Three Rings Inspection Question

[Hvance 0]

On every gear check, among other things, I inspect both three ring systems to make sure they're set up properly. My question is what might cause a problem in them. Say that I make five jumps one day. What sort of things might tamper with them between jumps 3 and 4?

It certainly cannot hurt to check 1000 times and never see a problem, while that one time I failed to check them and something was misrigged could kill me, so I'll continue to be anal about them. Just wondering what the causes might be..

I wish Google Maps had an "Avoid Ghetto" routing option.

[tsalnukt 1]

Maybe bringing your rig in from the landing area in a tangled mess and having to disconnect one three ring to sort it out and you are on a call and rushing around to hook things up......maybe????

Tandems three rings get "twisted" sometimes when you lay the rig down, and if it's not fixed can cause riser failure. You would want to make sure that they are laying the way they are supposed to, could happen on regular sport rigs as well.

It's just good practice to give your rig a good going over everytime you jump regardless of how well you take care of it in between jumps

[liftedtitan 0]

RSL system could also be misrouted if it were disconnected for some reason.

Moriuntur omnes, sed non omnes vixerunt.

[Slurp56 0]

The first thing you want to verify is that they are assembled correctly. You are correct, this wont change between jumps unless someone has monkey'd with your rig.

Keep an eye on the overall condition of the webbing. Watch for spots along the edges that have been abraded, show signs of wear, or were damaged during repair or manufacture (hot knife knicks can be tough to spot). A nice hard opening can elongate the hole in the webbing where the grommet is. Sometimes you can see a bit of frayed webbing sticking over the lip at the top of the grommet. Some people freak out about it and replace the risers immediately, but I just make sure that the hole isnt spreading.

Look at the piece of tape that holds the small ring in place. Just take a quick look for any signs of wear, fraying, or broken stitches. Also keep an eye on the metal rings themselves for elongation. Some cadmium rings in recent years were getting small dings in the plating after only a few jumps. This isnt an issue unless the dings are sharp and are wearing on the materials that they are in contact with. When in doubt, ask your rigger :)

Also take a good look at the white loop. Check where it is stitched to the riser to make sure there are no broken stitches. Look over the condition of the white loop for any fraying. You'll typically see it turn a metalic color over time, where it passes through the grommets. Just make sure it isnt abraided, if it is, there could be a sharp edge on one of your grommets or it could be chafing between the grommets.

Lastly, check to make sure the yellow cable is in good condition. Make sure that it hasnt been pulled into the grommet by the white loop and make sure there are no knicks or severe kinks in the cable. It's also a good idea to pull the cutaway handle and clean and lube the yellow cable. At the same time, flex and rotate the rings on the riser to make sure the webbing isnt taking a set over time.

The last bit, is if you jump with an RSL. Make sure its routed properly, make sure there are no broken or worn stitches on the lanyard itself, as well as the ring on the risers. Make sure that the snap shackle has a reasonably strong spring so that it wont come undone in free fall.

There ya go! A little more encompassed than just the three ring system, but stuff to watch out for. In the owners manual for just about every harness/container system, there should be a section on the 3-ring system. Most are a copy of the document that the relative workshop published with the system. It contains maintenance, instructions, and things to watch out for.

Safe Jumps!

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

[Hvance 0]

Very helpful reply. Much appreciated!

I wish Google Maps had an "Avoid Ghetto" routing option.

[erdnarob 1]

UPT Vector recommends to do a 3 rings check every 20-30 days or so when jumping. Every 20-30 jumps should be OK too. To do so, you disconnect the 3 rings and make supple the piece of webbing connected to each ring by bending/twisting it several times. Accumulated dirt and successive opening forces can cause the webbing to get stiff. You also check the smoothness of the release cable (yellow or red) by removing it, if you see any nick on that cable ask a rigger. Visually you check if the rings have kept a round shape. For the release handle and pocket check if the Velcro is still OK.

Since the rings have had a heat treatment it is useless to turn each ring before every jump.
When your periodical check is done, reset the 3 rings making sure the white loop goes thru the small ring only, then into the riser grommet then locked by the release cable and put into the riser cable channel. The release cable has to be fed into the housing as much as possible.

On the other hand, before each jump, that would be a good idea to visually check for the proper set up of the three rings and cable and make sure the release handle is as high as possible to feed the maximum length of cable into the housing.
Goog luck

Learn from others mistakes, you will never live long enough to make them all.

[labrys 0]

I checked a student's 3-rings before they donned their rig once, and then again before we walked to the loading area. On the second check, I discovered that the middle ring had become "jammed" inside the large ring. It's hard to describe, but it may have prevented a cutaway. It unnerved me.

I also remember a thread here some years ago about someone who had a packer accidentally pull their cutaway handle and then re-assemble it improperly, without saying a word about the accident.

Owned by Remi #?

[Hvance 0]

Quote

I checked a student's 3-rings before they donned their rig once, and then again before we walked to the loading area. On the second check, I discovered that the middle ring had become "jammed" inside the large ring. It's hard to describe, but it may have prevented a cutaway. It unnerved me.

I also remember a thread here some years ago about someone who had a packer accidentally pull their cutaway handle and then re-assemble it improperly, without saying a word about the accident.

Both good reasons to check every time...

I wish Google Maps had an "Avoid Ghetto" routing option.

[riggerrob 558]

Pap ring,
Mama ring,
white string,
yellow thing.

Check that only one item is routed through the next larer item.

That habit of rotating rings (before every jump) was based upon a soft batch of rings made in the 1980s, but now that soft rings have disappeared, the procedure has become a superstition.
Now, rotating rings does more damage than good, because it slowly rubs off the cadmium plating and leaves the underlying steel more prone to corrosion from skin oils.

[Hvance 0]

Quote

Pap ring,
Mama ring,
white string,
yellow thing.

Check that only one item is routed through the next larer item.

That habit of rotating rings (before every jump) was based upon a soft batch of rings made in the 1980s, but now that soft rings have disappeared, the procedure has become a superstition.
Now, rotating rings does more damage than good, because it slowly rubs off the cadmium plating and leaves the underlying steel more prone to corrosion from skin oils.

What do you mean by rotating rings?

I wish Google Maps had an "Avoid Ghetto" routing option.

[Bertt 0]

If the cutaway handle is dislodged and pulled down a little then replaced, a cable could pull down enough to come out of the loop . Something like this could happen if someone picked up your rig to move it for some reason, or when you take it off, especially over heavier winter clothing.

You don't have to outrun the bear.

[pchapman 261]

Quote

What do you mean by rotating rings?

Every 100 jumps swap the risers left to right.

Rotating the rings:
Turning the biggest ring on each riser (and the small one too) with ones fingers some random amount, so that the harness and other rings aren't pulling or pushing on the same spots on the ring all the time.

As Rob says, not necessary. Nothing wrong with inspecting the rings occasionally though.

[Hvance 0]

Quote

Quote

What do you mean by rotating rings?

Every 100 jumps swap the risers left to right.

Rotating the rings:
Turning the biggest ring on each riser (and the small one too) with ones fingers some random amount, so that the harness and other rings aren't pulling or pushing on the same spots on the ring all the time.

As Rob says, not necessary. Nothing wrong with inspecting the rings occasionally though.

Ah, I understand.

I wish Google Maps had an "Avoid Ghetto" routing option.

[skydiverek 54]

HVance,

Check this document, written by the inventor of 3-ring release system:

http://www.velocityrigs.com/manual/infinity10.pdf


Also, make sure your cable is all the way in thru the white loop:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LzGwZNfbNuQ

[skydiverek 54]

Also, check if your 3-rings are manufactured correctly in the first place. Below links are from the 3-ring inventor, as well:

http://www.unitedparachutetechnologies.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=41

and

http://www.dropzone.com/cgi-bin/forum/gforum.cgi?post=124164

[shropshire 0]

The little piece of string can fray - and needs checking

(.)Y(.)
Chivalry is not dead; it only sleeps for want of work to do. - Jerome K Jerome

[kawisixer01 0]

Because it's part of "3 checks of 3 things". 3 handles (in order of use), 3 rings, and 3 straps. It is the process we teach students from day one and I have never really seen a reason to stop using it. I still check my gear before I put it on, walking out to the plane, and on jump run. Even if I just gt done packing my rig 10 minutes ago and am just walking back up to it to put it on to go jump, I still treat it as a rig that I just pulled off the shelf or out of my bag from the week off. Mostly on my jump run check I'm glancing at it to make sure the cut-away cabe didn't unseat and now I have an unfastened three ring or something similar.

[firemedic 7]

Everytime I recieve a rig for reserve repack I do 3 Ring Inspection and maintenance per manufacturers instructions. Rig owners are not doing 3 ring maintenance. The cables are filthy, some have rough spots and even cracks. I found the white loop on one riser nearly worn through caused by a burr on the grommet that passes through the riser. On one rig I've found maintenance had been neglected so long I had to have someone hold the rig for me while I had pull with 2 hands to get the riser to release. After cleaning and exercising the material it functioned normally. I just can't understand why someone neglects the very system that will save their lives.

[Beatnik 2]

Quote

Everytime I recieve a rig for reserve repack I do 3 Ring Inspection and maintenance per manufacturers instructions. Rig owners are not doing 3 ring maintenance.

Your generous. I don't even want the main if I am doing a repack and usually get the owner to cut it away and deploy the reserve. If the owner is there watching, they will do the maintenance. They should be doing it more often than during repacks and if I see that they know how to do the maintenance, then they have no excuse any other time.

[firemedic 7]

If the owner is there I try to get em to do the cutaway and reserve dump also. I like to offer them a chance to see what condition their rig is in and get them at least involved in some part of the maintenance process. But, alot of people just don't want to be bothered. Its a consumer mentality when it needs to be a participant mentality. People just don't seem to fully appreciate what's at stake.

[3mpire 0]

Thanks for think link to the 3 ring maintenance PDF and the you tube video.

I just got trained on 3 ring maintenance and replacing the closing loop, but it's good to have that PDF book marked for future reference.

My instructor said it's kind of personal preference when it comes to lubricating the actual cut away cable--some do, some dont.

Out of curiosity, after cleaning the cables, how many of you put some kind of lube on them before putting them back in?

It seems unnecessary--my instructor, who is also a master rigger--doesn't. I'm going to follow his advice with my own rig. I'm more curious about the rationale for doing so.

[firemedic 7]

As far as lubricating the cutaway cable I've been told that anytime you put a lubrication material on the cable, it can attract dirt. This is true. However, If 3 ring maintenance is done every 30 days as most manufacturers recommend, then there should never be a build up of dirt in the system. Personally I do like to lubricate the cable. I Use spray silicone on cutaway cables and wipe them dry.

[Martini 0]

I think that the subject of cutaway cable lubrication has spawned more posts than any other subject. Everyone has an opinion, there is no general agreement except on one point; maintain your cutaway system so that it will ALWAYS work when you need it.

Sometimes you eat the bear..............

[firemedic 7]

Quote

I think that the subject of cutaway cable lubrication has spawned more posts than any other subject. Everyone has an opinion, there is no general agreement except on one point; maintain your cutaway system so that it will ALWAYS work when you need it.

Well said

[3mpire 0]

Thanks!