lintern

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Posts posted by lintern

  1. Posted · Edited by lintern

    I have bought a Cookie G4 and I'm looking for advice on a cutaway system for a Go Pro Hero 7 black.

    I used to jump a Cookie open face which had a cutaway on the chin strap and the Go Pro was fitted using the Cookie roller mount.

    I have since bought a cutaway system from Freefall Gear Store which uses the Cookie roller mount, but I've not fitted it to the helmet yet...

    image.png.b0d7924fb61e17eff797b2013ee4be5f.png

    image.png.1b54e21d422caae8a9d8b81ac75e089a.png

    image.png.47b6bbe995e7af8e6ff1777ab24c0e60.png

    image.png.8dc8a50bf95d65d8d319e28c7a196c4d.png

     

    There was a YouTube video on the website showing how to fit the system and how it operates.

    But they no longer sell this system and have replaced it with the following...

    https://freefallgearstore.com/product/cut-mount-g4-cutaway-system/

    image.png.1512d1af06241b95c61b087f0779625d.png

     

    Cosmetically I prefer the system I've already bought which uses the Cookie roller mount.

    But functionality and safety is critical so I am wondering if I should exchange it for the newer version, assuming it's a better system ?

    I've also seen the VMAG system but was not so keen...

    http://vmag.dk/

    Or is there another cutaway I should look at ?

    image.png

    • Like 1

  3. Thanks guys, I have contacted the dropzone where the seller works and they have confirmed he is legit. I tried to call but they did not answer so I used their facebook messenger. Below is the chat history (with details omitted for privacy):

    DZ: Hi, today we’re closed. How could i help you

    Me: Ok sorry to interrupt you on your day off. I wanted to enquire about someone who works at your dropzone who is selling a canopy on Facebook. I want to confirm he works there and assess his character, are you able to confirm this?

    DZ: ...i think you’re asking about xxxx

    Mel: Yes that is correct how did you know!?

    DZ: Is the seller! Sells all over the world

    Me: Ok so he does work at your dropzone and he is a good character and can be trusted?

    DZ: xxxx and he runs also the shop at our dropzone. He’s a tandem master, video operator. Works here...but also he runs his own dropzone

    Me: What is the name of the dropzone he owns?

    DZ: Skydive xxxxxx

    Me: Ok great thanks - so I can trust him with the sale of this canopy who he is selling for a friend and he is a reputable seller ?

    DZ: Absolutely! Is very well known in xxxxx and we always ask him for buying or selling something.

    Me: Ok that’s good to hear thanks very much for your help

    DZ: You’re welcome bro

  4. Thanks OldGregg

    It looks like he works at this dropzone (he’s on the about us page)...

    http://www.skydivesardegna.it/en/about-us

    And he has his own web page selling gear...

    http://www.sixtyseconds.it

    Does it make any difference to my PayPal rights the fact that he has placed the advert but it’s his friends canopy so the money needs to be sent to his friend?

    I will ring the dz to enquire about him (if anyone there speaks English!)

  5. I am interested in a canopy that was advertised on a Facebook group which is in another country.

    It’s virtually new (40 jumps, €1500) and the person is selling it on behalf of their friend (who the money would need to be sent to). I was looking at using PayPal but i want to be sure that I am protected in case anything goes wrong.

    So far I’ve found that the transaction has to be for goods/service (not friends/family) and in the notes of the transaction to copy and paste the advert word for word.

    Am I protected in case anything goes wrong (item doesn’t arrive, item not as described, item damaged etc). Should there be any alarm bells ringing or is there a way to confirm everything is legit?

  6. It's worse than that - I used to average 80 jumps a year but over the last 7 years my average is 35 to 40. Reason being is that I became a single parent so I spend alternate weekends with my daughter (and that's our special rare time so I don't want to spend it at the dropzone), then there's the issue of lack of finances then there's the issue that I live in the U.K. so even when I do have weekends free the weather is usually rubbish. Hence my low annual jump numbers which people take the piss out of!

  7. I would like to thank everyone for their posts, especially to MEL (masterrigger1) who has been very supportive and helpful :)

    MEL has kindly provided me with the correct line specs for a Safire 1 and also explained what is happening with the openings, so I thought I would share this information....

    "What is happening is the canopy is not fully pressurised on both sides before it starts flying. When it does that, it simply is running over the other side, folding it under and making the nose unable to gain air. The canopy finally inflates to full pressure by means of the crossports."

    This makes sense when looking at the video footage of the openings.

  8. Pobrause

    do you happen to know where else one might find a serial number imprinted on the canopy? The unreliable label can't be the only way to identify this canopy, or is it?



    My rigger told me that this was an issue with the early Safires so they started fitting a tag with the serial number inside one of the cells (the centre cell I think). But there isn't one on this canopy - we've looked everywhere but there is nothing.

    Apparently there were a number of these rigs built for a team call Freefly Euphoria. The canopy has the Gillette logo stitched onto the top skin and the container (Wings) has Dirtdive.co.uk stitched on to the side of it. I assume this was for sponsorship. The risers and 3 ring release are bigger than usual - apparently this was a mistake with the order so they sold the rigs cheap.

    I have tried to contact the person who sold it but not had any luck so far.

  9. DougH

    They are just covering their asses.

    Get the line set modified to the proper trim and jump it.



    This is my intention and possibly my last resort, hopefully with the correct line length it will be back to as it was.

    My only other concern is I am now wondering what this canopy is. The advert on dropzone.com 14 years ago said it was a Safire 2 145.

    Well its fairly clear now that its not a Safire 2. Now I am questioning whether it is even a 145 ! I only have the advert to rely on.

    I have the line spec for a 145 and a 149, but there is 4 to 4.9cm difference between the lengths.

    Is it simply the case of measuring the width x length to work out whether its a 145 or 149 (or even something else!) ?

  10. And the latest response from the manufacturer does not feel me with confidence.

    Quote

    We make all canopies in any size requested by the original customer, so a Safire 2 145 does exist, but like I said going by the measurements you took and the Max recommended weight we think this is a Safire 1 145.

    We're sorry you're having problems and have wasted money. We can offer you a discount on a new Safire 1 145 lineset, however we have our reservations about this. Currently the canopy is unairworthy, and since we cannot ascertain 100% the canopy type and size we cannot guarantee that the canopy will be airworthy with a new lineset. Even if we knew 100% that this is a Safire 1 145, we cannot guarantee that this canopy will be airworth with a new lineset, unfortunately this is the nature of old canopies.

    I'm sorry you've found yourself in a shit spot. I have attached a safire 1 145 trim chart if you decide to have a rigger modify your existing lineset. Again we deem the canopy unairworthy as it is, and stress that any further jumping on this canopy after a re-line is at your risk.

  11. hodges

    Have you let anyone else jump it to see whether they experience the same problem?

    The openings look OK to me.

    Try and stop looking at it. Focus on the horizon, relax and try and just stay level in your harness. When the canopy is sniveling and thrashing you about, it's really hard _not_ to try and correct it with your harness. If you do, the odds are you'll over correct and send it off heading. Just stay neutral.

    Be a shame if you bought a new canopy and it still happened :D



    The thing is, I have had this canopy (the whole rig in fact) for 14 years and I have put 700+ jumps on it. I've not jumped other kit during that time so this canopy and kit is all I know. I never had any issues until the lines were changed, which are now longer and evidentally the wrong lines.

    The nearest thing I can compare these openings to is when I had a brake fire many years ago. The canopy performed two separate hard turns during the deployment, then the lines spun up and the canopy started to spiral in a dive.

    I considered someone else jumping it and mentioned it to a few people but I did not get any serious volunteers.

    I've had two different people pack it (one was a rigger) but the result was the same.

    There is no chance of there being a new canopy, I dont think I can afford a used one never mind a new one. How much would a suitable replacement second hand canopy cost, £800 ? I plan to have a look just out of curiosity, it would also depend how much I could sell mine for but I guess its not worth much if anything?

  12. masterrigger1

    Great I will send the file via PM.

    MEL



    Thanks very much for the line spec MEL :-)))

    I have passed the information (and my rig) to my rigger this evening who will use it to modify the lines.

    Is there any reason for the spec being in Spanish by the way ?

    Also, (correct me if I am wrong) were the Safire 1 sizes in steps of 5 sq ft (e.g. 145) and the Safire 2 sizes in steps of 9 sq ft (e.g. 149) ? The line spec states its for a Safire I 149.

    My rigger said that he thought the canopy was a Safire 2 because it has tabs on the stabiliser which the Safire 1 apparently doesn't have (see attached picture).

    He also told me that the Safire I canopies are rubbish and were soon replaced with the Safire II.

    So when I bought my kit 14 years ago and it was advertised and sold as a Safire II, I now find out that its actually a Safire I (or some kind of hybrid) !

  14. The opening may not look too bad on video but it certainly feels bad - the footage doesn't do it justice and you don't see me fighting (by kicking hard) to stop the canopy from spinning up. Take a look at the same videos in full speed. Notice that at one point I am on my side as the canopy tries to throw me with my back to earth (this is where it could spin up) but with a very hard aggressive kick I manage to throw my body weight to bring myself back on heading again and stop the canopy from spinning up. It might explain why my neck and shoulder have been hurting for the last week since I started jumping again (I put it down to old age!) ?

    It happens at about 5 seconds into this clip...

    https://www.dropbox.com/s/153jeru7uexae61/GOPR0960.MP4?dl=0

    And it happens at about 9 seconds into this clip...


    https://www.dropbox.com/s/qrbwlg0lfw2ln3n/GOPR0962.MP4?dl=0

  15. I have received a response from Icarus and it appears that my canopy is a Safire 1.

    I do recall the USTs looked very different with the new lines when packing/pleating the tail.

    The problem is, I paid £375 for this new line set and I now refuse to jump the canopy. This is a lot of money for me and I dont have the finances to replace the canopy (as suggested by Icarus!).

    I am trying to contact my rigger to find out how I can resolve this - after all he ordered and fitted the new line set.

    The response from Icarus is below:


    Quote

    This was a good one, had us scratching our heads for a while! Here's what we think is going on:

    Was the person you bought the canopy off the original owner? Is that where you got the Safire 2 149 info from? From your centre bottom cell measurements and the max gross weight specified our best guess is that this canopy is actually a Safire 1 145. Do you still have the old lineset? This would help us 100% confirm that canopy type.

    The line length of Safire 2s never changed, but they are longer than Safire 1s, so if you have put a Safire 2 149 lineset on a Safire 1 145 they will be about 20cm longer. This scenario would also explain the weird openings and less than stellar flight characteristics you are experiencing.

    That you were experiencing degraded openings before the line-change is probably down to the age of the canopy. This is a 15 year old canopy now and has shrunk considerably, likely not evenly also. At this age it is also likely to be quite porous, both of these factors degrade opening and flight characteristics.

    So, options: You could try re-lining the canopy with a lineset for a Safire 1 145 and see if this helps, though we wouldn't expect this to fully fix your problems (new linesets often reveal how badly a canopy has aged). However we think probably the better option is to consign this canopy to the history books and get something new(er). Would you consider a new Safire 3 or Crossfire 3?

    How many jumps do you have total? What's your exit weight? How many jumps have you done in the last 12 and 6 months?

  17. MEL, assuming my measurements are correct (?) then the canopy isn't a safire 1 or a safire 2 !

    I measure the inside stitch to inside stitch (across the skin) at the nose as 61cm...

    https://www.dropbox.com/s/plveee75918sypa/IMG_5927.JPG?dl=0

    I measure the bottom skin length wise in the center, from nose to tail as 200cm...

    https://www.dropbox.com/s/jmhxfyt832oth2d/IMG_5930.JPG?dl=0

    https://www.dropbox.com/s/xzx5j5ubsn2j4ev/IMG_5929.JPG?dl=0

  18. Thanks MEL, I shall check this now.

    Ive just got back home after doing 2 jumps and its getting worse - I would have done another jump but the openings are putting me off.

    When I landed after my second jump, a skydiver came over to me to ask if I was the one who had a violent 180 turn. He said the right side of my canopy didn't look inflated, he then saw the violent 180 turn and was expecting it to be a mal. I had to kick really hard to stop the canopy spinning up. Take a look at the video below (the files on the Go Pro were corrupted so I had to use a software tool to repair them, but some frames are still corrupt). Keep in mind that the video does not show my legs kicking hard to try and counter act the spin.

    https://www.dropbox.com/s/yc7pgyqnic3prbd/CanopyOpenings2.m4v?dl=0

  20. Thanks skytribe.

    The rig has just had an inspection during its repack and its also had a new bridle and kill line.

    I vaguely recall that I might have had issues a long time ago caused by my chest strap being too tight, could that be another potential cause ?

    I bought the rig second hand (almost new) but it is a little bit big for me so I have to wear it quite tight. For example, if I don't have the leg straps tight then I have to really stretch to reach the slider when collapsing it.

  21. Last summer I started having strange openings and end cell closure on my Icarus Safire 2 149, so at the end of the season I decided to get the lines replaced as they had nearly 800 jumps on them.

    However, the openings are as bad or worse since the new line set.
    About half way through the deployment, I can feel the canopy start to dive/turn and I have to kick my legs to counter-act the turn. I feel that if I didn't do this then I would end up with twists. The turn ends up being between 180 to 360 degrees. Sometimes the slider gets hung up (it only comes down 2/3rd of the way) so I have to pull on the rear risers or pump the brakes to get it to come all the way down.

    The canopy has about 800 jumps on it, unfortunately the serial number and D.O.M have worn off the label. I bought the canopy (with the rig) in 2004. I think the new lines are Dacron (I will double check with my rigger) - they are thicker than the old lines and yellow.

    Icarus have increased the line length which was immediately noticeable when I first jumped it with the new lines (the canopy looked further away). I also found that toggle turns were a lot less responsive, it felt more like a student canopy.

    The rigger who fitted the lines is very experienced and has checked the line lengths 3 times and they meet the specifications. He has also put silicone on the lines to prevent the slider hanging up, but this has made no difference.

    I have done less than 10 jumps on the new line set but I have been through video footage and slowed it down to see what's happening - refer to the link below. I don't have any video footage of the worse openings but notice how the left and right lines cross each other...

    https://www.dropbox.com/s/40j5e04p638bpqo/CanopyOpening.png?dl=0

    I also noticed that I sometimes grab both front and rear left risers during deployment (I wasn't aware I did this so I need to work on that).

    Does anyone have any idea what could be causing this ?

    https://www.dropbox.com/s/ao8596o3l8dy464/CanopyOpenings.m4v?dl=0

  23. pchapman

    I have a video downloaded that has the original title plus my notes:

    "Fucking_manija (Skyhook RSL catch on door, pop reserve, shredded, pull main).flv" ~10MB, file date 11 August 2009

    I think that is the one you are thinking of?

    If you can't find it with the original title, I could probably post it somewhere.

    (Screw "the cloud". Always download the good stuff in case it disappears!)



    Thanks pchapman, that sounds like the one :)
    I've trawled the internet looking for it but cant find it anywhere so had given up.

    If you could post it somehow that would be great and very much appreciated :)
    Maybe on something like dropbox or I will PM you my email address (I assume yahoo email will accept a 10Mb attachment?)

    Many thanks

    john

  25. Thanks medic0079, unfortunately thats not the video I was talking about but I appreciate you taking the time to look.

    The video I am looking for starts with the shot from inside the aircraft (like the one you posted) but the skydiver climbed out onto the step of a wing strut like this...
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6wWUsAQ55Sg

    Whilst hanging onto the strut, the right side of his rig (where his rsl is fitted) gets caught on a part of the aircraft. Maybe the probe used to measure air speed or something?. The snag dislodges his rsl causing his reserve to deploy and dragged him off the strut. His reserve canopy then hit the tail of the aircraft and was tangled and ripped.

    The next part shows the shot from his point of view, in free fall with nothing but a tangled ball of crap (his reserve canopy) above his head. He tries desperately to get his reserve to open, tugging on lines and risers etc but with no luck. Eventually he throws out his main pilot chute and luckily his main canopy opens without any problems.

    The other point I was highlighting to my friends is that if he had performed his emergency procedures (cutaway and pull reserve) he wouldn't have survived. His reserve was a mess but his main and not performing the standard emergency procedure saved his life.