canopy trim

[bodypilot90 0]

What are the symptoms of a canopy out of trim. I have been having my spectre spin left on opening. It is not every jump but it's more than 50%. Brake lines are the same. The canopy has 400ish jumps always packed inside and propacked. It's loaded at 1.2, lands fine, plenty of flare. I've always packed myself and this started happening all at once.

[Hooknswoop 19]

Checking the condition and trim of your canopy’s line set is simple. Run up your lines from the container to the canopy the same as the beginning of a normal “PRO” pack. Inspect the lines as you go, looking for areas of wear indicated by fraying.
Check the length of your steering lines with the brakes set. They should be exactly even. If they are not even, check to see if they are twisted. A twisted steering line will be shorter than a line that is not twisted. It is best to remove any twists from your steering lines each time you pack. A high wear area, is near the loop for setting the breaks. As you fly the canopy, this area of lines is being pulled back and forth through the guide ring on the rear riser, causing wear. Stainless steel guide rings on the rear risers will reduce this wear because they are smoother than the zinc plated rings. When your canopy opens in brakes, the steering lines are under tension. Every time you release your brakes, you pull the tab (the stiff part of the toggle for setting the brakes) out of the loop. This “sawing” action results in tremendous wear on the loop, eventually causing it to break. Steering lines seem to wear the fastest. Another high wear area is where the lines attach to the links. If the slider is allowed to flap as you fly your canopy, the grommets beat on the lines, causing wear. A simple solution is a collapsible (kill line) slider. Vectran is more susceptible to these types of wear than Spectra or Dacron. Your rigger can replace a line or two that is fraying. Some riggers will replace entire line sets, but the manufacturer can replace a line set easier and in less than half the time it would take most riggers.

Stainless steel slider grommets and soft links will also increase the life span of your lines. A brass slider grommet impacting a stainless steel Rapide link will cause the grommet to dent and burr. Instead of having a smooth grommet sliding down your lines, the grommet will have a rough surface, wearing out your lines at a faster rate. Inspect your slider grommets for nicks and sharp edges. Use emery cloth or fine sandpaper to smooth any rough edges.

After inspecting the condition of your lines, check the line trim. Gather up the nose cells as in a normal “PRO” pack, and making sure that your risers are even and your lines are taunt, compare the length of the “A” lines (the lines that attach to the nose of the canopy). Compare the difference in length of your outer “A” lines (the lines that attach to the end cells of the canopy) to your center “A” lines (the lines that attach to the center cell of the canopy). When the line set is new, the “A” lines are all the same length, except for a few canopies, (check your owner’s manual or call the manufacturer for the specifications). As the canopy is jumped the outside lines will shrink faster than the inner lines (except with Vectran or HMA lines) because they are in contact with the slider grommets more than the inner lines. This uneven shrinkage affects the openings and performance of the canopy. If your outer “A” lines are shorter than the inner “A” lines, measure the difference with a ruler. Then check your owner’s manual or call the manufacturer of your canopy to find out how much the line set is allowed to shrink. If the line set is out of tolerances, send the canopy back and have the manufacturer replace the line set. I have had a line set replacement take as little as one week and as much as four weeks.

When you inspect the sections of line with another line “finger trapped” inside it, be careful. When the outer line frays, it can look as if the line is not in bad condition because the inner line makes the line thicker. But if the outer line breaks the inner line can slip out and the line will come apart.

Replacing the line set of your canopy is a part of the regular maintenance of your rig and will bring new life back into your canopy. A line breaking on opening can result in a cutaway and a line breaking at low altitude could be fatal.

Hook

[riggerrob 558]

The quickest way to tell if a line set is worn out is to compare the difference across the A lines. When the outer A lines get 3 inches shorter than the center A lines, it is time to replace the entire line set.
At 400 jumps, your Spectre is probably due for a complete re-line. The new lines will improve openings and your turf surf will get 50% longer with the same approach.

[rigging65 0]

Actually, the best way to really tell what's going on with line trim is to get a copy of the line-trim spec. sheets from the mfg. and compare your lines to that. Just ask, they'll send them to you. They can be complicated to read, so find someone who knows how to read them help you out if you're confused...everything is based of a specific A-line to start with.

Since line wear tends to be consistent between mirrored lines, you would expect that a line on one side of the canopy should match it's mirror on the other side, but many canopies (especially anything slightly elliptical...like many canopies are now) change line length as they move in towards the center. It's still mirrored from side-to side on individual lines thought....

Just because your lines match side to side doesn't mean they are "in" trim.

"...and once you had tasted flight, you will walk the earth with your eyes turned skyward.
For there you have been, and there you long to return..."

[diablopilot 2]

Quote

Stainless steel slider grommets and soft links will also increase the life span of your lines

It should be noted that changing from brass to stainless grommets can lead to harder, or quicker openings if the slider size is not changed. The heavier SS grommets will aid the slider in coming down the lines faster. On a slow opening canopy this may not be a bad thing.

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