Lightning Compatibility

[gweeks 1]

Is a Lightning 143 any more compatible with a Lightning 160 than a Lightning 126 would be?

The reason I ask is that we are getting Lightnings for a 4 way team. Three of us weigh around 200 lbs. so we're getting 160's. The fourth weighs 150 lbs. We're wondering if there is any advantage to putting him on a 143 and having him wear weights vs. putting him on a 126 without weight.

[sprtdth 0]

I have found that it is easier to move one size up or down for compatibility.
On the other hand. Our rots team at nationals in Texas (we were jumping 126's) had an exit weight of 218. #3 weighed 135 soaking wet, he wore so much lead he looked like a fishing weight!
Tell your light weight to suck it up. Or drink more

CRW Skies
Frank
CRW Diva #58

[FreeFlyer2100 0]

One thing you are going to find is that the 160s are going to out float the 126 more so than the 143. Now this might work really well if the 126 is flying slot four. Even though they all might have the same wingloading the 126 is going to sink faster than the 160s. I would say that the 143 with weight would give you more flexibility to move this member around in the formation. This would become very important during the inter pieces of competition. Of course this is all assuming that your team is going to train for sequentials and not just rotations. If you are only going to be doing rotations I don't think any of this would matter at all. Anyone think otherwise?

Todd

[dragon2 0]

Another factor is that that is a lot of weight. I've worn 29 lbs of weight before, my usual exit weight at the time was 150 lbs but I had to film rotation at a ~2.0 wingload. Wearing that much lead meant wearing both a vest and a belt and that made my handles sit real snug against the weights. Now I was just filming not IN the formations so less chance of needing those handles, but still.
Also landing and walking around with that much weight wasn't that much fun. Let alone of you land out. Wouldn't want to have to wear that much on a regular basis, myself.

If you are going with the weights, my advice would be to put a lot of it in a pocket on the back of the rig vs on the jumper.

ciel bleu,
Saskia

[chuckbrown 0]

It's better to have canopies that are closer in size. A 160 will "eat" a 126 more readily than a 143.

[gweeks 1]

Thanks for the replies everyone. We're going to stick with the 143 and encourage our lighter member to drink more

Thanks also for the tip about adding weights to the rig. That should make things more comfortable for him.