DHemer

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Everything posted by DHemer

  1. DHemer

    Pilot 7

    I think the majority of people buying wingsuit specific canopies are at the point in the sport they have smaller containers so it makes sense for the manufacturers . I have a 135 container with a low pack volume reserve and a zpx 137 Pilot 7. It is a loose fit in my container. The full LPV option would be even smaller so I was happy with the more durable zp option. My friend packs a 150 lpv into a micro sized for a 120. A smaller rig with larger low pack volume main and reserve is the best of both worlds for me.
  2. DHemer

    Pilot 7

    How loose was it that it was a problem? Over a few years I downsized from a 170 to a 140 in the same container. The 140 was not overly loose and shortening the closing loop was sufficient. Packing a 140 into the larger d-bag was a pleasure.
  3. DHemer

    Pilot 7

    I assume you mean that in the same size those 2 canopies are too loose for your container? Both manufacturers recommend a larger size due to the non-zp construction so if you did this you should have no issue.
  4. I had a very similar mal to Slambo in my freak2 on a pilot 140. I had deployed at 4.5k and tried to get out of the twists, partly unzipped my arm wings to help twist the risers but it didn't help so it was time for EPs. I had an RSL and the reserve PC was coming past me while i was still on my back and the reserve deployment rolled me nicely onto my belly for a comfortable opening. Regarding the metal D handle, it is easier to find by touch than a pillow style and hooking your thumb into the handle prevents it slipping free. Finding it by touch is the important part for me as you may be wearing gloves on in a situation you cannot see your handles clearly.
  5. How tall are you? At 6ft I found when trying on rigs that the long versions of a vector or Icon in a small size made for an easier pull, even without a wingsuit For someone on the shorter side not that into wing suiting a regular/wider container makes sense.
  6. Keep the BASE canopy bashing to the other forum Back to the Epicene 2 it looks like the ZP on the nose has been has been added to the nose and the trim and been changed. I think these will make this a much more well rounded canopy as beside the sponsored athletes I have not heard many good things about the canopy other than the opening performance.
  7. Digital on the wrist, mostly for under canopy Audible in my helmet because as much as you shouldn't it is easy to loose altitude awareness in a fast 4 way jump. Having something tell you you are nearing breakoff is not a bad thing Analogue on my mudflap for wingsuiting and it also works for sitflying
  8. = VTEC I could get behind a wingsuit with variable lift profiles (aerofoil) as speeds increase
  9. The discussion is not about bridle to canopy but rather where the bridle exits the dbag.
  10. I was comparing a 30" ZP with 30" Skysnatch.
  11. My understanding is it is the aspect ratio (AR) that makes the biggest difference. 7 cell parachutes are usually around 2:1. Twice as wide as they are deep. 7 cells are typically also more "square"/"Less elliptical" which you have mentioned, but this does not have to be true. The trade off is the lower the aspect ratio the less efficient a wing is. The larger cells compared to a 9 cell also result in a top skin with more deformation which further reduces the efficiency of the wing. For comparison from Aerodynes website, they list aspect ratio and planform factor (PF -how tapered the wing is) Smart (7 cell reserve): AR=2 PF=0 Pilot 7 (7 cell main): AR=2.3 PF=8.57 Pilot (9 cell main): AR=2.51 PF=6.6 Zulu (9 cell higher performance main): AR=2.75 PF=10 So the Pilot 7 is more "elliptical" than the Pilot when compared by Aerodynes formula. There is so much going on in how a canopy flys and opens that the planform is not meaningful. John Leblanc knows best: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f-mUyy1fhjE
  12. +1 for skysnatch. When I started jumping my freak I was getting PC hesitations of around 1second or so. The PC would get end of the bridle and then it seemed to struggle to get the d bag off my back as it bounced around in the burble. This was with a 30" ZP pilot chute (200jumps) and a container with open corners. I tried working it out on the ground and sending pics and video to people for advice but I tried the skysnatch and it solved this immediately. I will admit my technique was probably partly to blame as I was probably not giving the PC clean air to work with but the skysnatch didn't seem to care. On FS jumps I could feel a difference in that when the dbag reached linestretch I could feel it. My interpretation is the PC was pulling with more force than my old one. It is a lot of money but I would buy another one
  13. Please remember your leg straps will now be covered and could be forgotten. Your life depends on putting these on correctly. I suggest you get someone with wingsuit or tracking suit experience to give you a gear check. It is less likely in a tracking suit than a wingsuit but it should be considered Also be sure that the waist is tight enough to prevent the pants sliding down in flight
  14. 3M or similar double sided tape is plenty strong for mounting a flysight bracket. I 3D print plastic mounts for flysights and they all get stuck on by double sided tape onto the helmet. This makes it a real pain to route headphones if you are doing more than just recording. it is also needs to be on the helmet for ppc comps.
  15. My personal best for time in a ppc competition in a phantom3 was around 50s (1000m vertical window). There are people who have done over 60s. This does include a dive and flare but sustained vertical speeds of 70km/h are achievable. 10kft~3km Which translates to around 180s freefall time at which point you will be rather tired ;) So yes 2min should be achievable I am 6ft and 70kg without gear for reference.
  16. Refresh rates of almost all smart phone GPS devices are too slow for meaningful data in freefall. Some apps may use the barometer for altitude instead. There are a few apps you can look at https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.platypii.baseline https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.PFM.LDVario
  17. The problem is that since the Aura was launched the big suits have evolved a lot so people are rather going to buy a newer generation suit with more jumps on... Wingsuits are a bad investment so its been to just jump them
  18. I have as many freefall jumps on mine as WS jumps It is faster opening than the normal pilot but the only painful openings were from pitching going too fast in the WS and getting flicked . If I know the next jump is terminal I push the nose in a bit and give the tail and extra roll or 2. For me it is acceptable. Depending what canopy you are used to it may not be, I don't like my canopy to take 800-1000ft to open.
  19. No complaints with my canopy 137 loaded around 1.3:1, ZPX fapric, ZLX lines I wanted the smaller pack size but i was not sure on the long term durability of the lpv bottom skin so I went all zp Packs into a 135 container easily, opening are brisker than my old 140 pilot. Steeper trim than the regular pilot but fun to fly, surprised me how responsive it felt for a 7 cell. Its fine for both regular freefall and ws jumps.
  20. I am not an instructor but from the top of my head, been a while since I refreshed the student training. Biplane - fly the front canopy with small control inputs to the rear risers. leave brakes stowed. PLF for landing, no flare Side by side - leave brakes stowed, steer with rear risers from outer canopy to keep canopies together, pulling an outer riser could induce a down plane. PLF for landing, no flare Down plane - I think the training is now to cut away. When I was a student it was to steer the canopies towards each other to get back to a side by side. No improvement after 5 seconds then cutaway. I agree a 2 out does automatically downplane. My feeling is that it is normally for some asymmetric canopy input that causes this and is usually avoidable
  21. I like the scientific approach to maximizing performance. This is why performance flying interests me, PPC competitions though. For what its worth i think a freak 2 is going to max at less than 3:1. Probably closer to 2.75. The top suits and pilots are probably just over 3:1 in continuous sustained. Looking forward to see where this project goes. ps. In PPC competitions the flare at the entry gate is a very dynamic event. I think that the efficiency and repeatability of the flare is where a lot of competitions are won or lost
  22. We have standardised training for students in SA. It is ALWAYS full EP, pulling both handels in the correct order. This removes the need for an inexperienced jumper to evaluate a high speed mal. Your comment now suggests that cutting away a PIT is incorrect. I feel differently. Unless I have nothing out i am going to cut away first The reason i bolded my original comment is because it is irresponsible to tell student to deviate from their training. This is something they need to discuss with an instructor in person. What if the student had ridden the down plane into the ground or the main had deployed a bit lower so they did not have time to realise what was happening. In this situation cutting away the main first would have been correct.
  23. Your above thinking assumes the same drag profile = body position. This is unfortunately not the case. Multiple body positions can be used in flocking to achieve the same glide path but with varying IAS. your reasoning above assumes the skydiver is like a fixed wing aircraft and can reliably maintain the same body position. In practise this may be a minor error but something to take note of in your testing. For a speed competition it would be useful to get velocity in terms of a purely horizontal vector. This would probably require a combination of gps and IAS data. Then the results from flights in varying winds could be compared directly Finally I think a higher sampling rate with some averaging to smooth out the data is probably a good idea.
  24. Not everyone can thick quick enough in a stressful situation to safely choose between full EP procedures and going straight to reserve. Students: Do what you were trained. Always. My club had a student with a PIT go straight to reserve because he read on the internet that if there is no main out this is the correct choice. He ended up in a down plane when the main came out at 500ft and managed to cut away the main at a low altitude and walk away. Correct EP would have avoided this. Experienced jumpers: Be sure you are sure you have nothing out before going straight to reserve. You don't want the risk of an entanglement with a bag lock or PIT. I have been in the situation where I was fighting to get a PC out and on my 3rd/last attempt I got it. At the same time the thought in my mind was if this does not work I am going straight to reserve. You need to have thought these situations through before because at 2000ft you don't have time to weight the pros and cons.
  25. I jump an RSL on all my jumps. I do not have a MARD on my rig, if I did i would use it the same. I agree i don't see why people are scared of reserve line twists.I suspect it comes from people who are used to chopping their mains because of line twists. The important thing is to do all you can to avoid being in a situation where you might be cutting away at a low altitude. Hard decks exist for a reason. If you are low enough that only a MARD would get the reserve out in time you should not be cutting away. That's my opinion.