can i skydive with a base canopy?

[sfzombie 3]

i know ( i think i do) that you can't use a base rig to skydive with, but can you use just the canopy packed into a skydiving rig to get familiar with flying it before attempting to base jump? or is this a question better suited to basejumper.com?

http://kitswv.com

[dragon2 2]

You can, yes, provided of course you have a suitable (biggish) skydiving rig at your disposal.

Though I wouldn't jump it terminal I think, and only do a few jumps with it.

ciel bleu,
Saskia

[DrewEckhardt 0]

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i know ( i think i do) that you can't use a base rig to skydive with, but can you use just the canopy packed into a skydiving rig to get familiar with flying it before attempting to base jump?

Yes.

You can even free pack.

While you're at it learn classic accuracy so you're more likely to be ready when you want to jump into smaller landing areas.

[DrewEckhardt 0]

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You can, yes, provided of course you have a suitable (biggish) skydiving rig at your disposal.

Though I wouldn't jump it terminal I think, and only do a few jumps with it.

Eventually you're going to find a big cliff or antenna and take it to terminal.

If it's going to ring your bell at terminal you want to find out when you're opening at 2000 feet over a nice landing area, not some where under 1000 feet over some place small surrounded by obstacles with scattered boulders. You might find that you want a small hole mesh slider instead of big hole.

Just be sure to:

1. Use a slider when taking it out of the plane.

2. Route the steering lines through the keepers and slider.

3. Use your shallow brake setting.

4. Use an appropriate pilot chute (even if you pull immediately, you're starting at 60 MPH out of a Cessna and 100 MPH out of a King air and wouldn't want anything bigger than a 42/36" respectively).

Unless you come from a classic accuracy background and have been jumping something like a Parafoil or EIFF Classic loaded around .7 pounds per square foot you'll benefit from more than just a few jumps getting used to the basics. Although we tell skydiving students that they should be in full-flight to get a good flare, that sort of skydiving approach to BASE jumping will have you over shooting landing areas and running into obstacles even if you have 10,000 jumps.

That'll be more relaxing when you're open at 2000 feet over a nice grassy field with pea gravel if you stall versus 200 feet over hard ground.

[Nutz 0]

My favorite pack - to see not to jump - is a Wal-Mart bag. Talk about a trash pack!

"Don't! Get! Eliminated!"

[Grubber 0]

Also be careful with your 3-ring/riser attachment. Some base canopies have reverse risers. Make sure your sky gear is compatible with your rings. If you ever need to chop, you want the attachment point high enough on the risers to ensure the canopy can completely separate prior to activating your reserve. God forbid you ever need to chop your BASE canopy away...that would be a bummer.

[jakee 1,569]

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Though I wouldn't jump it terminal I think,

There's always someone that says that and I really don't know why?

BASE canopies are designed to open at terminal as well as sub-terminal. There's nothing magical about terminal velocity from an aeroplane that makes it less suitable for a BASE canopy than terminal velocity from a cliff.

Do you want to have an ideagasm?

[Mac 1]

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Though I wouldn't jump it terminal I think,

There's always someone that says that and I really don't know why?

BASE canopies are designed to open at terminal as well as sub-terminal. There's nothing magical about terminal velocity from an aeroplane that makes it less suitable for a BASE canopy than terminal velocity from a cliff.

Ditto, never understood that either...

I took my Troll 265 MDV out of a plane to terminal many times with a large mesh slider and 34" PC, freepacked blah blah blah.... Never a problem.. Openings were obviously more brisk than my Spectre... but what do you expect..

Taking a BASE canopy out of a plane to familiarise yourself with it before taking it into the BASE environment is a great idea.... Do it, and if you can still get the CR canopy drills document from somewhere, practice those with it...

[billvon 3,088]

>There's always someone that says that and I really don't know why?

Because they open hard. (They still work, of course.)

[likestojump 3]

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Though I wouldn't jump it terminal I think,

There's always someone that says that and I really don't know why?

BASE canopies are designed to open at terminal as well as sub-terminal. There's nothing magical about terminal velocity from an aeroplane that makes it less suitable for a BASE canopy than terminal velocity from a cliff.

because a Classic of a Parafoil will open at terminal, but who the hell wants those openings when the point of jumping those canopies is to fly them ?

In other words BASE canopies open harder, even with sail sliders and smaller PCs. If you want to fly a BASE canopy in SD environment, might as well do a clear and pull a couple of times a day and not have to pop painkillers for next three days.

"trust me, I know" :)

[scruffy 0]

Are you not describing the exact reason the jump shack came out with the BASER?

Peace, love and hoppiness

[jakee 1,569]

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In other words BASE canopies open harder, even with sail sliders and smaller PCs.

Of course they open faster, but those openings are still perfectly acceptable. Thousands and thousands of jumps a year are done with BASE canopies at terminal velocity and yet put a plane in the equation and people start getting scared of them, talking like it's the black death.

Sure, you might as well just do a hop and pop, but talking like you shouldn't take them to terminal is a load of rubbish.

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In other words BASE canopies open harder, even with sail sliders and smaller PCs. If you want to fly a BASE canopy in SD environment, might as well do a clear and pull a couple of times a day and not have to pop painkillers for next three days.

This time last year I'd just finished a trip with 40 full-terminal jumps in a week and a half, vented canopy and large mesh slider - no painkillers remotely needed. (OK, I caught swine flu on the flight home but I don't think we can blame the canopy for that.)

Do you want to have an ideagasm?

[likestojump 3]

You are comparing an (at least) semi-experienced BASE jumper doing a tracking/WS jump who (if they are any good at all) is not doing anywhere close to 120mph straight down to a person taking a BASE canopy falling straight down and deploying at 120 mph.

unless of course you did 40 jumps with no tracking :)

[DrewEckhardt 0]

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You are comparing an (at least) semi-experienced BASE jumper doing a tracking/WS jump who (if they are any good at all) is not doing anywhere close to 120mph straight down to a person taking a BASE canopy falling straight down and deploying at 120 mph.

unless of course you did 40 jumps with no tracking :)

With a good beer belly and decent track you may only be going 90 miles an hour vertically, although you're also going 90 miles an hour forwards for a 127mph air speed which is what the canopy sees when it deploys.

[dragon2 2]

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You are comparing an (at least) semi-experienced BASE jumper doing a tracking/WS jump who (if they are any good at all) is not doing anywhere close to 120mph straight down to a person taking a BASE canopy falling straight down and deploying at 120 mph.

unless of course you did 40 jumps with no tracking :)

With a good beer belly and decent track you may only be going 90 miles an hour vertically, although you're also going 90 miles an hour forwards for a 127mph air speed which is what the canopy sees when it deploys.

I've never jumped a BASE canopy from terminal but I have a number of terminal (ZP) Lightning jumps. A WS jump with a Lightning is doable, a FS type jump, ouch. There is an awful lot of difference between the 2, at least for my body

ciel bleu,
Saskia

[jakee 1,569]

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You are comparing an (at least) semi-experienced BASE jumper doing a tracking/WS jump who (if they are any good at all) is not doing anywhere close to 120mph straight down to a person taking a BASE canopy falling straight down and deploying at 120 mph.

unless of course you did 40 jumps with no tracking :)

Nope, but I've jumped my freepacked BASE canopy from an aircraft as well, and opened it falling straight down the tube. I'll say it again, there's nothng magic about terminal from an aircraft.

Do you want to have an ideagasm?

[mr_prick 0]

i use a troll 265 vented, large mesh slider,base-freepacked with a 36" zp pc for tight display jumps. never had a problem. many terminal deployments. i really don't see where the problem should be....

edit: i like the openings a lot better than an rl-16, foils etc. of course it opens harder than my neos, but not much harder than the clapped out sabre 135 i use for wingsuiting.

[base283 0]

It depends on the laws of the country you reside in.
Take care,
space

[sfzombie 3]

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>There's always someone that says that and I really don't know why?

Because they open hard. (They still work, of course.)

while shopping for a base canopy i found several that said not recommended for terminal openings and one that said the material it was made of wouldn't handle the stress.
i've been out of the sport for several years and in trying to get back into it, i decided i want to save costs and am planning to travel to id for a base course. if i had a canopy i was familiar with all i would need additionally would be the rig to swap it out with.
thanx for the info

http://kitswv.com

[jtnesbitt 0]

Every canopy is different. Period. You can have two of the same canopy, but they are still different. This is especially true if you are shopping used. If you are trying to find a deal and find a cheap Mojo with 900 jumps then I can understand how someone would say not to take it to terminal. On the other hand there are also some new base canopies that I wouldnt jump out of an aircraft such as the new 5 cell vtecs. Before anyone starts arguing I also wouldnt take that canopy on a terminal base jump, there is no point.

So, even though everyone has been answering your question, to get the best answer, we need more info.

"If this post needs to be moderated I would prefer it to be completly removed and not edited and butchered into a disney movie" - DorkZone Hero

[sfzombie 3]

the only thing i was really wondering was if the tail pocket was allowed in a skydiving rig, like you can't use a 2 pin base rig. basically what is and isn't allowed to be jumped in a skydiving rig, like the size of the pc.
anything i attempted to jump, i'd have my buddies larry or andy look at first, as they are both riggers, for airworthiness. probably larry as he's also a base jumper.
again thanx for the info.

http://kitswv.com

[dragon2 2]

Tailpocket is fine, CRW canopies have those too.

One of the posts above made a valid point about which country you live in, some countries have rules about which mains you can jump.

ciel bleu,
Saskia

[riggerrob 643]

Tail pockets are a huge improvement over free-packing ... such a huge improvement that I will never again jump a free-packed canopy.
Free-packing has scared me since 1980!

If you plan to take it to terminal, you would be wiser to stuff the canopy into a regular d-bag.

[riggerrob 643]

"...

4. Use an appropriate pilot chute (even if you pull immediately, you're starting at 60 MPH out of a Cessna and 100 MPH out of a King air and wouldn't want anything bigger than a 42/36" respectively).

...

[billvon 3,088]

>while shopping for a base canopy i found several that said not
>recommended for terminal openings . . .

Hmm. I think I would avoid a BASE canopy that was not recommended for terminal openings. It would surely suck to have a much longer than planned delay (say, from the NRGB) and discover yourself near terminal as you were deploying.