pc wear and tear

[abby 0]

how many jumps is a pc good for?
if you are not jumping your rig often will you leave your pc packed away on the boc? for how long?

[Faber 0]

i usaly pack my pc as close to the jump/climb as posible,i never leave it in the boc.

If your zp pc feels like f-111 you probaly should replace it..

In doubt your not in doubt,just replace it

Stay safe
Stefan Faber

[abby 0]

how about porosity test?

[Faber 0]

if you feel the zp thind and agting like a f-111 pc i would replace it..
got 150jumps on one of my pc´s and its still all good.
I dunno how long they last,but i know that i rather change than take a chance on somthing i aint sure about..

Stay safe
Stefan Faber

[badenhop 0]

oh just go out to the garage and flop it around
if it's good, it's good, if not, don't use it
if you don't know, you should stop
base hero's are dead or drunk

==================================

I've got all I need, Jesus and gravity. Dolly Parton

http://www.AveryBadenhop.com

[cornishe 0]

Quote

base hero's are dead or drunk

or are stoned,
or post
in haiku.


-am

Abbie Mashaal
Skydive Idaho
Snake River Skydiving
TandemBASE

[cornishe 0]

Quote

If your zp pc feels like f-111 you probaly should replace it

faber some ppl still use f-111 pc's. in that case if your f-111 feels like f-911 replace it.

-am

Abbie Mashaal
Skydive Idaho
Snake River Skydiving
TandemBASE

[460 0]

In addition to the permeability, inspect the mesh for wear and tear. Inspect the tapes, especially around the bottom where the center line attaches. Inspect the fabric on the topskin to ensure there are no tears. Inspect the stiching between the mesh and the topskin to make sure it's fine. Pilot chutes have exploded before, but it's been many years since an incident.

Looks like a death sandwich without the bread - Steve Deadman Morrell, BASE 174

[nicknitro71 0]

Z-po fabric will stay z-po regardless the number of jumps.

A modern z-po PC will outlast a modern BASE canopy, all things being equal.

Read what Chris posted, good advices.

Memento Audere Semper

903

[Faber 0]

yeah Abbie i know thats why i said if your ZP pc..

did your arse heal up yet?

Stay safe
Stefan Faber

[TomAiello 26]

Quote

Z-po fabric will stay z-po regardless the number of jumps.

I've got a ZP PC that feels pretty porous. When you hold it over your mouth you can breath through it. You couldn't do that when it was new, in 1999.

-- Tom Aiello

Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com
SnakeRiverBASE.com

[SullyFlyer 0]

I just retired a PC with 206 jumps on it. I was jumping 5 times a day with very similar 2-2.5 second delays and I started feeling hesitations - so I called it spent and got a new one the next time Marty was in town. It's aweful nice of the manufacturers to visit my home town from time to time just in case I need new gear

And yes, I could breath through the ZP toward the end. That was my first hint that it was time.

If all goes perfectly for a PC, I would probably retire it at 150-200 jumps regardless.

For those who don't keep records like this - use it til it fails and throw it away one jump prior

-tB

[waltappel 1]

Quote

In addition to the permeability, inspect the mesh for wear and tear. Inspect the tapes, especially around the bottom where the center line attaches. Inspect the fabric on the topskin to ensure there are no tears. Inspect the stiching between the mesh and the topskin to make sure it's fine. Pilot chutes have exploded before, but it's been many years since an incident.

Good advice, and I'd like to add to that.

To find damage to the topskin hold it up in front of a bright light. Tears will show up quite easily.

If you really want to do a thorough inspection, turn it inside out and inspect the stitching and bartacks.

Be sure to inspect a pilot chute thoroughly after doing a PC assist.

There really is no magic number of jumps beyond which a pilot chute is no longer serviceable. It's really a matter of wear and tear. Having said that, gear fear at the exit point is a really bad thing. If replacing your pilot chute will eliminate gear fear, then by all means replace it.

Walt

[TomAiello 26]

Quote

Be sure to inspect a pilot chute thoroughly after doing a PC assist.

You can minimize damage to the PC by using the bridle to extract the canopy, rather than the PC itself. BASE 428 wrote a good post on this topic here.

-- Tom Aiello

Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com
SnakeRiverBASE.com

[nicknitro71 0]

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I've got a ZP PC that feels pretty porous. When you hold it over your mouth you can breath through it. You couldn't do that when it was new, in 1999.

Would you call that a reliable method for gathering empirical data on permeability?

FYI, I know of a test that showed a Sabre with over 2000 jumps to still have z-po and another Sabre with 5000 jumps with permeability still better than brand new F-111.

Also Galvanor z-po fabric (the one Morpheus uses to build PCs) is coated on both sides and some argue it retains z-po even longer than Soar-max.

Of course permeability is just one factor. Fabric will lose tensite strength due to UV and mechanical damage at a much higher rate than it loses permeability, same goes for the PCs.

Do not use permeability as your only measure to "retire" a PC or a tarp.

Memento Audere Semper

903

[abby 0]

thank you for all the advise, I like the one that reads retire the pc one jump before it fails!

cya!

[460 0]

Retire the pilot chute if there is any doubt in your mind regarding its reliability. It may be fine, but at the low cost of a new pilot chute, why would anyone care about replacing it?

Looks like a death sandwich without the bread - Steve Deadman Morrell, BASE 174

[DexterBase 1]

A new pilot chute is inexpensive peace of mind.

[abby 0]

thank you for all the advise. i guess i'll just won't duck tape my pc no more...just kiidding

[460 0]

Quote

FYI, I know of a test that showed a Sabre with over 2000 jumps to still have z-po and another Sabre with 5000 jumps with permeability still better than brand new F-111.

Also Galvanor z-po fabric (the one Morpheus uses to build PCs) is coated on both sides and some argue it retains z-po even longer than Soar-max.

Of course permeability is just one factor. Fabric will lose tensite strength due to UV and mechanical damage at a much higher rate than it loses permeability, same goes for the PCs.

Do not use permeability as your only measure to "retire" a PC or a tarp.

Is the shock loading on a pilot chute the same as a parachute? Does the wear on a pilot chute equate to the wear on a deploying parachute. I have no idea. Numbers and rigger specs don't seem to be that relevant if a simple test such a breathing through ZP indicates a problem. If it has the consistency of fishnet, maybe the pilot chute had a bad batch of ZP, or something else is going on.

Looks like a death sandwich without the bread - Steve Deadman Morrell, BASE 174