jimmytavino 16 #1 August 17, 2004 ..... It gives the cameraperson a terrible feeling in the pit of the stomach...... .........It was a sunset load , a week ago sunday. I had done 3 tandem videos, 1 AFF video and was about to enjoy jump # 2,900 to finish off the day.... Nice jump... myself and 7 real good friends.... The dive went great. but upon landing I discovered that my Sony DCR-TRV20 was GONE!!!! ...... talk about taking the wind outta your sails...... damn... It was getting dark.. i stayed the night @ the DZ and was out looking for the camcorder @ 7 AM..... We had outside video on the dive which showed the camera still with me,, as I deployed... But just as certain,,, as my slider came down,, the camera came off. We pretty much figured out where we were as we opened, and had a rough idea where to look... I knocked on the door of a neighbor south of the field,,, on monday morning,,,to ask permission to look for it... the woman says,,, "oh I remember you,, you made a video for our son when he jumped last year,,,, we watch it all the time...".. Then after I explained the I had "dropped" a camera,,, she replied,, " Oh you know WHAT??? My other son said he HEARD something crash into the woods last night,, while he was out on the back porch. I couldn't believe it,,, but the teen came out and Pointed in the general direction of a huge stand of trees...At least it was a place to start.... It was thick with underbrush,, wet, muddy, full of mosquitos, damp with dew, and very tough to move around in..... But after an hour and a half or so... i found it....... It was totally smashed,,, But at least it did not have to lay out in the mud forever... The tape came out damaged,, ( I have it at a video shop who assures me they can save it..) There is very little which can be used.. I found the battery and it seemed to take a recharge,, but everything else is broken.... Still it's only just a piece of equipment and NO ONE on the ground was hurt and no property was damaged... . and now the camcorder can retire on my shelf instead of in the cold wet darkness of the muddy forest....... pics. attached.... jmy Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Cacophony 0 #2 August 17, 2004 My deepest condolences. Its a sad sad day when one loses a camera. I haven't been down that road yet, but I know that the clock is ticking. Thats why I use a D-Box. Sorry about your loss. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
xheadrasta 0 #3 August 17, 2004 Damn Jimmy! Sorry to hear about your camera "fatality". I'm feelin' for ya man. So what camera is going to replace it?? A shiney new TRV-950, HC1000 or a DSR-PD10? ScottI read somewhere to learn is to remember and I've learned we all forgot Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
jimmytavino 16 #4 August 17, 2004 .... well losing that camera was "free" Since it was bought and paid for,,,, years ago...... Replacing it.... however,, is another story. I have ordered a DCR HC-85..... It's supposed to be in,,, this week.....same general size and shape as the trv 20,,, better CCd,, better still photo resolution,, good digital playback effects..reasonable cost..... Still It may serve as a ground based camera for a while...I'll shoot ground footage with it,, and pre boarding footage as well... I have a trv 7 which still works pretty good, and plan to put that back into service for the immediate future...... the plan is to shoot freefall footage with the 7 and with the VX-1000,, then firewire that to the HC 85,, and dub the tandem vids off the better camera....... Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Zee 0 #5 August 17, 2004 That sucks - I had my whole FTP with, appropriately enough, a TRV-20 on it along with a few grand worth of other goodies come off on opening a few years back. For some reason I kept lookin' at the cows in the field expecting to see one of'em wearing the damned thing like in the Chick-Fil-A calendar No such luck - the whole thing went bye bye But hey, now you have an excuse to go buy a cool new toy Action©Sports Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
x3mcam 0 #6 August 17, 2004 Bad shit, no question about it! I had a trv20 do the same thing, but attached to a Vapor and insde a box. It "almost" worked after 5000 ft of freefall... Tomppa Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
VisionAir 0 #7 August 17, 2004 I feel your pain Jimmy....least it was only one of those cameras. BTW...Be sure to test that battery well. Mine would say full charge and then die after a few minutes use. Unfortunatly right on exit of a tandem video. Oddly enough the camera in the attachment is or rather was a trv20 as well. Huh?!? What cloud?!? Oh that!!! That's just Industrial Haze Alex M. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Deuce 1 #8 August 17, 2004 Sorry about the camera. Great pouty face in the picture, by the way... How was it attached to the helmet? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
bskyz 0 #9 August 17, 2004 Sorry to hear about that... there seems to be a lot of cameras raining from the sky lately. I lost my complete kit at 9,000 feet due to a kick in the face last week at Rantoul. Be thankful that you found it -let me tell you, soybeans are not conducive to finding dropped gear! I spent the better part of two days looking, to no avail. No more magic carpet dives for me! Blue ones Dave My site... Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
jimmytavino 16 #10 August 17, 2004 QuoteSorry about the camera. How was it attached to the helmet? thanx....I was using a tripod type quick connect base is attached to a bonehead BatRack.. mating clip is attached to camera tripod mount screw... A 1 inch webbing strap with plastic clip wraps both cameras... (the vx 1000 is directly connected to the helmets flat top plate, via 1/4 twenty mounting threads ).. I did feel like I hit the top edge of the door, as i exited last,, and once during the dive it felt like I took a knee to the head.. i was the tail of a diamond and the left wing and i kinda had a "positive" dock The camcorder was found with the mating clip still securely attached..... I dunno.. maybe it wasn't properly engaged into the base....... ..... maybe I was distracted by the chorus of "him,, Him '.. at 10 grand,( it was my # 2,900) , or maybe I was distracted by four of my "sky-sisters" 2 of whom were floaters and 2 of whom were divers......and all with whom , i shared a fun climb to altitude... ( the sun set glancing off Lake Ontario, through a crack in the cloud deck out on the horizon made for a memorable moment..which we all enjoyed ) . attached... a few views of the BatRack.. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
VisionAir 0 #11 August 17, 2004 Wow.... what does all that weigh? And why the extra weight of the altimeter just for others to read? Huh?!? What cloud?!? Oh that!!! That's just Industrial Haze Alex M. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Deuce 1 #12 August 18, 2004 THanks for the pictures. I jumped with a British camera flier who had a Stroboframe let go of his film SLR. Unknown, like your situation, if the two plates were properly mated. The base was still on the camera, right? "Now THAT'S a camera helmet, mate" Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
jimmytavino 16 #13 August 18, 2004 QuoteWow.... what does all that weigh? And why the extra weight of the altimeter just for others to read? ...in freefall it's weightless.. of course at opening,, it's 4 Gs.... i dunno ...maybe 8 ... 8 and a half pounds... .... as for the altimeter.. there was room for it.. (It doesn't really weigh ANYthing..... That bonehead helmet has a back ratchett clip and a good solid chin cup as well so it's not that bad....and stays solid to my head...) but back to the Alti.. Tandem masters can look at it,,,,,,and "after-star geekers" can look at it..as we get down near 3 grand.........I wear the cameras on most all my jumps... working jumps and fun jumps.... The more altimeters in view,,, the better.... Yes Deuce the mating clip was still on the trv 20 when it was found... could be... it wasn't correctly mated... could be.... WOW... interesting to see in this thread that a LOT of TRV 20's enjoy going skydiving,,, as much as their owners..... Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites kenneth21441 0 #14 August 18, 2004 Sorry to hear about the camera, At least it gives you soemthing to look for another model.. What i do with my cameras is I have them bummy tied to the helmet just in case it does come off it should not fall unless the area that you tie it to breaks... I safety tie my camera with type 2 nylon cord.. finger trapped around the hand grips and then secured to a hole in the helmet.. mount.. this had saved at least one camera.. wehn it ripped off during deployment and when I felt it banging against the side of my head... but at least it was still there... just something to think about....becasue you already have a quick release for the total helmet... it should be a safe measure unless you have malfuctions at the same time... just my tow cents here... Thank you, ken..Kenneth Potter FAA Senior Parachute Rigger Tactical Delivery Instructor (Jeddah, KSA) FFL Gunsmith Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites Courteney 0 #15 August 18, 2004 Shit man, My deepest sympathy to you and a big R.I.P. to your camera. Possibly that clip wasn't mated well. What kind of quality clip was it? If you don't mind me asking. I've seen various makes and models some I wouldn't trust with a disposable camera. Only camera thingy I've lost so far, was a chin cup from a brand new bat rak. One of those with the release clips reversed, (you pull on them with your thumbs instead of pushing). Got swung hard outta Grand Caravan doing stills for tandem, (pilot didn't throttle back enough) and it came loose and after exit it enjoyed ff alone. If it wasn't for that back clip I would've lost the entire helmet. Since then no one at our dz uses that type of clip. Good luck with new cam, Cheers, Courteney....drags me down like some sweet gravity!!! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites quade 3 #16 August 18, 2004 Quote it should be a safe measure unless you have malfuctions at the same time... Yeah, I guess everything is safe right up until the time it isn't. Honestly, I'd rather lose the camera than have it banging around my head. Further, I think all the extra strapping and whatnot might just make it seem like it's secure when in reality it's not. I'm pretty sure that if my camera isn't mated correctly with the plate, it's going to let me know as soon as I pick the helmet up. Coming up on 2000 camera jumps without an incident. Knock on wood.quade - The World's Most Boring Skydiver Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites Join the conversation You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account. Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible. Reply to this topic... × Pasted as rich text. Paste as plain text instead Only 75 emoji are allowed. × Your link has been automatically embedded. Display as a link instead × Your previous content has been restored. Clear editor × You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL. Insert image from URL × Desktop Tablet Phone Submit Reply 0
kenneth21441 0 #14 August 18, 2004 Sorry to hear about the camera, At least it gives you soemthing to look for another model.. What i do with my cameras is I have them bummy tied to the helmet just in case it does come off it should not fall unless the area that you tie it to breaks... I safety tie my camera with type 2 nylon cord.. finger trapped around the hand grips and then secured to a hole in the helmet.. mount.. this had saved at least one camera.. wehn it ripped off during deployment and when I felt it banging against the side of my head... but at least it was still there... just something to think about....becasue you already have a quick release for the total helmet... it should be a safe measure unless you have malfuctions at the same time... just my tow cents here... Thank you, ken..Kenneth Potter FAA Senior Parachute Rigger Tactical Delivery Instructor (Jeddah, KSA) FFL Gunsmith Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Courteney 0 #15 August 18, 2004 Shit man, My deepest sympathy to you and a big R.I.P. to your camera. Possibly that clip wasn't mated well. What kind of quality clip was it? If you don't mind me asking. I've seen various makes and models some I wouldn't trust with a disposable camera. Only camera thingy I've lost so far, was a chin cup from a brand new bat rak. One of those with the release clips reversed, (you pull on them with your thumbs instead of pushing). Got swung hard outta Grand Caravan doing stills for tandem, (pilot didn't throttle back enough) and it came loose and after exit it enjoyed ff alone. If it wasn't for that back clip I would've lost the entire helmet. Since then no one at our dz uses that type of clip. Good luck with new cam, Cheers, Courteney....drags me down like some sweet gravity!!! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
quade 3 #16 August 18, 2004 Quote it should be a safe measure unless you have malfuctions at the same time... Yeah, I guess everything is safe right up until the time it isn't. Honestly, I'd rather lose the camera than have it banging around my head. Further, I think all the extra strapping and whatnot might just make it seem like it's secure when in reality it's not. I'm pretty sure that if my camera isn't mated correctly with the plate, it's going to let me know as soon as I pick the helmet up. Coming up on 2000 camera jumps without an incident. Knock on wood.quade - The World's Most Boring Skydiver Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
