billbooth

Not if I don't find out about it. Actually, I would not encourage it, and technically, it would be a violation of the Tandem Vector User Agreement. (I hate lawyers, but what are you going to do? They're everywhere, and they've got big BMW payments to make.) I'm afraid this is one of those "do as I say, not as I do" situations. It turns out it's real easy to get into a side spin if you don't do a perfect exit, head high and directly into the relative wind. Just do your Mr. Bill's with big solo equipment. It's much more fun anyway, 'cause you're liable to break something.

I did a dozen or so "Mister Bill" tandem jumps about 15 years ago. I was doing cutaway testing my then-new Vector II meshless pilot chute, and was tired of chasing broken-away mains. I also wanted to see how well the Vector reserve container worked at very low airspeeds, with the "main" still in its container. I had my "passenger" test jumpers put on regular piggybacks over normal tandem passenger harnesses. After opening, they would "stand" on my feet while I unhooked them. Then they simply jumped off my feet and pulled the reserve ripcord, simulating a breakaway, with no main canopy floating off into the woods. On one jump, I had the test jumper pull the reserve ripcord before jumping off my feet, so I could hold onto the reserve pilot chute while she fell away. The reserve deployment was almost instantaneous, and that's where I got the idea for the Skyhook RSL I just released. Sorry it took 15 years to perfect, but a lot of problems had to be overcome before it was ready for market.

Put you name and phone number on a piece of Tyvek with a marking pen, and sew it to the inside of a front riser. You can get a sheet of Tyvek at any printer, and most office supply stores. Just cut it size with a scissors. It'll never fray.

Wouldn't it be fairer to call Jean Boenish and actually buy the films?

Well over 90% of all reserve uses on a Vector Tandem follow a cutaway. On the Sigma it's closer to 99.9%. So you really want to be sure that your canopy release system is as reliable as possible, don't you. When you add a third (drogue release) cable to the cutaway handle, you, at best, increase the force necessary to cutaway. (Due to increased housing friction) And at worst, you lower the reliability of your cutaway system. (If that third cable jams for any reason, you can't cutaway at all.) Increased complexity almost always leads to more malfunctions, and these three cable systems prove that point quite well. That's why Relative Workshop won't put a three cable system on any of our tandem rigs.

There is a picture of my "direct attach" RSL toward the end of the Skyhook article at www.relativeworkshop.com. The reserve ripcord is not shown, but is simply a "loop" fitting at the end of the reserve ripcord cable, that slides over the static line pin.

Try "Green for GO", and "Red for STOP". That's what we've use on our tandems for years. Some people recently have embroidered the 3-ring symbol on their breakaway handle. Seems like a good idea.

Any idea how the left side became the standard side for the RSL? Most people are right handed and wearing an altimeter on their left hand. Those both seem like reasons to put it on the right RSL's are on the left on most rigs because they use a ripcord cable-through-ring type of RSL. The Vector, Micron, and Sigma use my direct pull RSL system, with the ripcord pin attached directly to the end of the RSL. This type of design doesn't damage the ripcord cable everytime it is used like the cable- through-ring design does.

You MUST tack the inserts at the bottom to stop people from putting the yellow cable ends in the space between the tape channel and the metal housing, instead of correctly putting them in the metal housings. It depends on how tight the metal housing fits in the tape channel...but you can bet that if there is enough room, someone will do it. If the yellow cable is put into the space between the tape channel and the metal housing, it's a no cutaway situation, even without twists. l've said it before, and I'm sorry, but it looks like I'll have to say it again, "If people are going to copy my designs, they should at least copy them exactly".

John; Go to www.relativeworkshop.com for an explaination of the Skyhook.

bill, is this because the sharp edges can cut the cable, or what? Two reasons: 1. If the yellow cutaway cable protrudes beyond the upper end of the insert, even a minor riser twist will result in a no-pull situation, because the cable will be jammed against the "sharp" upper edge of the housing. 2. If the tacking that holds the housing in place comes loose, the capped end will stop the housing from sliding down the cable to the 3-ring closing loop, and possibly getting in the way. This is a safety system for a safety system. Therefore, I can't believe anyone would not make it as safe as possible, and put out riser inserts without capped ends, but I've seen them.

I put my RSL on the right side, because every broken riser I've ever seen was the left one. And before the Collin's lanyard, if one riser broke, you certainly didn't want it to be the RSL side, did you? The left riser breaks because almost everyone looks over their right shoulder as they throw the pilot chute, to watch the deployment. This puts the left shoulder low, and effectively shortens the left line groups by a foot, causing the majority of the initial opening shock to be taken by the left riser. You can easily see this effect if you look at graphs of load comparisons on left and right risers during opening shock. The left riser often receives twice the load of the right. Moral to the story: Don't look over either shoulder during opening. If you've gotta look...look straight up.

The Collins' Lanyard, which automatically and instantly releases the non-RSL riser, if the RSL riser releases by itself for any reason, has been standard on Vector and Sigma tandem systems for more than 3 years now. We have had several "saves" reported. The Collins' lanyard is a necessary component in the new Skyhook RSL system.

It's been 25 years since I started using the current metal housings for my 3-ring release, and never, not even once, has anyone ever sent me back a crushed housing for repair. This same crushed housing argument was used 25 years ago, only then it was against the 3-ring release itself. Metal housing inserts in your risers are the best way to go. But please make sure the upper end of the riser housings are capped off. If they are not, it is worse than using no housing inserts at all.

The new Skyhook RSL answers most all of your concerns about RSL use. You can find a description at relativeworkshop.com. (Someone please make it "clicky for me"

Please don't use housing inserts without capped upper ends on your risers. They are far worse than no insert at all. Excess yellow cable sticking out just 1/4" above an uncapped insert can turn even a minor riser twist into a no-pull situation.

Guys; I tried every conceivable type of riser insert before I settled on flexible steel housings, with capped ends, almost 4 years ago. Nothing else works as well in all situations. But a word of caution...make sure the housings you choose have sealed off (capped) upper ends. Housings with open upper ends are far worse than no housing at all.

The market made it's decision years ago. Over 95% of people who order Vectors get throw-outs...if that helps.

OK you guys...cut it out! I have enough different kinds of hardware in stock as it is. "I'm sorry, but your rig is going to be six weeks late...We're flat out of green hardware." Try going to PD and asking for your "A" lines red...your "B" lines yellow...and so on...all with purple bartacks. Send me a tape of the conversation. I like listening to people laugh out loud.

Quite a few DZ's have converted Tandem Vectors to "Big Guy" rigs for AFF training...And our larger military rigs can handle that much weight with no problem. The problem will come later when he tries to find someone to jump with. Most guys that big don't hang around for too many jumps. He would make a swooper that everybody got out of the way of, though.

It is meaningless, and perhaps even dangerous to label a harness and container with a maximum weight and speed. The weight and speed a harness and container system can take depends entirely on the canopies (both main and reserve) which you put in it. It also depends on how symetrically the load is applied to the system. Let's say I drop test a PD 106 reserve in a Vector and it produces a max force of 2,500 lbs. Then let's say that PD drops the same type of canopy, and records a max. force of 2,600 lbs. Under TSO C23-d, the PD 106 would then not be legal in a Vector, even though it had been drop tested in a Vector. Now let's say I successfully drop canopy "X" (which opens very softly) in rig "A" at a certain weight and speed. This does not mean that canopy "Y" which opens twice as hard is safe at the same weight and speed, in rig "A", does it? This, and several other "problems" with TSO C23-d, is why we are now re-writing it. The only sensible marking to put on a harness is the is the force it can take before it breaks. In spite of that fact, TSO C23-d does requires a max weight and speed marking on harness and container systems. I'm glad I am TSO'ed under TSO C23-b, which simply requires a harness to pass a 5,000 shock load test. (By the way, Vectors have demonstrated much higher strength during drops from PD's instrumented drop test tower.)

In a word...YES... It is a bad idea.

How about normal risers but folded in half? The rears could be wrapped around the hard housing inserts and tacked, and the fronts just folded in half and tacked. This would make them thinner than 1" risers so produce less drag. Anything stupidly wrong with this idea? Has anyone done it? I'm glad you brought that up. I've been trying to get people to accept folded-in-half type 8, large ring risers for years, but no one seems interested. As an added advantage (in addition to more strength and mechanical advantage) the folded-in-half risers would present a knife-edge to the relative wind under canopy, yielding less drag than type 17, 1" risers. But actually, there is little reason to alter the design of the ring portion of mini 3 ring risers. Hard cutaways are generally NOT caused by improper ring placement. They are caused by 1. soft housings, 2. incorrectly installed metal housings, 3. lack of cable lubrication, 4. lack of hard housing inserts in the risers, or 5. too short riser closing loops. Incorrectly placed rings are minor problem compared to the above.

Because I actually had a "speaking part" (i.e. F.A.A. and Whuffo!), I get $16.68 each time "Cutaway" plays on TV. I know...don't quit my day job.

Well heck, I don't know? But then who can really calculate life expectancy anyway... I guess I could get my calculator out and bleed down the numbers... but I don't see the need.... . Who has a million hours skydiving? Definition: STATISTICS: A highly scientific, and mathematically precise way to state a half-truth innacurately...And besides, statistics don't kill people...people kill people.