FS: Softie Mini

On Tuesday, July 14, 2020 at 9:40:27 AM UTC-5, Ross wrote:
Any interest at $400?

Parachutes, like wine, are better with age I guess. I'll take it off your hands for $500.....just send me a check for the difference, $100, and you can keep the 'chute... my rigger won't repack it.

On Tuesday, July 14, 2020 at 8:04:35 AM UTC-7, wrote:
On Tuesday, July 14, 2020 at 9:40:27 AM UTC-5, Ross wrote:
Any interest at $400?

Parachutes, like wine, are better with age I guess. I'll take it off your hands for $500.....just send me a check for the difference, $100, and you can keep the 'chute... my rigger won't repack it.

For those in the know, most wines, even if properly stored, will get soft and not worth keeping past 20 years. Unless they are a French wine which can keep for 100 or more years.

As a skydiver, soaring pilot, jump pilot, test flying, acro etc, who wears both a round and ram air bailout rigs, I offer a few small recommendations....

Go do a couple tandem jumps at your local skydiving center so you can learn to fly the parachute if you haven't flown a ram air parachute already.

It doesn't fly like you think, nor does it open like you think. An emergency bailout, particularly one at low altitude, is NOT the time to learn how to fly a ram air parachute.

Line twists do not undo themselves like on a round, line overs do not clear themselves etc. And you will have line twists. I doubt you will have good body position when you bail out and scramble for the ripcord handle. And as it is your only chute, any potential malfunctions must be dealt with quickly.

Best advice, ARCH! LOOK, REACH, PULL, STRIP, ARCH!

We have a saying among old time skydivers as it pertains to reserve parachutes.... "Round is sound", that having been said, which chute I wear, ram air reserve or round reserve, depends on what I am doing, flying, terrain etc. If I am over primarily wooded areas in low speed aircraft, I am wearing a round. I would rather go through the trees vertical rather than horizontal. If out west over the desert or open plains, or in areas where I can steer myself into a field vs a tree landing, I am inclined to wear a ram air reserve. Honestly, if you are down in the dirt flying the ridge out of New Castle, a chute wont do you a damn bit of good. I would prefer a ballistic chute for the air frame in that scenario. I wear my ram air bail out rig 90% of the time. I kept my old round for that other 10% of the time...

Youtube parachute malfunctions and ram air reserve opening videos on the idiosyncrasies of the parachute design.

Just my humble opinion. I have been flying acro on and off for nearly 30 years and flew jumpers for a career for a decade, as well as a few hundred jumps just so you know my background.

So I have been doing some reading and I cannot find the answer I am looking for
Parachutes are TSO items
When they were certified back in the day there were no life limits.

What I am looking for is the TM or AD that states that it now has a 20 year life.
If someone can provide that then I will throw it in the rubbish.

If any other TSO part manufacturer turned round and wrote on their web page you can only fly your item for 2000 hours then it is scrap would you do it?
Surely it would require something a little more substantial.

If someone has more info then please share

On Wednesday, July 15, 2020 at 6:35:34 AM UTC-5, Ross wrote:
So I have been doing some reading and I cannot find the answer I am looking for
Parachutes are TSO items
When they were certified back in the day there were no life limits.

What I am looking for is the TM or AD that states that it now has a 20 year life.
If someone can provide that then I will throw it in the rubbish.

If any other TSO part manufacturer turned round and wrote on their web page you can only fly your item for 2000 hours then it is scrap would you do it?
Surely it would require something a little more substantial.

If someone has more info then please share

Hi Ross,
At least in the U.S.,
There seems to be a culture among riggers that brings the arbitrary age of the rig into consideration.
Maybe this comes from some military experience, (the U.S. military equipment has an expiration date)
Maybe it comes from the American parachute Association (opinions not regulation)
Maybe it is a fear of lawsuits.
Do some European countries have a life limit?

The cumulative effect is that generally riggers are not packing parachutes of a certain age, rendering them useless despite their actual condition.

Been here before?

Parachute Service Life Limits and the FAA

https://groups.google.com/forum/#!to...ng/5Ztw0lzRffU

Pretty good article.

http://silverparachutes.com/app/down...n_June2015.pdf

Talks about an actual issue with failed pull tests on older chutes.

Sold

On Saturday, June 13, 2020 at 6:43:09 AM UTC-7, Nick Kennedy wrote:
Ross
I'm due for a upgrade soon
What does that chute your getting cost in USD?
Sorry I'm too lazy to look
PS The radio I bought off you last year works great! Thank you
Nick
T

I looked at there website, it doesent look to be "TSO" approved (i might be wrong) and if not it would not be legal to use in the US.

On Tuesday, July 14, 2020 at 7:54:29 AM UTC-7, wrote:
On Tuesday, July 14, 2020 at 8:40:27 AM UTC-6, Ross wrote:
Any interest at $400?

Not in a 22 year old Para-Phernalia chute with a 20 year factory mandated life.

Actually the ones built before 2001 do not have a life limit. but lots of riggers will not pack them