theplummeter

I have now put a couple hundred jumps on my Fusion 150. I started jumping this canopy at 155 pounds, gained a ton of weight after a surgery (up to 210) and am now down to 175 and losing, so I've jumped the canopy at various wingloadings.

Previous canopies have been a Manta 288, Pulse 190, Batwing 171, Safire2 169, Sabre2 170, Fusion 175, Stiletto 150, Safire2 149 and a handful of other demos or borrowed canopies. I went from the Stiletto to the Fusion after HiPer failed to deliver a Nitro seven months after the order was placed.

I called Precision directly and talked to Barb prior to ordering the canopy through my dealer. She offered a couple unused demo canopies at a large discount and then put me on the phone with George who answered a bunch of questions and recommended brass grommets with Technora lines to make the openings nicer.

I ended up placing the order that day and received the canopy less than five weeks later, exactly as ordered. The lines to collapse the slider stick out further than any other canopy I have ever seen, but with no cascades to deal with I guess a potential hangup is unlikely, and collapsing the slider is easier than with other canopies. I was also concerned about the line size but a broken line is only one line with this configuration so it's less likely to lead to a cutaway. Even after a couple hundred jumps the lines aren't showing any signs of wear, and I am loving the black.

For the first couple dozen jumps the canopy hunted for a heading, as mentioned in the previous reviews. I started psycho packing into a semi stowless bag and have seen a drastic improvement in on heading performance. I use the canopy for wingsuit jumps with a Phantom3 and it doesn't seem to change the opening characteristics at all. I've had line twists twice on wingsuit jumps but the canopy flies straight and doesn't dive so they haven't been an issue. The openings are the most consistent of any canopy I have ever jumped in terms of altitude used and how long it takes to open. I have never had a long snivel or a hard opening. It reminds me of a Pulse in that respect.

The Fusion flies very similar to a Sabre2 or Safire2. Riser pressure is comparable on all three canopies, although maybe slightly lower on the Fusion, but the selling point of this canopy in my opinion is the flare. I did some canopy coaching and can't believe how much surf you can get out of this thing. Even downwind on a hot day at higher altitudes you can usually bring the canopy to a stop, or at least slow enough for a few steps before you stop. To me the flare feels stronger on the Fusion than on the Sabre2 or Safire2 I jumped.

Overall I am enjoying the canopy a great deal, and feel like this thing is frequently overlooked in the tapered intermediate class when people are canopy shopping.

Precision's website sucks, and they haven't put the effort into marketing that PD and Icarus have, but if you talk to owners or call the company directly they have been receptive and easy to deal with, and produce a great product at a low price.

I ordered the Viso II along with the Elastic Wrist Mount. While I have heard nothing but good things about this altimeter and the customer service behind it, I have heard that the stock mounting leaves something to be desired. Looking at the stock mounts with the wax string I can understand those concerns. The elastic wrist mount is wonderful, it keeps the altimeter secure and stays exactly where you put it on your arm. I put mine near the apex of my left arm and I have a perfectly clear view of it both during freefall and under canopy.

The first thing I noticed when I opened the box was how small the altimeter was. I was familiar with the dimensions, but was truly surprised at how tiny it seems when it's in your hand.

The unit functions flawlessly and as advertised once you have learned to use it, which can be a task. Be prepared to read the manual with the unit on hand. Everything is controlled with three buttons (excluding the reset on the side) and each item in the altimeter must be gone through to change anything once you have it in the mode. I'm probably slow, but learning to access and change each of the settings in the altimeter took me a few hours with the manual open and the unit in hand.

Once you have it down life couldn't be better, plus the indoctrination helped with figuring out the Optima II.