Spectra reserve ripcord wear

[pnuwin 0]

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What happens to the reserve ripcord once you pull it, the pin locks it and you let go of the handle? Does it suck back up to the housing?

Nothing happens to the ripcord, it just hangs there. There isn't enough tension on the bungee to pull it back in and you can't release it by yanking on it.

[JohnSherman 1]

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At first I didn't think much of it, but a rigger told me ripcord stops have killed people.

That rigger was probably my age. Let me add more contex about the concern for ripcord stops. Yes, they have killed people but that was in the days of "Gutter Gear" (chest mounted reserves). The mains, in those days, had pilot chutes and ripcords. Student and others kept loosing their main ripcords on many jumps thus ripocrd stops. Simply a metal ball was attached somewhere on the cable to prevent it from coming all the way out of the housing. This stopped the loss of main ripcords. But then! Folks would cutaway and deploy the reserve off their chest into a flailing ripcord. They would wrap and you got to spend the rest of your life untangleing them.

Ripcord stops on piggy back reserves don't have this problem.

JS

[Deyan 31]

Another one bites the dust.

While the cause of the previous damage remains a mystery, this one was easy to spot. A cracked plastic on the pin cover.

Bill said something about 1000's deployments for the drogue release without any damage to the shock cord or the spectra line. I had to think about that for a moment. To be honest I've never seen a broken bungee on a Sigma drogue release....ever. And that's the same material.
The big difference is that the shock cord on the ripcord is sewn with a bartack and the one on the drogue release is sewn with 2 rows of 301 stitch. Big difference. The bartack just kills the bungee. You can find a broken elastic even on a brand new ripcord.
All you have to do to inspect it, is put some slack on the spectra line in the area right next to the bartack so you can feel only the bungee and squeeze it between your fingers.

After all, this spectra ripcord might end up as a bad idea. I've never seen a steel ripcord damaged by a cracked plastic.

"My belief is that once the doctor whacks you on the butt, all guarantees are off" Jerry Baumchen

[ChrisD 0]

pnuwin

Hi Sparky,

With the UPT spectra ripcord I've had the pin jam the channel on every single test pull I've done for my reserve repacks. I've done this on several Vectors now and it seems to be consistent. The pin gets dragged by the ripcord to the metal housing then jams. At first I didn't think much of it, but a rigger told me ripcord stops have killed people.

I have a second Vector with the marine eye metal ripcord and the cable clears every time.

I'm curious. Have any other Vector owners had trouble clearing their ripcords after a test pull?

NO.

I chose the spectra cord over the cable because of the ease and the considerably less pull strength needed especially around the corner in an out of position pull or an awkward pull situation. In return I have completely pulled out the cord myself at every repack, I check the ends every day by giving a slight tug from the rear and from the front and visually inspect the ends. And I made my decision knowing that I was at some point going to have to purchase a replacement well before the ozone even has a chance to get to the rubber or whatever material is used. I don't expect my pilot chute to last forever either...

C

The advantages outweighed the cons by a wide margin, IMO.

But what do I know, "I only have one tandem jump."

[piisfish 135]

Deyan

Bill said something about 1000's deployments for the drogue release without any damage to the shock cord or the spectra line.

I had to change a drogue release after under 200 jumps, shock cord was fine, spectra broke at the stitches. Impossible to see before it broke.

scissors beat paper, paper beat rock, rock beat wingsuit - KarlM