riggerrob

I have sewn freefly bungees to hundreds of harnesses ... from all manufacturers.

I have packed hundreds of Tempo reserves and at least a dozen were deployed during emergencies. All but one user reported that they opened fine, flew fine, turned fine and landed fine. The only user who complained about his Tempo not flying straight, started with a student harness that was adjusted (for height) asymmetrically. Not the fault of either his main or reserve canopies. The last couple of years of Tempo production had span-wise tapes sewn onto the bottom skin.

Sounds like the National Directors act more like the Senate ... if you compare Regional Directors to Congress or the House of Commons. National Directors should take a "sober second look" at any proposed changes. Back in 2013 CSPA eliminated Regional Directors and it became a flaming disaster form my perspective. Since we no long had a regional director representing B.C. and the Yukon, I did not know who to contact on a delicate political matter.

Victoria Cilliers recently published a book about her accident. "My husband tried to kill me. I Survived." by Victoria Cilliers (Pan Books, London, 2020) ISBN 978-1-5290-6411-7 The book is well-written and mainly deals with her emotional trauma both before and after the accident. She also had to testify during 2 jury trials. Her ex-husband Emile Cilliers was sentenced to 18 years in prison. I will mail my copy to the first person that sends me their mailing address.

Roger Kotanka was an old-time skydiver who jumped at Simcoe, Ontario during the 1970s and 1980s. Roger was an avid skydiver and canopy formation flyer when the concept was first introduced. Police shot Kotanka- 3 November, 2021 - in his gunsmithing shop during a raid. Kotanka was a licensed master gunsmith well know to police. The Toronto police officer who shot Kotanka has refused to share his notes with police SIU investigators. Police are being slow in releasing details of the shooting. Police drove more than an hour to Kotanka's home and brought an ambulance. This mysterious shooting reminds me of Alfred Pinisch's death during a robbery at the Montreal gun shop where he worked. The shooting occurred during the August 1964 when Montreal banks were frequently robbed by gun-totting criminal gangs. However, this robbery was an attempt by the FLQ to arm violent separatists who had been planting bombs around Montreal. Police shot Pinisch mistaking him for a robber. I met Alfred many times when he competed in rifle matches matches with my father (Major Edson Warner, CD, 5 x Queen's Medal and 2 x Olympic competitor).

How many children did Cathy leave behind?

You just have not read the bloody accident report that initiated that rule. I read USPA Accident Reports religiously for 30 years. After that AR started to blur together. Ho! Hum! Another low turn. Yawn! But I had to be very careful to not simply quote old rules to young skydivers, because they jsut perceived me as a boring old fart who did not free fly. Unfortunately, young skydivers also lacked the patience to listen to the long version of the accident report.

I suspect that the bigger problem is pilot chute springs remaining the same diameter while containers get narrower. Back when I started rigging (in 1984), 24 or 26 foot diameter, military-surplus, round reserves were the norm. They had about the same pack volume (600 cubic inches) as the PD 253 square reserves now only worn by skydiving students. That was when Mirage, Vector, Talon, Javelin, etc. designed their modern, piggyback containers. Since then they have kept the same basic configuration, but built progressively smaller versions. As containers get narrower and narrower, the old 6 inch diameter pilot-chutes springs are squeezed into progressively narrower and narrower containers. At some point, the narrower container begins to interfere with pilot-chute springs' launches. Parachutes de France was the first to address this problem with reserve pilot-chute caps shaped like race-track ovals. They were packed with the narrowest dimension across the narrow width of the reserve container. Rigging Innovations addressed the problem with their "Stealth" reserve pilot-chute introduced in 1991. When Mirage was revived during the 1990s, their first batch got Stealth pilot-chutes, but then they switched to their own narrower spring. UPT introduced a smaller diameter spring for the their smallest V300 version of the Vector 3/Micron. The smallest Vector 3s will only hold reserves with 99 to 109 square feet. Javelin was one of the few containers to retain its original, large diameter spring, but because it is outside the side flaps, is far less likely to hesitate. Mind, you narrower Javelins are more difficult to pack neatly because the entire container is not much narrower than the pilot-chute cap and it became more difficult to conceal pilot-chute fabric and mesh. The South African-built Vortex looks like a Javelin clone from a distance, but the smaller Vortex also have smaller diameter pilot-chute caps. Racer had a similar problem with their narrowest Racer containers, so Micro Racers got narrower pilot-chute caps to better match the proportions. The usual caveat allows ambulance-chasing lawyers to copy any or all of my post, but they must pay me $1000 per word.

Dear Jerry, We "barracks lawyers" could debate this "until the cows come home." In my interpretation, FARs and CARs always loop back to "in accordance with manufacturers' instructions." meaning that any time a rigger ignores a manufacturer's instructions, he/she is also ignoring/violating FARs.

In the USA, USPA has no say in parachute certification or performance standards. Instead, the Federal Aviation Administration regulates parachute performance and certification standards. FAA Technical Standard Orders (C23-? for parachutes) are based upon old military specifications and have been gradually updated to reflect advances in civilian skydiving technology. The FAA used to issue Special Inspections, but they have been replaced by Service Bulletins issued by parachute manufacturers or foreign governing bodies (British Civil Aviation Authority or Australian Parachute Federation). SBs carry the same weight of law as FAA issued Airworthiness Directives. USPA often reprints ADs, SBs and SPs in "Parachutist" Magazine.

In December I walked into work sporting a bushy white beard along with a red and white Santa Claus hat. I greeted my co-workers with a rousing "Ho! Ho! Ho!" One of them replied "Are you calling me a ho?" This sparked a rousing debate about what she does at her part-time job.

The RW-0 and RW-1 harness rings date the photo to the early 1980s.

Brother gowlerk is a long-haul trick driver who frequently delivers to the USA. So he sees more of the USA - in a week - than many US citizens see in a lifetime.

I can understand what motivates a student to shoot up a school. Back in elementary school, I was bullied every day by the same gang of boys. The gang was led by the son of the local Penticostal minster. His sister routinely bullied the girls in my class. Despite my repeated complaints, teachers and parents remained blissfullully ignorant of the habitual bullying. I contemplated carrying a .22 caliber pistol to school. I considered telling bullies to leave me alone, 3 time. If they persisted, I thought about shooting them in the belly. Then I reconsidered the bigger picture starting with adults' willful ignorance. I knew that no adult would listen to my side of the story and would brand me the aggressor. Then I expected them to toss me in a prison or reform school saturated with bullies. In young adulthood, I got physically fit and adopted a surly, macho attitude, just below the threshold of starting fights. As I mellow into old age, I now leave punishment of bullies to God. God or the devil will punish them far more cruelly than I can in this mortal world.

Somebody has too much spare time.

According to www.riggerdepot.com/T-7--T-10-transition.html the first piggyback container was the XT-9. " .. This static-line operated system was a bag-deployed piggyback system, with the main mounted on top and the reserve immediately below. While plans went back to April 1946, the first tests were not made until July 1950. ... " Both main and reserve containers looked like smaller versions of their T-7 predecessors. The XT-9 program was cancelled when the much softer landing T-10 was introduced. T-10 was widely used by NATO paratroopers for a good 50 years. If you have ever jumped a T-10 while wearing a rucksack, rifle and snowshoes, you will understand why the US Army tried to eliminate the chest-mounted reserve from the XT-9 harness. Hah! Hah! The only time I have seen a main-over-reserve piggyback container was the "4-poster" experimental piggyback worn by Ted Strong to a precision landing competition in Snohomish, Washington back in 1999. Ted built that to allow him to install 3-ring releases on both front and back of his shoulders. He hoped that a wider (fore and aft) platform would improve stability during precision landings. Strong Enterprises never offered the "4-poster" for sale.

Funny you should mention that. I never contemplated touching webbing with a hot glue gun. But you are correct in saying that it could damage webbing as quickly as a hot knife. Early in my rigging education I was shown how to hold the hot glue gun tip a centimeter (1/2 inch) above the nylon and never thought about doing it any other way. The only time I ever touched nylon webbing with the glue gun, it slowed down and got awkward. Another good habit learned early without understanding the theory behind it.

Other alternatives include basting harness joints with E-Thread or metal staples. I don't like metal staples because they gum up the harness sewing machine and provide sharp ends that nick my fingers.

Thanks for sharing historic information about early parachutes in Russia and the Soviet Union. Since that information is almost impossible to to find in English or French language sources, we encourage you to post more in the Skydiving History & Trivia section. Few Western sources mention more than the German fascist Herman Goering being impressed by a Soviet parachute display during 1930.

To further complicate the issue, only certain batches of acidic mesh reacted with certain batches of F-111 fabric. Note that several other fabric mills sold fabric similar to F-111. Finally, it required a specific combination of heat and humidity for the the two types of fabric to interact and deteriorate the canopy fabric. Only Strong Enterprises and Free-Flight stuck with MIL-SPEC fabric and mesh. Round canopies from all other manufacturers are suspect. The FAA, GQ Security, National, Pioneer, etc. issued Service Bulletins to get their customers back in the air, but that was only a short-term goal. By 1990, square reserve manufacturers had caught up with demand and sold plenty of replacement reserves. Sales of round reserves plummeted during the late 1980s. By 1990, square reserve manufacturers had caught up with demand and by 1990 something like 80 or 90 percent of new containers were sold with square reserves. While I may have tested a thousand-ish round reserves with bromocreasol green and tensile tested them too, I no longer have the tools or the desire to ever test another round reserve built during the mid-1980s. If anyone brings me a 1980s vintage round canopy, I point them towards the museum.

Mak seemed to firmly believe in his flat earth theories.

Mak Parhar was a cheerful, cocky, single skydiving student when I met him at Pitt Meadows more than a decade ago. Since then Mak matured into a licensed skydiver, husband, father, yoga studio owner, flat-earther and anti-vaxxer. Mak died in his New Westminster, B.C., Canada home on Thursday, 4 November 2021. I visited Mak's yoga studio in Delta, B.C. and repacked his reserve several times. The last time I shared a jump-plane with Mak was two or three years ago at Abbottsford, B.C. Mak has been an outspoken flat-earther for many years and more recently has been arrested for failing to wear a mask or quaranteen after returning from a flat-earth conference during the autumn of 2020. Mak was involved in a court case, but missed a recent hearing because he was too sick to attend court. His last video postings show an ill Mak fatigued, coughing and talking about controversial drugs. We loved Mak even when we disagreed with his flat-earth and anti-vax beliefs. Time for a good cry at Mak's funeral.

I have been doing my research on van conversions and reminiscing on the days when I lived in a VW van. Space is important for your psychological health. So I need a full-height cargo van or RV. Horizontal space is also important, so a reasonably long chassis. But length is a compromise between internal space and ease of parking, so I do not want the longest vans with too much kick-out behind the read wheels. Buy quality. A minimum of 1 inch of insulation on all floors, walls and ceilings. Install noise-damping insulation on flat panels. Light colored ceiling to reflect and increase feeling-of-space. Curtains for all windows to provide insulation and privacy. Curtain across the back of the drivers' compartment for insulation, privacy and stealth. Perhaps a shower curtain that tucks into the over-cab storage space. Definitely need storage over the cab. One piece flooring is easy to clean. Airplane cargo rails (aka. L-Tracks) to allow a variety of anchors when you change configuration. Travel locks on all cabinets. Fold away extra passenger seats ... with seat-belts. Soft hanging cabinets at eye level. Net hammocks for fresh fruit. Ventilation is important. Max Air roof fan. Also install an air inlet in the bottom of your van, perhaps floor level if you live in the desert, because it sucks in cooler air. Dual use where ever possible. Fireproof and water-proof splash guards behind stove and sink. In-counter stove ... electric? ... induction? ... micro-wave? ... propane? ... Jet-Boil? Electric kettle? ... definitely a whistling kettle. In-counter sink with folding faucet and hinged glass cover (RV-style). Ideally it drains into a grey water tank. Minimum of a foot-powered pump. Hang drying cabinet over sink ... or on wall over-looking sink. Temporary shower in hall way or doorway, because you only spend a few minutes per day in the shower. Quick-drain floor under shower. Drains into grey water tank. Grey water tank is easy to dump. Fresh water tank is easy to re-fill ... not too heavy for an old man. Compact toilet that can slide under-a-cabinet. Trays in lower cabinets to ease finding stuff. Slide out pantry shelves, Again to make it easier to find stuff and rotate food cans. Label all drawers cabinets, storage pillows, etc. Enough windows that you can see outside your kitchen and working space. Ceiling windows import more light ... good for morale and seeing what you are working on. Use pillows to store spare clothing ... sew a zipper across the open end of a pillow case. Pockets on inside of door panels ... MOLLE on walls? MOLLE on ceiling? 20 second rule means that if it takes longer than 20 seconds to set up a tool, bed, etc. you will get lazy. This means a Murphy bed at the most, but I am seriously considering sleeping in a hammock because it dominates less space and is easier on my old bones. Magnets on wall to hold cutlery. If your worry about cutlery falling, install a pair of magnetic strips parallel and horizontal. An electric refrigerator with top access. Install so that it slides out from under a counter into a entry space (doorway or hallway). Plenty of electrical outlets to re-charge electronics. Install charger outlets in the shelves and cupboards where you normally store electronics. Plenty of ceiling lights. Separate vehicle and living electrical systems. Ability to recharge service-battery from engine, shore or solar panels. Need to conceal solar panels to maintain "stealth" exterior. "Gearage" that is direct-accessible from the rear door. Bike rack. Install a lockable metal safe for valuables and expensive electronics. At minimum a Faraday Cage, but ideally a fire-proof metal safe.

Hello Natalie, What have you learned from living and working on yachts? Only soft-sided luggage .....

Dear brenthutch, It is not as simple as your conclusion. Every new system has its hiccups. It is just going to take the California grid a few more years to build sufficient battery capacity. Note that I said "California grid." That grid includes thousands of different components ... and the perfect system includes a balance of components.