20_kN

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Posts posted by 20_kN

  1. gowlerk

    Like any other pictures commissioned by a customer. They belong to the photographer.

    Yes but if the customer is paying for a copy then he legally owns the copy while the photographer retains rights to the original. It's like if I buy a movie on Amazon. I dont own the original, but the physical copy I have in hand is my property.

    RiggerLee

    The student may have commissioned it but if the drop zone doesn't deposit the check who owns it?

    Lee



    It doesn't matter if the DZ doesn't cash the check. First, no one pays by check anymore so I am not sure that's even relevant but if they did pay by check and the funds were present in the account, then a DZ failing to deposit the check does not change the fact that the transaction is considered complete and payment in full made. If you sell me something and a day later I decide I want it back so I call you up and say I never spent the money you gave me, that has no relevance on the fact that the exchange is done and I paid for the product. What you do or dont do with the money is irrelevant.

  2. catfishhunter

    Lots of good stuff but it really comes down to making a decision BEFORE your in the shit

    .

    My question was about a scenario in which you opened fine and then you had a canopy collision close to the ground. Say below 1800'. At what point do you transition from cutting away to just deploying the reserve without cutting away (or landing the main as is)? How low is too low to cut away form a low speed mal? That's really the question I am asking. The scenario assumes the rig has an RSL.

  3. So if it's generally understood that 1,000' is too low to cutaway, why is it that 850' or so is acceptable for an AAD? I would think going 120 - 150 MPH and deploying the reserve at 850' is a hell of a lot more dangerous than cutting away from 1,000' from a slow malfunction where you're going under 20 MPH. Yet, AAD manufacturers dont seem to think that 850' is unacceptably low for a terminal reserve opening in a legitimate emergency. So what's the difference? Wouldent a low speed cutaway reserve opening open a hell of a lot faster than a terminal speed opening?

  5. I watched a video the other day of a jumper who had a canopy collision at 1000'. The jumper decided to land it, but that got me to thinking whether it would be safe to cut away from 1000' if you had an RSL and a Skyhook and a clear landing zone below you. The SIM says hard decks for B license and above is 1800' and A license is 2500'. It also goes on to say that if you have a canopy collision below 1,000' it may become necessary to deploy your reserve and land with both. So what happens if you have a collision above 1,000' but below 1,800'?

  6. I have a bit of an embaresing admission to make. I have around 80 jumps and for the first 75 or so I have not had much issue with altitude awareness. I have been able to pull around the intended altitude pretty much all the time. That all changed over the last 10 jumps. I was invited to do some larger group jumps with a dozen or so jumpers. Up until this point I've never jumped with more than four people and I rarely jump with more than two.

    Fast-forward to the jumps, we all decided on a multi-stage breakoff at 5k and 4.5k for the base. We mapped out the dive flow on the ground several times so everyone had an understanding of their place. For the first few jumps I was on the outside, so tracking out at 5k, and for the jumps after that I was on the base, tracking out at 4.5k.

    When it came time to track out, I found myself having to track longer than expected to get a solid distance from the rest and I ended up breaking off at 5k and pulling at 3k. Once I moved onwards to the base and tracked out at 4.5k, I found myself tracking very close to someone else so I had to track even further to get away from him which gave me a deployment of only 2k. By the time I was under canopy and stable I was at only 1600', which for me is deep in the red. That's already well below my hard deck. I normally pull at 4k, so that's really low for me.

    Anyway, I just found that jumping in larger groups eats up a lot more of my attention to looking for other trackers, opening canopies, looking side to side, above and below before I open, ect, ect.

    So I am wondering if an audible might be a solid solution? My altitude awareness during the dive flow is fine, it’s not an issue until I start tracking away and can no longer read my altimeter and after a few seconds go by it starts to become a guess as to what my altitude is based on what the ground looks like.

  7. Mark.Carroll

    Cliffs,


    Mike is a USPA board member and former FedEx pilot. He is able to provide the tandems because he specifically employs an Australian TM (who has an Australian Parachute Federation license) who uses a French tandem rig from a manufacturer that does not have the 18 age requirement. The TM is a really nice guy with excellent qualifications.



    Does he jump at a USPA affiliated DZ? Seems hard to believe the USPA would be cool with one of their board members violating one of their policies. My understanding is that the USPA clearly states that affiliated drop zones are not authorized to let anyone under 18 jump, period.

  9. Curious what your max would be for a DZ with turbulence. I jump at a DZ known for winds where everyone is used to jumping in the wind. However, I doubt anyone at my DZ would consider jumping in 27 knot winds, not even the guys with 10k jumps. I've had my canopy shake around pretty good from turbulence on days where the wind was around 10 knots. I cant imagine 27 in turbulent conditions.

  11. I've told a few of my friends that I jump and sometimes a few will tell me that they dont see the purpose of jumping out of a functional airplane. I usually respond to the effect that if the aircraft was going down and there was a parachute on board, it likely would not help much without any training or experience using it.

    This is the premise of my thinking. Someone is on an airplane and there is a parachute on board within reasonable access (say overhead compartments). Assuming the aircraft suffered a catastrophic failure, could someone with no training get the rig, put it on, get the door open, jump with no goggles, deploy the canopy and land without seriously injuring themselves?

    My guess has always been no, not likely. Most people wouldent even know that modern sport rigs deploy the main from the back, not the front, and I suspect most untrained persons would start pulling handles in the front. Further, if the airplane is rocking around due to major failure, it’s going to be very hard to get a rig on, even for someone used to putting it on. Even if they get out the door, most likely they will instantly become unstable and stay unstable so now they are trying to figure out how to use the rig while tumbling, spinning, with limited vision, an unknown altitude and probably a high heart rate and extreme fear.

    What are your thoughts? This would make for a good Mythbusters episode!

  12. Uttamdang



    3. For info only - Why are students not given permission to wear a camera before a limited number of jumps. I've always thought that would be a great way to help learning the course?



    A few reasons. First, they are a snag hazard. If the bridle wraps around your camera, you've potentially got a horseshoe malfunction which is a serious malfunction. Also, when people wear cameras sometimes they start to loose focus. They put their focus on getting a good video, not the skydive itself which is dangerous. You need to be paying attention to your surroundings and your skydive, not your camera. Last, cameras only film other people, they dont show you. The camera is on your head so all you'll see in the video is your instructor.

    Here is a video of an AFF student who got his bridle wrapped around his instructor's camera. It wasent even the students camera and it still happened!

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U9pQuBvgxLw

  13. flying_phish


    I believe the RSL side is typically about 2" longer than the non-RSL side, but someone may be able to correct me on that number.



    1/2" on Mirages.

    https://miragesys.com/support/g4-owners-manual/#11931L

    "Mark cables for cutting

    Measuring the cables from where they exit the end fittings, we recommend that you mark the cables at:

    For non-RSL equipped rigs, 6” (both sides).
    For RSL equipped rigs, 6.25” for the RSL side, and 5.75” for the NON-RSL side.
    The minimum length for any cable is 5.5”, and the maximum is 6.25”.    "

  15. No USPA affiliated dropzone is allowed to let anyone under 18 jump, so it's not going to happen at most drop zones for that reason alone. When considering the waiver issue and the liability, I dont even think many non-affiliated drop zones will allow it either. You'll probably have to wait until you're 18.

  16. Is there any disadvantage to doing one S fold, bagging the top 2/3rds of the canopy and then putting the second S fold into the tail as you insert it into the bag? I find that method far easier than trying to S fold the entire canopy on the ground and then inserting it into the bag. It makes me question why anyone would S fold the entire canopy outside of the bag if you dont have to.

    Also, as you're flaking the canopy material to the outside between the line groups, eventually you get to the brake lines. What do you do with the material connected to the brake lines? I see some people fold it to the outside of the canopy, the same as the material between the linegroups, and some people wrap the brake line material inside toward the center of the canopy around the lines. That makes it look nicer, but now you're wrapping material up in the lines which is what I thought you're specifically trying to avoid?

    Watch here at 2:15. She takes the brake material and wraps it around the lines which seems like just asking for a lineover.

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9bVyAfDEAeU

    By contrast, watch at 8:35. He folds the brake material out and away from the lines, the exact opposite of what's done in the first video.

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VIB6XQ3bpJk

    So which is correct?

  17. Maddingo

    Or just drop the whole S-fold thing and roll it up. It opens the same as an S-fold if not better (jumped it a couple of times) and there is much more control over the fabric, I am getting use to it now as I have the same slippery problem with never canopies that wil burst out on sides. Expect weird doubtful looks on the DZ.

    What I am talking about and why it is better:

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LdXHiLWI1AM



    cool video and that looks like a great technique, but it does not seem workable on a new canopy. I tried it several times and it was outright impossible to roll my new canopy into anything that even remotely resembled anything shown in that video. The thing is so slippery that I cant even get it to roll once let alone several times.

    I think I answered my own question. How do you pack a new canopy? You take it to the packers or live with the fact that the pack job will be less than stellar. [:/] Those are the two choices. So far the reverse S or whatever the hell you call it is the only option that's half way workable. Do one S fold, put it in the bag, then tuck the tail in the bag. It works and I can get it in the bag, it just doesent look that great and in the end I think the canopy is more or less just stuffed into the bag rather than actually folded. Any S folds that I do completely disappear as the fabric balloons up with air while putting it in the bag.

    I am curious why people say to kneel on the grommets. That seems like a concerning idea to me because every time you lay down you're pushing your knees back. Every time you move around, you're moving your knees around. So every time you move, so does the slider if you're on the grommets. I find the grommets and then put my knees below the grommets instead of on them. Then if my knees move, the slider should hopefully be unaffected since I'm not actually kneeling on it.

  18. Any tips for packing a new canopy? I got a new canopy and daaaamn that thing is a pain in the ass to pack. I have sat down with just about every packer that works at my DZ and had them show me what they do but still I have trouble S folding the thing without it inflating into a ball. I have tried doing one S fold on the top 3/4 of the canopy, inserting that into the bag, and then S folding the tail into the bag after most of the canopy is already in the bag (not sure what that technique is called). That works great for used canopies, but I am finding that once I stuff the first S fold into the bag, the fold literally just disappears as the canopy inflates. With used canopies the first S fold actually stays in place leaving a spot for me to put the second S folded tail into. But with new canopies that fold disappears as soon as I put it into the bag which means I am in essence just putting the tail into the bag and closing it. It's not even really S folded at that point as much as it is just stuffed into the bag.

  19. I bought an S-Fire for my first canopy. I was using a Safire 2 209 for my first 60 jumps so I bought an S-Fire 189 (WL 0.95) for my first main. Overall I was surprised that it is quite a bit faster than the Safire 2 209 I was using before. I suspected the difference would be minor, but it's actually quite noticeable. The canopy is noticeably faster in every respect. It sinks faster, turns faster glides faster and the landings are faster. Of course I am comparing a 209 to a 189 so of course things will be faster, but it was more than I expected. I've flown a Hornet 189 and the Hornet 189 was slower than my S-Fire 189 in every respect except turns. The Hornet 189 was more responsive in turns than my S Fire. Overall I dont have much to compare it to as I only have 65 jumps though so take that for what it's worth (little). The openings so far have been fairly soft, about on par with my Safire 2.

    One thing that does stand out is it's absurdly difficult to pack. I feel like few things in life are more difficult than trying to make an S fold on a brand new S-Fire without it inflating into a ball. :(

  20. HPC

    For example, a yellow cutaway and red reserve handle. Yellow and red are universal warning colors.



    See, that's confusing to me. If I were to guess a handle based soly on it's color, I'd guess the yellow would be the reserve and the red would be the cutaway. The only rig I have seen that uses red for the reserve are the Sigma tandem rigs. In every other case, every sport jumper at my DZ that I've seen who uses a red handle on their rig uses it to annotate the cutaway. All of the stock rigs I've seen have a red cutaway from the factory and all the rental and student rigs I've seen also have a red cutaway. That makes more sense to me. Red typically means emergency/ danger, in which the cutaway makes more sense to be red. Pull the red handle at 100' and you're dead.

  21. skytribe



    Ever wonder what that little bit of velcro on older rigs was for. It is my understanding that the small piece of velcro on the container and on the bridle resulted in a little slack in the bridle if matted together - and hence we didnt see it in the past. Remove the velcro on modern rigs (as velcro is bad) and people will stow any excess away and we start seeing the new issue.



    All of the modern rigs I've seen have velcro still. I used a Mirage G4 that had a DOM of this month and it came with velcro the same as all the other rigs do. I'm not really following what you're saying. So having a bit of slack and using the velcro as intended is good or bad? Currently Mirage says that you should mate the bridle to the velcro with a bit of extra slack if you're using the standard routing method. That's what it says in the manual. It does not show the bridle as routed under the #4 flap tight with no slack. It's my understanding that the purpose of having slack (and using the velcro) is to provide guaranteed slack between the pin and D bag so that when the pilot chute pulls the bridle tight on the pin, the bridle is not stopping the pin from pulling because there is no slack to allow the pin to pull out. Thus, mating the bridle on the velcro guarantees there will be enough slack for the pin to come out when needed.

    Also, I find it interesting that Mirage recommends setting the pin curving down to make a frown face. I was always taught that it should always face up, like a smiley face, because if it's facing down it's more likely to pop out if you hit the pin in the aircraft while sitting down and pushing the pin up. I am not sure how much of a concern this actually is since you have a protection flap, but it makes sense.

    Does anyone know why Mirage recommends facing the pin as a frowny face? I havent seen any other manufacturers recommend that so I am curious why Mirage does. Is there any advantage to curving the pin down vs up?

  22. So as you may or may not know, several people have had pilot chute in tow mals because the bridle jamed on the six pin and the six pin would not release. Mirage and a few other companies approve the use of the alternate routing method where the bridle enters and exists from the bottom of the flaps. Being only 60 jumps into my skydiving world, I am trying to figure out if I want to use the alternate or standard method on my Mirage G4. I figure while the risk of a bridle jam on the pin is next to zero, if there something I can do to make that risk actually zero, why not, right?

    So I am wondering if there is any disadvantage to using the alternate method vs the standard method. The main disadvantage I can think of is that no one at my DZ routes their bridle that way and everyone knows I only have 60 jumps so I think that if I route the bridle from the bottom, I am going to get a lot of strange looks during pin checks in the airplane and they are going to assume I packed it wrong. Then the issue is that I dont know if there is an actual problem or the person checking the pin just thinks there is one.


    Alternate:

    Standard:

  23. pchapman

    ***On a related note, can anyone explain the purpose of the altitude lock? As I understand it, the M2 does not activate until the airplane climbs above 1475 feet



    For many years the Vigil and Vigil 2 did not have this. It was only with the Vigil 2+ (2014) that they introduced the idea.

    Prior to that, any Vigil was 'on' from a couple hundred feet after takeoff, as soon as it realized it was climbing.

    Problem was (one time in 2010 I think) Vigils went off in the plane (a small Cessna) while the door was opened when around normal firing altitude. Vigil could only say they never had it happen before, and then changed the manual to say you shouldn't open the door near firing altitude...

    Cypres did it a different way, by having that 'lock' as you call it. Both companies thought they had a good way to do things, despite down sides to both.

    The consensus now seems to be to avoid having the AAD active until once well past activation altitude, just to make sure that the algorithms aren't somehow fooled. (That being said, Vigils algorithms do seem to be simpler. Hit the right rate of altitude change for 5 eighths of a second, and it pops.)

    So yes you need to be aware that if you are bailing out very low to go to your reserve, that's a bad time to get knocked out or miss your handle.

    Were these door opening incidents in pressurized aircraft? I am curious what effect opening the door has in an unpasteurized aircraft. I always assumed it had no effect at all. I watch my digital altimeter when the door comes open and it doesent skip a beat.

  24. mark

    ***. . .I can pull on my rear risers to travel further. . .

    try hanging on a chin-up bar for 4 minutes.

    -MarkI have. Anyway, holding the rears only takes about 40 lbs on my canopy, not my entire body weight, and they are not that hard to pull on for a few minutes at a time. I've done it a few times already. The fronts are a different story and those require almost my entire bodyweight.

  25. On a related note, can anyone explain the purpose of the altitude lock? As I understand it, the M2 does not activate until the airplane climbs above 1475 feet (or 2950 feet on tandem mode). What is the point of this? I know some DZs open the door once the seatbelts come off to cool down the interior. The way I read the manual, if you fell out accidentally before 1475 feet the M2 wont activate. I dont know if Cypress or Vigil has an 'altitude lock' as well but I did not see one mentioned in the manual for the Vigil.