davelepka

Food for thought, think about how you would regard the advice of a jumper with 100 jumps total. Just because they have done something 100 times, doesn't mean they are an expert, or what they are doing is a good idea. The differences between AFF and tandem with reagrds to handcam is that tandem students are both attached to the instructor and not instructed to have much interaction with the rig. AFF students are not attached giving them a much greater range of movement, and of course they are instructed to have interaction with the rig. The number of probelms this can create for an AFF student is the very reason you are there, to keep them from doing things like flipping around and getting tangled in their lines. This is also the reason that having a giant snag hazzard on yoru hand is a bad idea. If your hand should become snagged on the students rig when you reach in there to solve a problem, you have just exchanged one problem for another. All of your jumps and all of your experience mean nothing if you still act like a newbie.

That's where you're wrong. If this had been a simple low turn, then yes, it would fall under the commonly known heading of 'don't make low turns'. However, this incident involved another layer, a layer which I would venture to say was the primary cause for the incident, that being target fixation. While I think everyone is aware that turning low is not a good thing, I'm not 100% sure that everyone realizes the hazzards of target fixation, and how to avoid them by learning to swoop first without a target, and then moving on to swooping with a higher degree of accuracy. If you already know that, or don't believe it be valid, or don't think it merits repeating, that's your opinion, and you are free to skip this thread all together. I have seen this issue bite many jumpers, and as such I feel that it bears repeating and is of value to those currently learning to swoop, and don't need you suggesting that I, or anyone else, 'move along'.

I used to know guy, but he's gone now. I'm surprised that you're surprised there isn't anyone out there. There are only a handful of companies making helmets worldwide, I can only think of 6, but maybe there are 10. Out of those, none of them exclusively make camera helmets, they all do a full line of helmets, and some evern do cross-over to other sports/applications to make ends meet. With that in mind, it's not hard to imagine that nobody is out there doing custom one-off full face camera helmets. Full face is probably the smallest segment of the market, so it would be tough to make a business out of it. When Wes was making helemts, he was doing it out of a trailer in Deland, and as of 10 or 12 years ago, one of his lids was going for around $1500. I'm sure that price went up over time, but that's a big hunk of change when you could get one off the shelf for a thrid of that price. If you really want custom, and want to spend the bucks, get in touch with Chris at Bonehead, and see if he can do you a custom fit FTP. I've never heard of them doing that, but I guess if you roll in there with $2k, they might be willing to make an exception.

I'm not sure how you figure. I trained on a SLMPC with a chest mounted handle, and had no trouble. Sure, you can get a hesitation or two, but it gets the job done. My concern is the little people aren't always proportionate to full size people. When I stand straight, my fingertips reach past the half-way point down my thigh, so when I reach up to my BOC, I'm well within the reach of my arm, which gives me leverage and strenght to extract the PC. If this person has shorter arms, and is at the end of her reach, she loses the leverage and might have trouble extracting the PC. Add to this high number of hard pulls leading to reserve activations I've seen from smaller/petite females who just didn't have the strength to overcome a tight BOC PC, and it's not hard to see this might be a problem. Even if some DZs use a hip mount or BOC ripcord, there's no reason a chest mount couldn't be set up for this jumper. Let's face it, if she can't handle a chest mount ripcord, she can't handle a cutaway or reserve handle either, and shouldn't be jumping at all.

While this is true, skydivign gear is different than a car. For starters, the harness/container and reserve are inspected every 6 months during the reserve repack. If the rig is not airworthy, the rig is not packed, and cannot be (legally) jumped in the US. Along those same lines, before buying any used gear you want have it inspected by a local rigger. Another way that rigs are not like cars, an inspection is a complete inspection on a rig, meaning that every seam, stich, and component are checked, as opposed to a car where the internals of the engine/trans are typically not removed and inspected. Besides, how many jumps do you think were on the military gear you were issued before it was 'yours'? How about the student gear you'll be jumping at the DZ, do you think they buy a fresh rig for every student? Again, you may or may not be looking for a 230. By the time you are ready to buy, you'll have a couple dozen jumps on a variety of student rigs, and you'll know 100x more than you do now. Beyond that, buying used does not mean buying a complete rig. You'll have an easier time buying used gear one component at a time as opposed to waiting for the 'perfect' complete rig to come up for sale. Again, you'll need the assitance of a rigger to help pick out the parts, and make sure they are appropriate and airworthy, but you're going to need a rigger anyway if you're going to own a rig. You cannot do most maintenance on a rig yourself, and you cannot do reserve repacks yourself, so it becomes a good chance for you to develop a relationship with a local rigger. In fact, many of them will help you out for free provided that you use them for your rigging needs ongoing.

You need to get closer to your license before you worry too much about gear. Your instructors will start you on a very large canopy, and work you down though what they have available as your skills dictate. By the time you're close to a licesne, you'll have a better idea of your skills and preferences, and can go from there. In terms of gear, used is generally the way to go for a first rig. Even after you get your license, you'll still be on the steep part of the learning curve, and there's a good chance that your needs (or wants) will change within the first year. If you buy new for your first rig, you'll lose thousands of dollars on resale if you do want to switch rigs. If you buy used, you can expect to get 90% of your money back after a year and 100-ish jumps. Try to avoid the urge to buy anything until you're further along in your training. The DZ will provide you with everything you need for all of your training jumps, so use their stuff and learn all that you can before getting out your wallet. Even then, consult with your instructors about things like helmets, altimeters, and jumpsuits. Don't make the classic mistake of thinking that farting around on the internet is 'research', and show up to the DZ will all of your own stuff. Making actual jumps is research, and you'll learn more about what works for you by doing that then reading some shit on the internet.

It is. Sort of. Brand new F-111 is similar in performance to ZP, and that's why F-111 reserves can be loaded up (some of them) without killing the jumpers on landing. Reserves rarely have more than a couple jumps, so their performance is like new. The problem with F-111 is that with jumps, the performance degrades. Through 500-ish jumps, it's not that bad, up to 700-ish it gets pretty sad, and much past that it's gettting to be time to retire the canopy. There are other factors, of course, like the age and conditions it was jumped, but these are rough estimates. Likewise, the WL becomes more of a factor. At WL of 1 to 1 or less, F-111 isn't that bad, but as you bo much above 1 to 1, performance starts to fall off. The more jumps there are on the canopy, the more performance you lose with the increased WL as well. ZP, on the other hand, retains it's performance virtually unchanged during it's entire life, which will vary depending on the conditions it's jumped in, but can range from 1500 to 2500 jumps (maybe more). ZP has it's own problem, however, and that is the line set. Because of it's performance, most people will load Zp higher than F-111, and in that case, the line trim becomes more crucial to maintaining performance. For years most ZP canopies were lined with Spectra line, which offers no shock absorbtion on opening and has a tendency to shrink over a number of jumps. The upside is that it's a thin line, which offers low pack volume and low aerodynamic drag. So an out-of-trim lineset can lead to funky or hard openings, and with Spectra line that means your body takes the shock. It can also lead to diminished flare performance, which is also not that great. The upside is that a reline will return a ZP canopy to like new perforrmance, and usually runs $200/$250. Newer canopies are lined with HMA or Vectran lines which are like Spectra in that they are low-bulk, and have no shock absorbtion, but unlike Spectra they are dimensionally stable, and hold their trim for the life of the line set. Most canopies that were built with Spectra can be relined with HMA or Vectran. In terms of WL, you're on the upper edge for F-111, so if you're going to switch to ZP, you shouldn't be looking at much of a change. With a 200lb body weight, that puts your exit weight in the 225lb range, so maybe a ZP 210 would be a good choice. My advice would be to ask around the DZ if anyone has a 210 you can jump, and see what you think. Talk with an instructor beforehand about what to expect from the downsize and the shift over to ZP. If you can't find one to borrow, most of the canopy manufacturers have a demo program where you can get a canopy for two weekends for about $50. See if the DZ will let you put the demo in the student rig for a few jumps (a rigger or packer will actually put it in the rig for you, but you get the idea). You can also use that idea if you find a 210 to borrow in a harness that doesn't fit, see if you can put it in a student rig.

Does it now? How do you explain passing levels 1 and 2, and then this - If the rig was really the problem, then none of the above would have been possible. Luckily for you, the rig is not your problem. I say luckily because the rig will always be there, and if that was your problem, there would be no way to solve it. Remember two things - first that AFF is designed to train jumpers in the least possible number of jumps. What that means is that the best students out there should be able to pass every level on the first try, not that every student should be able to pass on the first try. Second, it's common for a student to repeat a level or two, maybe a couple of times. On top of that, level 3 is probably the most repeated level there is because the first time you're 'set free' in freefall. Everything else you do is just building on one experience or another, but level 3 is the first release, and there's no way to slowly be released, you've either got grips on you or not. It's a big step. Keep your goals simple, those being to be safe and have fun. As long as you do those two things, every jump is a success. You can work on the details at your own pace because in the end this is your training with the goal being to make you a skydiver. If it takes you few more jumps then the next guy, then so be it, that's what it takes to make you a skydiver. There will always be people who did worse then you, sometimes far worse, but that's their business. You might not realize this, but the majority of jumpers 'fail' in some respect on every jump. We're all trying to learn, to improve our skills, to be faster or smoother or more precise, and it's a rare jump that you land and feel like you nailed it 100% and couldn't have done any better. As long as you were safe and had fun, the jump was a success, and a learning opportunity, so you pack up and try it all over again. Now you do the same.

Are even aware that you would need to buy a new canopy to get it logo'ed? Even before you add the cost of the logo, you're looking at close to $2k. Here's the thing, you don't really want a logo canopy right now. For starters, it will add pack volume to an already large canopy. Besides that, it will be an already large canopy (your first) and you'll be tired of it in short order. During your first 400 or 500 jumps you'll probably go through more canopies then in any other time in your jumping. Wait until you have a little more air time, and settle on a canopy and size you think you might stick with for a 1000 jumps, then spring for the brand new canopy with custom artwork, and the matching embroidered rig to put it in. Until then, try to blow as little money as possible on gear, and funnel all of it into jumps, which are much cooler then parachutes with pcitures on them.

Agreed, but there is a lesson for others to learn besides, 'Don't turn too low'. The lesson is that when you are learning to swoop, you concentrate on one variable at a time, and the first variable you need to master is your turn height. You should start off with an intended 'swoop area', not a specific target. Make sure there are outs in every direction when you choose this area so when you are trying to set up for your swoop, you are not trying to reach your turn altitude at a specific point, just a general area. Your focus can be on the altitude, not the location. As you get your turn hieght dialed in, you can start to use a smaller 'swoop area', so now you have a little more work to do in terms of the location of your turn as well as the height. Work the size of this 'swoop area' down to a point, and now you 'might' be ready for a pond, or a set of gates. The problem with a pond, set of gates, or any other target you want to swoop is that it takes your attention away from other things, in this case it was the turn altitude. In other cases it might be canopy traffic, in either case, it's bad. Swooping is hard, and it takes repetition to get good at it. No amount of anything besides actual swoops will get you there. Time in sport, hop n pops, high pulls, CRW, coaching, etc. are helpful, but not a replacement for jump numbers. Beyond that, swooping a pond or target of any kind is another layer of hard, on top of just swooping, and that takes, you guessed it, more jumps.

A quick google search revealed non-turbo compression ratios from 9.7/1 up to 10.7/1 depending on the year, with the turbo versions coming with 8.0/1.

Turbo charged engines are generally built with a lower compression ratio, so if the motor is built to turbo specs and you run it without a turbo, you might be waay down on power from standard non-turbo motor. There may be other changes unique to the 944 between turbo and non-turbo as well, but the comp ratio is one to look into for sure. Unless you're a 944 expert, I'd be weary of a non-running example. Little things the owner 'forgets about' could quickly add up when you try to get it running. Various bits of hardware and brackets can easily add up to $100s or more. Adjust your cash offer accordingly.

That's the point, your opinion of what is, or is not, a good opening is one thing, by as pointed out by myself and another poster, those openings looked pretty good. So if the factory spent time designing a canopy that opens that way, and you don't happen to like those type of openings, what can they do? The product is working the way they intended it to, so they would have to do another round of test jumps to come up with a configuration to make you happy, and I just don't see any manufacturer doing that. If you want it to open faster, get a smaller slider. You don't need to be a rigger to measure your slider, then call around to canopy manufacturers and see who has a slider a little smaller. Even aside from that, if you're not a rigger, surely you know a rigger, right? Who packs your reserve? Call that guy, and see if he'll help you tune your brake settings. It's simple work, and should cost about 1/4 the cost of a new slider. Above all, I would suggest you not mess with it. What you have there are good, reliable, safe openings, and messing it with it is just asking for trouble. You realize that your folding up a fabric wing, stuffing it in a bag, and tossing it out into 120 mph wind. I'm not sure what type of performance you're expecting, but deployments are pretty random events, and those openings you showed look pretty good all things considered.

Maybe the guy who owns it is complaining about nothing? Slow, snivelly, on-heading openings? That's your problem? A problem is when canopy opens hard enough to damage the jumper or rig, or maybe the heading performance is so bad it spins the canopy into lone twists. If you really want the canopy to open faster, get a smaller slider, or adjust your brake setting so the canopy is in deeper brakes when they are set. Be careful with either one, because there is a point with either adjustment where the canopy will go from what it does now, to damaging the jumper or rig.

Ok then, after all the problems with the Vigil and Argus, no thanks (at least not for a couple years).

That's why my suggestion above was a canopy set to fly in enough brakes that her 'arm swing' would end up in a full flare. I know a one-armed guy who jumps, and his set-up is a cross connector between his toggles. It's tied to one side, and has a carabiner on the other, so after opening he clips it onto the opposite toggle. He steers with one hand on either toggle, but pulls the cross connector for the flare. We found that the cross connector added length to the toogles/steering lines, so he wasn't able to get a full flare. We ended up shortening the steering lines so he would end up with a full flare, even if his canopy is in a braked configuration with the toggle all the way up. The guy weighs in at 210lb/220lb, and he jumps a Nav 280, so the less-than full flight approach isn't a big deal.

Luigi is one of the best canopy pilots in the world. Beyond that, many people jump canopies with short lines every day, namely most high performance canopy pilots. However, this thread is about a student, and that type of canopy is not appropriate for a student. Beyond that, you keep insisting that PD can design a rig for this person, which is rediculous. First off, PD builds canopies, not rigs. Beyond that, if you were to use 'miniature' components, they would have to be tested and certified before anyone could jump them, let alone a student. The fact is that full size hardware and webbing is not going to be compatible with a half sized rig. Biulding a rig from stratch that is proportionally smaller is not an option. The bets we can hope for is modifying a smaller, standard rig to accomodate the jumper.

Cannibalizing customer pre-payments is not a part of 'cash flow'. If your supplier doesn't want paid immediately (and I've never met a supplier that wouldn't accept early payment, some even offer a discount for cash-up-front) it's up to you to hold the cost of goods in escrow until the payment is due. It's not your money, it was never intended to be your money, and if you spent it as your own, that was your error and your responsibility to fix. In terms of odd dealings like mis-represented customs value, or improperly insured packages, again, that's on you as the business owner to not be a party to. Simply refuse to be a part to any illegal dealings, and wrap the cost of fully insured shipping with your prefered carrier into your price quotes. I've been in business for myself for almost 10 years, and I know what it means to play it fast and loose with the company finances, and this is exactly what you did. It's the classic ponzi scheme where you do business with money that isn't yours, and everything is great until the owner of the money wants to be paid (or recieve their goods). Like I said, you fix any outstanding problems you have with anyone in a week if you sold off those demo rigs, or anything esle you could get your hands on. At this point, those items are all 'ill gotten gains' and you certainly don't deserve to hold on to them. You can point fingers all day long, but until we see your ads in the classifieds at fire sale prices, it's all just talk.

It doesn't work that way. You can't put a student under a 94 sq ft canopy. The line length would increase the response to input, and the canopy would be anything but doclie. Beyond that, you can't half size everything. Hardware components and webbing dimensions are not 'negotiable', and the Cypres is still a Cypres, where does that go? Even a 94 sq ft canopy requires a standard sized PC, where do you fit a full sized BOC pouch on a half sized BOC? You can make some things smaller, but when you try to fit all of the other things that remain full size in the smaller package, it's a no-go.

One problem might be the relationship between the container size and her body size. Even as a little person, she would still need a sizeable canopy for 'safe' student use. By sizeable I mean 190 or 170, which would result in a 'big' container. The lenght would be probaly be past her torso and extend toward her legs. Even if you could make a 'short and wide' rig, then you have the problem of it overhanging on the sides (not as big a problem as too long). Steering and flaring would be a problem, and I think the only solution is to find a canopy big enough for her to land with a half braked approach. Then adjust the steering lines for half-brakes at the full flight postion, so even with the shorter flare stroke, she can get to a 'full' flare. You could go with short risers, but then you run into the problem of the cutaway cables, hard housings (if present) and toggle keepers all being in the same spot. It might be easier to develop a longer toggle, like the tandem toggles with the passenger handles. You would need to find a way to secure the lower portion to the bottom area of the riser, so she could reach them. Of course, a dropped toggle might not be recoverable, so that's a consideration. A spring loaded PC on the main would solve any issues with reaching the BOC, having strength/leverage upon reaching the BOC, and being able to get the PC clear of the burble for release. One area of concern would be the cutaway and reserve handles. Does she have the reach to pull them with one motion, or would the shorter reach require a 'sweep' of the cables. Also, regarding AFF, I'm not sure of her exact height or weight, but is she going to be able to present a fall rate a regular sized AFF I cannot match? What if she can fall at 80 mph in a flat spin? Any thoughts about static line progression? It would solve the main deployment problem, and AFF I related problem all at once. If she can build some canopy time, and general confidence in the air, that's a step toward AFF. Some time in a tunnel would also be a good idea before taking her into freefall. It would give her a head start on the learning, and give you a good idea of the fall rate you'll be dealing with. Between some good tunnel time and a handful of static line jumps, a bunch of the 'what if's' are removed from the idea of AFF

One thing should have nothing to do with the other. If a customer pays you for a product, you can't just spend their money on whatever you want. It's not yours to spend, and it's stealing. The profit is yours to spend, but the portion that is intended to cover your cost of the goods is not yours, it is simply in your custody and doing anything with it but pay your supplier is a deriliction of your duty. It doesn't help that you're Mr Big Shot who ordered a fleet of demo rigs, and now has a 'flashy' new retial store. Ever thought about pulling a 143R out of one of those demo rigs, and sending it to the guy who started this thread? Don't have a 143R? How about selling two of your 176s or 193s and sending the guy his money back? If these people really did pay you for gear which you never ordered or delivered to them, and you're sitting on a pile of demo rigs, which can be parted out or sold off, and they're sitting on nothing, don't expect any sympathy, understanding, cooperation, or anything besides bad feelings and ill will. You are the one who mismanaged your business, you are the one who spent money that wasn't yours, and now you are the one who needs to have a fire sale on all of your inventory to people their money back. Your business with your 'investors' is not their problem, that's your problem, and they shouldn't have to wait for you to solve your problems, which you created, to get their money/gear in their hands.

Since nobody has named the guy in question, I don't know for sure if this applies, but there was a thread recently asking about a gear dealer who used to post here all the time, but hasn't been heard from in awhile. In response to that thread, about that guy, another poster wrote (on Jan 25, 2011)- Maybe we're all talking about different guys, but if not, it's sad that he's still in business and investing in a retail space while you guys are out gear and money.

I'm curious as to why you think this is a bad idea. Like it or not, tandem has become an important part of the skydiving industry and with only three manufacturers in play, they do hold some of 'the cards' in the situation. If the USPA wants to be responsible for rating instructors, they also need be responsible for regulating instructors, and one of the groups that needs to be considered is the manufacturers. If you consider the number of DZ who would be willing to do underage tandems and then the number of actual underage tandems they're likely to do, and you compare that to the trouble that one injured underage tandem could make for the manufacturer, and the ripple effect that could have on the rest of the industry, how is it a bad thing to make sure that all involved are legally protected (as much as one can be)?

That's what I thought, but I couldn't ignore the delays on the bigger Optimums as a possible cause for some of the problem. Like I said, even if it was that, it doesn't explain the lack of a refund and the stop in communications. I still think direct contact with the manufacturer is the best idea. If anything, it puts the 'dealer' on their radar, and eventually they'll stop selling to the guy. It's a tough situation for sure. These are 'bigger' ticket items, and the buyer can't always write off the loss, or order from another dealer before being refunded from the first. The dealer, if they mismange their business, could easily owe $10,000+ to unhappy customers, not a dollar figure a bad businessman can easily come up with. The worst part of it is the guy in question was, at one time, a reputable, high-volume dealer that everyone seemed to love. When he later takes a turn for the worse, there are dozens of jumpers with orders pending who paid in full and are left in the lurch.

That's too bad about your hearing loss, I'll just add that I also know a guy who lost his hearing from years of jumping and flying jump planes without hearing protecton. We have one of these in the staff room at our DZ, and I make to sure to never get in the plane without a pair http://www.uline.com/BL_1027/EAR-Tabletop-Dispenser-and-Refills A word of caution regarding ear plugs, be sure to keep them extra clean, and not put dirty ear plugs in your ears. I heard a story once (I think on DZ.com) of a guy who used a dirty ear plug and gave himself an ear infection of some sort. Keep expensive/custom plugs in a carry case of some kind, and if you use the disposable type, replace them frequently or anytime they get dropped on the ground. As for the use, I tend to remove the plugs before exit. Being unsure about pressurization issues, and knowing that it's hard enough to hear things under canopy with ear plugs, I think this is a good comprimise. I use them for the extended ride up in the plane, and go without for the much shorter ride to the ground. I know people who keep them in the whole time, but I prefer to have them out during the canopy ride and in the LZ.