glgflyer

O.K. Thanks for the info swoopfly. Did it have any patches on it?

A friend of mine has a Hornet 170 for sale. I am interested in the canopy but was wondering if someone could give me (and him) an idea of what would be a fair price. It has 365 jumps and 2 small patches (1 professionally done and one has a small piece of ripstop on it). It was manufactured in 1998 and the lines are very clean and still have some waxy feel to them. Since it has not been manufactured for quite some time now, we just don't know what would be a fair price for both of us. Any opinions would be much appreciated.

I think I need to clarify here. Sorry I didn't do this in my original post. No one has sold me a canopy without connector links. Here is the scenario that led to me asking about re-using soft links. I purchased a canopy from an individual a while back that came with metal french links. I bought and installed a set of soft links on that canopy. At a later time, I bought another canopy I liked better that also came with metal french links. Hence, my question: Is it ok to take the soft links off my old canopy and put them on my new canopy, as this is the one I will be jumping? You guys have answered the question perfectly. Again, I apologize for not explaining that in my OP. NOTE: I am keeping BOTH canopies, so it is not an issue of me trying to duke someone out of set of soft links. I just wanted to know if it was safe to re-use them as long as they were still in good condition. Again, thanks for posting and answering the question.

Thanks for the advice Couloirman, especially concerning the continuity check. Once softlinks are installed, I just wasn't sure about disconnecting and re-using them. But you guys have answered that question very nicely. Again, thanks.

Thank you very much Riggerpaul. This is exactly the information I needed to know. Again, thank you very much.

Once a set of softlinks has been installed on a canopy and used for 40 or 50 jumps, is it ok to take them off that canopy and install them on another canopy, or is this a procedure that should be avoided? Thanks.

Phoenixlpr, Where do you get the tubing to make the tube stows and what size is it (inside diameter and outside diameter)? I would like to try and make some of my own to try. Thanks

But the report still doesn't say Claire was using tube stows. It simply says a stow band was too large, which also has me confused. I would think the exact opposite would be true. Seems to me if the band was too large the bag would open easier. I thought stow bands being too tight was the primary cause of a bag lock. Someone feel free to correct me if I'm wrong.

Thanks for the input. I hope there will be some more advice and opinions posted on the subject.

Does anyone know of any documented incidents where using tube stows instead of rubber bands actually caused a bag lock or any other problems? Any info or opinions are welcome concerning tube stows. Thanks

Ok. Thanks for the info.

Does anyone know how I could find a classified ad that has already been deleted by the poster? Seems like I remember reading that there is a way this can be done by some type of search but I don't remember how. Thanks.

Thank you guys very much for all the good info on the bandless deployment bags. I think I've decided to give the lazy bag a try. You have been very helpful and and I really appreciate the detailed info. Thanks.

They just removed the booties and simply made it into a straight leg. It would have cost a little more to have cuffs installed with velcro closure but the straight leg was fine with me so I went that route and saved a few bucks. But one thing is for sure; I did not like the booties. To me they are more trouble than they are worth. Hope this helps.

I really want to apologize for the way my statement sounded. I did not mean it to sound that way at all. I was just hoping to possibly locate someone close by that had one that I could look at before dishing out the $141. I do value your opinions and comments very much and I really hope you will accept my apology. The info you gave about the team in France being equipped with the lazy bag and having many jumps on them was very helpful information. Again, I do apologize for a very poorly worded statement.

Actually, I did use the search function and found a lot of posts about the lazy bag but they were all from several years ago and most were overseas. What I really want to know is there anyone who regularly visits dropzone.com who is using this bag now (preferably in the states), and if so I would like their comments on it. I saw the video on how to close it and I really like the idea of not using stow bands, but only if it is just as safe as a regular d-bag. So if there are any users in the states who are using the "Lazy Bag" please post your experiences with it. Thanks a lot. Also, thanks for your post virgin-burner.

Has anyone here used the rubber bandless deployment bag made in Belgium called the Lazy Bag? If so, I would like to hear some comments about it. Most importantly, IS IT SAFE? Is it bulkier than a regular d-bag? I am interested in giving it a try but would like to hear from those who are familiar with it before doing so. Thanks.

That makes sense to me. Hopefully some others (maybe some riggers) will post and give some more insight on the subject. Again, thanks for your explanation.

Thanks for the comment NiteQwill. But I still don't understand why. Between the attachment point and the point where the rubber band is wrapped around the lines there are just 2 single strands of rubber band no matter how many times it is wrapped around the lines. Let's take this example: Attach a new rubber band to your deployment bag. Then stand on the bag to hold it to the floor. Stick your finger in the band and pull till it breaks. Attach another new rubber band. Now stick your finger in the band but this time double wrap it around your finger. Pull till it breaks. It just seems to me that it should take exactly the same force to break both these bands. But please understand that I CERTAINLY don't know this to be true. That is why I posted this so hopefully someone who knows can answer it for me. Again, thanks for your post and feel free to elaborate on it further.

Thanks for the comment kingbunky. I had a rigger once tell me that usually the first locking stow is tighter than the second one. He said this is the way he does it to achieve the same tension on both stows so I just started doing it that way. But now I'm going to take another look at it after hearing what you just told me. Thanks.

This is going to be a pretty long post so please bear with me. I recently bought a pilot 168 canopy with 725 spectra lines. This is the first micro line canopy I have owned. Therefore, I am trying to figure out the proper line stowing technique to get proper tension. I currently use a large rubber band on the first locking stow and a small one on the second locking stow ( I only have 2 locking stows on my bag). Then I use small bands on all the non locking stows. The locking stows seem to have proper tension but all the rest seem to be very loose, even with the small rubber bands. I read a lot of the old forums concerning this subject and it seems that many people are saying that if you double wrap the rubber bands it is possible the lines won't release from the stow or that the rubber band won't break, causing a bag lock. NOW, MY QUESTION: Since you only have ONE single wrap at the attachment point on the bag why would the rubber band be less apt to break with a double wrap than it would with a single wrap on the lines? In other words, no matter how many times you wrap the rubber band around the lines you still only have ONE wrap at the attachment point on the bag. An explanation would be much appreciated. Thanks

Does Aerodyne still make the sky bands? If so, where can I find them?

I bought a used Tony RW suit with booties and I also did not like them. I sent it in to Tony Suits and had the booties removed, new zippers installed in both legs and the arm pocket. They did it for $75.

Where can I find one of the Kelly bags?

Makes sense. Thanks