mcordell

I agree it is a problem for riggers, but since riggers don't buy the gear their customers bring them, the rig manufacturer would have to include it on all their rigs which either raises their price (even slightly) or gives them more work to do for the same money. Where does the rig manufacturer benefit in this process? www.facebook.com/FlintHillsRigging

I don't think it's a bad idea...I just don't think there is a market for it since I can't see anyone paying extra for that as an option and don't see a manufacturer putting in the work without demand. www.facebook.com/FlintHillsRigging

I think it would add work to a rig that is already labor intensive and people aren't asking for it. I know I certainly wouldn't pay for it and I'm really not sure how much of a problem pencil packing really is. I'm sure people do it but who really knows how prevalent it is. I don't think that would happen unless the FAA mandated it as part of the seal process. www.facebook.com/FlintHillsRigging

at least squirrel snatch is intentional....I think www.facebook.com/FlintHillsRigging

I had the harness completely replaced on a vector so it would fit me. The vector was my mothers and when she died I got it and wanted to be able to jump it for sentimental reasons. It was a significant size change since she was 5 foot tiny. I had the harness replaced for (IIRC) under $200 by tom dolphin at MRVS in Missouri. My dad had his harness replaced by him also. Both were done beautifully. I'm sure there are other master riggers that can do it as well if you choose not to have the factory do it. www.facebook.com/FlintHillsRigging

I have to agree though with some others that it doesn't make sense to come here and post this thread. The smarter thing to do would have been to either just follow the sim (which you don't want to do) or not follow the sim and NOT tell everyone on the internet of your intentions. At first I thought you wanted to discuss the validity of the qualification to jump a camera but it seems more and more like you were looking for allies to side with you. Hope everything works out for you. www.facebook.com/FlintHillsRigging

I do see your point. My question is why can we trust one group of people to ignore the camera while the second group we can't? In theory both groups should be well trained to do what they need to do to save their own lives and should be able to do so even if there is a camera in the vicinity. I can assure you many of the officers I have worked with, whether on the Drug Task Force doing buy busts or on a dynamic entry, were every bit as interested in seeing how cool they were on video when the action was all over. The footage is much cooler to the person who was there in both cases. Maybe there is something to be said for the idea that part of the problem is the taboo that is placed on the camera. If we didn't make such a big deal out of it would it still cause as many issues? Remember, it wasn't really THAT long ago that you had to meet certain experience levels to jump a square because they were all considered high performance. Now most of the people in our sport have never jumped a round. I guess I wonder when evolution overrides the status quo. www.facebook.com/FlintHillsRigging

I always find the go-pro threads interesting. I don't jump a go-pro...mostly because as has already been said, the footage is boring. I do think the requirement in antiquated considering it was implemented before cameras were so small and when they posed more of a physical hazard. I know, I know...this has all been said before. I think as the cameras started to pose less of a risk the requirement was justified by calling it a distraction rather than a snag hazard so things wouldn't change. I have read the incident reports regarding the cameras and it seems most of them have nothing to do with the camera but since someone had a go-pro it is considered a contributing factor. This is the first time though I have seen someone mention that in other extreme sports there is no concern about the go-pro causing a distraction. For some reason skydiving is special I guess. I have worn body mounted and helmet mounted cameras when I served on a swat team and made dynamic entries into houses for a high risk search warrant. I have worn cameras when serving an arrest warrant for a known gang member who was involved in a shooting in a neighboring jurisdiction the day prior. I wore a camera when I was involved in a standoff with a subject that murdered his ex's mother and father and shot her up pretty bad before hiding out in a building in town. Those are all pretty serious situations with deadly consequences if you are distracted yet the camera was given to me with no training or words of caution about wearing it. I don't understand how someone sticking a small camera on their helmet for their hobby should carry as much consideration and regulation as it does in skydiving. We let these people jump out of an airplane for Christ sake. Can we not trust people with a camera? www.facebook.com/FlintHillsRigging

Hmmm.....Ok I see. Well several other canopy manufacturers do provide that data for their canopies. I guess they just aren't as awesome as PD. All hail PD and their superiority I guess. Based on that reasoning for PD not giving a pack volume then it really doesn't make sense for them to provide a chart comparing the pack volume to other canopies they manufacture since there's no telling what size any given canopy will be. I get that there is variance from one to another but there's really no reason not to have at least a range or an average number...something to start with. I didn't come here to complain about PD, I came here to ask a question and hope someone had an answer. You are right though. I will tell him to spend thousands of dollars on two canopies and a new rig to see if we can pack them both into the same d-bag. Seems like a logical experiment. www.facebook.com/FlintHillsRigging

Yea I have looked at that chart. It means nothing to me since I can't figure out how a chart that says a sabre 2 260 is comparable in size to another canopy from the same manufacturer is supposed to be helpful without quantifying that size in some way. I want to know the pack volume. I don't want to know that canopy A is slightly larger than canopy b and comparable to canopy c but smaller than canopy d when none of those variables have an associated pack volume. Thanks for the link, I appreciate you trying to help me figure it out. I would rather have an actual pack volume like most other manufacturers have no problem providing. Also I'm aware of the line difference, it won't matter since the canopies will be lined with spectra. www.facebook.com/FlintHillsRigging

So I'm trying to help someone out with pack volume for a few canopies. He currently has a manta (old f-111, not the zp) packed in his javelin and plans to replace it with a navigator 280 because he found a great deal on it. The concern is, he wants to order a new container and put the navigator in it for now and eventually put in a Sabre 2 260. He called PD and they refused to give him any idea of a pack volume and it's not on the PIA chart I found. I assume with the nav being a hybrid it is easy enough to go down one size to an all zp without a lot of change in pack volume but when one size is a 280 to a 260 you are talking about a lot of material. I have the pack volumes for both the manta and the navigator but does anyone have a pack volume for the sabre 2? PD said they can't give him any idea of the pack volume and he would have to call his container manufacturer to get that information. It doesn't make much sense to me to tell people to call a different company for information on your product but whatever. www.facebook.com/FlintHillsRigging

I don't think the FAA approval will be as easy as you think. There are a lot of things to take into consideration. The rider would have to wear a rig with a main and reserve. It looks like, based on the information provided, the idea is to use BASE type gear to allow for faster openings but that would never be approved for this use. Having a dual canopy system, I'm guessing you would have to use a setup that is proprietary to the system to increase opening speed which would probably make the system unfriendly for terminal openings for skydiving. That would get expensive. You would also run into issues with people who feel the same way I do and at least one other poster and that is, I would ride it at altitude but there is no way in hell I would take off riding it. I would also be concerned that if the board is cut loose and under canopy, how do you stop it from causing property damage since nobody will be controlling it and there is no telling where it will be chopped from the tow. You also have to remember, the plane would have to be dedicated entirely to the one wingboarder for the entire flight which means it would be very expensive just for the one flight. That is unless the plane could haul jumpers to altitude while towing the wingboarder, which I am guessing wouldn't be very fuel efficient. Don't get me wrong, it's a neat idea. I just think the market would be extremely limited which would drive costs up so much it may be prohibitive. www.facebook.com/FlintHillsRigging

Well I will have it some time toward the end of November but here is the design and the canopy that is going in it. The designer shows the green a little pale but that is a neon green like the canopy. www.facebook.com/FlintHillsRigging

I wonder how can you get experience videoing tandems without doing it. A lot of DZs used to have someone from the dz video tandems on a regular basis before the regulations started getting stricter. Kind of like D license holders who have done tons of stadium jumps before the pro license even existed (back when a D required only 200 jumps too). Eventually everything changes and it doesn't make sense for someone with hundreds of jumps filming tandems to suddenly not be allowed to do so because they don't have the qualifications. www.facebook.com/FlintHillsRigging

Ok so aside from the bickering about digital vs analog (which really doesn't matter since it's personal preference) I'm more curious how a scuff in the cover of your altimeter contributed to having an issue. Is this a case of blaming the gear for poor performance or am I misinterpreting what you wrote. If it is the former, perhaps you are focused on the wrong thing right now in this stage of your progression. If it is the latter then my apologies and everyone can carry on with their "my gear is better than your gear" debate. www.facebook.com/FlintHillsRigging

I assume you are going to get video of your opening and flying of your new canopy and share that with everyone who has been following this since the start? www.facebook.com/FlintHillsRigging

adding bulk to the dive loops seems silly to me. Have you explained to her that the added bulk will likely cause a bulge in the container where the risers sit between the outside of the container and the reserve tray? That may be enough to dissuade her. www.facebook.com/FlintHillsRigging

I guess I'm addicted after all. I bought a new main for my 2nd rig and like the colors so much I just ordered a new wings container to match it. Once I get it I will have three rigs. I wanted to post this because I have had such great customer service through wings. Not only did I get the 40% veteran discount, but I also got the monthly special of free cut-in laterals. I sent the order form in yesterday morning and by yesterday afternoon I already had an order confirmation with a serial number, total, and estimated ship date of just under 8 weeks! I'm not sure I will ever buy a different container system. www.facebook.com/FlintHillsRigging

it would work with web based email accounts so long as the mail account is linked with email software. Considering newer operating systems are designed to work with web based email (like gmail) rather than pop3 servers I think it'd be a lot easier now than it used to be. www.facebook.com/FlintHillsRigging

Anything light enough to not cause a hazard would be good. I thought about using a plastic golf ball but as a test run I just balled up a piece of paper. When it was done the monkey fist was good and hard and didn't weigh much so I just did that again when I made my handle. There are three sets of wraps with the cord when you make the knot so I just did the last set of wraps around the tape on the top of the PC which put 6 strands of 550 connecting the knot to the pc. I don't think that's going anywhere. I jumped it yesterday and liked it a lot. www.facebook.com/FlintHillsRigging

I just looked it up today and made one in 10 mins or less to replace the plastic handle on my second rig. I hadn't really even thought about replacing it before this thread. www.facebook.com/FlintHillsRigging

Some canopy manufacturers don't want riggers doing pull tests on their canopies so there's not a set rule on that to cover all canopies. That's up to the manufacturer. www.facebook.com/FlintHillsRigging

FIFY www.facebook.com/FlintHillsRigging

If you do keep an electronic logbook, like an excel spreadsheet, I'd say you should back it up to a cloud account like google drive or icloud so it is not only stored on your computer. That would also allow you to access it from anywhere, including your phone, if you needed to refer to it for some reason. www.facebook.com/FlintHillsRigging

Mine was in a corsair which is now a hanging harness for my kids to go down my zip line. I guess I could have sewed it shut and put a zipper in the top to make a backpack or something.... www.facebook.com/FlintHillsRigging