Swift + reserve

[ripcord4 0]

Is there any reason to avoid a rig with a Swift + reserve in it? Are there now or have been any problems with them?

[peek 21]

Safety-wise no. But it is from a generation of designs before the current generation, so some riggers will not understand it, some skydivers will shun it because of its pack volumn, and therefore resale value will probably not be good.

[KevinMcGuire 0]

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Safety-wise no. But it is from a generation of designs before the current generation, so some riggers will not understand it, some skydivers will shun it because of its pack volumn, and therefore resale value will probably not be good.

Also and just as important is that they don't land as nice as newer reserves. This may not be a problem if your of smaller stature but if your a big person keep looking. Then again, is the canopy a swift or a swift plus? There is a big difference in performance between the two. Swift plus reserves are better than plain old swifts.
Here is one more thing to look for if you do choose to buy a swift reserve. Make sure that the serial number starts with an R. Example. R6-0897. If it does not start with an R, then it was made out side of the U.S and is not TSO'd. It may say somthing to indicae it is, but trust me it is not. Only the R- serial numbered swift reserves are TSO'd

[sundevil777 102]

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Safety-wise no. But it is from a generation of designs before the current generation, so some riggers will not understand it, some skydivers will shun it because of its pack volumn, and therefore resale value will probably not be good.

The Swift 5 cell had an unusual brake lines setup. The Swift Plus does not. Also, the pack volume of a Swift Plus is not unusual.

I have used the 200 and 225 versions, loaded slightly above 1:1, and they have given me very easy landings in little wind. They have a lot of spanwise reinforcement.

People are sick and tired of being told that ordinary and decent people are fed up in this country with being sick and tired. I’m certainly not, and I’m sick and tired of being told that I am

[sundevil777 102]

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have been any problems with them?

There was a service bulleting issued in '94 to check bartacks on the cascades. Of course, as a senior rigger, you should know how to look that up yourself.

http://www.paraflite.com/PDF/Service%20Bulletin%20Swift%20Plus%20Bartacks.pdf

People are sick and tired of being told that ordinary and decent people are fed up in this country with being sick and tired. I’m certainly not, and I’m sick and tired of being told that I am

[ripcord4 0]

I am 175 pounds, 5' 9' tall and 62 years old. The reserve is a Swift PLUS. As you can probably tell, I am returning to flight after years away and have a lot of "dumb" questions. I was not aware of the non-TSO'ed canopies. I'll check that very carefully!

[KevinMcGuire 0]

Don't worry about the swift plus bieng TSO'd. It is. And they are safe reserves depending on the size of the canopy. Just check to make sure that SB 9401 has been performed. It should be listed on the data card and if not then it must be listed on the data panel of the canopy. If it is not written on the data palen then it hasn't been done. I'd be surprised if it hasn't been done seeing as how that SB was issued 11 years ago and the canopy was supposed to be grounded untill the SB was preformed meaning it should not have been repacked.
Hope that helps.
K

[sundevil777 102]

Just to make it clear, the SB only applied to canopies made before Jan '94, so a newer canopy would not have need for a log entry for anything to be done.

People are sick and tired of being told that ordinary and decent people are fed up in this country with being sick and tired. I’m certainly not, and I’m sick and tired of being told that I am

[sundevil777 102]

What size is the canopy you're looking at?

People are sick and tired of being told that ordinary and decent people are fed up in this country with being sick and tired. I’m certainly not, and I’m sick and tired of being told that I am

[KevinMcGuire 0]

Thanks that right. I should have made that more clear

[ripcord4 0]

The Swift + is a 175 sq ft 1993 canopy with no known openings on it.

[riggerrob 643]

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Just to make it clear, the SB only applied to canopies made before Jan '94, so a newer canopy would not have need for a log entry for anything to be done.

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I have inspected and repacked dozens of Swift Plus reserves and never found any defective bar tacks.
That being said, I still closely inspect every bartack on every reserve and have found missing bartacks on a couple of other reserves from other manufacturers.
In conclusion, Swift Plus reserves are easy to pack, with reasonable pack volume and should land you fine as long as you don't load them much beyond 1:1.