Reversed friction bar strength

[uer16 1]

So I was gear-checking my student rig that has b12s on legstraps, and noticed that the v-ring was put on reversed, putting all the load on the wrong side of the friction bar. It may or may not have been jumped like that.

I'm curious as to how much strength loss occurs when it's misrigged like that, does anyone have any numbers? The v-ring in question is PS70113.

[RiggerLee 61]

Don't have any numbers. I doubt that their is a strength issue but on some hard ware the geometry is less favorable. It can slip much easier.

Lee

Lee
[email protected]
www.velocitysportswear.com

[uer16 1]

Hmm, there is quite a bit more metal on the load bearing side of the bar, that's what made me think about strength. Good to hear that it wouldn't really matter though.

[AfghanVet 0]

uer16

Hmm, there is quite a bit more metal on the load bearing side of the bar, that's what made me think about strength. Good to hear that it wouldn't really matter though.

It may not matter as far as strength goes, but it matters if it causes the leg strap to slip. If you have one leg strap slip down to the stop on opening, and the other holds as it should, you have an unbalanced harness with the weight distributed unevenly across the risers. And that probably gives a spinning canopy. It could be a cut-away situation if the jumper doesn't realize the leg strap has slipped and fixes it. And then when he gets under his reserve, he still has the same situation again...

Fix it.

[councilman24 36]

Call Bordon forge and ask them if they know. It may never have been tested 'wrong'. I'd guess more than 50% reduction based on the smaller retaining tabs on the bar that take the load when reversed.

I've seen this happen before. What happened was a student unthreaded instead of unsnapped. Then an unqualified person reassembled wrong.

I'm old for my age.
Terry Urban
D-8631
FAA DPRE

[uer16 1]

AfghanVet

Fix it.

To clarify, it was immediately taken out of service and fixed. Nobody would knowingly jump something like that.

[DougH 270]

Trying to picture this, do you mean that it was threaded on the webbing the wrong way, or it was manufactured with the sliding friction bar upside down?

"The restraining order says you're only allowed to touch me in freefall"
=P

[uer16 1]

Threaded the wrong way. I.e. someone took the v-ring off (unthreaded the legstrap), then put it back flipped (re-threaded the legstrap through the wrong side).

It was manufactured correctly.