AndyMan

Nobody can answer your specific question since there are no reliable published statistics about pack volumes across manufacturers that use the same measuring method. There are some numbers published by the PIA, but these seem to have little resemblance to reality.

Generally, both are about the same size. Pack volume will change based on ambient weather, line type, and even something as simple as fabric color.

There was a time where Icarus canopies were said to be physically larger than their model numbers indicated, (IE, a 149 was actually closer to 170 than 150), but this has not been the case for many years.

I thought this would be asked and answered all over here, but I don't see this posted recently.

I dropped my cx150 and broke it. Time for a new camera. It seems like everyone is jumping go-pros these days but I want something a bit _more_. I could replace with a used cx150... But I also see Sony has cx190, cx200, cx210, pj200.

Then there's the whole gamut of action cams too. Too much research to do, so I'm asking here. What's the bomb video camera that's not a go-pro?

The vitriol I've gotten from Tom is really surprising, and the latest stream is completely over the top. I had thought he was a pretty stand-up guy, but I guess I was wrong. It's really just a distraction, because this thread shouldn't be about me or him.

I do think I asked a valid question. I've seen DZ's get run off of airports before, and there's sometimes a second story that isn't being told. Is there one here?

_Am

Based on the offensive PM's I've gotten from TomSpoon (who should know better), I can assume Skydive St Mary's WAS the place where unlicensed pilots were doing illegal maintenance to their airplanes, that resulted in an emergency situation. I can't remember if it resulted in a crash or not.

My next question is to what degree this is affecting the airport attempting to evict them.

Anyone know?


From: TomSpoon

Date Sent:
Apr 15, 2012, 9:03 PM
You're good at making enemies.

Why don't you just stick to jacking off to porn you fucking looser.

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I jump one day a month. As others have commented I don't see any harm and I have a gear bag, so snags aren't a problem.

With all due respect, doing a preservation rain dance before storing it away for another month won't hurt either. As far as I'm concerned, neither approach offers any meaningful benefit.

_Am

Isn't St Mary's the place where Kathy was doing her own maintenance on their Cessnas, resulting in a crash from a disconnected carb heater?

_Am

This is not a piece of advice that I've either received, or given.

Spandex gets damaged through use over time. Stretching it open over and over again, plus some of the sketchiness gets lost over time. I've not heard nor seen anything to suggest that leaving it with a pilot chute inside gives any kind of excessive damage.

I personally own rigs that have contained pilot chutes for 10 years without any sign of wear to the spandex.

_Am

I've recently switched to having an RSL after 5 years without - and I jump a highly loaded Velocity, with cameras too. I realized that a lot of the "conventional wisdom" against RSL's was simply wrong, and that low-pull no-pull fatalities are simply more common, and more dangerous than the ones involving RSL's.

_Am

I've always disliked how the larkshead is self-tightening, it can be a pain to remove under canopy. I've always sewn large loops.

_Am

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Best AAD? The one that saves your life when you need it to.

I think you meant to say, the one that's most likely to save your life when you need it to.

And among the listed options, there definitely are differences in those odds.

_Am

Yes it's worth it.

The difference isn't so much speed as measured in MPH, but simply less stress put on the canopy during flight, and less tendency to have the shape of the canopy distorted. This will make the biggest difference during landing, where as you slow down the trailing pilot chute can distort the shape of the canopy, making your landings more difficult.

_Am

Any question about what happens when lawyers get involved are only answered one single way: The instructor goes broke. This is true whether the instructor was %100 in the right, or %100 in the wrong. The cause of the situation has no bearing on the outcome - either way, the instructor goes broke defending himself.

The only difference is the ability for us, and the people that control ratings to armchair quarterback the whole thing.

I love armchair quarterbacking, and I can't fault the instructor for operating within the privileges of his rating.

_Am

Since the instructor was performing within the privileges of his rating, all is good. Since AFFi's train for this, and coaches do not, there's no reason to question why AFFI's are allowed to pull for students while coaches do not. AFFI's are allowed to pull for students since they plan and train for it.

If this were a USPA Coach instead of an AFFI, this would have ended well too. The student was altitude aware, and was reaching for his reserve when he got pulled out.

There's definitely some opportunities for corrective training, but I don't see a major problem with anything that happened on that jump.

_Am

They are similar, the Smart reserve is a good reserve, and the wingloading seems reasonable.

_Am

I'd call up the various suit manufacturers and talk to them. Each will tell you the various ways they add drag.

That said, I'm a big boy too, and I've had great successes with Tony Suits. Tony just knows how to build suits for good fall rates.

My most recent suit was a Merlin suit, and it was a complete disaster, and I had to suggest improvements during the rework. Merlin does not know how to make a good slow-suit for big boys.

_Am

Yup. Pictures attached.

_Am

Of course Betsy was the first person I asked. :) Pablito was my second, but UPT is closed on Fridays.

_Am

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There should be a path down next to the inner side of the reserve riser. I don't have a V2 handy to send a pic (shoulda asked 2 hours ago when I was at the DZ!)

On this rig, there's not. That's what's odd.

Hmm.

_Am

Thanks. The manual says to route the RSL along its velcro path - but there is no velcro path. Or... are they just referring to the velcro that's on the riser covers?

_Am

I'm trying to figure out this 1993 Vector 2. I'd like to 'put back' an RSL that was removed.

It has both the large RSL ring, and the small velcro patch on the number 5 flap, however there is no sign of the velcro on the reserve riser, nor a channel over the shoulder of any sort. The cuttaway housing is complete, there is no split housing.

A friend is telling me all Vector 2's with RSL's require a split housing, but there's no mention of this in the manual.

So, a few questions for the historians. 1, can Vector 2's have RSL's without the collins lanyard? 2, was there a time when Vector 2 RSL's didn't have a velcro path over the shoulder?

Thanks,

_Am

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"Well land it but you will probably get fucked up" does not sound acceptable to me.

Well, I just don't think that's true. Earlier, you talked about an instructor being negligent if they taught landing. And I just don't think that's true either. These are awfully big concepts you're throwing around, and only because the data is 20 years old?

The data was good 20 years ago. Student canopies haven't changed that much - a big Navigator is not that different than a big Manta or a Raven. Moreover, we have 20 years of students NOT dieing. Why is this a bad thing?

_Am

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I am NOT INTERESTED (and nor are you I expect) in landing a biplane with a navigator 240 and a Raven reserve.

Actually, I don't know that's true at all. I certainly wouldn't land my Velo that way, but should I find myself in such a situation under a big Nav, I probably would try to land both - just for giggles. To be honest, I'm not sure why I wouldn't.

_Am

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I do not disagree with keeping it simple. However a student with 12 jumps could easily (at a progressive dropzone), be downsizing to a 1:1 wing-loading and to say that they should continue to think that they can land a biplane (IMO) borders on negligent.

.deletia.


My point is that there are far too many different size parachutes out there for students and to tell anyone to land a bi-plane with the performance of parachutes these days is probably going to end up with serious injury - regardless of the possibility of negligence.

I'm just not seeing this. Is there a long line of students (or experienced jumpers, for that matter) being injured landing bi-planes?

Landing a bi-plane is the way I was taught, and it's the way I teach. Granted, this is a poor rationale for not changing, but so is change for changes sake.

Are skydivers really being hurt landing side-by-sides? I see no evidence here in the incidents forum, or in parachutist.

_Am

It's an option that ads comfort, but isn't necesary.

Ultimately, the choice should come down to your budget. Do you want a 'top of the line' rig, or one that's more practical?

When you buy a car, do you get the leather seats and sat-nav?

_Am

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I agree that they probably don't have any good options to increase production without incuring other negative issues. I'm just in a unique time crunch position and was wondering if anyone wanted to sell their slot.

Actuallyt, UPT has just (in the last month or so) completed construction on the expansion of their factory. In the press release, the claim the expansion should allow them to reduce wait times.

http://www.beacononlinenews.com/news/daily/4396

Not sure how quickly they'll be able to ramp up their production, but they are expanding.

_Am