Strobes for night jumps

[BrianM 1]

I'm looking at strobe lights for doing night jumps. I'm looking at a couple models that ParaGear sells:

L1456, which looks like it would work well for attaching to an ankle, pointing down. Keeping my foot behind me a bit should keep it out of my eyes. This should make it visible through 360 degrees.

L1465, which looks like it could work well to mount on top of my helmet so it flashes up at the canopy. Not sure how visible this one is from the sides, but if it illuminates the canopy well enough it should work.

Anyone have either of these? Any recommendations on which would work better?

"It's amazing what you can learn while you're not talking." - Skydivesg

[LouDiamond 1]

Both will work. L1456 is what many civilian skydivers use but its round shape makes it awkward to mount on most surfaces. I've never been a fan of these and I've never seen one worn on a jumper that didn't look iffy to me.

L1465 will fit on most surfaces, you just have to make sure when you tape it up that you can still turn it on and that its not too obscured. Mounting the pile side of Velcro to the back of your helmet and the Hook side of the Velcro to your strobe is another option that works very well, which is why the military uses this method. For reference, the strobe the military uses is similar to model L1458.

"It's just skydiving..additional drama is not required"
Some people dream about flying, I live my dream
SKYMONKEY PUBLISHING

[DougH 270]

I got a good one from the paragear catalog... forget them model, firelight II or something.

I have it on a 15 foot or so string.

I turn it on after opening, with my eyes closed lol, and drop it between the legs.

360 degrees of coverage, and it isn't flashing in your face because it trails slightly behind you due to the relative wind.

"The restraining order says you're only allowed to touch me in freefall"
=P

[councilman24 37]

Paragear site seems to be down so I can't see them but....


I use the round D cell one tied to a lanyard. You don't have to dispay it in freefall anymore. So I stuff it my jumpsuit on the lanyard, pull it out after opening and hang it below me. Near final I throw it over my shoulder to shorten the lanyard or just let it drag in the grass. Depending on anticipated landing.

Work pretty well and as visible as possible.

I'm old for my age.
Terry Urban
D-8631
FAA DPRE

[BrianM 1]

Thanks Scott.

Quote

L1456 is what many civilian skydivers use but its round shape makes it awkward to mount on most surfaces. I've never been a fan of these and I've never seen one worn on a jumper that didn't look iffy to me.

I was thinking of sewing a strap that would go through the pin clip, and velcro around my ankle. Not sure how strong that clip is though...

Quote

Mounting the pile side of Velcro to the back of your helmet and the Hook side of the Velcro to your strobe is another option that works very well, which is why the military uses this method.

For reference, the strobe the military uses is similar to model L1458.

I guess that would work well on the back of the helmet, pointing up at the canopy. I hadn't considered that. Too bad it is so much more expensive than the other two...


What are your thoughs on ankle mounting vs helmet pointing at the canopy?

"It's amazing what you can learn while you're not talking." - Skydivesg

[LouDiamond 1]

I am not a fan of hanging a strobe below the jumper for safety reasons. I've seen more people get hurt during landings on night jumps due to miscalculating their relation to the ground and or because they "saw" another jumper (their own shadow actually) right as they were on final. Having a blinking light source below you on landing is not only going to hamper you night vision, but your depth perception as well. Having something hanging below you that lands before you do is an anchor and can and will snag when you don't want it to.

I am not saying the hanging method won't work, obviously it has worked for others before. However, I do this for a living and have jumped at night with more gear strapped on than most and the one thing I've found to be consistent about jumping at night is that if anything can go wrong, it usually happens on night jumps. For that reason, I like to alleviate any "potential" issues long before I am on final. YMMV.

"It's just skydiving..additional drama is not required"
Some people dream about flying, I live my dream
SKYMONKEY PUBLISHING

[BrianM 1]

Note that I wasn't planning on hanging anything below me. The option I am considering is having the strobe strapped to my ankle, pointing down. I figure this will give me 360 degree visibility, and I can trail that leg back to help keep the light out of my eyes.

I'm just not sure whether this, or a helmet mounted strobe pointing up at the canopy, would provide better visibility.

"It's amazing what you can learn while you're not talking." - Skydivesg

[klafollette 0]

I took a L1456 type (a similar one from a camping store). Took it apart. The strobe head itself is very small. Soldered some wires to the strobe head, replaced the big D cell with a AA battery, got a AA battery holder and pushbutton switch from Radio Shack. Soldered it up and taped it to my helmet with gaffers tape. The AA is plenty of power for a couple night jumps. Makes it nice and compact, flush to the helmet. Lights up the canopy real well.

[monkycndo 0]

I use the L1916.

I gaffer tape it on the top of the helmet with the flashlight facing forward and slightly upward. After deployment, I turn the flashlight on for my controlability check. Once that's done, I turn on the strobe. Since it is behind my head, it doesn't affect my vision. I realize it doesn't provide a complete 360 degree view, but I keep my head on a swivel looking for other jumpers. I like doing WS night jumps and my suit tends to be full of glowstix.

I also wear a small LED headlamp on the front of my helmet. If you land out, having that will allow you to see the ground coming at you and be able to find your way to find your way through any hidden dangers as you hike out.

50 donations so far. Give it a try.

You know you want to spank it
Jump an Infinity

[DougH 270]

Quote

I am not a fan of hanging a strobe below the jumper for safety reasons. I've seen more people get hurt during landings on night jumps due to miscalculating their relation to the ground and or because they "saw" another jumper (their own shadow actually) right as they were on final. Having a blinking light source below you on landing is not only going to hamper you night vision, but your depth perception as well. Having something hanging below you that lands before you do is an anchor and can and will snag when you don't want it to.

I am not saying the hanging method won't work, obviously it has worked for others before. However, I do this for a living and have jumped at night with more gear strapped on than most and the one thing I've found to be consistent about jumping at night is that if anything can go wrong, it usually happens on night jumps. For that reason, I like to alleviate any "potential" issues long before I am on final. YMMV.

I have used a hanging strobe on about 25 night jumps, which still leaves me far from being and expert, but my exeperinces have all been very sucesfull. These were all on canopies 175 and smaller, with wingloadings around 1.2 and higher.

Based on my personal experince the light not under you, it trails below and well behind because of the relative wind, and drag on the line you hang it from, and the strobe itself.

I have never seen my strobe in the air unless I deliberately look down and back through my legs. I have never seen it on landing until after I have hauled it back in using the line, or I have turned around the retrieve it.

On a bigger canopy with less airspeed it might hang more under the jumper though.

I can't argue about the snag hazard, that is why I use real light line. I would rather loose a strobe in a tree than get snagged. Fly your approach accordingly, and it would probably best not to fly so close to obstacles on night jumps that you are worried about snagging a strobe on a short hang line!

On landing you don't even feel it, it just lands first, and bounces behind you until you touch down.

I won't discount the possible pitfalls, but I think they are balanced by the ability to run a brighter strobe, not blocking part of the light, and getting it away from your person.

"The restraining order says you're only allowed to touch me in freefall"
=P

[dorbie 0]

I use the L1456. This strobe is nice & bright.

The metal clip is a bit iffy. I wouldn't rely on it. It's a bit like a safety pin but less secure against a plastic hook with not enough depth.

I've used gaffers tape to attach to my helmet when skydiving. It worked well.

It's not perfectly periodic, in that there's some slight randomness to the flash rate although it does reliably flash.

I've also used it paragliding and attached it to a lanyard to dangle beneath me at sunset. It's much brighter than the usual crappy strobes PG pilots use.

[phoenixlpr 0]

I had several night jumps. I had a red bicycle light clipped on my container. I had a cheap forehead light on my leg in strobe mode.

That forehead light was about 8 Euros (made in China), it uses some AAA battery and it has 3 bright leds.

You can see here how does it look. I got it over my ankle.

[dorbie 0]

Quote

I had several night jumps. I had a red bicycle light clipped on my container. I had a cheap forehead light on my leg in strobe mode.

That forehead light was about 8 Euros (made in China), it uses some AAA battery and it has 3 bright leds.

You can see here how does it look. I got it over my ankle.

Technically FAR 105.19 requires strobes to be visible for 3 statute miles under canopy.

[AndreLapointe 0]

We did several 12-18 ways night's,
the strobe of choice was L1456 and
we mounted it on the front leg strap to facilitate the landing pattern
(the clip is just the right width and it didn't affect visibility).

[BrianM 1]

Quote

Quote

I had several night jumps. I had a red bicycle light clipped on my container. I had a cheap forehead light on my leg in strobe mode.

That forehead light was about 8 Euros (made in China), it uses some AAA battery and it has 3 bright leds.

You can see here how does it look. I got it over my ankle.

Technically FAR 105.19 requires strobes to be visible for 3 statute miles under canopy.

Technically, the FARs don't apply in Finland, where those jumps took place.

They don't apply here either (I'm the OP). The law only requires "a steady or flashing light visible through 360 degrees" (no mention of freefall vs canopy, and no mention of distance), and even that is only for jumps "in or into Controlled Airspace or an Air Route", and for jumps "over or into a Built-up Area or Open-air Assembly of Persons" .

My primary concern is being visible enough, from far enough away, to prevent canopy collisions.

"It's amazing what you can learn while you're not talking." - Skydivesg

[BrianM 1]

Quote

We did several 12-18 ways night's,
the strobe of choice was L1456 and
we mounted it on the front leg strap to facilitate the landing pattern
(the clip is just the right width and it didn't affect visibility).

Nice picture!

It sounds like quite a few people are using that strobe (L1456).

I Haven't heard from anyone using the Lightman strobe (L1465). I'm kind of leaning that way, though I'm curious how bright it is compared to the L1456, and how visible it is from the sides. Anyone used one?

"It's amazing what you can learn while you're not talking." - Skydivesg