Help me pick out some gear.

[Cari 0]

Being pretty new to the sport, I haven't really tried a wide variety of gear out myself. I would like to get my own rig before next season (the dreaded midwest winters give me time to save a few bucks). The instructor that I was working with on figuring out what gear would work best for me migrated south for the winter and I really don't know how to get in touch with him right now. He said that next season, I would probably be best with a 150 considering my noob-ness, but we didn't really get much beyond that. Is there anything that I should be specifically looking for in my skydiving infancy? I will be asking other instructors at the DZ as well, but I'm just trying to get ideas from as many sources as possible.

I'm 5'4" and my weight wanders around in the 125-130 range. I know that I will end up downsizing from whatever I get in the near future, but I'm just trying to get ideas right now.

[drdive 0]

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You will have an exit weight of around 160, so your wing loading on a 150 about 1.06 Remember, at any wing loading, 150 or below canopies are high performance. If you did indeed get a 150 canopy,
you could use that for hundreds of jumps before needing to downsize. Maybe consider a 170 for a hundred jumps or so, then down to a 150. But I am conservative when it comes to canopies, and have seen some injuries with trying to downsize too soon.
Pilot, Spectre, Sabre2, would all be great choices.

Doc

"We saved your gear. Now you can sell it when you get out of the hospital and upsize!!" "K-Dub"

"

[skybytch 273]

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I know that I will end up downsizing from whatever I get in the near future

How do you know that?

[Cari 0]

Just a hunch since it seems to be the norm...

[mnskydiver688 0]

People hooking themselves in also seems to be the norm. You'd be surprised what kind of performance you can get at that WL. Trust me, there will be at least one jump where you are very thankful to have that extra fabric over your head.

Sky Canyon Wingsuiters

[Cari 0]

Good point.

[ASTKU 1]

GET A SPECTRE!!! I love my Spectre, you can just cram it into the bag and you will still get soft openings. Very Reliable. My wing loading is like .95, don't be in too much of a rush to downsize. you can still have lots of fun with a low wingloading. I can also land downwind and it is a very comfortable feeling knowing no matter what condition I am in I can land safely!

[Cari 0]

Oh...I'm not in a rush to downsize. It just seems that the more comfortable people become, the more downsizing they do, so I'm guessing that I won't stick with whatever size I get now (I'm actually leaning towards 170 now) forever. I've got all winter to figure it out.

Now...who wants a couch surfer in a warm locale so I can get my A license before next season starts? lol Kidding.

[ASTKU 1]

I got a Infinity container that was made to fit a 170/190 main canopy and Im shoving that 210 in there. Works great and I can now downsize a couple of times before I am done. Keep that in mind..... I don't plan on jumping smaller than a 170 so I should have this rig for a really long time.

[mnskydiver688 0]

Be careful when doing things like this. Containers are manufactured for a certain size canopy for a multitude of reasons. Pilot chutes are sized to extract a certain weight from the main tray. Also, because your relatively new you might be not able to pack a main as tight as the bag requires without creating excess bulk. This can make the main pin flap not fit as well also. Just some thoughts.

Sky Canyon Wingsuiters

[ASTKU 1]

I should have noted that. But I did check with the manufacturer first and a qualified rigger second....
THANKS

[Chubba 0]

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It just seems that the more comfortable people become, the more downsizing they do, so I'm guessing that I won't stick with whatever size I get now (I'm actually leaning towards 170 now) forever.

My AFF instructor flies a canopy that is over 200ft, and he only weighs 150lbs, he's been jumping the same size his entire life, he's got stacks of medals in accuracy and CRW.

[erdnarob 1]

Cari, I see you have only 7 jumps. Why not continuing jumping with student equipment until you get your A licence. When doing so try to jump progressively smaller canopies like a 230 then a 210 square feet. When confortable with them and having more jumps try a F111 190. And later on you might jump a zero porosity 170 but always under the supervision of an instructor and provided you had become proficient with canopy handling.
At 5'4" tall the second hand equipment is rather rare. That means you could end up to buy a brand new one custom made. My favorites are: the Vector III with a Sabre 2 and a PD reserve. I know renting is expensive but wait to be more ready to buy your own equipment.

Learn from others mistakes, you will never live long enough to make them all.

[Cari 0]

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Cari, I see you have only 7 jumps. Why not continuing jumping with student equipment until you get your A licence. When doing so try to jump progressively smaller canopies like a 230 then a 210 square feet. When confortable with them and having more jumps try a F111 190. And later on you might jump a zero porosity 170 but always under the supervision of an instructor and provided you had become proficient with canopy handling.
At 5'4" tall the second hand equipment is rather rare. That means you could end up to buy a brand new one custom made. My favorites are: the Vector III with a Sabre 2 and a PD reserve. I know renting is expensive but wait to be more ready to buy your own equipment.

I'm actually at jump 10 now (woo...big difference, right lol). The biggest I've ever jumped is a 200. The only other I've jumped is 190 and that was on my first solo. I did well on it, but the second instructor I was with said he would be more comfortable with me on a 200, so that's what I've used since.

[Cari 0]

Also, I'm not buying anything right now. I'm just trying to figure out what I want well in advance (or at least get a general idea), so I can make sure to stash away money for it. I've already converted my "new boob fund" (in preparation for the inevitable force of gravity) to a "first rig fund."

[ladydyver 0]

I started off with a spectre 190...but she and I didn't get a long so I stole my husband's Pilot for about 100 - 150 jumps. Loved the pilot, nice openings, fun to fly and I cold figure out the landings ----- I just had a problem with the glide angle of the 7 cell. this last year I downsized to a 168 but also lost 20 lbs which essentially left me with the same wingloading I had on the 188. Again I went with a Pilot and love that canopy. My container is an infinity that fit both the 188 and the 168 and will use that for quite a while. Wing loading is about 0.9:1.....I recently was injured and was glad that I didn't have something smaller than the 168. It was bad enough being out for 3 months of the season but the injury could have been a lot worse if I had been on something smaller.

DPH # 2
"I am not sure what you are suppose to do with that, but I don't think it is suppose to flop around like that." ~Skootz~
I have a strong regard for the rules.......doc!

[skybytch 273]

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I'm just trying to figure out what I want well in advance (or at least get a general idea)

The best way to figure out what you want in a container or main is to jump a variety of them. Any of us can tell you what we like - personally I love my Infinity container and Spectre main - but that doesn't mean that what any one of us thinks is the best for us will work out best for you.

As far as containers go, at your size and with the size mains you'll be looking at, you really do need to at least try a few on (preferably with the same size canopies as what you think you'll end up with) and ideally jump a few to see which ones fit your body best. Some containers are built longer top to bottom than others; this may be an issue for you since you probably don't have a long torso. As an example, the Infinity has a longer planform than the standard Wings does (the standard Wings is shorter top to bottom but fatter front to back than an Infinity built for the same canopies).

For the main, demoing is the best way to figure out what you like and don't like. There's a thread buried in here somewhere with information on how to get demo canopies from manufacturers. I'd suggest putting some jumps on at least one suitably sized "entry level" 7 cell (Spectre, Storm, Triathlon) and at least one suitably sized "entry level" 9 cell (Sabre 2, Pilot, Safire2) before you buy anything.

[Cari 0]

Do companies let people just of of student status demo?

[Chubba 0]

Do your initial downsizing and get your A license first IMO, you want to demoing the canopies close to (or at) the wingloading you are going to buy for your first rig.