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I'm looking for advice on buying a new Canopy...

I have had multiple injuries,, you play, you pay!
The worst injury consisted of 12 broken bones, along with a lot of nerve and tissue damage. Every Lumbar Vertebrae was broke, my Secrum and 5 ribs. Chronic pain has become a way of life...

Most recently I managed to destroy my knee. This is minor in comparrison to my back, yet it is dissabling.

So to continue Skydiving, I will need to invest in the best canopy possible. By Best, I mean I need a canopy that has consistant super soft openings, and an awesome flare for easy landing.

Last I knew, the PD Spectre was the best option. Have things changed much in the past 1-2 years?

Does the canopy size, or wing loading matter? Doesnt a heavier wing loaded canopy open faster?

FYI- I'm not a swooper, so I do not need a racey canopy. I would consider myself a conservative canopy pilot.

Considering my condition, I have considered retiring from both Skydiving and BASE jumping. I just cant give it up! This is my heroin! LOL...

Cya,
Josh Morell
www.imagethisphoto.com

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I highly recommend Spectre.
With the injuries I sustained in a skydiving accident.....all lumbar too...and the old football injuries I deal with, I was looking at giving it up also....until I bought a Spectre. You wont believe the openings.
Email me as I would love to help you get back in the air.

bozo


bozo
Pain is fleeting. Glory lasts forever. Chicks dig scars.

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I highly recommend Spectre.
With the injuries I sustained in a skydiving accident.....all lumbar too...and the old football injuries I deal with, I was looking at giving it up also....until I bought a Spectre. You wont believe the openings.
Email me as I would love to help you get back in the air.

bozo




...and of course take extreme care when packing.;)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Peace and Blue Skies!
Bonnie ==>Gravity Gear!

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Hi there,

Yeah, Spectre would be perfect. Also, opt for Dacron lines, which strech more than Microline and have more friction when the slider grommets slide on them. Here is Performance Designs' opinion on them (from their website):

"Why would anyone want to use Dacron line on their canopy?

Though most people prefer the lower bulk and drag of Microline or Vectran, Dacron is often the best choice for some applications. Dacron is a fairly elastic line, so it gives a little when there is a sharp "spike" to the opening force. This elasticity won't change the really good openings very much, but it can take the edge off those occasional abrupt openings where your packing was a little off or your airspeed was a little high at opening time. Dacron may be preferable in a student operation, where unusual body positions can compound opening issues. Some camera flyers with very heavy helmets also prefer Dacron lines. Older jumpers, who may not want to subject their bodies to hard openings, may want Dacron to help reduce the impact should something get a little out of control at opening time."

Also, Bill Booth made some comments on that issue, too:

"Spectra (or micro-line) is strong and tiny, so it reduces both pack volume and drag , which means you get a smaller rig and a faster canopy. Unfortunately, It has a couple of "design characteristics" (this is manufacturer talk for "problems") It is very slippery (less friction to slow the slider), and stretches less than stainless steel. This is why it hurt people and broke so many mini risers when it was first introduced. Now, I must say that the canopy manufacturers did a wonderful job handling these "characteristics" by designing new canopies that opened much slower than their predecessors. However, the fact still remains, that if you do have a rare fast opening on a microlined canopy, Spectra (or Vectran) will transmit that force to you (and your rig) much, much faster, resulting in an opening shock up to 300% higher than if you have Dacron lines. (It's sort of like doing a bungee jump with a stainless steel cable. At the bottom of your fall, your body applies the same force to the steel cable as it would to a rubber bungee cord, but because steel doesn't stretch, your legs tears off.)"

Moreover, you can opt for lighter, brass slider groomets, instead of heavier, stainless steel slider groommets. Lighter mass equals less momentum (speed) down the lines. BTW, Precision Aerodynamics favors them, saying they contribute to softer openings.

Also, on their website Performance Designs says that "larger Spectres open slower than the smaller models".

So, to sum up, if I were you my choice would be large Spectre, Dacron lines, and brass slider grommets. Careful packing and deploying at no faster than 120mph (and not while tracking, especially steep tracking) will help, too. Some people also say that Psychopacking helps, but I am not sure about this.

Good luck and welcome back :)
Bart

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"Some people also say that Psychopacking helps, but I am not sure about this." -Quote

I have never heard the term psychopacking. If I had to guess, sounds like a trash pack. Can you fill me in on that???
Any packing tips, other than rolling the leading edge/nose?

FYI- I also have experience packing for 'BASE'. Maybe I'll chat with Aiello about adopting some deployment methods for Skydiving.
However considering my physical condition, it makes packing a REAL chore. Packing stresses my body enough that sometimes I'm unable to jump after packing. I prefer to pay a packer while I supervise (they hate that). This way I can get 2-3 jumps in a day.

Dacron lines are a must for me...
I hadnt considered the differnces in Grommets, thanks for the tip! Anyone else have input on that?

What have I forgotten?
Any tips regarding Containers/Harnesses? Is there one that will distribute the shock better? Obviously fit will determine a lot.

Thanks everyone for your support, I need it!

Josh Morell
www.imagethisphoto.com

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"Some people also say that Psychopacking helps, but I am not sure about this." -Quote

I have never heard the term psychopacking. If I had to guess, sounds like a trash pack. Can you fill me in on that???
Any packing tips, other than rolling the leading edge/nose?



Most important thing AFAIK is get the slider right up and make sure it's in an open configuration with a little bit prodruding to catch air before you cover it up. I make sure the slider is open in all four axes before closing the tail around it and rolling. Keep the slider grommets in place when rolling & folding and whatever you do don't let them slip down. Try to keep the tail closed tight around the grommets throughout packing.

I've heard conflicting opinions on rolling the nose, the DZ I learned at used to do this but they jumped Sabre 1s, I've been advised that for most canopies shoving the nose to the back of the canopy at elbow depth with a little shake to keep it in place is a good option. Opinions vary on this.

I'm a relative newbie but I've heard of psycho packing, it's not a trash pack. Opinions seem to differ on whether it helps with opening, it may depend on the canopy but the consensus seems to be that it's just an easier pack for slippy zero-p canopies provided you don't screw up when turning the canopy over.

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I have never heard the term psychopacking. If I had to guess, sounds like a trash pack. Can you fill me in on that???



Hi Josh,

Psycho packing is different than trash packing. With trash packing you don't flake and dress the canopy, just shake it, fold it and shove it into deployment bag. Precision Aerodynamics came up with Psycho packing (also called Precision packing). Here is lots of info with instructions, pictures and movies on how to pack this way: http://www.precision.aero/information.htm

As you know Spectre is manufactured by PD, and their opinion of psychopacking is as follows:

"The psycho pack is not really an entirely different packing method, it’s just a different bagging method. The first part of a “psycho pack,” the part that is done standing up, is identical to a regular PRO pack. The only difference is the technique used to fold the canopy and put it in the deployment bag.

For this reason, “psycho packing,” which we could perhaps call “psycho bagging,” may or may not make a difference in the way your canopy opens. If the first part of the pack job is sloppy, then the opening may not be very good no matter how the canopy is put in the bag. Let’s suppose, however, that you do a good basic PRO pack but tend to lose control while bagging the canopy, and end with a mess by the time you make the first line stows. If “psycho bagging” helps keep your neat PRO pack under control while you put it in the bag, your openings may improve using this technique.

We don't recommend the “psycho bagging” technique for a couple of reasons. For one thing, we feel there are easier ways to put the canopy in the bag that work just as well. We also do not think a canopy should be packed with a lot of material in front of the nose, which happens when you psycho pack.

We’ve made test jumps on a number of our main canopies using a psycho pack, and the openings were acceptable. We also know of some customers using this method with our canopies who are happy with the results. So, you can use the “psycho bagging” technique with your PD main if you want, but it is not the method we recommend."

You can check the first three FAQs here for info about PRO, flat and Psycho packing: http://performancedesigns.com/faq.htm

If you need more info or Psychopacking, just click here :)http://www.dropzone.com/cgi-bin/forum/gforum.cgi?do=search_results&search_forum=all&search_string=psycho+-re&search_type=AND&search_fields=s&search_time=&search_user_username=&sb=score&mh=50

http://www.dropzone.com/cgi-bin/forum/gforum.cgi?do=search_results&search_forum=all&search_string=psychopack+-re%3A&search_type=AND&search_fields=s&search_time=&search_user_username=&sb=score&mh=25

Container type should not matter when it comes to opening shock, as long as it fits you (custom made and getting measured by the rigger or factory would be the best way to go. I heard tailors measure not the way tha factory/riggers do).

Blue Skies,

Bart

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