kellja2001

Square 1 let me "demo" my reserve, by hooking up an identical reserve as my main (whilst my actual reserve stayed in my reserve tray). I packed it carefully, and it still opened like a gunshot! It wasn't fun to fly (less so than my larger main), and the flare was... odd... (7-cell, F111 etc.) - I suppose if I jumped it regularly, I could get used to the landings, but that opening... damn! Edit: Should mention, it was also a sub-terminal deployment, as they wouldn't let me go to terminal before pulling... thank God! Video of it opening (40 secs in): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZdEQhAP4tPE

What if, on opening, one canopy had a 360 degree, or greater off-heading, whilst the other didn't. Stable biplane, but a heck of a lot of twists potentially restricting the surface area/effectiveness of the lower canopy. Just a thought...

Sabre 150 here. Love it on a wingsuit. Love it RW. Hell, I even got a 1000' snivel out of mine once (RW). Don't have any of these crazy mods people talk about. I don't even roll the nose. Sure, eventually it'll spank me. I have no doubt of it, but that said, so have my Safire 2... and my Fury. My rigger taught me some ways of getting a Sabre to snivel (yes, snivel, not snatch) for a while, and I won't lie, he's put my fears to rest.

Wow, where to begin? I've owned my TSE Teardrop Classic for ~12 months now, right alongside my Vector 3. It was purchased as a backup rig, but to be honest, I find it being jumped more and more! Perfect rig for a beginner, looking for something easy to pack, that looks good and doesn't make you sweat after a long walk back! Of course, I look after mine well, but do tend to "drag it" along the floor when packing. Its showing minimal signs of wear! Its extremely durable! The only problem I have with these is they're hard to get hold of, being a British Manufacturer, but they are undoubtedly a bargain!

Our University Club owns an Advance 7. Basik were extremely helpful in adding/removing options that were necessary/unsuitable for University club kit (e.g. remove the Magnetic D-bag/Freefly PUD, add adjustable laterals, RSL etc.) For people who just completed their AFF, transitioning to "more comfortable" kit is something they always enjoy. The comfort of the "Seven" is comparable (although not equal) to that of my own (custom) Vector 3. I was surprised to find, in spite of my extremely tight specifications, that the rig arrived with a "Hooktable" cutaway handle. Not that this is necessarily a bad thing, just a surprise. A couple of minor flaws that I identify with this rig (from a University perspective): 1) The "magnetic d-bag" leads rookie (student) packers to become lazy and simply "shove" lines in. Hence why we ordered a bungee d-bag. 2) The cordura freebag is substantially heavier than its equivalents. This concerns me in the event of a (admittedly unlikely) reserve horseshoe/reserve PC in tow malfunction. 3) The main closing sequence appears "odd", particularly if students are used to learning to pack Javelins/Vectors. I've already caught one person trying to force it the "wrong way"... In spite of these minor flaws, which can (except for 2) be corrected using education, the value provided by the Advance 7 rig is phenomenal. Having chosen Cordura 1000 material, since it will have a tough life (University students and all), I will be updating whenever there appears to be wear or damage to the container. I foresee it being easily durable enough to stand a decade of University student use without major repairs required.

The two cutters on one loop was a hypothetical. My second cutter is neatly tucked away. Would you apply the same ethos to that? I know its very easy to say "yes, I would" and "never jump it". In fact, I've been reading what you write for a long time now, and I genuinely believe that you would indeed send it to be changed over. But I need a rig online, and it saves me 3 weeks @ 8 jumps per weekend @ £10 per jump kit hire (~$380) is it not worth waiting until my next reserve repack, at the end of the season (it gets too cold to jump in the UK)? I had a fairly long conversation with my rigger (who I am delighted to have the opportunity to trust my life to), and his reaction was effectively that waiting until the next service would be a more effective use of my money. I suppose its the "potential risk & cost of my life" vs. the "cost of proper maintenance" argument. Maybe I don't appreciate enough that this sport can kill me. Perhaps I've entered that classic "Oh, it'll be fine, what's the worst that can happen" phase. Perhaps I need a slap to remind me of the dangers involved. One of my favorite sayings within skydiving is as follows: "This sport is perfectly safe, as long as you remember just how f*cking dangerous it is". Hey, I'm going to pop my reserve the next time I'm at the DZ, and get my rigger to change the cutters over.

Thanks! Top answer

As I understand it, it depends on who (e.g. which manufacturer) you talk to I've heard "Preferred Ram-Air Opening", "Proper", "Professional", "Pretty Random Opening" to name a few... And I'm not entirely convinced by the flat packing 90 degree off-heading either. I have a feeling that's a rumor... I'm sure someone who knows, rather than guesses will interject... [Low Experience]

Would love to hear a rigger's opinion on this. I too, have a 2-pin cutter on a 1-pin container, with one of the cutters safely tucked away. As for putting two cutters on one closing loop, if they fire slightly out of sequence, you could be looking at a similar pinching effect to that that was hypothesized in the recent Argus Fatality in Poland due to the lack of tension on the closing loop? Or am I talking bullshit?

I've been reading about this for a while, and looking at other's equipment, some of whom I know drag, others, I'm pretty sure don't. When I look at similar aged containers, the additional level of wear I've seen is minimal (bear in mind, I've only seen a few hundred rigs, not exactly a large sample), with the worst I've seen being a slight discoloration to the 3-ring ring cover. Now the thing that really worries me is handles. At my DZ there are metal support pillars attached to the floor of the packing hall by four large bolts. Get a reserve handle snagged on one of those and you're going to look like a bit of a tit.

I was a little disappointed having seen the title of the thread, but the video quickly made up for it

http://www.basik.fr/en/index.php?page=shop.product_details&flypage=shop.flypage&product_id=189&category_id=6&manufacturer_id=0&option=com_virtuemart&Itemid=28

Personally, I think this is a reason not to get one... I've seen University Clubs own rigs with stowless D-Bags, and since its not necessarily themselves who will jump it next, they simply "shove" the lines into the bag - without a care in the world. Just because its an easier method, doesn't mean you should spend any less time/effort ensuring you have nice, neatly folded lines. $0.02 And yes, I do put my money where my mouth is. I've just specifically requested a bungee d-bag for my University club's new rig from a manufacturer who offers a magnetic d-bag as standard.

If this ethos were applied to this whole forum, no-one would ever post

On UK Skydiver, John Horne just linked a very interesting document... its about 15 posts down on this page: http://www.ukskydiver.co.uk/cms/index.php?/topic/16791-argus-grounded/page__st__20

Not saying you're wrong, but I would like to clarify a couple of these: I agree with. If you're careful, surely this won't cause a problem? I been recommended against double stowing mouthlocks... or tube stows... but I appreciate you used the word "bungee"...

Food for thought: http://www.icaruscanopies.aero/images/downloads/psychopack.pdf

Well I should think not, with only 1 jump and 3 years in the sport . I know, right! I mean, plus they put me on this ridiculously tiny 169 Safire 2 canopy! I was terrified!

PM'd

Love that video If I were Justin, i'd take that offer Either that or he could take another top-class roasting on here Top stuff Gary, top service as always. You always manage to bring a smile to my face ;)

Fairly recently got out at 2200 after the clouds came in. Certainly wasn't comfortable with it! I'm "comfortable" at 3k and above. Anything lower (especially considering I jump a Safire 2) and I start to get a little twitchy. Wouldn't want to get out below 2200, but suppose it might happen one day...

I own an F111 seven-cell. It lands every time I open it... Sure, its not the most fun thing to fly, but I can't argue with the price!

Is there any chance of anyone explaining all of these to me. I don't know a single one (not a rigger) but am interested in gaining an understanding/knowledge of them. Thanks in advance for any help anyone can provide! XxX J

"It stages the opening" "It holds the steering lines out of the way that half-second longer" "Makes the steering lines in the centre of the packjob" And all of them, have a slight basis in fact... No, this modification will not hold your steering lines in for more than a billionth of a second longer. No, it will not help to stage your opening. That little bungee? Exert a force against 120mph winds? Unlikely. Keeps the steering lines in the centre of the packjob? Well, yes. I'll give you that one, although if you move your slider, so will your steering lines :o The actual reason behind this small modification is to help with Students learning how to Pack. Many students dig their fingers into the material of the canopy, when trying to create that "sausage shape" on the floor (http://www.kturby.com/skydive/groundschool/images/packing.jpg) - and thus stick their fingers between the two sets of steering lines, and wrap them behind the canopy, not knowing what they've done. By having the bungee, you remove any excess, that they might get their fingers caught between, and any over-zealous student, trying to wrap either set of steering lines around the back of the canopy is unlikely to be able to do so. I'm happy to make a video to demonstrate this, if you like. I think someone already said that, but I couldn't find it, so wrote this out

Not a rigger, so take my opinion with an extremely large pinch of salt... The only one I've found was the 3-ring release "closing" loop (the one that has the teflon cutaway cable go through it) went through both the end of the hard-housing *and* the RSL attachment point. Looking at it, nothing is likely to have gone wrong, but under the extra tension/stress during deployment, there's no way I could guarantee that.