Do I need a jumpsuit?

[Snowboarder 0]

Is a jumpsuit a necesity, or is that money better spent elsewhere?
I am an inexperienced jumper planing a two month trip to Perris Valley. The goal is to put in 200 jumps, then take the first flight course in Elsinore.

I do plan on spending a little bit of time in the tunnel and I was looking at the Velocity Inverted Hybrid suit. Is it worth adding a mesh liner? Cordura reinforced seat? Magnetic flap?
With these add ons the suit is over $700. Is this a reasonable investment or should I just jump in shorts and a t-shirt?

The only suits I have worn are the baggy student rentals at my DZ. Any tips or suggestions are much appreciated.

Edit: I'm 6'6" and 217lb which is why I'm looking at a new suit. Odds of me finding something used are almost zero.

[IanHarrop 37]

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Is a jumpsuit a necesity, or is that money better spent elsewhere?

As the saying goes "Dress for success". A jumpsuit is a tool.

I won't make any recommendations on what you should buy as I have no information about your body type or how you fly.

You might want to talk to Aidan or one of the other instructors at Eden, if that's still where you jump. PM me if you need help making contact with someone.

"Where troubles melt like lemon drops, away above the chimney tops, that's where you'll find me" Dorothy

[BIGUN 1,065]

Just a suggestion. I don't like to see the young bloods spending a lot of money on something they are unsure of while at the same time trying to progress. Talk to the tunnel staff and then check out some of the suits here.

http://www.dropzone.com/classifieds/Jumpsuits/index.html

Nobody has time to listen; because they're desperately chasing the need of being heard.

[theplummeter 14]

Also note the current build times for suits, especially from Vertical or Liquid Sky. Unless your trip is more than two to three months out you have very little chance of getting one in time, especially if it ends up needing alterations.

[ChrisD 0]

Bit of a loaded question? You will have no trouble with finding a jumpsuit at Perris.

700 bucks at this point, (because you are asking a question that as you gain expeerience, will asweer itself.) 700 is a bit steep.

Money no object then get a custom suit with booties,if rw is going to be your thing so you can have the same suit jumping as tunnl time. Or get a bunch of suits, many have a number of suits o chose from depending upon who they are jumping wth.

But since you mention money and investment and skydiving in the same sentence sugfest you stay with the student baggy's util you can answere this question by yurself.

IF your goin to spend a lot of time in a tunnel then I say spend soe cash on a good full face helmet, your cheeks and face will thank you, ventilation and the full shield flip up are more desierable for comfort, considering most tunnels don't wat you taking anything off your face, spend an hour in a tnnel and you know what I mean by having the extra ventilation and benifite of a flp up.

It's a safety thing for "inexpeiened" jumpers to be jumping in a jumpsuit, es during aff, I do't kow whee your at currency wise but dont plan on being allowed to jump in shorts at Perris, you also might want to think about what happens if you were to land off, some of those little brush piles can really hurt.

Good luck!

But what do I know, "I only have one tandem jump."

[Snowboarder 0]

I'm going to see Aidan next weekend. I'll see what he has to say.
I'm 6'6" and 217lb. I belly fly, but will be freeflying once I build up the required skills. I don’t mind spending the money for something that fits well, especially since I will be living in it for two months straight. Do you know if mesh liners make a big difference in comfort?

[ChrisD 0]

Here's the deal with any liner in the summer, as soon as you hit the ground,...your peeling anything you have on...off. I have had suit's in the past with this octaganal type weave liner, personally I found it a little funny feeling on my skin, more of a pain than a benifite and it did nothing to alliviate the heat. I can't speak about the brand your mentioning, but liners as a rule are for cooler more moderate type days. My opinion. On a really hot day more layers are just more of a nusance. If your 6 x 6 , yes I support your concern about calling ahead first because you might be out of the range for stock suits with booties...


Booties are not a nessecity!

On the other hand,...you have mentioned wind tunnel, you might want to consider posting on the wind tunnel section as well. Wind tunnels can be hot and stuffy places, hence the liners, many wind tunnels have you waiting to take your turn and in the heat it can be a bit unbearable in some of those things...The thing about wind tunnel suits, if your paying up to 30 bucks a min and you plan on going seriously broke, I mean like 20, 40, 100 hours in a tunnel, then the cost of a specialty wind tunnel suit isn't an issue...but you haven't mentioned this yet??

Hope some of this helps...have you done a search here, the subject of jumpsuits is highly debated and there is lots of great advice and issues to consider?


One way or another, 2 monthes at Perris is a wonderfull thing, they will take care of you one way or another!! There are lots of people ther/ nearby that can sew, no worries on that score!!


A big note of caution about custom suits...the many suppliers of jumpsuits do a great job making a suit to your exact mesurments, you might want to consider this if you ever plan on putting an additional layer of clothing under your custom suit. If you wanted to put fleece pullover under so to speak, you might find it an unbearablely tight fit.

You also havent mentioned your fall rate? Fall rate and flying with others,?? Perhaps gussets under your arms?? And you haven't spoken yet regarding type of material you would like...this is why so many will suggest waiting untill you know more about your specific intentions, but as I mentioned earlier buy lots of suits for each task! Do you have a seamstress?? It's not to difficult to make modifications to exsisting suits. And or if one suit dosent suit your purpose you can always sell the old one here in the classifieds section!!

But what do I know, "I only have one tandem jump."

[BIGUN 1,065]

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I'm going to see Aidan next weekend. I'll see what he has to say.
I'm 6'6" and 217lb. I belly fly, but will be freeflying once I build up the required skills. I don’t mind spending the money for something that fits well, especially since I will be living in it for two months straight. Do you know if mesh liners make a big difference in comfort?

Well, given that I'm 6'6" and have two suits - one for belly and one for VFF sitting around not being used right now... How about I just send them to you to use. You'll need to have someone bring them in an bit since I was 240 when I bought them. You pay the shipping.

Nobody has time to listen; because they're desperately chasing the need of being heard.

[FlyingRhenquest 1]

You might find something off the shelf that'd fit you. I got one off the rack at my DZ for $125 and noticed that a lot of them seem to be made for tall, thin people. Hell, mine might actually fit you. It's a fair bit longer on my legs and arms than I really need.

I did a few jumps without one in the summer and mostly liked it. All my coaches demanded that I wear a jumpsuit when jumping with them though, to try to increase my air resistance (It didn't work heh.) I kind of like the jumpsuit I got though. It has pockets, keeps the wind off me in these winter months, and it's pretty comfortable. My shirt managed to get untucked from my pants on one of the jumps I did without one, and that jump was kind of uncomfortable until I got under canopy.

I'd suggest trying to find a generic XL off the shelf that would fit you. It's probably not worth dropping serious coin on one until you have a little more experience.

I'm trying to teach myself how to set things on fire with my mind. Hey... is it hot in here?

[blueblur 0]

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Here's the deal with any liner in the summer, as soon as you hit the ground,...your peeling anything you have on...off. I have had suit's in the past with this octaganal type weave liner, personally I found it a little funny feeling on my skin, more of a pain than a benifite and it did nothing to alliviate the heat. I can't speak about the brand your mentioning, but liners as a rule are for cooler more moderate type days. My opinion. On a really hot day more layers are just more of a nusance. If your 6 x 6 , yes I support your concern about calling ahead first because you might be out of the range for stock suits with booties...

I'll actually give you the opposite thought on liners for hot days. Coming from motorcycle racing, the mesh liner makes it MUCH easier to get in and out of the suit and it keeps the main suit from sticky to your body when you're sweaty. I actually used the mesh liner out of my racing suit under my RW suit this summer, it wasn't any cooler, but I wasn't worried about peeling the RW suit off my arms and legs.

In every man's life he will be allotted one good woman and one good dog. That's all you get, so appreciate them while the time you have with them lasts.

- RiggerLee

[3331 108]

http://merlinsuits.com/ in Deland Florida will fit all sizes and shapes.

I Jumped with the guys who invented Skydiving.

[Snowboarder 0]

So many questions I have no answers to. I feel like I need to start another thread with the subject: I have no freaking idea what I'm doing, help! haha.

The big problem is that I got my license during a 2 week vacation in Perris and have only jumped 6 times since then due to school, so I don’t have strong connections in the skydiving community and now I'm jumping in with both feet! I'll be in Perris at the beginning of May, so I have 2 months to get all the necessities sorted out.

I will attempt to answer your questions.

Fall rate: according to a tiny female coach in Perris I fall flat and slow in a cotton student suit (the one in my profile pic). She had to work to stay with me, however I have been working on flexibility to improve my arch.
Flying with others: sounds fun. I have only jumped with coaches, but I cant wait to jump with others.
Material: No idea. The Vertical suit is made from Taslan, and 4 way or windproof spandex.
I was thinking of getting a medium fit suit.
I don't plan on going broke in the tunnel, not yet anyways. Since I was looking at very expensive custom suit I figured the extra 150 to have it tunnel friendly wasn't a bad idea.
I have done quite a bit of research. I was originally thinking of ordering a freefly Bev suit or Tony Suit, but after doing the research Liquid sky and Vertical seem to be freefly suit of choice, with no mention of the former. Honestly I'm getting research fatigue. I started in December shopping for my first rig and have not stopped. I've sifted through so much info that I just want to actually talk to someone.

I understand the value of waiting and I would be fine with a used or stock suit and spend the extra cash on a full face helmet, but 6'6 is outside the available range (although the XXL Stock PittZ Freefly Evolution Suit at Chutingstar looks close). My ultimate intentions are to fly wingsuits, start base jumping, and eventually combine them. I wasn't even planing on buying a jumpsuit, but it seems like a necessity both for safety, and comfort. And I'm sure I'll fall in love with other disciplines.

[Snowboarder 0]

This is awesome! I'll PM you my info. Thank you so much. I'll be sure to pay it forward when I get the chance.

[ChrisD 0]

See the post above from "BIGUN",...

Get one of his old suits, save your cash, have fun, two friggen monthes to skydive...we all should have your problems!! :)

You will figur it out!!...

But what do I know, "I only have one tandem jump."

[NWFlyer 2]

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I'm going to see Aidan next weekend. I'll see what he has to say.
I'm 6'6" and 217lb. I belly fly, but will be freeflying once I build up the required skills. I don’t mind spending the money for something that fits well, especially since I will be living in it for two months straight. Do you know if mesh liners make a big difference in comfort?

Well, given that I'm 6'6" and have two suits - one for belly and one for VFF sitting around not being used right now... How about I just send them to you to use. You'll need to have someone bring them in an bit since I was 240 when I bought them. You pay the shipping.

I don't care what everyone else says about you. You're pretty awesome in my book.

"There is only one basic human right, the right to do as you damn well please. And with it comes the only basic human duty, the duty to take the consequences." -P.J. O'Rourke

[strife 0]

+1 nice job thumbs up.

BIGGUN Do I need to spend money on a new laptop or can I get by

[BIGUN 1,065]

You can get by

Nobody has time to listen; because they're desperately chasing the need of being heard.

[BIGUN 1,065]

Oh pushaw... tweren't nuthin

Nobody has time to listen; because they're desperately chasing the need of being heard.

[skybytch 259]

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I'm going to see Aidan next weekend. I'll see what he has to say.
I'm 6'6" and 217lb. I belly fly, but will be freeflying once I build up the required skills. I don’t mind spending the money for something that fits well, especially since I will be living in it for two months straight. Do you know if mesh liners make a big difference in comfort?

Well, given that I'm 6'6" and have two suits - one for belly and one for VFF sitting around not being used right now... How about I just send them to you to use. You'll need to have someone bring them in an bit since I was 240 when I bought them. You pay the shipping.

I don't care what everyone else says about you. You're pretty awesome in my book.

What she said.

[JohnMitchell 14]

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Oh pushaw... tweren't nuthin

Naw, that was cool. You're a good man.

[DSE 3]

We have jumpsuits for student (and visitor) use at Skydive Elsinore. You have your choice of Blue or blue.
You'd want a jumpsuit, but a fancy one isn't necessary.
My first 1500 jumps were on cheapo used from DZ.com classifieds. I still frequently wear my baggy one for lightweight student jumps.
Fancy/spendy doesn't fly any better than old/cheap.

[popsjumper 2]

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I don't care what everyone else says about you. You're pretty awesome in my book.

Yes, indeed. And I can tell more stories about him...one of a kind.

My reality and yours are quite different.
I think we're all Bozos on this bus.
Falcon5232, SCS8170, SCSA353, POPS9398, DS239

[hcsvader 1]

Go Crazy, A company in Edmonton makes jumpsuits on the side, they are cheap and basic but get the job done. I have a freely suit from them
They are also really good for repairs or modifications on any make of jumpsuit

Have you seen my pants?
it"s a rough life, Livin' the dream
>:)

[AdamUSN 0]

My personal opinion on a jumpsuit is yes. Like another said it is a tool. I have seen many jumpers who cannot fly well jumping in shorts and tee's. I have seen similar jumpers with jumpsuits fly a little better.

I wouldn't spend too much on an initial suit. You are going to crash and slide and get dirty. No sense in spending too much money when you can get an off the shelf from many companies for 250. At my dropzone you can just wear a jumpsuit that they have on the racks.

I personally feel that I fly a little cleaner with a jumpsuit than without.

Big props to Bigun for helping out.!~

Adam

If you do things that don't make you appreciate life than why do them

[IanHarrop 37]

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Go Crazy, A company in Edmonton makes jumpsuits on the side, they are cheap and basic but get the job done. I have a freely suit from them
They are also really good for repairs or modifications on any make of jumpsuit

Edit to add: I have confirmed GoCrazy is no longer operating. Ken is going to have dz.com remove the listing from the gear section

I think Go Crazy ain't going crazy any more. I think they have closed up shop. Website gone. Quite sometime ago I sent a message to Terry and Ken asking what happened and got nothing back. I own one of their suits well made. Too bad.

"Where troubles melt like lemon drops, away above the chimney tops, that's where you'll find me" Dorothy