butlerhr

Dan contacted me three weeks ago about a memorial dive for Terry Goode. Now we have to do one for Dan. He was actively supporting a local charity golf tournament to raise funds for wounded veterans of the Iraq and Afghan wars. We will miss the "Brick." Butler

Take care to keep the corrosion product, that is being removed by the pad, away from the gear. It is an abrasive material that can get worked into fabrics and damage them from the inside. The safety wire used on aircraft is usually stainless steel between .025 anf .032 inch dia and makes a great finger trap tool. The shiny side goes UP Butler

Once the material starts crazing the best solution is replacement. The crazing is not just a surface defect, it goes deeper. The lens cleaning kits are made for uncoated polycarbonate lenses, which this is NOT. The visor is coated for fog resistance and the lens cleaner will remove it. As stated above the visor is not terribly hard. Keep the shiny side up. Butler

It seems to me that stability on exit from the aircraft is more a result of proper presentation to the relative wind and symmetric body position than the direction taken out the door. The proper presentation gets the body oriented correctly, which is always perpendicular to the wind. The symmetric body position does nothing to change that, which is stability. My experience is that less experienced jumpers have difficulty with the symmetric body position because they have not developed the muscle memory of a truly symmetric body. Many students have trouble with just doing nothing [holding the symmetric position] until the airspeed builds and they have more control. DSE's comment about having them hold a salute sounds like an attempt to get them to hold a good body position. I know it is not the answer the OP was looking for, but my experience is that I can go any direction I want from the door and be stable. Don't ask how long that took. The shiny side goes UP Butler

In competetive FS gloves help with grips on exit and during block moves, hence the popularity of "tackified" gloves with that group. Being of that group I wear them all the time and put liners in an oversized pair for really cold weather. Snug fit is important so that loose material doesn't get caught in places it should not. I also have my visual altimeter in a pocket on the glove now, so they are used almost 100% of my jumps. Keep the shiny side up! Butler

Yes it can be done safely. It is a requrement for the 'A' license now as I recall. Be aware that the flare will be much less effective due to reduced air speed, so be prepared to PLF. It is something to try on every new canopy you fly so you can use it if you need to with out being suprised. Butler

I ordered 2 sets for a Nitron last August and got them in time for nationals. Haven't had a reason to talk to them of late. Hope you get through to them. Continuous rigged canopies are sooo easy to re-line it would be a shame to send it in. The brake lines for the Nitron were too short for front riser work so I made my own. Would expect for the Xaos they would get them right. Good Luck

I have an Icarus Omega that instead of quartering the slider, I wad it up to delay catching air and this helps reduce opening from 1200 ft to 900 ft. I do this for this canopy ONLY. Yes, the presentation of the slider (quartering) will have an effect on the opening.

How old are the batteries? Have seen weak batteries give flaky results. Try removing the batteries and cleaning the contact surfaces of the batteries and the device. If new batteries don't solve it, get in touch with L&B. As mentioned above, their service is the best. Good Luck

A Judy. And I am not an instructor.

Yes Vectran 750 is a better choice than spectra because it is dimensionally stable where spectra is not. Would be crazy to have all the suspension lines stable and the brake lines shrinking with use. I am presently using this set up on a nitron 135 because the dacron replacement brake lines are too short to allow good front riser turns. The 750 vectran brake lines have a service life about equal to the HMA suspension lines.

4900 1cutaway Slider up spinner 1 total Handle came off pilot chute and left pilot chute in the BOC pouch

When departing the aircraft use as little effort as needed to get you safely away. Any energy you put in has the potential to make you unstable if it is not acting thru your center of mass. A very important thing (which was alluded to above) is to assume your normal flying position as soon as possible after departing the aircraft. Then try doing nothing for a count of 2 or 3. Trying to move on the hill tends to cause problems at first. When you get it you will enjoy!

tail, H

Follow the pilot's instructions so that you don't cause more problems for the pilot by doing things that are not expected. You can make things a lot worse for the pilot by causing shifts in CG or asymmetric drag (by opening the door) to name a couple.