hackish

We're at a sorta-towered airport. FSS. I call it tower-lite edition. The key to making it all work well is consistent professional attitude and building a relationship with FSS / ATC. Ottawa Terminal is very familliar with the operations and does a really good job about routing incoming traffic when there is weather for commercial jets to avoid. While a pilot flying VFR could fly any number of patterns on climb or descent we do the same thing every time and it works well for everyone. ATC knows exactly where the AC will be, they get a call precisely 3 minutes before the drop and so on. It's all about being consistent and predictable. -Michael

I've seen it before a few times and in each case it was that the PC was not completely collapsing. You can pull the apex out to the limiter tapes and make sure you don't have more than 1/2" of slack on the kill line. Also, make sure the bridle is installed correctly and that the kill line can travel unhindered. -Michael

D'oh! That's how I've been making my no-drop toggles for a few years. Thought I'd come up with the idea since I never saw another set like that. Just goes to show how many ideas are re-invented. I agree they look like mirage with the keepers. While I don't mind that design I do end up with a lot in my loft for repairs as the bottom toggle keepers tend to wear out quickly. -Michael

There was an article posted on the main page about buying gear. It has some helpful hints. I don't recommend buying new gear unless you have 1-2 seasons and/or 100+ jumps but others' advice may differ. Buy something used and resell it after a season or two. If you really want new, that's the time to buy it. You'll lose a couple of dollars per jump you put used gear. New gear is like a new car, first jump it's depreciated a grand or so... It's also a dirt magnet. When you have a couple hundred jumps your gear will stay considerably cleaner. -Michael

Sometimes I can't help but to feel like posts like this using an account with 1 post are put up by those behind a product as an advertising means of introducing it. On that front I'm already not feeling positive thoughts about a product/company. The device looks OK and I think there should always be room for newcomers to the market. Their products always need to be sold for a considerable discount below the established players. Devices like this cost almost nothing to make but the margin pays for R&D and support. A company like L&B can produce thousands of devices at low costs per unit but they have the staff, experience and engineering to ensure there is someone who can repair, recalibrate and provide whatever support you need in the years to come. I've been using my altitrack for 8 years so far. On that point it has to be cheap because I don't know if the company will be around in 2 years or 10 years. -Michael

"Can you make my 1996 Durango better on gas?" "Yep, sell it and get a new truck" I understand for some closet queens that are in great shape and put in the hands of an experienced jumper but in a lot of cases old gear is best left old and retired. There are ways you can legally make alterations but you'd better get it right the first time. Gear manufacturers get to make good margins on the gear they sell because they do the research/testing, support and have to hang their nuts out there if some defect causes an injury. The small uninsured rigger ought to be careful of what could happen to their nuts (and posessions). -Michael

People really do shop around for price. The successful strategies I have seen so far was to offer a really low priced "intro tandem" then up-sell it right to the ultimate experience that includes "premium jumpsuit", being able to steer the parachute, your own altimeter to wear, video, full altitude etc. -Michael

The best way I can think of is to get a well-stocked rigger to make you a sample card with each material. -Michael

I think the problem is 2-fold. a) They are not native English speakers and understanding the need for precision in language is something even we can get wrong. b) The advice you get depends on who you ask. A part of me wants to say technically unless the original manual is officially withdrawn and superseded you may be justified with following the manual that was originally shipped with the unit. On a practical point we want to keep the jumpers safe so you probably should replace the battery once it's 10 years old. I have done several so far this season. -Michael

I think you're asking for something that's impractical. There is a huge difference in pack volume between a 120 and 170. Most rigs allow 3 sizes, loose, normal and tight. You just can't go down 2 sizes from normal and expect it to fit in there properly. Instead, focus on a rig that has great resale value and downsize the rig when you're ready to downsize the canopy the second time. -Michael

Nice to see a gear dealer do this. I know if I send any customers they'll be well supported. -Michael

Rob, you should do an endorsement deal where you get a 5% commission every time a jumper buys some saxx. I just ordered 3 pairs. They really are comfortable. I'd probably order more too. With the amount of cash it removed from my pockets I suspect my openings will have improved too... More symmetric buttox with an empty wallet. -Michael

Unless your lines are different from ours, the brakes don't get stowed on those canopies, so the snaps shouldn't be used. We just push the toggle grommet up against the guide ring and tuck the toggle nose under the hood. If we were to snap them down then opening shock would yank on the snaps That's exactly how we do it. A few years ago they revised the riser design and made it a lot easier to replace busted snaps. I'm constantly fixing the other items mentioned above. I wouldn't say it's about making stuff that breaks, just that any changes have a lot of red tape and testing before they make it into production. -Michael -Michael

Haha. Thanks for the laugh. A friend was just telling me how they were expensive but worth the cost. Who would be willing to approach saxx about some underwear freefly jumps for their commercials? Floppy skydivers need not apply... -Michael

Perfect! Thanks for the charts! -Michael

I have a 150 in because of some damaged lines. I can't find any line trim charts for it to determine if replacements or a complete set would be best. Several attempts to contact the manufacturer and get them from a USA dealer have not resulted in any response. Does anyone have a chart for this canopy? -Michael

Only 1 suggestion to try other than calling PD. try lengthening the brake lines and shortening the part below the cat's eye. Basically make it open in less brakes. -Michael

There has been a lot of work in this area but there are a few limits on it and most offerings fall short. a) Cost of the unit. It has to be affordable. My target was $50/unit or less. b) Battery life, convenience. Has to have a long enough battery life that you're going to remember to keep it charged/funcitonal c) Safety - has to be installed on a place that is guaranteed not to interfere with any other part of the rig. d) Transmitter/receiver issues - has to be legal in your country and good on the airplane (can't piss the pilot off by creating noise on their radio/headset). Has to have a cheap available receiver like a cell phone. It's a lot to ask and presently a lot of people are working on bluetooth LR transmitters but they tend to eat batteries. Bigger heavier unit then? More chance it's going to interfere with the equipment. Sorry, the news isn't great. -Michael

The Sidewinders that are TSO'd are no different to an FAA rigger than any other TSO'd rig. The case where non-TSO'd gear comes in is that a US jumper can't use non-TSO'd equipment but as a non-USA jumper I can jump my Arrow (non TSO) rig down in the USA all I want because I'm a "Foreigner". -Michael

I have a cut sheet for the proper length unit. It was merely an example. Designing a replacement that is identical to the original takes a lot more skill than simply following instructions so I think it's no wonder they find so few that are properly made. -Michael

Someday I hope to be able to do a repair so well that even the manufacturer will say "We must have done this". The problem I see is that so many manufacturers are so against doing any repair that you get 0 help or instruction from them. Since I've done training at different factories I know that QC documentation exists and is at hand. Since you can get no help, the cards are already stacked against you on doing a perfect repair. Taking the sigma loop example if they would give details like "tension the loop to x lbs and it must be y inches +/-" then I could guarantee if I made a part it would be in spec and break the self-fulfilling prophecy that nobody in the field can make them correctly. They make money on parts. At $15 ea plus shipping/exchange/tax and brokerage we're paying about $35 for every loop. While I'm confident in my own team I can see how this can push others to use loops longer. A net result is less safety. Harness repairs are even more significant. $80-$100 to ship it down. Same to ship it back. 2-3 weeks of waiting. A few hundred dollars in repairs, now the jumper is saying "can't I get a little longer out of this?" -Michael

In my previous life I was a race car fabricator. With every good idea there are a few bad side effects. Trouble with kids putting in 5 point racing harnesses is that they roll the car, the roof collapses and it snaps their neck because their upper body is immobilized against sideways motion. -Michael

“No certificated parachute rigger may pack, maintain, or alter a parachute in any manner that deviates from the procedures approved by the Administrator or the manufacturer of the parachute.” I took that to mean that the repair had to be approved by the manufacturer. I'm just looking to fix stuff, not do alterations. I see enough garbage repairs that I'm looking to do things right and sometimes it would be nice if the manufacturer would spend 2 minutes explaining how to go about a repair. Apparently I'm not permitted to make a sigma closing loop, or more technically repair a worn out one by replacing the spectra on it. Why not? They say you can't. I'm still not confident I know the right answer to this... -Michael

I would encourage you to contact Sunpath directly. Not only do I think they're best equipped to answer your questions but I think you will find their customer service is probably #1 in the industry. -Michael

Technically a master rigger is supposed to be able to do something like a harness resize/repair. I'm more the cautious type who likes to check in with the manufacturer on any major repairs to make sure my proposed work conforms to what they feel is a proper way to fix something. Manufacturers seem to always say "sorry we don't permit XXX outside the factory". Is it a dirty secret where people get their master tickets and just go fix stuff without ever asking about it? Is it an issue where I just need a bunch of years of training at every single manufacturers facility to be permitted these repairs? -Michael