mcordell 2 #1 December 13, 2009 After almost 2 years of piecing together, I almost have a rig complete that I have been wanting to jump for a while. I am slightly apprehensive about the main however. The main is a Joule, made by Quantum Parachutes in 1986 or 87. It's a 9 cell, F111, 180. The question I have though is, it doesn't have any D lines. I called Bill Gargano, the guy who built it, and asked him about it. He told me he built it without D lines because that was the current trend in Northern California when he built it. He also told me that it doesn't have "as deep a flare bucket" as modern canopies because it doesn't have the D lines. The way he explained it made it sound like it will slow down quickly and flare well, but not for as long. The canopy has somewhere around 100 jumps on it and has been thoroughly inspected by a rigger to ensure it is airworthy before anyone says anything about age. Does anyone have any experience with the Joule or with other canopies with no D lines that would be handy before I jump it? I plan to play with it up high for a while to get comfortable with it before trying to land it, but it would be good if anyone else has experience they could share. I believe GQ security's The Unit and the X2ten both had no D lines but I could be wrong. I also thing both were Gargano's designs.www.facebook.com/FlintHillsRigging Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
mr_prick 0 #2 December 13, 2009 newsflash: it's almost 2010 son. with prices as low as they are whats wrong with just getting a sabre 1? get that thing, it's always nice to own skydiving history. jump it once, then hang it on the wall next to the wooden skis. edit: my bad, i think i misuderstood you. i thought you was piecing together cheap gear.... Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Gory 0 #3 December 13, 2009 How much did you pay for that canopy? If you dont mind telling?"Nothing in this world worth having, comes easy" Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
mcordell 2 #4 December 14, 2009 Quote How much did you pay for that canopy? If you dont mind telling? My mother Too big a price eh? I grew up on a drop zone and the only canopy I remember seeing my mother fly was this joule. When she died I got her vector 1, raven 1, and joule, among other gear. These three pieces of equipment had about 100 jumps on them and are in excellent condition, almost new by the looks of them and have been inspected thoroughly by a master rigger and a senior rigger on separate occasions. The vector did not fit me, so I had the harness completely replaced. The raven 1 is in my main rig as m reserve and I have unfortunately jumped it once (my fault). I bought another raven 1 to put in my primary rig and am putting the other back in it's original container soon. The main of course is the Joule and I would really like to jump it. I have lost some weight in the last two years and my WL is less then my profile. I'll probably be 190-195 out the door now so I'm not overloading the wing. This concern was voiced via PM and is quite a good point, but I'm a tad lighter now. This is a second rig, not my primary rig. I'm not trying to piece together beginner gear to get me in the air, but more would like to have it to jump every now and then for nostalgic reasons. When my stepfather comes out to jump with me finally, I want to do a memorial jump of sorts for her now that I am capable and I would like to wear it then as well. More importantly though, I plan to jump it this month some time. I can assure anyone who is curious that the gear has been inspected more than necessary and is quite safe. Tom Dolphin has it right now to pack the reserve and to fix some minor issue with the reserve toggle attachment. He built the harness so he has it back.www.facebook.com/FlintHillsRigging Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
mcordell 2 #5 December 14, 2009 I also have a 22' SAC, a 177 firefly 7 cell, and an altitude shop corsair in addition to this other gear. THAT gear will be stored and never jumped for safety reasons. Oh, and this Joule has some interesting history too. The SN is JM002. I talked to Bill Gargano and he said he had built one for his wife to jump and while at a boogie he was approached about building another (that would have been my mother) and so he did. I don't know how many were sold, but this was the second one he built, first one he sold, and he still has the first one built I know I have invested more money in this rig than most would agree with, but it's not about the money. www.facebook.com/FlintHillsRigging Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
AggieDave 6 #6 December 14, 2009 What a great story, even though it is sad! Please do us a favor, once you get the gear together and you jump it, write up something nice about it. About your Mom, about the gear and your journey. Add some pictures of your mom with the gear (if you have any) and some pictures of you jumping the gear and submit it all to Parachutist. That is the kind of story that I would love to see in that magazine or in Blue Skies Mag.--"When I die, may I be surrounded by scattered chrome and burning gasoline." Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
