likestojump

by doing that you are missing out alot of potential customers. Just so you now the scammers could care less what your ad says. I am confident they use automatic programs to send responses to your ad, nobody really reads it. of course, it's your choice. and the many posters we saw over the years getting scammed are the ones who kept "buying" $5K rigs for $2K and doing Western Union payments to Italy, UK etc w/o any kind of information verification or phone calls.

aside from the incredible 270deg hooks at 350ft - how would you rate full flight opening shock on the 182 with microline vs your 266 w/ dacron ?

Ideally, in any transaction, the seller and buyer are both protected. If the seller is paid upfront, the buyer can easily be screwed (and in fact, the buyer getting screwed is the more common scam). I won't buy from somebody who wants to be paid upfront. And I don't think anybody should. We need to find an arrangement where the product is shipped to somebody who has something to lose if the deal goes sour (such as an established business). That somebody can ship it back if they don't receive payment, and can refuse to pay if they don't get the merchandise. The idea is to empathize with the buyer/seller, and find a third party who doesn't care about either, but will enforce the details of the agreement. Bullshit. For every transaction there's a unique set of variables. Some buyers are like you - won't pay until the item is looked over. Some are willing to pay by credit card/paypal since that affords them the protection. Some are willing to go the COD route. Some are happy to send certified funds. EVERY TRANSACTION IS DIFFERENT. The bottom line is that you can be made A LOT more comfortable by TALKING to the other party on the phone or having a common acquaintance. Sometimes one of the parties is not willing to do anything but prepayments - and that's fine, they make their own rules and live by them. But please, don't assume that everybody is out to get you OR that everybody is honest.

ok mate, but what unknowns are there really to worry about when shipping to other country/state if you get paid upfront ? If you noticed MY write-up suggested a payment prior to shipping the goods. I am not a big fan of try'n'buy - too many people treat it as a "free rental" or take longshots with gear that is obviously not for them just because it's a no-questions asked return policy (it is NOT !)

the "don't sell overseas" is a very close minded statement. It mostly deals with lack of information. When the LAZY seller checks the shipping with UPS/Fedex and gets the $400 rate, the transaction usually goes sour. USPS EMS would be about $150 for a whole rig anywhere in the world. Also, there's this "instant paranoia" of international transactions - but it's completely unfounded, as wire transfer from anywhere in the world is as solid as it would be from anywhere in the US. Some people are terrified of giving away their bank info for a wire - well, there's not much that can be done with that, and I equate that paranoia to not willing to give our your address to a shipper for the fear of "something happening". Kinda stupid, don't you think ?

provide good pictures (don't put the helpless "pictures are too big for dz.com") and make an effort to answer your email more than once a day. Also providing a phone number will speed things up immensely.

I believe 1st number is the reserve, second is the main trays. an I54 is made for a 189 zp microlined main, and a 169 fit in there nice. I would guess that a -45 would fit a 190 with dacron fairly tight, but I have not tried myself.

Ground shot my ass :) I rode this to about 1200 ft and then chopped. this was hooked up on tersh risers and my 2nd was packed slider down. this is a 22ft Pioneer K that lit up on a pH test. I was trying to : a) see if it will blow up since I poked a hole in it with my thumb b) if I could get line burns y just throwing them on top of a barely flaked canopy in a trashbag c) how it would fly if I hooked up it wrong the result was alot better than what I expected. It did oscillate pretty bad and also spun we quite well.

see picture. is this a true Mae West ?

I am guessing FOUR L-410 planes and ONE MI-8 Helicopter

what about the listing fees and final value fees for listing/selling on eBay ? I once again recommend using PAYPAL funded with a credit card to pay for items. this way you can always do a chargeback if you are not careful enough. THE BEST WAY TO DO THE TRANSACTION VARIES WITH EVERY TRANSACTION, as sellers may like or dislike certain things and are all human. Having a blanket "I will not pay until I see the gear" WILL result in missing some good deals. This debate is getting to be as old and redundant as the RSL vs. no-RSL debate. good luck either way !

ask for a few hi-res pictures

I dont think it is against tandems, but rather against the DZO's that treat fun jumpers like shit and wont allow them to jump at their DZ's. why do you feel that you have the right to tell others how to do their business ? Their business is NOT to provide fun jumpers with altitude, but to make money. No matter how much we agree or disagree - the bottom line is that they are a business and have absolute discretion on who and when they allow to use their services.

a moment of searching the forums or stating what it is you need would be helpful too.

my friend, haave you ever heard of JFGI ? Because you if cannot use Google to find information as simple as the type of currency used in Australia or any other country - your chances of migratory success are very slim. Just entertain yourself - type "australian currency" into Google.

Sparky, but that still makes the statement about the 10 year "rule" BS. I am not arguing that some manufacturers put a life limit on their products. That's their right, and we as riggers must obey. I however have not heard of any 10 year clauses by manufacturers of civilian gear, by riggers or by countries. The statement made to me was ABSOLUTE, and as such it is BULLSHIT to the best of my knowledge.

it appears some people are quite concerned with this. In fact, according to a crazy customer of mine the rest of the world outside our little bubble here in the US has a 10 year life on gear .. .following is my conversation which is NOT private. My reply : And another note from the same guy : to which I reply : Where do these people come from ???

that the whole African continent is missing from the map. Room for "expanding American minds" :) PS to those with a short fuse - this is NOT a racist slur !

canopy and link/slinks and data card NOTHING ELSE. I would also suggest making a copy of the data card for yourself, just in case it has any container mods listed, and since it will have all your AAD info (in case you have one) In the past when buying reserves I got : toggles (lots of times) freebag + pc and the worst was ...... reserve canopy on the risers.. that is they were severed with scissors....

Why ? has the dollar depreciated 50% against the sterling pound ?

*bump*

I READ WHAT OTHER PEOPLE ON THE INTERNET HAVE SAID. I want to know what individuals on this forum have PERSONALLY experienced. Thus the phrasing of my post.

Dave, you are correct. I believe old bag phones were 3W. And they did eat a lot of battery. Thus most were installed in cars :)

like most I get shit reception for my cellphone in the basement. It's a Sprint phone, 1900Mhz. Considering purchasing a signal booster/extender. The prices seem to be about $200 has anybody used them ? how well did it work for ya ? any suggestions ? thank you !

why ? is the HC5 THAT unpopular amongst the non-skydiving people ?