job, the ball sucking all the way through the housing and the pin still holding the reserve closed.
If you dismantle a soft ripcord from a Reflex, it has a steel ring (off a 3-Ring riser) that is too big to be sucked backup the housing.
Similarly, if you dismantle a Vector 3 ripcord, you will find the ball end of the cable sliding in a narrow slot in the steel tube insert of the soft handle. So a Vector 3 "soft" ripcord handle is really a steel tube handle with a cosmetic cloth cover.

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The handle deconstructed in the photos also doesn't allow for any slack/movement in the cable. Each would seem to have to be sized individually for each size harness and not give the 'safety' of some slack needing to be taken up before pulling the pin when not intended. There were some early soft ripcord handles from the early 80's from ParaPhernalia that were made this way, I think. The seemed to be made the same way as the cutaway handle, like the handle in these photos.

Call me old fashioned but I still prefer metal to SKIN contact for a reserve riccord.;)

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

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Hi Terry,

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The handle deconstructed in the photos also doesn't allow for any slack/movement in the cable.



Take a 2nd look at the photos. It has the cable with an eye on the end going around the T-4 (?) webbing. This eye/webbing then goes up inside the barrel where it can then move back & forth, i.e., the slack necessary.

Anyway that is how it looks to me. Anyone else????

JerryBaumchen

PS) IMO the best soft handle is the one by ParaTec that has the cable on the backside of the soft handle and using a mchined part for the cable to pass through. Very easy to see/inspect and to move back & forth. But that is just me . . . .

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I agree with your opinion. :)
My backup cushioned grip does not meet the requirements.
Breaking load Cordura = 267 (band width 10 cm). As shown the handle 1 * 2 = 2, see Breaking load approximately equal to 60. Perhaps a little more.
+ sharp edge of the built-in handle tube

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Please name the manufacturer of this reserve handle.


Nevermind. There are countries where having TSO on H/C and reserve is not a must, and more DIY is allowed....


Yes it is, and Lithuania one of thoes.
We have plenty of russian gear in service, and this reserve handle looks like a serious safety issue to me.

Simple scenario, stitching of the loop, that holds metal cable, gets damaged by sharp edge of the tube... I'm sure the rest is obviosus :)

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