Triathilon Vs Spectre

[thezephr 0]

Bit of a dilema,

Just bought a complete system with an aerodyne triahtilon 190 main, my currect container has a PD spectre 190 with just 150 jumps. Has any one got any advice or experience which may help me to decide which one to keep?

"So... Ya tellin me theres a chance"

[freefalle 0]

I have a Triath 220, I like it, Im happy with it. However, I have jumped a Spectre, I liked it too. Both canopies are pretty forgiving, both are known for soft openings for the most part. I have heard people complain that the triath. will, from time to time give a bad opening. I have had a few hard openings on mine. Weather it was the canopy, body position or shitty packing I don't know.

My recommendation to you is to but some jumps on both canopies and see which one you like the best, then decide. Have fun and be safe.

[darkwing 5]

You will get advice both ways, but in my view the Spectre is the superior canopy. At least some of the triathlon owners I know would agree with me.

-- Jeff
My Skydiving History

[indyz 1]

I've owned both. I'd keep the Spectre.

[AggieDave 6]

Which one do you personally prefer?

Personally, I found the Spectre to overall outperform the Tri, in openings, "flare power" and controllability. However, there are those who would argue against my opinion quite strongly.

So tell me, which is a better truck a Ford F-150 or a Chevy k1500?

Get my point?

--"When I die, may I be surrounded by scattered chrome and burning gasoline."

[bch7773 0]

I've jumped both a spectre and triathalon. I'd say keep the spectre

MB 3528, RB 1182

[nicknitro71 0]

Out of curiosity, which year is the tri? What fabric is it made of and does it have the 4.0 mod?

I am asking because I am a big fan of Galvanor fabric and not a big fan of the 4.0 mod.

Memento Audere Semper

903

[Samurai136 0]

I've jumped both and would borrow a Spectre if I needed a rig to jump on back to back loads.

If a Triathlon was available, I'd pack my Samurai and skip a load...


Spectre.

Ken

"Buttons aren't toys." - Trillian
Ken

[faulknerwn 38]

If its got the old-style fabric the Triathalon's are great!

I like both canopies - they're slightly different but both fly well. The Triathalon is easier to pack at least with the old-style fabric.

Try them both and see which you prefer. That's the best way.

W

[nicknitro71 0]

What's even better is the old Tri with the added 5th control line like the 4.0 BUT with the most outboard still in place, kinda like a BASE canopy. It opens and flares like a 4.0 but turns like the old one...

Memento Audere Semper

903

[kelpdiver 2]

are you intending to start selling one now? Otherwise, you can just jump and see.

I was jumping mostly a Falcon 265 before the first time I tried a Tri 220 and liked it a lot. Then I did a lot of Spectre 210/230s and Falcon 215s before buying a used tri 220. It feels like a slight step down this time around. It is an older one - 250 jumps, older fabric, and an older lineset.

But it was under $600 bucks, and I can use it long enough to then buy a new 210 or 190.

[SuFantasma 0]

Keep the Spectre !!!!!!

Y yo, pa' vivir con miedo, prefiero morir sonriendo, con el recuerdo vivo".
- Ruben Blades, "Adan Garcia"

[n23x 0]

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...which is a better truck a Ford F-150 or a Chevy k1500?

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Well Dave, obviously, the chevy sucks ass.

.jim

"Don't touch my fucking Easter eggs, I'll be back monday." ~JTFC

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[ECVZZ 0]

  Quote

which is a better truck a Ford F-150 or a Chevy k1500?

Dodge quad cab Hemi. But then again, I might be a bit biased.

As for the canopies, I like my Spectre. I agree with Dave's comparison too (at least with the Tri's I've jumped).

G. Jones

"I've never been quarantined. But the more I look around, the more I think it might not be a bad idea."

[D22369 0]

help me to decide which one to keep?
***


try them on back to back jumps, then decide which one will suit you the best, they are both good canopy's

Roy

They say I suffer from insanity.... But I actually enjoy it.

[Miami 0]

I have about 1600 jumps on triathalons and about 600 jumps on spectres...I like the flight and landing characteristics of both but the spectre is definitely the better opener. On the rare occasion I would get a spanker from the tri, but the spectre has always been consistently soft.
Hope this helps...

Miami

[dragon2 2]

I've got them both and like them both. The Spectre opens nicer, the Tri flies nicer (flatter in full glide so without doing anything you'll fly further), both land ok.

It's personal really, which one you'll like best. The spectre will probably have a greater resale value. But jump 'em both see which one you like best.

ciel bleu,
Saskia

[riggerrob 643]

If you plan to do much CReW, keep the Triathlon.
Otherwise, the Spectre is a better canopy.

[maxmadmax 8]

I want your Spectre....is it for sale?

Got a 230 and want to shrink down.........

Don't go away mad....just go away!

[aubsmell 0]

Hi Andy,

I won't spend a lot of time telling you the differences between these two canopies, if you have the ability to jump both, your own opinion will be far more valuable than anything I can tell you now.

What I want to do here is make a few points comparing the Triathlon of old to the Triathlon you have now (if it is brand new with a 2003,04, 05 manufacture date)

I will admit that we haven't done a very good job of marketing the differenced in the product we sell as the "Triathlon 2004" and the Triathlon that was originally designed by Bill Hazlet’s old company Aerodyne (a different company from the Aerodyne of today)

I'll tell you about the new updates:

Made from a completely different fabric, we currently manufacture the Tri with PN4 from Perseverance Mills, that is more in line with the type of fabric found on PD, Icarus, and Precision mains, we no longer use the Gelvanore stuff that was a little easier to pack. (This change didn't really change the flight of the canopy too much)

It has what we call the 4.0 steering mod. Basically this is a design change that changed the positions of the steering lines. It speed up the turn rate a bit over the old design, and dramatically increased the sink-ability and flair of the canopy.

Instead of being completely made of zero porosity fabric, the ribs are now made from 0-3cfm (f111 type) fabric. This really makes the openings smoother and softer than the old Triathlon.

Also the line type from the old Tri's has changed to a 725lbs Dynema line (just another trade name for Spectra) but our engineer says the braid that we are using now is better and shrinks at a smaller percentage than the stuff they were using before.

All that being said, I just wanted to let you know that some of the responses that you getting from people with older Tri’s may not actually pertain to the parachute you have. Jump them both and keep the one you are happy with. It’s your toy after all, and you have to like it.
If you ask my opinion, I have jumped every size Spectre from 120-230, and every size Tri from 120- 210, and 3 of the mid size Icarus Omni’s. I don’t see a dramatic difference in any of them, at heavier loadings, the flight characteristics are a little more pronounced, but I’m sure marketing and sales guys like me will usually tell you why our product is the best since sliced bread, but realistically there aren’t dramatic differences.

Openings, the Spectre snivels more (longer opening), but inflates quicker, the new Tri stands you up right away, and starts inflating, but sort of blossoms a bit slower. I guess when you jump the two back to back; you’ll see better what I’m talking about. I'll leave the differences up to you to decide.

Let me know if you have any more questions about our products and I’ll try to help you out.


Later...

"Those who say it cannot be done, should not interrupt those who are doing it"

[airborne82nd 0]

I jumped a spectre 4 times i think i thought it landed just like the tri. but thats what i thought.

i think it flew like a tri also but it seem to come down quicker then the tri less glide.

now i am jumping a 1998 tri and a 2001 specre

the tri always snivals the spectre i thought opened faster but for 4 jumps i know nothing.

My tri only slammed me once when i had very loose rubber band stows. so now i use small ones.

I roll the tail 3 times at the top near the slider then 7 times very tight rolls on the tail.

i tuck the nose in gently in the middle ( i have left the center cell out and tucked the sides of the nose in too that worked ok )

then i quater the slider and pull most of the slider towards me over the nose and creat a little tent with it and tuck in the stab under it. i guess the idea is that it slows the exposure time to the nose or something.

but i ll tell you i can make that tri snival like crazy i back it off to get it open a bit quicker.

and i pack very sharp and perfect no pshyco packing.

but my tri flyes great and opens always very nice.

what is the difference in the glide of the spectres and the tris?? which one will get you back from a bad spot better???

[dragon2 2]

Did you change the sizing as well? My 1996 tri 135 will not go into my Atom 00 without the rig looking like it's about to come apart at the seams. That Atom has held a brand new spectre 150 and an old Merit 170

I then compared it to a brand new demo tri 135 when Aerodyne came to our DZ. Mine is way bigger left-to-right, about 1 1/2 cell! Front-to-back it is the same. It packs like a 150 or even slightly larger. It flies fine though.

Our Aerodyne guy had no explanation.

Mine is not the only one that is off-sized, there is at least one other tri 135 on this dz that is the same size as mine (I think it's also from 1996).

My tri 120 however definately is SMALL compared to the 135, that one seems to be a "true" 120 (canopy is about the same age).

ciel bleu,
Saskia

[aubsmell 0]

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Did you change the sizing as well? My 1996 tri 135 will not go into my Atom 00 without the rig looking like it's about to come apart at the seams.

I had a chat with our Technical Director this morning. No, the template has not changed at all. The canopy, plan form, size, shape, aspect ratio all that is exactly the same, all the changes that I listed above are the the only changes to the canopy.

The bulk difference can be explained in a couple of ways, one a very new canopy can be as loose 8-12% of it's pack volume over time.

Two, one 150 can differ from another 150 by as much as 10%, just due to the batches of fabric and tape they were constructed from.

That is why canopy companies are so leary about quoting exact pack volumes, because you can test 100 different 150's and get 100 different volumes.

Third, just packing a brand new (very slick 0P) canopy can prevent you from being as neat, as you would with a well worn in one, and that can add to the bulik too.

Sorry to give you the run around, but the long and short is that, no the canopy has not changed in physical size.

That being said, that doesn't mean that the demo you packed didn't have a greater volume than your old canopy.

A-

"Those who say it cannot be done, should not interrupt those who are doing it"

[dragon2 2]

Well the canopy is 1 1/2 cells wider, that's more than 10 percent. Something weird here....

ciel bleu,
Saskia

[aubsmell 0]

  Quote

Well the canopy is 1 1/2 cells wider, that's more than 10 percent. Something weird here...

That is weird, I'll get in touch with you privatly and we'll get our Euro guy to get you squared away...

"Those who say it cannot be done, should not interrupt those who are doing it"