Hooknswoop

It has already ended. Derek

If you are going to sew on rip stop, why not just sew a patch? It'll be a smaller patch and less work since you only have to fix it once. Derek

You misunderstand. They didn't care and the only reason the conversation even happened is because there was a formal complaint. He agreed that the FAA needs to issue a legal intrepretation and gave me another avenue to pursue that in order to put this issue to rest once and for all. He agreed that it is the FAA's responsibility to issue such a LI if requested to do so. I think that sort of thing would bring more scrunity from the FAA, something you clearly do not want, especially with the negative FAA attention that area of CO has already recieved. They aren'y my laws or your parachutes I am dealing with. Derek

Vector Tandem No, I didn't have a camera at the DZ. Plain old large rubber bands double wrapped caused a bag lock on a Vector Tandem system. When I looked over my shoulder because of the abnormally long trap door, the bag was about 8-10 feet above me, with 4 stows still stowed, the lines were even, all going straight to one stow. On the ground, pulling on the lines with my foot on the bridle, the stows refused to unstow. So, there you have it, a true-to-life case of double wrapping rubber bands causing a bag lock on a tandem. Derek

There are more roads in the mountains out my back door than I will ever be able to ride. CO rocks Derek

Ya, he's given me some tips (pre-loading isn't just an RW term), and some things to work on. LOL! What, no skulls with flashing red eyes? No way, not me, not this bike. Those guys ar enotz and fall a lot. Derek

The seat hasn't gotten warm from the exhaust, but I can feel the heat coming out of the fairings from the radiator. It is hard to go slow. Derek

Chromed with skulls? I am in contact with an Instructor that really knows his stuff. He recommended and I bought "Total Control" By Lee Parks. Really good book. \ I don't think I have even got into 6th gear yet. I did take it to 13,500 RPM's in 3rd as part of the break in process. Changed the oil/oil filter today. Derek

Derek

Just not the same Derek

Send him back chp 28 and part 65.111, which are both dated later then chp 136. The funny part is the Inspector has delt with this before and agrees with me that you don't have to be a Master Rigger to alter a main canopy. Derek

Not long, not short, 3 inches +/-. Plain old large rubber bands. Derek

SWEET! Derek

You can, according to 65.111b. The complaint was a Senior Parachute Rigger couldn't alter someone else's main. Derek

N/A

I got a call from the FAA today. Seems someone filed a complaint against me because I beleive a Senior Parachute Rigger may alter a main parachute. In short, the FAA agreed with me and is taking no action. They had to address it since it was a formal complaint. I apologize to the Inspector for his time being wasted and explained that I have sent the FAA a request for a legal interpretation 9 months ago which will settle this issue once and for all. He gave me a persont to contact in D.C. to follow up on my request for a LI. Anyway, it was a pleasant call and that's the end of it

Incorrect, it happened to me. Derek

The bag lock on the tandem was without a doubt caused by double stowing. I saw it in the air and confirmed it on the ground. Derek

Ue the smaller bands. For openings, control the lines and make sure to keep all 4 slider gromments against the stops (washers in the stabilizers). Derek

Yep, strange but true. You wouldn't think a rubber band would be able to hold, but they cn, especially when the bag tilts because it is pull from a band and the edge of the bag and pulling on the next band too. Bag locks happen. If rubber bands always broke, there wouldn't be bag locks with rubber-band equipped d-bags. But there is. Derek

Normal large bungees. On the ground I put my food on the drogue bridle and pulled on the lines hard and they wouldn't release. The angle the bag was turned to by pulling from the bridle and lines put tension on 2 double wrapped stows so that they shared the force. When seeing how lines un-stow, too many people hold the d-bag and pull the lines off, it is much different if you anchor the container and pull on the bridle. Canopies open normally without having tight line stows. All the lines stows do is cause the lines to release as the bag moves away from the jumper and tighten the lines every time a stow puts tension on them. Then the lines get some slack when the stow releases. Then they tighten back up as d-bag gets farther from the jumper to the next stow. As long as the canopy stays in the D-bag until after all the lines are out and taut, the canopy will open normally. Too tight of stows and you will get a bag lock. I believe snatch force has more to do with the speed of the jumper and the size of the canopy when it is out of the bag with the slider all the way up against the stops and the size of the slider. The more that comes out the bag, the more snatch force, that initial deceleration. Derek

Ya, I don't want to blow anything up Derek

LOL! There are 2 lights within the cluster, one for Oil Pressure, and the other when the rev limiter kicks in. I think it cuts the spark, not completely, but alot. Derek

Right, that is because tight line stows do not make a canopy open soft and loose stows do not make a canopy open hard. Openings depend on the canopy and airspeed. Only the locking stows need to hold. Derek

At 100+ who cares what color it is? I need to find out what color the little LED that lights up when you hit the red line @ 15,000RPM's. Derek