sundevil777

Thanks everyone for your input. I now agree that the strength in 'shear' is too great for cutaway pillows, etc. However I think I will try it, it will only take a little, for my toggles and old style velcro slider 'collapsible' wrap-around strap (of course the newer pull-string style is better). The velcro on this strap even snags the fabric on my slider. I'll be careful, thanks again. People are sick and tired of being told that ordinary and decent people are fed up in this country with being sick and tired. I’m certainly not, and I’m sick and tired of being told that I am

But we should make them get about 20 wraps of duct tape around their ankles Gear is just way too good for students now, we should use things like this to make them suffer. People are sick and tired of being told that ordinary and decent people are fed up in this country with being sick and tired. I’m certainly not, and I’m sick and tired of being told that I am

Noticed a very experienced videographer with their RSL shackle attached to the harness-large 3 ring. I know that it is likely that in a cutaway the riser would actually be able to clear this error (as shown by those who did some ground testing - an earlier post). The videographer was using borrowed gear, and had noticed that the RSL was already disconnected for them, just hadn't paid attention to how the shackle was 'stowed'. Makes me wonder how many jumps were put on the rig like that. Of course a proper place to 'stow' the shackle is on the cable housing. Speaking of cable housings, the other mistake I noticed, 20 years ago, on the ride up, was a housing routed through the large ring. This took a little longer to fix before jumping. However, I don't like anyone opening any of my flaps unless I think I've done an unusual scrape/bump in the plane. People are sick and tired of being told that ordinary and decent people are fed up in this country with being sick and tired. I’m certainly not, and I’m sick and tired of being told that I am

I was not serious about booties for students. People are sick and tired of being told that ordinary and decent people are fed up in this country with being sick and tired. I’m certainly not, and I’m sick and tired of being told that I am

Booties can serve a safety related purpose! To protect the heel from snagging your bridle. People are sick and tired of being told that ordinary and decent people are fed up in this country with being sick and tired. I’m certainly not, and I’m sick and tired of being told that I am

The stuff I have requires 19 pounds/sq. inch to engage, 22 to disengage (tensile-in the direction of mating). There are a lot of different densities-'stems'/sq. inch, the stuff I have is at the low-force end of the spectrum. It varies all the way up to 63/88 engage/disengage force. If I read the application guide correctly, it can even be used as a replacement for the 'hook' side of velcro only, mating with the normal 'loop' side of velcro. The forces then are less than 1 pound/sq. inch to engage, and 37 to disengage (at least for the loop they tested). You still get the advantage of no damage to microline. People are sick and tired of being told that ordinary and decent people are fed up in this country with being sick and tired. I’m certainly not, and I’m sick and tired of being told that I am

I'm not suggesting that it should replace tuck tabs for riser covers, or even that it is better than the tuck tab style toggle keepers, but velcro is still used for cutaway pillows and reserve handles. How often have you confirmed that your pillow was well seated on the velcro? With this stuff you just know it is seated -no wondering if the velcro has partially released. I also could see it for other purposes, I always did like my old 'split on both sides - lay flat' deployment bag, but the velcro is no good unless you have dacron lines (I know some may not agree on the advantage of split bags). Even if just a better maintenance alternative than replacing old velcro with new velcro, I think it is very interesting. People are sick and tired of being told that ordinary and decent people are fed up in this country with being sick and tired. I’m certainly not, and I’m sick and tired of being told that I am

It depends on how much you use (you don't need much compared to velcro). The 1 inch square piece I have takes maybe 5 pounds to 'mate' if you press on it evenly with a backing board or something, but much less force if you press it together with your finger a small area at a time. This stuff is used to hold up head liners in cars and many other applications. If it was hard to apply, it wouldn't be used in car factories. People are sick and tired of being told that ordinary and decent people are fed up in this country with being sick and tired. I’m certainly not, and I’m sick and tired of being told that I am

A product called "dual lock" by 3M seems like a great alternative to velcro. It looks like little mushroom cap shapes (same on both sides) that engage with each other when pressed together with an audible and tactile 'snap'. I tried rubbing a line against it, but it doesn't pull at the fibers of microline at all. None of the damage like the hooks of velcro cause. It is available in flexible versions that can be sewed. Any of you manufacturer-associated riggers know if this stuff has been considered? I'm going to use it to replace my Velcro toggle keepers. A lot cheaper than buying new toggles and modifying/buying new risers. I can see a lot of other possible applications. Check out the attached pic for a blurry image from their automotive application guide, and the link. (edit-search of previous posts turned up nothing) Dual lock velcro alternative People are sick and tired of being told that ordinary and decent people are fed up in this country with being sick and tired. I’m certainly not, and I’m sick and tired of being told that I am

Right to the point! I posted this question because I think so many others should be enabled/encouraged to get a reasonably sized reserve. I am an old guy who wants to jump for a lot longer, so I already do this for both of my canopies. Unfortunately, a good looking/proportional rig does matter to many, so if a small main/large reserve looks better than often is the case now, then more would do it. Since the feature on the Viper has already been 'stolen', mind telling us what it was? People are sick and tired of being told that ordinary and decent people are fed up in this country with being sick and tired. I’m certainly not, and I’m sick and tired of being told that I am

Come on...tell us more, and when is the Viper coming out of the closet? People are sick and tired of being told that ordinary and decent people are fed up in this country with being sick and tired. I’m certainly not, and I’m sick and tired of being told that I am

I believe many would prefer to have this combination, but are limited by the manufacturers available size combination limits, or by what would turn out to be an ugly rig (style does matter somewhat) What are your thoughts on containers that accomodate such a combination? I have read that Voodoo's are quite limited in this regard. People are sick and tired of being told that ordinary and decent people are fed up in this country with being sick and tired. I’m certainly not, and I’m sick and tired of being told that I am

Would tax authorities be able to get you in trouble after the fact? Of course none of you actually did this stuff, just hypothetical, right. People are sick and tired of being told that ordinary and decent people are fed up in this country with being sick and tired. I’m certainly not, and I’m sick and tired of being told that I am

This would limit the ability of swoopers to stop their planned turn as needed to save themselves. Smartass People are sick and tired of being told that ordinary and decent people are fed up in this country with being sick and tired. I’m certainly not, and I’m sick and tired of being told that I am

I've always disliked the 'first down sets the landing direction' rule. What if: 1) Several are landing at the same time 'first' in different directions, which is right? 2) The first down does a low hook turn, and you are a few hundred feet higher, must you now turn also? 3) The first down likes doing downwinders and the winds are now actually significant (might not have been on takeoff), must I do a downwinder? 4) I am looking out for other canopies around me, and I don't notice the landing direction of the first down? I like the use of a tetrahedron like at Richmond Indiana (edit - most larger municipal airports have one), or even a large tarp with an arrow that is set manually by someone on the ground rather than follow the first jumper. Even DZ's like Eloy and Perris that have long, narrow strips of grass could benefit from a visual aid to remind novices and jumpers from 'out of town' which way is the established direction if you want to land on the grass. People are sick and tired of being told that ordinary and decent people are fed up in this country with being sick and tired. I’m certainly not, and I’m sick and tired of being told that I am

I also like to watch it long enough to know the bag is on its way up, then turn my head back straight. People are sick and tired of being told that ordinary and decent people are fed up in this country with being sick and tired. I’m certainly not, and I’m sick and tired of being told that I am

Thanks for the link. So, one might conclude that it would be less detrimental to use your reserve before every repack! How does this make sense? Since using a parachute requires it to be packed, it doesn't make sense to me. Anyone with more insight/evidence or just simple speculation? People are sick and tired of being told that ordinary and decent people are fed up in this country with being sick and tired. I’m certainly not, and I’m sick and tired of being told that I am

As I stated earlier, it is PD's opinion on the longevity of reserves that is I am questioning. Geez, if we can't speculate here, then where can we? People are sick and tired of being told that ordinary and decent people are fed up in this country with being sick and tired. I’m certainly not, and I’m sick and tired of being told that I am

Yes, of course it was a Cypres I And yes, I am glad I took advantage of the currency situation People are sick and tired of being told that ordinary and decent people are fed up in this country with being sick and tired. I’m certainly not, and I’m sick and tired of being told that I am

Lighten up, just commenting on what seems to be accepted claims from PD, and repeated by the moderator. edit - In fact, the reason I posted is because I don't accept the claims at face value People are sick and tired of being told that ordinary and decent people are fed up in this country with being sick and tired. I’m certainly not, and I’m sick and tired of being told that I am

The Aero Store wants $1300! I bought mine a year ago from them for $850. I'll bet the price of a used Cypres will increase now. People are sick and tired of being told that ordinary and decent people are fed up in this country with being sick and tired. I’m certainly not, and I’m sick and tired of being told that I am

Has PD shown that there is a problem with fabric strength after 20-40 repacks, or just porosity? I understand the claim that porosity increases with repacks even without a deployment, but this must not matter too much in terms of practical "wearing out" because F-111 mains still last for hundreds of jumps before their performance is not acceptable, and they get a repack and deployment with each jump. Sure, I can accept that the porosity may increase simply from packing , but I think that the effect of deployments and repacks on the STRENGTH of the fabric is what should concern us. The porosity change after 40 repacks just can't matter that much given that F-111 main canopies still fly like new with the same usage. Perhaps the difference is the length of time that the canopy is packed? If so, perhaps a reserve that fits easily in a container is better than one that must be packed very tightly. I can understand PD's desire to test the strength after some period of time/repacks, it just seems that there is more to this issue than what has been claimed. People are sick and tired of being told that ordinary and decent people are fed up in this country with being sick and tired. I’m certainly not, and I’m sick and tired of being told that I am

It can be mounted to your helmet just like other audibles People are sick and tired of being told that ordinary and decent people are fed up in this country with being sick and tired. I’m certainly not, and I’m sick and tired of being told that I am

You will have the airspeed of the plane. People are sick and tired of being told that ordinary and decent people are fed up in this country with being sick and tired. I’m certainly not, and I’m sick and tired of being told that I am

I guess that I could accept that Airtec might have simulated such a high usage. It sounds like Airtec has a lot to brag about with their new unit's power management, but As Phreezone noted, I don't like the possibility of having to send it away for a new battery if it does - somehow fail? Even if it would not be worth riggers stocking replacements, why not allow a rigger to install it after having it shipped overnight, etc. As someone else has already noted, won't your competitors figure it out by opening one your units? Come on guys, loosen up and give us a little more info, please. People are sick and tired of being told that ordinary and decent people are fed up in this country with being sick and tired. I’m certainly not, and I’m sick and tired of being told that I am