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20_kN

Tips for packing a new canopy?

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Yes S folding 2/3 of the canopy and doing the last part after its in the bag is what i teach and how i pack andn the way I wrote it the previous reply.

The steering lines and material I just let them hang where they are. Yes pulling them into the center too far can increase the potential for a line over.

watch the video I sent in the PM

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Im some where inbetween. I dont pull them to the outside like he did, and I dont wrap them around the line set and tuck them in. I just let them hang favoring in more than out. As I pull the tail/label up to start "rolling" the tail, I will use my hand to hold the steering line sets from spreading open as you pull the tail up.

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20_kN



So which is correct?



You seem hung up on the concept that there is a "right" way to pack.
And that there's only one.

The reality is that packing techniques are varied, personal and very subjective.

It's far more of a "what works for you" than a "right vs wrong".

I was told early on that "lines in, fabric out, set up so that it comes out smooth and straight" is 80% of packing. Some of the rest is opening quality. The rest is psychological.

I've seen some amazingly sloppy packjobs open fine (more than a couple were my own).
I've seen perfectly neat and tidy packjobs malfunction.
"There are NO situations which do not call for a French Maid outfit." Lucky McSwervy

"~ya don't GET old by being weak & stupid!" - Airtwardo

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sundevil777

Try doing some research on youtube of the "psycho pack" method. It is best to put an extension of about a foot long on the bridle attachment to the canopy if you psycho pack. Precision parachutes used to recommend this method, even for their tiny swooping canopies, but it seems their website is down. You can also get the opinion of many on this site by searching "psycho pack", but realize some people confused the really old style roll or flat packing with psycho packing.

Psycho packing is all about making it incredibly easy to get it in the bag.



Just my opinion but I've never found that teaching new jumpers a unique way of packing solves the problem if their issue is experience and not technique. Someone with a B-License probably has as many pack jobs under their belt as they do jumps and that's a quantity of packs that I've done in a three day weekend.
"I encourage all awesome dangerous behavior." - Jeffro Fincher

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tikl68

It would be easier to show in person as there are subtle things that you cant explain on the internet. I am one of the people who teach the AFF packing course at my home DZ. One of my students had to take her packing course on a brand new student canopy. I showed her some techniques specific to dealing with new "slickery" canopies and she had no problems, only took about 5 hours for the whole course. When she got her new canopy at around 80 jumps most people were surprised she did not struggle with it. When they made comments she would tell them who she took her packing course with and they would get it.



Exactly. Nothing beats actually learning how to pack. With a few tips on how to control the rolls and skin it's not that difficult.
"I encourage all awesome dangerous behavior." - Jeffro Fincher

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fanya

***@fanya Haha this is funny, I also use this. I use unconventional methods I suppose :ph34r:

This folding under eliminates twisting of the material and lines because it is a one clean under fold.

This PD dude uses it at 1 minute mark:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qyM_LkW8DVI


This is similar but not the same, the guy is still folding the ears under.
skydude2000

I believe that method is called the Wolmari pack job.


This is the correct name, thanks!

A little googlefu which give us this thread turns this up https://web.archive.org/web/20010110231700/http://www.jump.to/wolmari

I find packjob easier to control with this method, also the theory behind it is that it puts the fabric to the back of the tail, instead of in front of the nose. He touches on that in his introduction paragraphs.

Ha, I didn't know that was a distinct thing but that's what I do and what I teach. Kind of learned a new thing here to look out for when I see someone struggling because I'm probably not emphasizing enough how to roll those ears under.
"I encourage all awesome dangerous behavior." - Jeffro Fincher

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Why do you just push the material together when u make it into a cigar? Material is not tight at all. You should also go bellow the canopy and pull up all the loose material. Stretch it towards the top, clean it out. That's why it gets so wide. The bottom material is not tight, it's loose.

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Maddingo

Why do you just push the material together when u make it into a cigar? Material is not tight at all. You should also go bellow the canopy and pull up all the loose material. Stretch it towards the top, clean it out. That's why it gets so wide. The bottom material is not tight, it's loose.



That's what I do/teach, around the sides, not pushed up, so that when you fold it the skin is tight all the way around and there's only a single slit on what would be the bottom of it when it's still on the ground.
"I encourage all awesome dangerous behavior." - Jeffro Fincher

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DJL

***Try doing some research on youtube of the "psycho pack" method. It is best to put an extension of about a foot long on the bridle attachment to the canopy if you psycho pack. Precision parachutes used to recommend this method, even for their tiny swooping canopies, but it seems their website is down. You can also get the opinion of many on this site by searching "psycho pack", but realize some people confused the really old style roll or flat packing with psycho packing.

Psycho packing is all about making it incredibly easy to get it in the bag.



Just my opinion but I've never found that teaching new jumpers a unique way of packing solves the problem if their issue is experience and not technique. Someone with a B-License probably has as many pack jobs under their belt as they do jumps and that's a quantity of packs that I've done in a three day weekend.

I suggested taking a look at the psycho pack because it helped me greatly. It wasn't until I'd been jumping for 30 years that I got my first zero porosity canopy. I had an awful time packing it, and the psycho pack solved the problem very easily without a downside. Getting it in the bag is no problem, and I also think it reduces the pack volume.
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

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DJL

***Why do you just push the material together when u make it into a cigar? Material is not tight at all. You should also go bellow the canopy and pull up all the loose material. Stretch it towards the top, clean it out. That's why it gets so wide. The bottom material is not tight, it's loose.



That's what I do/teach, around the sides, not pushed up, so that when you fold it the skin is tight all the way around and there's only a single slit on what would be the bottom of it when it's still on the ground.

This, first thing after laying canopy on ground is to straighten the tail under the canopy and check for roll (it should be in middle). Every single wrinkle that is left on the fabric adds more to bulk.

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1. Consider the price if the first 10 packjobs (they're $10 packjobs IMO, even for a packer, new shit sucks to pack) part of the price of a new canopy.
2. Ideally, pay for the first 25 packjobs to save your personal sanity.
3. Constantly changing the way you pack with all these different methods and tweaks and tricks is making it harder on yourself. The only way to learn to pack is through repitition. Pick one method and practice. After 25 times doing the same thing, it get easier. At 100 times it starts to feel comfortable or automatic. At 600 you don't think about it anymore.

New to packing = a challenge.
New canopy = a challenge
So it's doubly challenging already.

Now if you did the common thing where you chose a container "that you can keep for future downsizes" and you're cramming the biggest possible canopy into it, that's 2x more a challenge.

If you made this hard on yourself, it's absolutely worth a couple hundred $ in paying for packers to make your jump days more fun. It just might keep you in the sport (vs the new folks who get all excited, buy all new everything, hate spending 45 minutes of effort packing for 60second skydives, and jump less and less and then quit).

PS. Do you jump somewhere dusty or have a dirt road/patch? Drop your canopy in the dirt a couple times to help it be less slippery faster.

Personally, I have a deep deep love for canopies with 1000 jumps on them. I'd rather pay to put a line set on a $500 canopy that I can pack myself than pay 3x that for anything slippery :)

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Quote

PS. Do you jump somewhere dusty or have a dirt road/patch? Drop your canopy in the dirt a couple times to help it be less slippery faster.




Please don't do that. Yes, it will make your canopy easier to pack. But at the expense of getting abrasive grit to damage the coating and simulate hundreds of jumps worth of wear. It's like giving a baby alcohol so he will sleep. It's easier on you, but not good for the baby.

I do agree though. Whenever possible, buy a used canopy. Let someone else go through the hassle and save a few bucks. Modern canopies are good for a couple thousand jumps. You won't be wearing out your starter canopy.

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gowlerk

Whenever possible, buy a used canopy. Let someone else go through the hassle and save a few bucks.



A good friend/rigging customer tried this. He settled on a Storm 230 that had been a PD demo canopy. He got a really good deal on it. But it wasn't popular as a demo -- it had only a handful of jumps on it. So it was still a handful to pack, not quite what he had in mind!

-Mark

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But what should you do when you can get a brand new canopy close to the price of a lightly used one, because you have good contacts?

The prices people ask for crapped out gear theese days is ridiculous... atleast in my case because of stated above.

When I see a 1600-1700$ price tag for a 300 jump 5 years old canopy I just close the browser.

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Bob_Church

What sort of floor surface are you packing it on. Once I went full ZP I had to quit packing on vinyl flooring. It's too slick and I can't keep the S turns under control. So, no more packing in our terminal lobby, now I pack and on the carpet in the meeting room.



This is an example of where the psycho method is better because it doesn't matter if the canopy is new, or what the surface on which you're packing is.
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

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20_kN

I tried to give the old S fold another go tonight. This is more or less how I do it, which ends up being less than the best. The canopy is brand new with 4 jumps on it.

https://youtu.be/Cf6RzXtcomA



There are some good recommendations here thus far, to echo a few:

Score an area rug to pack on.
Pick a way that works and stick too that, practice, practice, practice...
pay a "good" packer AND watch them pack. It's a paid lesson.
take your time and don't get to frustrated. Persistence and perseverance will pay off in the end.
keep watching the youtubes! I would follow this https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5JiAegc8EOw it's the one that helped me the most in my hour of need. Get all that air out BEFORE laying it down and try to work quickly, but relaxed.

Hope this helps.

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