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USA1775

LARGE GEAR

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Technically this is not the wanted section so I'll assume that you're looking for advice. Not sure how long you've been away. I see a frap hat and what look like kroop goggles. You're a big boy but not ridicules. And you're licensed so you get to be a big boy. A student they would be more worried about TSO max weights and liability. Booth and some others actually build sport versions of their tandem rigs for big boys rated for 500 lb loads. In reality I would recomend that you just go with sport gear.  Used... tough to find unless you go with a student rig with an adjustable harness. Unless you get really lucky on here you're probable going to have to pony up and pay for a custom rig. PD makes some large reserves. I think the PDr is larger at 281 but I'd recomend that you go with an Optimum. Even though it's a little smaller and rated a bit lower I think they are more tolerant of higher speed deployments. You have your choice of mains up to 260, any of which would be good for you, but over that you're looking at a student canopy like a navigator. No mini risers or mini rings. Only full size risers and rings for you.

 

Lee

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Like Lee said, it may be difficult to find what you need used.  Like little females, you are outside the "norm" for sport skydiving gear.  If you are looking for used, don't stop at the classifieds.  Try some gear stores.  Some do sell used gear.

But first I'd suggest going to your local dz and getting current - on their rental/student gear - before buying anything.  

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How much did you weigh when you jumped last vs now?  A problem big guys have is the equipment is not really meant for us.  Faster fall rates with more force make hard openings more likely.  I highly recommend a domed slider.  PD made me one and it made a huge difference in my snappy openings.  I'm 6 8, 260, and feel your pain.  

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Over the years I saw a number of canopies and harnesses damaged on hard openings with larger people. The amount of energy that has to be absorbed goes up with weight but it also goes up with the square of the speed. Falling even just a bit faster makes a big difference. But it's not as simple as that. Fill time of the canopy goes down with faster speeds. That's part of the reason that high altitude openings are so brutal. True air speed and volume fill rate go way up and make a disproportionate change in the opening shock. That's why a preme at a higher altitude is so dangerous especially if you are free flying or sit flying. Snatch force also goes up with airspeed causing more load on bags and canopies. the higher forces combined with heavier canopies are a good set up for line dump and staging problems. It's easier to break rubber bands with the higher load and a heavier canopy to pull against that will resist acceleration longer. Also bags are wider on larger rigs which with older bag designs means more line in between the stows trying to pull them lose. Right now I'm working almost exclusively with recovery systems dealing with 1000-2000 lb loads and the next air frame will be some where north of 7000 lb. All these things become more exaggerated, it's been interesting. 

 

You are going to want large canopies. Don't be afraid to go big. Large canopies fly so nice and you have the weight to drive them. You'll make it back from spots that no one can fly from. The opening issues are why I recommend an  Optimum. It actually opens a bit slower then other reserves. That sounds like a strange thing to say about a reserve at least in a positive context. With the higher speeds that we are seeing these days I actually see advantages in it. It also seems to be more tolerant of higher speed openings. I know a couple of people that demoed them and made a point of opening them at high speeds from head down dives with no deceleration. I think they have a wider speed envelope then other reserve canopies. You're going to want a slow opening main to begin with but you might also think about having it lined with dacron line. I know it sounds strange, old school, but it does improve the openings. I don't really buy the "line stretch" theory but it's got other things going for it. There is a lot more friction on the slider. It sounds like a small thing but I think it makes a big difference in when the canopy becomes dominant over the slider and starts to push it down and how fast it pushes it down. They also have a lot more bulk and friction on rubber bands so you get better staging on the canopy deployment. That alone can be a life saver, literally. I've seen people killed by hard openings. A slightly larger or domed or flagged slider can be a good idea. Even if you don't seem to need it on normal openings it might save you on the anomalous hard one. But one change I would strongly suggest you make is to consider getting a "Speed Bag" from Jump Shack. Basically every line stow on the bag is a locking stow, they are a bit closer together, less line between them, and there are more of them then on a normal bag. It's about the most line dump resistant design out there. It's a bit harder to pack but you get used to it. Double wrap your bands. You'll break a lot of them but it's worth it. Just buy a big bag of them and keep them in a zip lock.

And welcome back.

 

Lee

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3 hours ago, RiggerLee said:

 But one change I would strongly suggest you make is to consider getting a "Speed Bag" from Jump Shack. Basically every line stow on the bag is a locking stow, they are a bit closer together, less line between them, and there are more of them then on a normal bag. It's about the most line dump resistant design out there. It's a bit harder to pack but you get used to it. Double wrap your bands. You'll break a lot of them but it's worth it. Just buy a big bag of them and keep them in a zip lock.

 

 I want to second this feedback - being a larger jumper and the increased snatch forces RiggerLee mentioned, you are at higher risk for line dump with increased consequences associated with more mass traveling at higher velocities. At a minimum, I would steer you away from stowless (fully or partially) bag designs. 

 

While you are at it, consider a Firebolt as a main canopy.  Full elliptical (fun to fly) and a very deliberate sniveler. Originally marketed towards camera flyers in the mid-2000s.  The Firebolt is also a hybrid design, which will help with volume and ease of packing.  

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At the OP:  Rigger Lee got at this a bit, but you'll be pushing the certification limits of standard gear.

Some rigs are certified to the old traditional 254 lbs (jumper plus gear), others as high as 300 lbs, but I'm not sure if there's anything beyond that. (Unless one uses adapted tandem or military gear.)  So it might be hard to be totally legal.  Not that people haven't slightly overloaded gear before. People over 230 lbs (without gear) skydived even when nothing was certified past 254 lbs, so with the available gear they were always overloading it a little. 

Reserve canopies have a similar issue to the rig itself. E.g, the biggest PD reserves, whether regular or Optimum variety, max out at 290-300 lbs for certification.

So, similar to what Lee is saying, you at least want to maximize things in your favor by considering gear features that are more forgiving of high weights and speeds.

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2 hours ago, pchapman said:

Some rigs are certified to the old traditional 254 lbs (jumper plus gear), others as high as 300 lbs, but I'm not sure if there's anything beyond that. (Unless one uses adapted tandem or military gear.)  So it might be hard to be totally legal.

Reserve canopies have a similar issue to the rig itself. E.g, the biggest PD reserves, whether regular or Optimum variety, max out at 290-300 lbs for certification.

UPT, Mirage, and Jumpshack are all C23b manufacturers, i.e. no TSO weight or speed limits.  Sunpath Javelins are currently certified for 300 pounds and 170 knots.  The newest RI rigs are certified for 325 pounds and 150 knots.

PD makes tandem reserves and military reserves certified for much higher weights than typical solo civilian applications.  These require more altitude for opening, so other altitudes (opening, malfunction decision, AAD activation) need to be adjusted upward.  Tandem reserves are readily available, and PD military reserves occasionally find their way to the civilian market.

--Mark

 

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(edited)

OK I will be that asshole, 280 is big bro! Even if you can pull off the equipment aspect it will make it harder to do the fun group aspects of skydiving.

I know you are 6-4, and when you are tall the pounds add up, but how do you carry the 280? I am wondering if you are carrying extra weight you can lose, or if you have over interests like power lifting/body building that are a big factor in the weight?

I am a midget in comparison at 5'6 but I carry a lot of weight on my frame relative to my size due to my build and weight lifting. I always have to balance wanting to have easier skydives with my friends against the desire to put on a bunch of weight to make lifting easier (and for vanity).  

Edited by DougH

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12 minutes ago, JerryBaumchen said:

Hi Mark,

The Mirage is TSO'd as a C23(b) Low Speed Parachute; not to be used in aircraft over 150 MPH.

Jerry Baumchen

The TSO is silent with respect to deployment speed.  In most cases, skydiving aircraft are flown at less than 150 mph.

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16 hours ago, DougH said:

Even if you can pull off the equipment aspect it will make it harder to do the fun group aspects of skydiving.

I agree, it can definitely make it harder, especially at lower jump numbers.  But there are always exceptions.  A friend of ours is quite large, at least 250, always has been. He has many thousands of jumps, 30 plus years in sport and he holds multiple RW and CRW world records. He dresses for success; suits with lots of drag help a lot. I'm a feather butt and we have done some jumps together, including him officiating my wedding jump.  The only fall rate issues were me if I wasn't wearing a snug suit (ie I didn't dress for success).  
But yeah, most of the larger jumpers I've known haven't stayed in the sport very long, at least partly because their learning curve is so steep due to their size and the fact that not every jumper, especially ones at about the same jump numbers, can keep up with them in freefall.  But even if they don't do a lot of jumps, they got to experience skydiving as a skydiver not as a tandem passenger.  That's not a bad thing :-)   

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On 5/22/2019 at 11:31 AM, skybytch said:

Like Lee said, it may be difficult to find what you need used.  Like little females, you are outside the "norm" for sport skydiving gear.  If you are looking for used, don't stop at the classifieds.  Try some gear stores.  Some do sell used gear.

But first I'd suggest going to your local dz and getting current - on their rental/student gear - before buying anything.  

Hey Thanks man, will do..

 

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On 5/22/2019 at 11:31 AM, skybytch said:

Like Lee said, it may be difficult to find what you need used.  Like little females, you are outside the "norm" for sport skydiving gear.  If you are looking for used, don't stop at the classifieds.  Try some gear stores.  Some do sell used gear.

But first I'd suggest going to your local dz and getting current - on their rental/student gear - before buying anything.  

Thanks for the reply

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On 5/22/2019 at 8:55 PM, Elpnor said:

How much did you weigh when you jumped last vs now?  A problem big guys have is the equipment is not really meant for us.  Faster fall rates with more force make hard openings more likely.  I highly recommend a domed slider.  PD made me one and it made a huge difference in my snappy openings.  I'm 6 8, 260, and feel your pain.  

I was about 240 now UGH! I could lose 50lbs and that would help.

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On 5/23/2019 at 9:57 AM, RiggerLee said:

Over the years I saw a number of canopies and harnesses damaged on hard openings with larger people. The amount of energy that has to be absorbed goes up with weight but it also goes up with the square of the speed. Falling even just a bit faster makes a big difference. But it's not as simple as that. Fill time of the canopy goes down with faster speeds. That's part of the reason that high altitude openings are so brutal. True air speed and volume fill rate go way up and make a disproportionate change in the opening shock. That's why a preme at a higher altitude is so dangerous especially if you are free flying or sit flying. Snatch force also goes up with airspeed causing more load on bags and canopies. the higher forces combined with heavier canopies are a good set up for line dump and staging problems. It's easier to break rubber bands with the higher load and a heavier canopy to pull against that will resist acceleration longer. Also bags are wider on larger rigs which with older bag designs means more line in between the stows trying to pull them lose. Right now I'm working almost exclusively with recovery systems dealing with 1000-2000 lb loads and the next air frame will be some where north of 7000 lb. All these things become more exaggerated, it's been interesting. 

 

You are going to want large canopies. Don't be afraid to go big. Large canopies fly so nice and you have the weight to drive them. You'll make it back from spots that no one can fly from. The opening issues are why I recommend an  Optimum. It actually opens a bit slower then other reserves. That sounds like a strange thing to say about a reserve at least in a positive context. With the higher speeds that we are seeing these days I actually see advantages in it. It also seems to be more tolerant of higher speed openings. I know a couple of people that demoed them and made a point of opening them at high speeds from head down dives with no deceleration. I think they have a wider speed envelope then other reserve canopies. You're going to want a slow opening main to begin with but you might also think about having it lined with dacron line. I know it sounds strange, old school, but it does improve the openings. I don't really buy the "line stretch" theory but it's got other things going for it. There is a lot more friction on the slider. It sounds like a small thing but I think it makes a big difference in when the canopy becomes dominant over the slider and starts to push it down and how fast it pushes it down. They also have a lot more bulk and friction on rubber bands so you get better staging on the canopy deployment. That alone can be a life saver, literally. I've seen people killed by hard openings. A slightly larger or domed or flagged slider can be a good idea. Even if you don't seem to need it on normal openings it might save you on the anomalous hard one. But one change I would strongly suggest you make is to consider getting a "Speed Bag" from Jump Shack. Basically every line stow on the bag is a locking stow, they are a bit closer together, less line between them, and there are more of them then on a normal bag. It's about the most line dump resistant design out there. It's a bit harder to pack but you get used to it. Double wrap your bands. You'll break a lot of them but it's worth it. Just buy a big bag of them and keep them in a zip lock.

And welcome back.

 

Lee

Thanks for your reply Lee.

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On 5/23/2019 at 4:16 PM, mark said:

UPT, Mirage, and Jumpshack are all C23b manufacturers, i.e. no TSO weight or speed limits.  Sunpath Javelins are currently certified for 300 pounds and 170 knots.  The newest RI rigs are certified for 325 pounds and 150 knots.

PD makes tandem reserves and military reserves certified for much higher weights than typical solo civilian applications.  These require more altitude for opening, so other altitudes (opening, malfunction decision, AAD activation) need to be adjusted upward.  Tandem reserves are readily available, and PD military reserves occasionally find their way to the civilian market.

--Mark

 

Thanks for your reply Mark.

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On 5/23/2019 at 5:02 PM, DougH said:

OK I will be that asshole, 280 is big bro! Even if you can pull off the equipment aspect it will make it harder to do the fun group aspects of skydiving.

I know you are 6-4, and when you are tall the pounds add up, but how do you carry the 280? I am wondering if you are carrying extra weight you can lose, or if you have over interests like power lifting/body building that are a big factor in the weight?

I am a midget in comparison at 5'6 but I carry a lot of weight on my frame relative to my size due to my build and weight lifting. I always have to balance wanting to have easier skydives with my friends against the desire to put on a bunch of weight to make lifting easier (and for vanity).  

Thanks for the reply, I need to lose 50LBs thats for sure.

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