altimeters?

[SkyDivinRyan 0]

Does nebody out there use a climbing watch as an altimeter and is it reliable because i seen a few people at my DZ and they say its great just wondering if ne body else does thanks

[JohnMitchell 14]

[councilman24 36]

In general they update fine for the ride up, but don't update fast enough for the freefall down. And hard to see. At your level get an altimeter designed for skydiving, one you can see and analog are fine, and save the experiments for later, much later.

I'm old for my age.
Terry Urban
D-8631
FAA DPRE

[squirrel 0]

i use one, but is a 3rd altimiter. i also have a protrack and an alti II. but then i am a big fan of overkill.

________________________________
Where is Darwin when you need him?

[ripcord4 0]

Exactly what the Councilman said. I use an Altimaster and a Dytter...something I can see and hear...analog and (mostly) idiot-proof. Nothing, however, can beat getting familiar with using the Mark I eyeball - learn to judge your altitude visually.

[Dougiefresh 0]

Quote

something I can see and hear...analog and (mostly) idiot-proof. Nothing, however, can beat getting familiar with using the Mark I eyeball - learn to judge your altitude visually.

I tell people I have 5 altimeters. Two audibles, one analog, and two visual (my eyes!) Lots of experienced people are fairly device dependent, and forget that they can (or should be able to) just look at the ground and know about how high they are.

To the original poster: forget the neato watch and even neptunes at this point. Go dork-style with the huge analog. All the coolest skydiving nerds wear one.

Human beings, who are almost unique in having the ability to learn from the experience of others, are also remarkable for their apparent disinclination to do so. --Douglas Adams

[outlawphx 1]

I use a Sunnto Observer and a ProTrack. I really like the Observer under canopy for it's accuracy, but I'd recommend sticking with a skydiving specific altimeter for a few hundred jumps (and at least until you've had a malfunction). The numbers are a little harder to read in freefall (because of their size) and probably also while on sensory overload (learning new things, etc).

[Praetorian 1]

Quote

I tell people I have 5 altimeters. Two audibles, one analog, and two visual (my eyes!)

I have 7... your list of 5 and 2 tactile 1 is the cypres but if I ever feel it I've really screwed up, and 2 is the ground but when that altimeter gives its reading while your in free fall... well if you feel it its the last thing you're likely to feel

Good Judgment comes from experience...a lot of experience comes from bad
judgment.

[ripcord4 0]

I have 7... your list of 5 and 2 tactile 1 is the cypres but if I ever feel it I've really screwed up, and 2 is the ground but when that altimeter gives its reading while your in free fall... well if you feel it its the last thing you're likely to feel

[firstime 0]

***save the experiments for later, much later.


It would be interesting to know how close one could determine their altitude just by visuals. I have met a few
who don't jump with alti's or dytters and no aad. I am not
impressed or intimidated by this but inquisitive as to their
reason ( better senses???) I got on a load once & while
waiting for all to load, did my checks & noticed my hook
knife missing, I got off the load. Oh well, that just me

[councilman24 36]

A lot of older jumpers learned before audibles and AAD's were available or accepted, like me. I use an altimeter, still have my original 26 year old Altimaster II. I have added a Timeout, a Protrack, a cypres, etc. But learning how to tell how high you are looking at the ground is a valuable skill. If nothing else knowing that you'd better save you life will keep you from watching your stuck altimeter all the way to the ground.

I've been willing to give my altimeter to a low timer who'd forgot his. Especially if I was jumping with someone else who I trusted. Of course in older RW days when everybody wore their altimeter on a chest mount you didn't look at yours, you looked at the one on the guy across from you.

I'm old for my age.
Terry Urban
D-8631
FAA DPRE

[MrBounce 0]

Quote

Quote

something I can see and hear...analog and (mostly) idiot-proof. Nothing, however, can beat getting familiar with using the Mark I eyeball - learn to judge your altitude visually.

I tell people I have 5 altimeters. Two audibles, one analog, and two visual (my eyes!) Lots of experienced people are fairly device dependent, and forget that they can (or should be able to) just look at the ground and know about how high they are.

To the original poster: forget the neato watch and even neptunes at this point. Go dork-style with the huge analog. All the coolest skydiving nerds wear one.

I just want to add a small tale of my recent experience to this thread. I was out jumping over xmas and new years, at a DZ I knew from previous holidays in the year, but not my home DZ. I was also exiting from a plane I'd never exited before and which had a *very* fast run in. I was unprepared for the wind blast and was blown around on exit. I then stabilised and went on to carry on practicing my sit flying.

At 5k my first audible alarm went and I looked at my wrist mount for a visual check as I turned belly to earth and saw, instead of a reassuring 5 thousand feet, just 3! I looked down and knew I was high, but how high? My second audible went at 4 grand so I pulled on the premise that I still had some altitude and I would have to *feel* my way down.

Basically, I had knocked my wrist mounted analogue alti on the exit and it was now reading 2 thousand feet lower. I couldn't count on my wrist mount to judge when to turn and an audible won't tell you how high you are under canopy. I ended up setting up high and 'S'ing off into wind while making sure I stayed as far away as possible from other skydivers, even tho' this meant a long walk back to the hangar.

Since then I've bought a neptune and I plan on wearing both until I am sure that I fully understand the neptune, then that's gonna be my fulltime alti.

You'll notice from my profile that I only have 200 jumps, and I'll add that I still have a problem visually gauging my height and landing spot. Hopefully the neptune will cure that too, as the analogue one is too vague for me below 500 feet. Just shaking your wrist will make the needle swing by a couple of hundred feet.


In the meantime I use the force to land my canopy

Gavin

Gavin

Ashes to ashes, dust to dust. If you don't take it out and use it, its going to rust.

[GravityGirl 0]

First of all, your analog is broken. Use the warranty and get it fixed.

Second, you are WAY to dependent on your instruments. You are doing yourself a disservice by relying on them too heavily.

By 200 jumps you should have a sight picture for your pull altitude.

Just my 2 cents. Worth what you paid for it.

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

[MrBounce 0]

I subsequently checked the alti, it wasn't broken, it has a winder to adjust altitude, and thats what I appear to have caught. I careful monitored it on subsequent jumps with the thought that if it has problems, I'm gonna stay in the plane, and since then it has been fine. That's also why I bought the neptune, so now I have another alti.

Altitude picture-wise, I'm not gonna say I can definitely recognise three thousand feet just by looking after 200 jumps. My wist alti said 2 and my audible said 4, so I pulled. Better safe than sorry. Also, I was agreeing with the previous post, being able to judge altitude visibly is a skill that is needed. I don't have that skill yet, but I'm working on it. Its also why I'm going to have canopy training for landing accuracy.

My only other point was that analogue altis can be adjusted/are more susceptible to adjustment either in flight or during exit than digital. I constantly cross-reference my alti with other peoples on the plane on the way up, its something I was taught at AFF. However, once we start run-in, I'm also checking my pin, my handles and running thru my exit in my head. So my last visual cross reference is the 2 minute warning - or rather was, I now try and make a last check before door open now.

I learn and I continue to learn
Gavin

Gavin

Ashes to ashes, dust to dust. If you don't take it out and use it, its going to rust.

[squirrel 0]

this is a general reply.

i do agree that everyone should get to the point of where they "recognize" altitude without the aid of altimiters. when i learned
to fly a hot air balloon, we had an altimiter, but never really used it. when you can rely on you eyes only, you fly your parachute, not your altimiter. know what i mean? i would compare this to a great pilot "flying by the seat of his pants" and that seems to be the best way.

________________________________
Where is Darwin when you need him?

[GravityGirl 0]

I like to train new jumpers to look down at pull time. Just make a mental note of what the terrain looks like. If you travel a lot, it will take more time, because the terrain will look different from DZ to DZ.

Also. I don't think that a Neptune is more reliable than an Alti III. The failure rate (from my perspective) is higher on digital alitmeters vs. analog.

And if your needle is moving when you shake it.... it IS broken. Your dial should be quite stiff, and slightly recessed. It is near impossible to inadvertantly move it. And lastly, if you are making a habit of checking your altimeter against others in the plane, please realize that inside the aircraft altimeters can vary by 500 or so feet. So if yours says 6000 and your buddys says 6500, don't change yours to match his!

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

[MrBounce 0]

I never change the alti once I get in the plane, that way madness lies However, point noted with the alti needle moving, thank you. I'll see to getting it fixed.

Gavin

Gavin

Ashes to ashes, dust to dust. If you don't take it out and use it, its going to rust.