Unstable

Wow. Is there some resource I can go see to better understand how or why the project costs ballooned to +3x of the original proposal? Obviously moving the location from Virginia to Orlando made a difference, but what caused this major price increase? =========Shaun ==========

Even if they don't come on here, have you ever called your RD and expressed your concerns or thoughts on the direction USPA is going? Would he/she give you the time of day? Our RD is always available by phone and stops by the local DZs every year. I feel like I can always call him up and give my viewpoint. I called him last week and told him I was concerned about Airport Access in general and what USPA is doing on a Macro level. =========Shaun ==========

Man I have a Turbo-Z in my basement donated (Abandoned) from a rigging customer of mine... reading this thread makes me want to take it up and see what it is all about. =========Shaun ==========

I was debating sending this to you in a private message, but I'll post it here in the hopes other can see. When you have issues like this and seek advice, the responses from this community will generally be more helpful and constructive if you Fill in your Profile. The same goes for newer jumpers or 10,000+ career skydivers. =========Shaun ==========

Agree. However I will add I rarely see this type of repair without some auxiliary damage as well. Line attachment points (mostly center A Lines), cross ports on load bearing ribs, and outboard lines where they attached to the stabilizer are the most common. =========Shaun ==========

My honest opinion - take this as a learning opportunity, accept your time on the ground and return to the sky a safer, more aware skydiver. I've seen some very experienced jumpers take some bench time, either their choice or the choice of their S&TA. So how long were you grounded? =========Shaun ==========

*Emphasis Mine Price aside, First rig with an Optimum 126? Do you have a rigger or instructor you are working with to make sure the gear is right for you? =========Shaun ==========

When I set up a new Racer I always throw away the paper card and start them with a new Tyvek one. I agree those paper cards are not good. =========Shaun ==========

+1 on those who vote for the Zebra 301 Fine point - my preference is Blue. I too have wandered from pen to pen and found the 301 to be the best out there for the ulta-waxy cards used by some manufacturers. =========Shaun ==========

1 hour 10 minutes. I am a dad with kids, job, wife, house, etc - so I can't be at the DZ all weekend every weekend. Usually I jump every Saturday and I go out early early and head home after lunch. That works really well for me. =========Shaun ==========

I agree with this guy. I have owned 2 20u's, both the green and blue model. All machines have ranges for their various features: stitch length, foot pressure, stitch width, material thickness....When a 20u is working with any 2 characteristics close to max adjustment, you get very odd behaviors and you'll need to time/tune the machine specially for the job. Every 20u I have owned or worked with has that behavior. My personal choice is the Consew 199RB-1a. It will handle a much wider range of materials and sewing characteristics. Good used 199s can be purchased for around $800 if you look around. =========Shaun ==========

In all due respects, and take this from one midwest jumper to another, you aren't going to get less windy by zipping to another DZ in the same geographical area.

As a dealer for one Mfg, I ask for 50% down and full payment on delivery. I thought that was standard in the industry? That allows me to put the rig on the customer and make sure they are truly happy with the product before I ask for payment in full. =========Shaun ==========

My big canopy rig came with an AF logo on it (but I have a Raven 218 in this one, but nobody knows that....) =========Shaun ==========

The Angelfire is a Wonderful reserve and quite popular around here. They have a unique line attachment points integrated into the rib rather than just a tab bartacked to the bottom skin and rib fell. I do want to Preface that a few years ago, Parachute Labs made some changes in the reinforcing tapes and dropped the pack volume 12%-15%. Call the manufacturer and they will give you the pack volume by date.

This would be tight for sure. I jump an AF150 reserve in a 400 CU container and the fit is jiiiiiiiiiist right. =========Shaun ==========

Maybe for sport skydivers, but it would't take many military contracts to pay back some of the R&D costs. =========Shaun ==========

I presume you are referring to the reserve PC not having enough drag to cleanly extract the reserve freebag? Multiple well-documented cases of this occurring. =========Shaun ==========

I would argue that the the Eclipse had some improvements on the V2. So who knows, maybe the new Eclipse will be better than the Vector 3! We won't know until we see it. =========Shaun ==========

You are aware that Shoobi is back in business and relaunching the Eclipse this year?

It varies by Manufacturer. =========Shaun ==========

I agree. There is nothing wrong with a 'top down' main pin flap on modern rigs. And also there are still many top-down main pin flaps in production on modern rigs and they are no less freefly friendly that the reverse style. If anybody would like to challenge that the reverse design is fundamentally better, I would challenge them to provide data or evidence as such. =========Shaun ==========

A local Dropzone taught students to Flat (Stack) pack first as a prerequisite for pro packing. The logic actually made a lot of sense and a lot more sense when I started teaching people to pack. With the flat pack, one individual can teach and keep an eye on many student packers. And if the student packers get stuck, they can simply walk away, review with someone, and come back to where they left off! While it may not make sense when packing lessons are delivered 1-on-1, but we would do larger static line classes ad then in the coming weeks need to teach 8+ people to pack at the same time. =========Shaun ==========

There is a certain brand of digital altimeter with an analog face that is notorious at our DZ for resetting and having other errors when the door is opened and closed during normal operations consistent with running a static line / IAD operation. I don't want to derail the conversation but I would imagine we are discussing the same phenomenon with AADs as well, depending on the logic used. =========Shaun ==========

Common story on both mains and reserves. People think they can get '1 size larger' with a LPV reserve, which mostly the data does not support, and wind up on the way upper end of pack volume comparability. There is so much wisdom in 1 size larger container and keeping pack volumes in the middle of the recommended ranges. Its better for the gear, in some containers it eliminates excessive bag extraction forces, and it makes the rig more comfortable and easier to pack and keep in the air. =========Shaun ==========