service life questions

[rigger0451 0]

Let me start by confirming for you that I have limited civilian rigging time. I am a military rigger with Most of my 10 years of experience with the MC-5 and the Intruder. I am a FAA senior rigger but the only thing I have done with that is to keep my own personal rig repacked. A friend of mine is getting into the sport and wanted me to repack his rig. I normally would say no but we are stationed in Germany and he doesn’t trust the German rigger out here (mainly because he can’t communicate with him). Any way I started inspecting the rig he has and it was manufactured in OCT 1991. I tried looking up Para-flite and seeing if they had anything on it, but alas they were bought out by none other than Airborne Systems. The harness is a Dolphin D4, with a ROBOZ 205 main, and Swift Plus 175 reserve. I can’t really find a manual on anything but the Dolphin container. Does the civilian side of the house have service life limits like we do in the military world? I have not run into this as I bought my rig just 3 years ago so it never came up for me. I know for military we have a 12.5 year service life, and 16 years from DOM. Does the same hold true for the civilian side? Other than that his rig checks out well (though I am going to do a porosity test on it) and has very little wear. He says that the guy he bought it from said it was old but that it only had about 60 jumps put on it. Thanks in advance for any help!!!

[theonlyski 3]

Some MFGR's set life limits, but I don't believe Altico or Para-Flite have set them on their gear. I don't see a manual handy for the Swift, someone on here surely has it though.

"I may be a dirty pirate hooker...but I'm not about to go stand on the corner." iluvtofly
DPH -7, TDS 578, Muff 5153, SCR 14890
I'm an asshole, and I approve this message

[fendor1369 0]

I had the same situation come up with a friend and had no problem telling him to buy a new canopy and a few other things before I would pack it.

The civilians don’t go by the same rules as us. When I am packing an older rig I hang it and inspect the material and stitching really well. If you feel that it is still safe to jump then pack it.

If you see spots of concern you can do a fabric pull test to see if the material is still strong.

Basically it comes down to you. If you don’t feel comfortable packing it, take it to a master rigger and ask him, if you don’t have one around don’t pack it.

Edit for spelling

John - D.S 1313

"I'll jump it, Np. It's all good"

[rigger0451 0]

So then there is no limit and as long as i am comfortable packing it it is good to go? I am impressed at how new looking the thing is. I am going to do a porosity test on it and a strength test. The is no fraying on anything and both Main and reserve look almost new. if I hd not been in the habbit of lookiing at data blocks and PIS dates I would have never caught that it was made in 91. Maybe I will take the main on my rigg and see how it does with my reserve as my back up. really leary of putting a Jump on a reserve if I dont have to though :O(.

[theonlyski 3]

I believe there were some service bulletins out, depending on the serial number of the reserve, for some bartacks or zig-zags that needed to be fixed. Make sure you look into those.

"I may be a dirty pirate hooker...but I'm not about to go stand on the corner." iluvtofly
DPH -7, TDS 578, Muff 5153, SCR 14890
I'm an asshole, and I approve this message

[AndyMan 7]

I would not pack an original Swift parachute, but I do not have any problem packing a Swift Plus as long as it's in good condition. The original Swifts were 5 cells, but the Swift Plus is 7 cells.

Unless the manufacturers specify a service life, I don't know many riggers that choose to enforce one on their own. A better idea is to have a design standard - for example, I refuse to pack the original Swift because it is a 5-cell reserve, and I believe the design is simply too far out of date.

Hope that helps,

_Am

__

You put the fun in "funnel" - craichead.

[riggerrob 561]

Yes,

In the mid-1990s, Para-Flite published a Service Bulletin saying to inspect the C-D cascades, on Sift Plus reserves.
Apparently, some of the bar-tacks were too wide to catch the inner line.
Since then, I have inspected dozens of Swift Plus reserves and have never been able to pull a D line loose.

Swift Pluses are still decent reserves. The only caveat is to keep the wing-loading below one pound per square foot.
IOW If your customer has a Swift Plus 175, his total exit weight (jumper, helmet, shoes, harness/container and canopies) should not exceed 175 pounds.

[rigger0451 0]

O.k. THANKS GUYS!!! It is a swift plus, checked the bar tacks and found the differant SB's for the bar tacs and stuff. they are Both 7 Cell Ram Air's and the Main is a 205 ZP / F-111 hybrid. Guy is only 150lbs soaking wet should be good. I think i am going to start really getting into the civilian side of the house now........ I have learned alot of stuff these last two days with every thing I searched through! Thanks for all the help!!!!

[riggerrob 561]

Dolphins have no published service limit, but there are a couple of Service Bulletins, both related to the top flap on the main container.

These Service Bulletins were a pro-active response to the "Grommet Mania" that swept the skydiving industry in 2000.
Hint: I was working in the Square One Loft - in Perris Valley, California - the day James Martin "went in."

A couple of other manufacturers had problems with new, thin (Spectra,Vectran and HMA) suspension lines snagging on loose grommets, but not Dolphins.
I never saw serious wear on a Dolphin, but Mike Furry (owner of Altico aka "the Dolphin factory) issued two Service Bulletins to head off the problem on Dolphins.
The first Service Bulletin said to install a rubber O-Ring around grommet(s) in the main container. This raises the fabric around the grommet, reducing the risk of thin suspension lines snagging under the edge of a poorly-set grommet. This is essentially a "factory fix."
There was a similar Service Bulletin on the Reflexes that made by Fliteline.

ASB 060700 addresses a wear problem on the main top flap. It is a repair for the upper right corner of the stiffener wearing through the (Oxford cloth) lining of the top flap. The damage is actually done by the main bridle rubbing against the top flap. The fix is to sew a strip of Type 12 webbing inside the top flap.
I have never seen dangerous wear on Dolphins, but have used Altico's repair scheme to repair dangerous wear on a dozen or more Javelins. Some of those Javelins were so badly worn that I had to re-skin the inside of the top flap with Cordura (similar to the modern production pattern).
I have also done that repair on a dozen Student Telesis containers (made by Rigging Innovations) but that was more of a static-line problem.