hackish

How many PM introductions did you get from that post? For the record I met mine 2.5 years ago from a website called plentyoffish. We'll be getting married summer 2010. The internet dating thing is odd - pre-quality the people against your criteria then meet and see if there is chemistry rather than meet someone, find chemistry then see if they meet your criteria. -Michael

I think if the prospect of a master rigger doing the mods properly concerns you then maybe you could just give Pablo or Greg a call at the UPT loft. At worse they will say no. I'll say one thing for sure they made me a kickass set of dive loops in about 3 minutes flat. -Michael

I'm wondering if flaps are in the checklist for a water ditching? For those who found the checklists online got a link? I'm just curious. -Michael

I did last night when I got home actually. They listed 302 or 303 stainless. A slightly higher carbon content than 304. They both work harden quite easily so unless the manufacturer anneals them after they've been formed I would expect them to be in a hardened form. I also asked our local Rigger B (Master Rigger) if he had any junk pins I could try a rockwell test on but unfortunately he did not. Poynter also says that they would typically have a 2x design factor so in theory the pin might survive a 16lb instead of an 8lb block test. An engineering type might know if the physics translate properly in this fashion. -Michael

Stale doughnuts you say? The welding rods do not care if they've been hardened or not since you'll be melting them... I'm not sure what alloy is used for a reserve pin. This will dictate whether heat will get it hard or soft :) Most of the stainless I work with work hardens and I suspect the pins are made from 304 which is austenitic. You heat it to about 1000C and when it cools it will be annealed (softened). -Michael

The point is more this: If the software is more efficient then the DZ is saving money. In order to be a successful business decision the software needs to save them more than $0.25/jump. I was never expecting the jumper to be paying $0.25 on top of their ticket. Just some people don't consider that everything in business has a price affixed. -Michael

I have never stuck a pin in a rockwell tester to see if it's been hardened but I'm willing to bet it has. I have similar sized stainless rod used for TIG welding and it does not survive the bending test applied to the pins. It is also possible to harden the pin after it's been swaged or even harden the pin part and leave the rest softer. Metal is pretty versatile that way. Most riggers use some sort of tool to compress things as they close the reserve. A more relevant question is could the pin bend as a result of a closing loop that is too tight? I don't know the answer to that but with the spare parts it would be fairly easy to test. Put a pin across a grommet and pull until the closing loop breaks. -Michael

Some days we don't even get out at 3500. -Michael

Those who wouldn't want to spend $0.25 per jump on the software might be surprised to know that some percentage of their jump ticket is already paying for the manifest and business operations. I don't know what that number is for a large DZ but if some software reduces the amount of work then it's worth money. If it means needing fewer staff or even if it means the staff is able to do some additional tasks during the day it's still a measurable amount of money. I was considering writing some DZ management software but considering the number of hours it would take, the small marketplace and difficulty of filling the spec it would be a darn hard job to do and still get paid. Programmers still do need to eat. (Mostly cans of Jolt soda). Imagine if you spent 5000h to write a piece of software. Is that worth $100,000? $20/hr is much less than I'd like to work for. How many dropzones are there in the US? At a grand a pop you'd need to sell 100 copies just to be paid a low wage. Assuming it all goes in your pocket anyway... -Michael

I believe that wires would probably be the most "dangerous" part of the experiment. You could build and probably buy some very small self contained units. At minimum you would need 2 to get the differential pressure - possibly one on the slider and N in the canopy. I'm no aerospace engineer but I suspect the figures are probably better calculated rather than measured because speed and angle will have a huge difference and would be difficult to measure. -Michael

There are actually a few different formulations of WD-40. 2 that I am personally aware of. I know someone working in a poison control lab she got me some ingredient lists. Most of it is kerosone and someone once told me they used JetA but I hope it was a joke. I use WD40 on the bores of an engine to stop them from rusting but that's about it. I use 3 in 1. While some complain that it attracts dirt we're not in an overly sandy environment so maybe those in AZ have to worry more. I also think people tend to under-maintain their cutaway and 3 rings. So some user-education is also worthwhile. -Michael

Some experiments were done where a parachute was packed for a few years and it still opened correctly. Reserves are regularly repacked and largely so they can be checked for wear. Same idea as bringing your car into a shop for maintenance, they check out the brakes and suspension bits etc. -Michael

Bad music shouldn't kill you if they miss a few notes. -Michael

One interesting thing I saw while in florida this year is that a number of jumpers were stowing their extra chest strap on the wrong side of the buckle. This has a tendency to pull the buckle into the unloaded position so the chest strap can loosen. I had to demonstrate this to a few people before they realized that what they'd been doing for years could have caused a dangerous situation. -Michael

I don't know about you guys, but I won't turn a wrench on a customer's car if I've had any beer. Generally won't even do it on my own. At my DZ I've always turned down the beer until I've completed packing the last rig, my own included. Drinking while rigging? Can you look at yourself in the mirror if you phuck it up and someone goes in? Even if you only had one or two how would you ever sleep at night without wondering if you wouldn't have made a mistake had you left the beer until after the job was done? How about legal liability? -Michael

I assume our requirements must be much stricter than yours. In Canada it has to go through transport Canada. AFAIK someone comes out and inspects the mods and an engineering type has signed off on the STC. I would have to check into that. I am aware of several step designs that did not pass their scrutiny. As for downward stress can you tell us if there is a significant difference between the hardware used to attach the normal landing gear and if you were to put floats on the AC? I do know that floats can be very heavy but I don't know if they can even be attached to a cessna. -Michael

Did the landing gear break because of stress from jumpers or inadequate inspection and stress cracks from normal wear that were undiscovered? I would hope the failure mode of that design would be flattened gear, not gear pieces snapping off while the plane skids to a stop on it's belly... I am unaware of a spring steel that is only designed to flex in one direction. As long as you stay within the elastic zone of the material I don't think it is going to matter which way you push on the gear. Also, with the STC to add a step was the engineering to validate that the gear structure was able to take the loads of its intended use. I'm not saying I know everything or that you're full of it but what you say conflicts with my basic knowledge of metals. -Michael

Aircraft have specified weight limits for the overhead baggage compartments and as a result the airline itself may have a per-person limit to satisfy that. I was talking to DSE and he said travelling around the world he just tosses the rig right on the conveyor and walks through. If I did the same they'd probably taser me. Some people are just lucky I guess. I've flown much less with my rig but each time they wanted to swab it. I just politely put it on the conveyor complete with ditter, altimeter etc packed in a roll-on that fits the sizing frame and let them know it's a parachute, here is the AAD card and if they have any questions let me know. There are a lot of things to consider. The airline might say no, the TSA might say no. If you bring your rig unwrapped it may freak out some passengers. Last month I forgot I was wearing my "No Perfectly Good Airplanes" t-shirt. That freaked a few people out. Oops. So if you freak out a few passengers it might be a strike against all of us if the airline begins to believe that a parachute in carry-on may be alarming for other passengers. -Michael

You might have an easier time with an old retired T-10 or similar found at an army surplus. I believe a round would be easier to deal with even though I know nothing about dressmaking :) -Michael

I project that my rigger's ticket will probably pay for itself around the year 2015. Ask in the rigging section but I think the only way to make a poor living rigging would be with your master rigger's ticket. -Michael

It is possible to get a 3D fix with a GPS and it will give you your altitude above MSL, however I haven't found this to be very accurate. -Michael

Reg'd American Bulldog. I used to raise APBT's but there is now BSL against them and insurance problems. Had to get a registered one because the BSL contains a clause against a dog that has a "pitbull-like appearance". Back on sewing I have a light duty machine if I can get it to work properly. I may try to make a jumpsuit to practice. -Michael

I built one with an integrated altimeter, unfortunately it lost its fix in the aircraft and didn't re-acquire until I was under canopy. I've found a different antenna but it's too expensive. Haven't had any time to work on it :( -Michael

Interesting, I was actually just trying to think up a way to do a lockstitch manually... I came up with sharpening the other end of a long sewing needle... Using 5 cord for a leash was just an experiment. I like to try random stuff like that from time to time when I get bored. I'll have to see what kind of machine I can borrow. The little home one is good for just about nothing... -Michael

Apparently my mother in law has a machine from when she had an upholstery business so I may see if I can use that. With our rigging system in Canada any machine sewing and harness repairs is outside the scope of my ticket but who says I can't work on learning more stuff. -Michael