Deyan

We keep most of the webbing we replace, ( chest straps, leg straps, MLW's etc.) for the time we find some place to pull test it......unfortunately, is not easy to find such a place "My belief is that once the doctor whacks you on the butt, all guarantees are off" Jerry Baumchen

And if the webbing will lose its strength more than 50 % imagine what will happen to the cord 5 "My belief is that once the doctor whacks you on the butt, all guarantees are off" Jerry Baumchen

Smart 110 "My belief is that once the doctor whacks you on the butt, all guarantees are off" Jerry Baumchen

***The OP didn't say they were getting a Skyhook installed, just an RSL. True . He just mentioned that there's an instruction for the Skyhook and the RSL in the manual. My mistake. "My belief is that once the doctor whacks you on the butt, all guarantees are off" Jerry Baumchen

Hi MEL, My information is that only UPT or UPT authorized service centers are allowed to install Skyhook on non Skyhook ready V3's! Of course my info can be old or wrong.... Blue skies "My belief is that once the doctor whacks you on the butt, all guarantees are off" Jerry Baumchen

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RIiDp7bVOYE&feature=plcp This video was made in 2006. As we already know, their cutter doesn't work well with a bowling ball inside....or was it steal ball from a shot bag I don't remember anymore You can ask AIRTEC if they did any similar tests. In my opinion a single blade ( only CYPRES at the moment) cutter will perform better with debris inside "My belief is that once the doctor whacks you on the butt, all guarantees are off" Jerry Baumchen

Good stories.....or actually "bad stories" ..... I was expecting some hardware failures as well.... hip/chest/ rings or chest/leg/ strap adapters, stuff like this. I thought that the hardware was the "weakest link" in the harness, but apparently I was wrong. I remember a problem with hip ring deformation on a Wings some years back, but only deformation. Nothing broken ..... Thanks for your input guys. "My belief is that once the doctor whacks you on the butt, all guarantees are off" Jerry Baumchen

I know . Some riggers just sign the papers. ( I doubt this was the case since I know the rigger who did the last I+R) I don't know what went wrong with that rig. I'm just curious if other riggers have experience with harness failures. And if "yes", what kind was the damage . So far, beside this case I know of 3 other occasions where the harness had fail. One in Ukraine where the reserve risers was broken after AAD had fire. One in Italy where the chest strap broke on opening ( I don't know any other details) and the last one in Germany where the 4 point stitch at the laterals was broken. All 3 occasions were fatalities. I'm sure there are more stories ,and that's why I'm asking. Thanks "My belief is that once the doctor whacks you on the butt, all guarantees are off" Jerry Baumchen

The harness was 9 years old with about 500 jumps. The guy did only 5 jumps after I+R, so I guess the rigger didn't find anything unusual. No demo jumps, no hybrid jumps, no gear abuse. I guess the damage was due to his not perfect body position. "My belief is that once the doctor whacks you on the butt, all guarantees are off" Jerry Baumchen

Few months back I was inspecting the harness from a friend of mine who had his AAD misfire at about 5000ft. During the inspection I found that the 3 point stitch on the chest strap was broken for about 2/3 of its length. The guy was literally "hanging by a thread". A bit harder opening and he would fall off his harness. The chest strap was a single piece of type 8 between the type 7 and type 8 MLW . I'm not going to name the harness model. This is not why I'm typing this. I just want to hear other stories ( I prefer first hand info ) where the harness failed during the opening. I'm not interested in which brand the rig was. I'm interested in what exactly had failed. The webbing, the stitching, the hardware ??? Stories from high speed drop testing are welcome as well

ALWAYS trust the rears....even if they are not yours "My belief is that once the doctor whacks you on the butt, all guarantees are off" Jerry Baumchen

If my memory is correct "Impulse" reserve is 12,2 sq.meters and it has a MEW of 90 kg and service life time of 10 years. "My belief is that once the doctor whacks you on the butt, all guarantees are off" Jerry Baumchen

Keep it in mind that Icarus recommends minimal 1.4 WL for the Crossfire. "My belief is that once the doctor whacks you on the butt, all guarantees are off" Jerry Baumchen

Nothing "My belief is that once the doctor whacks you on the butt, all guarantees are off" Jerry Baumchen

Yes, it will void the TSO. But I don't want to start the never ending discussion about "who can do what"on a non certified gear

"A senior parachute rigger may pack, as well as maintain, a parachute by making minor repairs. A master parachute rigger has all the privileges of the lesser certificate plus the ability to make major repairs and alter parachutes according to approved data." Adding a bridle att. point to a canopy is an alteration. Those are the rules according to the FAA. Different places, different rules. "My belief is that once the doctor whacks you on the butt, all guarantees are off" Jerry Baumchen

It's a nice place. But if you are there at the end of Juli, you should go to Soulac for "4 fun summer boogie part VIII" You will not regret "My belief is that once the doctor whacks you on the butt, all guarantees are off" Jerry Baumchen

I guess you missed that part "My belief is that once the doctor whacks you on the butt, all guarantees are off" Jerry Baumchen

Not always. In some countries the whole system has to be inspected /approved once a year. On every repack we ( our loft ) inspect everything except the line routing and the fabric condition of the main. It's standard. No extra charge. (unofficial) DROPZONE.COM Main System Inspection Checklist ___ Cutaway handle - remove, check for kink, cracks, clean (Ronsonol yellow bottle lighter fluid), lubricate (Ace Hardware Spray Silicon lubricant on cloth), check velcro. While removing the cutaway handle, watch the cables. If the cable on the RSL ( if present ) side riser releases first, ask your rigger for advice. If you have a SKYHOOK ,be really careful not to misroute the long side release cable when installing back the cutaway handle. ___ Risers - any cuts/freys/broken/missing stuff? Rings deformed? Worn velcro? Flex the webbing around the rings. ___ Links - Hard - cracks in the barrol, loose, deformed? Are they "Mallion Rapide"? (if not, replace) If slider bumpers are installed, check how tight they are. If you can move them towards the canopy without problem, ask your rigger to tack them on place. Soft - worn, cut, freyed, older than the line set? Properly installed? Are you sure?? If they are not tacked, it's not a bad idea to ask your rigger to do it ___ Lines - cut/freyed? Asymetrical from side to side? Any openning problems? When did you or your rigger last check the line trim? Are the brake lines still the correct length (slight bow at full flight with no tail deflection)?? ___ Canopy - holes, tears (what about in the ribs?)? When did you last actually LOOK at the whole canopy? Can you hang it up to take a close look?? ___ Bridle attachment - is it pulling loose? What about the reenforcement inside both halves of the center cell? ___ Bridle attachment link - good condition? (see link notes above) ___ D-Bag - holes? Are the grommets still in good shape? (round/fully seated/no chance of a line getting under the edge) Stow attach points in good shape? Correct size/shape for your container?? Are the bands the right size for your lines? Are they matched (type/size/condition)? ___ Bridle - cuts/freys/broken stiches?? How's that pin attachment? You'd look silly if the pin stays in place as the bridle rips away... (ok, more than silly, but you get the point...) ___ Pin - Smooth? No burs that will cut the closing loop? If you have an older pin - is there any chipping/pealing/missing platting? ___ Kill line - proper length? (when fully cocked, the kill line should be slack with the PC crown line taking the tension) Is the "cocked" color still visible in the window? ___ PC - wear/cuts/pulls/broken stitches? Handle pulling off? Does it still lift the canopy/D-bag like it used to?? ___ Closing loop - GEEZE... when did you last change that? We'll yea, it hasn't broken yet, but that might be because its 6 inches too long!!! --------------------------------------------------------- If you're not sure what any/all of this is talking about, ASK!!! Find a rigger and ask them how to check all this stuff. Then DO IT. For what its worth, once you know what you're looking for, it should take you less time to do this check than it did for me to type it up, so no SH!T about it taking too long. JW PS - if you feel stuff should be added/changed in this list, great... please quote the entire list with your changes. I'd like to see us end up with a complete checklist that folks could print out and use!

Thanks Sparky, I know all of the above. What I don't know is the allowed decent rate per TSO C23-b low and standard speed and the TSO C23-c categories a,b and c. AS8015B allows testing in many speeds and weights, but the descent rate stays the same, so I think that for TSO-b/c despite the different weights and speeds, the descent rate requirement might stay the same. What I'm trying to find out is when this 24ft/s descent and 36 total speed was accepted?! In 1949 with C23-b, in 1984 with C23-c or in 1994 with C 23-d. Thank you for your time "My belief is that once the doctor whacks you on the butt, all guarantees are off" Jerry Baumchen

It could be everything. From too old / weak rubber bands. Normal size rubber bands instead of the tandem size ones. Lazy packer locking the bag with only 2 stows and putting the rest of the lines on the bottom of the container. Too small bites on the line stows .... And I think that the term for that on the picture should be a "bag strip" "My belief is that once the doctor whacks you on the butt, all guarantees are off" Jerry Baumchen

On even deeper level why do we need the TSO at all ?! ......................................................................... Pilot Emergency Parachutes are considered "aircraft accessories" under TSO C23. Skydiving was not very popular when TSO C23 was first written. The FAA never seriously considered that significant numbers of people would voluntarily jump out of airplanes. Now those damned skydivers clutter the skies!!! Since the TSO for PEPs was extended to include skydiving reserves, the FAA is stuck with regulating reserves. Similarly, seat-belts are considered "aircraft accessories under TSO C22. Thanks for the history lesson Rob

You don't have to go trough the center of the soft link tab. If you tack only the corner where the material is soft it's still good enough. "My belief is that once the doctor whacks you on the butt, all guarantees are off" Jerry Baumchen

Right. Because there are no skydivers who weigh less than 160 pounds. Wanna bet ? My exit weight is 157 .......and YES I drink beer after jumping "My belief is that once the doctor whacks you on the butt, all guarantees are off" Jerry Baumchen

On even deeper level why do we need the TSO at all ?! "My belief is that once the doctor whacks you on the butt, all guarantees are off" Jerry Baumchen