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Soule76

Crossfire 2 vs. Crossfire 3

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Looking at getting a new (or new to me) canopy.
Pretty set on a crossfire.
I figure with the new crossfire 3 coming out there will be few crossfire 2's hitting the used market soon. Is the Crossfire 3's performance that much better than 2's that it justifies paying full for a new wing?

I'm not a swooper, nor looking to get into that for a while if ever. I just want something that is fun to fly. I have no problem paying full price for a new wing, but if I can get pretty much the same thing used and have a dozen or so lift tickets for the same price I'd just as soon go for that.

So basically, is the crossfire 3 better than the crossfire 2 and how?

Thanks in advance for any input.

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Haven't jumped a Crossfire 3. I do have a 2 it's a perfectly fine wing.

How much are you going to be loading this canopies at? The oficial literature changes from the 2 to the 3:

Crossfire 2:
http://www.nzaerosports.com/canopies/icarus-crossfire2/
"We recommend wing loadings from 1.4psf to 2.1psf"

Crossfire 3
http://www.nzaerosports.com/canopies/icarus-crossfire3/
"At light wingloadings of 1.0 to 1.4, the Crossfire 3 is suitable as a first or second fully elliptical 9-cell"

It looks like they have made the 3 to dive more than the Crossfire 2, and incorporated a lot of more technichal advancement jargon to the description. They haven't gotten to much away from the general characteristics that make the Crossfire the wing that it is.

Also there's a newcomer to all this Icarus-Something-Something-FIRE line up THE X-FIRE from Icarus World:o

XFIRE
http://www.icaruscanopies.aero/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=131&Itemid=675
"Recommended Wing Loading: 1.4 - 2.4 psf"

Now this goes with what you're asking, I have demoed the XFIRE and it's a totally different wing.

Use your search option here in the forums to gather more info.

In the end, with the Crossfire 2, Crossfire 3, XFIRE and the rest, the differentiator is the pilot flying these wings.

PS XFIRE brake lines are too long, there's room for some adjusting.

Felipe.

--
Blue Skies
NO FEARS, NO LIMITS, NO MONEY...
"A Subitánea et Improvísa Morte, Líbera nos, Domine."

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Soule76

Looking at getting a new (or new to me) canopy.
Pretty set on a crossfire.
I figure with the new crossfire 3 coming out there will be few crossfire 2's hitting the used market soon. Is the Crossfire 3's performance that much better than 2's that it justifies paying full for a new wing?

I'm not a swooper, nor looking to get into that for a while if ever. I just want something that is fun to fly. I have no problem paying full price for a new wing, but if I can get pretty much the same thing used and have a dozen or so lift tickets for the same price I'd just as soon go for that.

So basically, is the crossfire 3 better than the crossfire 2 and how?

Thanks in advance for any input.



I've got both. I have a Crossfire 2 129 loaded at about 1.4, and a Crossfire 3 109 loaded at about 1.7.

The Crossfire 3 is pretty different than the 2. Probably the most notable difference is it is trimmed steeper. The Crossfire 2 is trimmed flat, which means it will get you back from a fairly long spot. Not as flat as a Pilot, but pretty close.

The Crossfire 3 is trimmed more nose-down. The recovery arc is longer than the Crossfire 2, so you'll lose more altitude in a turn. I have to start my pattern higher with the 3 than the 2.

The Crossfire 3 also opens quicker than the 2. Not fast, but quicker. The Crossfire 2 has probably the softest opening of any canopy I've jumped. The Crossfire 3 is still quite comfortable, but the deceleration is a bit more.

They're both fun canopies, but fairly different. Crossfire 3 = more aggressive. Crossfire 2, not as aggressive. Though both are more aggressive than say, a Sabre 2 at the same wing loading.

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You have to keep in mind that you went from a 129 Crossfire 2 to a 109 Crossfire 3, That change in size will make Flying characteristics more pronounced.

Sebastian is gonna be having demos some time in 2018, will go and check it out.

Felipe
--
Blue Skies
NO FEARS, NO LIMITS, NO MONEY...
"A Subitánea et Improvísa Morte, Líbera nos, Domine."

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