Lesson Learned....

[Lazarus_762 0]

After the first jump of the day, a nice little hop-n-pop, I found a spot in the packing room and got on with the job. I needed to cut off a broken rubber band, so I pulled out my knife, carefully cut the band off, replaced it, and stuffed my pocket knife down my shirt (no pockets, but the shirt was tucked). During the pack job, the shirt must have come untucked. Can't find my knife...looked everywhere, considered just jumping and looking for it later, decided I was not going to jump until I found the knife - cuz it might possibly be in my pack job. Looked all over hell and back, 45 minutes later, I said screw it, unpacked the rig, and sure enough, the damn thing had fallen into cell #4 and gotten packed into the rig. God only knows what might have happened if I had jumped it. Maybe nothing, maybe a royal screw up! Lessons - keep track of your tools, and if there is a doubt about your gear, check it out, don't just assume it'll be OK.

Airtwardo:"There is a bit of difference between a rigger with a nipper and a guy with 138 jumps and a swiss army knife...usually!"

[Trafficdiver 8]

I just break the stows off with my hands, no need for a knife.

[jzzsxm 0]

Blade near gear = no no.

To get broken rubber bands off just slip some pullup cord through the bag's rubber band loop and "floss" the loop aggressively with the pullup cord. This will wear and break the band.

[Lazarus_762 0]

I'll have to try that...thanks

Airtwardo:"There is a bit of difference between a rigger with a nipper and a guy with 138 jumps and a swiss army knife...usually!"

[monkycndo 0]

That flossing can wear the attachment tape on the d bag. Another method is to use the closing pin to pick the broken band off the bag. Always there and no chance on causing damage to the d bag.

50 donations so far. Give it a try.

You know you want to spank it
Jump an Infinity

[airtwardo 6]

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That flossing can wear the attachment tape on the d bag. Another method is to use the closing pin to pick the broken band off the bag. Always there and no chance on causing damage to the d bag.

THIS!


...@ the OP ~ no blades near the rig, in fact I remove my keys, etc. when packing.

Those parachute things are WAY to expensive to be pokin' holes in 'em!

~ If you choke a Smurf, what color does it turn? ~

[jzzsxm 0]

I think this is the first time I've seen a thread on DZ.com full of advice other than "Ask an instructor/rigger"

It's nice.

[zerospinskier 1]

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That flossing can wear the attachment tape on the d bag. Another method is to use the closing pin to pick the broken band off the bag. Always there and no chance on causing damage to the d bag.

This is what I do. It works quickly and the closing pin is always within reach.

[jerolim 7]

Broken rubber band can be easily removed in following way:
Thread pullup cord under rubber band and pull sides of tape one at the time - fast. This will create a friction that will sew rubber band in half. This method is very effective. No need for knife, pliers, propane torch,...

[mr2mk1g 10]

Hook knives are emergency equipment for use in an emergency.

Don't use them on your rig/bungees/shoe laces/etc. You want it to be factory sharp for when you're spinning through 500ft trying to find the line over on your reserve, not blunted by years of abuse.

If you want to use a hook knife on something, buy another and leave the one on your rig for emergencies. Better yet, if you've a $5 zak knife on your rig, spend $20 on a proper metal one for your rig and relegate the $5 one to your kit maintenance bag.

[davelepka 4]

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Hook knives are emergency equipment for use in an emergency.

Don't use them on your rig/bungees/shoe laces/etc. You want it to be factory sharp for when you're spinning through 500ft trying to find the line over on your reserve, not blunted by years of abuse

Yep. If you've never tried it before, webbing and suspension lines don't cut easy. Good in that they're tough, but if you need to cut them to survive a mess.

[stratostar 5]

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Blade near gear = no no.

To get broken rubber bands off just slip some pullup cord through the bag's rubber band loop and "floss" the loop aggressively with the pullup cord. This will wear and break the band.

Hmmm really? Did you learn all that in rigging school? If I need to I go to my rigging kit and pull out my rigging nippers and cut off the worn or broken bands and replace them, the nippers also come in handy for general gear maintenance. All that pull cord crap is unnecessary wear and tear, FYI nylon melts with heat, like from friction and you can always tell when someone has been doing that stupid shit.... hey if it's on your personal rig have at it, if I see you doing it on my rental rigs you won't be packing them any longer and you will pay for a professional packer or not be renting our gear.

you can't pay for kids schoolin' with love of skydiving! ~ Airtwardo

[airtwardo 6]

I go to my rigging kit and pull out my rigging nippers

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There is a bit of difference between a rigger with a nipper and a guy with 40 jumps and a swiss army knife.



...usually!

~ If you choke a Smurf, what color does it turn? ~

[Divalent 89]

I've tried the "yank it off" method (>50 % of the time it breaks just above the knot after cinching that sucker much more tightly) and the "disintegrate/burn it off with a pull up cord" method (it sometimes is a bitch to thread a cord underneath it), and don't really like them.

I have a swiss army knife with a small pointy ended set of scissors, and I carefully get one blade under the band and snip; usually it takes 3-5 snips, as I want to be sure I'm not snipping or otherwise damaging the cloth loop. And FWIW, I retrieve my knife from my gear bag when needed, and then immediately return it before continuing to pack. YMMV

[stratostar 5]

A little common sense goes a long way in this business.

you can't pay for kids schoolin' with love of skydiving! ~ Airtwardo

[topdocker 0]

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A little common sense goes a long way in this business.

Never heard of it.

top

Jump more, post less!

[angle228 0]

But seriously how hard is it to use a knife to cut a rubber band without cutting the bag. I mean.... maybe if you have the dexterity of a 3rd grader then you probably shouldn't use a knife to take care of a rubber band.

I don't have knife that i carry on me so if i cant just pull it off then i use a ball point pen to get underneath it.

I am fucking your mom right now

[airtwardo 6]

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But seriously how hard is it to use a knife to cut a rubber band without cutting the bag. I mean.... maybe if you have the dexterity of a 3rd grader then you probably shouldn't use a knife to take care of a rubber band.

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Saw a rigger in the field cut a steering line above the toggle once while meaning to cut of excess 'tail' from the back end.

ANYTHING is possible...

~ If you choke a Smurf, what color does it turn? ~

[SansSuit 1]

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A little common sense goes a long way in this business.

"Common sense and common courtesy are NOT common."

Peace,
-Dawson.
http://www.SansSuit.com
The Society for the Advancement of Naked Skydiving

[popsjumper 2]

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.... maybe if you have the dexterity of a 3rd grader then you probably shouldn't use a knife to take care of a rubber band. .

So..you ARE an experience jumper, I see.

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

[ridebmxbikes 0]

Bwahaha, your head was spinning looking for that damn knife!

[Lazarus_762 0]

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Bwahaha, your head was spinning looking for that damn knife!

indeed it was, drove me nuts, and was embarrassed as all hell when I found it *inside the canopy*...like I said, lesson learned.

Airtwardo:"There is a bit of difference between a rigger with a nipper and a guy with 138 jumps and a swiss army knife...usually!"

[popsjumper 2]

...and I'm sure you've already heard the cell phone stories.

It takes me two hands to count the number of rigs I've heard ringing.

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

[Lazarus_762 0]

actually, no...but I heard about 2 altimeters, a GoPro, and *a shoe*...LOL!

Airtwardo:"There is a bit of difference between a rigger with a nipper and a guy with 138 jumps and a swiss army knife...usually!"

[ChrisD 0]

Kudo's to you for tak'ing the time to find it!!!

How many of us would have give'n up lookn after 5 min??? Esp if on a 5 min call....

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