Northern Lite Infinity - reserve pilot chute type?

[pchapman 261]

Anyone recall what kind of pilot chutes were used in Northern Lite Infinities?

I'm asking because I opened a 1998 Northern Lite Infinity and the reserve PC is a Strong Lil Grabber.

Not all companies have made their own PCs, but I don't recall seeing a PC like this when I had rigged a few Northern Lites years ago. It seems odd.

That Lil Grabber is a rather short PC with a lot of extra mesh -- something like an MA-1 except a better spring and using mesh, so there are no exposed vanes. The date on that particular one is unclear.

[Southern_Man 0]

If it is the Northern Lite III, the manual says it came with either the "Lil Grabber" or the "Skyhook" pilot chute.

"What if there were no hypothetical questions?"

[Neoslim22 0]

I have a 98' I44 and a 99' I32 and both of the PC are made by VSE.

[pchapman 261]

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If it is the Northern Lite III, the manual says it came with either the "Lil Grabber" or the "Skyhook" pilot chute.

Very good, thank you!

I dug into the manual (for the Northern Lite III Infinity 1-pin) and now do see it there. It is unusual for different pilot chutes to ship with a rig. I have just now also confirmed with Kelly at VSE that they still consider it legal.

[JerryBaumchen 1,048]

Hi Peter,

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It is unusual for different pilot chutes to ship with a rig.

IMO not if you consider the time frame that Larry did this 'one of two' pilot chute thingy. And, what one a customer got was usually what Larry could get quickly to get the rig shipped out.

Most companies in those days did not have a source of springs to make their own. And sometimes, it is just simpler to sell an 'off-the'shelf' product.

Which leads to this question for you: How many rig mfrs build their own collapsible pilot chutes? They are available from a number of sources.

JerryBaumchen

[pchapman 261]

No argument here Jerry.

When the industry was small and starting out, reserve PC's were something a company got from elsewhere (eg, MA-1's), and were much more interchangeable between rigs. These things have generally changed.

[riggerrob 558]

That Northern Lite was made around the time the company changed hands and they also changed reserve pilot chutes.
Under early management, they used a rather complex pilot-chute made by Strong Enterprises.
After Mr. Farrington bought the company, he introduced a new reserve pilot-chute that looks a lot like to PC installed in Icons. Large diameter aluminum cap on top of an inverted MA-1 spring. The canopy is half mesh and half F-111 fabric.

Considering the high parts count and labour, many container manufacturers have found it cheaper to simply buy their pilot-chutes from other manufacturers. (e.g. most Softie pilot emergency parachutes contain 357 Magnum pilot-chutes made by National.)

[JohnSherman 1]

None of which have ever been tested.
Some of which won't pass any test.
Some are good and some are bad.
Do you know the difference?
I don't!

[sundevil777 93]

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None of which have ever been tested.

Exactly what are you saying hasn't ever been tested?

I think it is very bad form for a mfg to be making very serious accusations that are so unspecific. If you have details, then that is different and I'd like to know. It is just my unsolicited opinion, but you might want to consider that this may not reflect well on you.

People are sick and tired of being told that ordinary and decent people are fed up in this country with being sick and tired. I’m certainly not, and I’m sick and tired of being told that I am

[pchapman 261]

I'm not sure what you are saying either John.

But perhaps you are saying that old National Phantoms are likely to have been pH and pull tested every which way, year after year, while old National Magnum pilot chutes are forgotten about and hardly ever tested ... even though they fall under the same acid mesh bulletin.

At least that's what I've noticed in my limited experience.

[JerryBaumchen 1,048]

Hi John,

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None of which have ever been tested.

I have no idea how you came up with this conclusion.

A couple of years ago, I was talking with Andy Farrington of Skydive Kapowsin and he told me how he had done some of the test jumps on the Infinity. My understanding of that conversation was that it is the current Infinity configuration.

JerryBaumchen

PS) And let me add, that when Larry bought the design from Dan T, he only bought the drawings, the Quality Program manual, etc; he did not buy the TSO. Larry did his own testing for his own TSO under C23c; the original Northern Lite was certificated under c23b.

[riggerrob 558]

Quote

None of which have ever been tested.
Some of which won't pass any test.
Some are good and some are bad.
Do you know the difference?
I don't!

.........................................................................

Back in the mid-1980s, Kari Seppanin (sp?) tested a bunch of different pilot-chutes, from a bunch of different manufacturers ... in a wind tunnel and published the results (Poynter's Manual????). The last time I talked with Kari (at Para-Phernalia) he was workign as a flight test engineer for Boeing.

I also vaguely remember Manley Butler wind-tunnel testing another batch of pilot chutes circa 1990.

I would really like to see a list (from one wide wind tunnel) that says: Pilot-chute A, from manufacturer B pulls "X" pounds at 60 knots, "Y" pounds at 100 knots, "Z" pounds at 150 knots, etc.
It is important that all the numbers come from one wind tunnel and are measured by the same technician, same instruments, etc.