Canopy suspension device in loft...

[groundrush87 0]

Hey there folks. I'm working towards my rigging certificate under the supervision of a Senior Rigger and a Master Rigger at my dropzone and at my house I would like to make something to help me hang up reserves and mains so that I can inspect them more easily. I've seen it done at some of the rigging lofts in bigger dropzones. Most of the time I've seen it done via a long piece of wood or PVC pipe with clamps screwed onto it and rope or string on either side that goes up to a pulley on the ceiling. I was hoping some of you out there that use these in your rigging lofts might take a picture of the design that has worked best for you and share it, so that I can get a good idea of the best way to go about it instead of wasting time and energy on something that turns out to be a piece of garbage.

[mark 107]

Wood or PVC is cheapest, but heavy. Steel pipe is very heavy. Aluminum is lightest.

Instead of screwing the clamps directly to the bar, tie them on with a loose lanyard so you can slide them side to side. If you can slide the clamps, your bar can be as short as 6 feet, and you'll still be able to spread the cells of a tandem reserve to full width for inspection one at a time.

10 clamps for 10 line groups, not 9 clamps for 9 cells.

I haven't seen any set-up better than my own. For the amount of rigging I do, the extra expense was worth it. YMMV. My bar is a 2" square aluminum tube, 1/8" side wall, with a 3/4" slot milled on the bottom side. I bought the tubing and had the milling done by a local machine shop. Their normal business is working on farm equipment, not airplanes, so I paid farm price, not airplane price.

This design allows the clamps to slide freely past the suspension points.

Each clamp slide is built up from an eye-bolt, with a 1-1/2" fender washer and 1-1/2" MDS (Nylatron, grey stiffener plastic used in rigs) sandwiched between a couple nylon-insert lock nuts. MDS was originally intended as a friction-reducing bearing surface, not stiffener, and it allows the clamps to slide more easily.

To make your inspections easier, put lights on the wall behind the hanger, as well as on the ceiling in front.

Mark

[peregrinerose 0]

I live in a renovated barn, so have a parachute hanger upstairs, on a pulley system attached to a barn beam adjacent to the barn loft (which is also my rigging loft). Mine is made using two wooden painting poles, the kind that you can screw into paint rollers for longer reach. The screwy ends were put into a piece of pvc and duct taped at the joints. Eye loops were drilled into the wood, and the clamps are hooked on with wire. It cost me almost nothing to make since it was done with parts I already had.

Do or do not, there is no try -Yoda

[thomas_crowe 0]

Mark;

That's awesome, by far the best I've seen so far (granted I've not seen a lot)

Could you post a picture of your clamp slide assembly?

Thanks!

Tom Crowe (Riglet in training)

Thomas Crowe, NRP
Nationally Registered Paramedic
Red Hat Linux Geek

[JohnRich 4]

Quote

Attachments: Hanging-bar.jpg (109 KB)

Your rigging loft is very neat and organized. I like it.
Especially the parachute hardware art up there on the back wall.

[mark 107]

Quote

Your rigging loft is very neat and organized. I like it.
Especially the parachute hardware art up there on the back wall.

Thanks! Visit me on Facebook to see more photos.

The hardware art is the work of my good friend Merriah Eakins, with a little help from Karl.

Mark

[bliston 0]

I just use a length of microline and mini rubber-tipped claps that I got at home depot (they are less than two inches long. some small hooks screwed into studs on opposing walls and then a little fiddling to get the length right and you'll be all set.

Mass Defiance 4-wayFS website


sticks!

[stratostar 5]

This is also a nice loft, very clean.

you can't pay for kids schoolin' with love of skydiving! ~ Airtwardo

[councilman24 37]

I've got the same capability. But mine was a commercial rail used for an industrial strip curtain around a cage washer. Mine's about 10' long.

And FREE!

Two or three more in the attic.

I'm old for my age.
Terry Urban
D-8631
FAA DPRE

[erdnarob 1]

I hope you have a very large place to do so. Don't forget a lot of lighting to be installed behind the hanged canopy.

Learn from others mistakes, you will never live long enough to make them all.

[theonlyski 8]

Quote

I hope you have a very large place to do so. Don't forget a lot of lighting to be installed behind the hanged canopy.

Hung, like me...

"I may be a dirty pirate hooker...but I'm not about to go stand on the corner." iluvtofly
DPH -7, TDS 578, Muff 5153, SCR 14890
I'm an asshole, and I approve this message

[masterrigger1 2]

Here's some pictures of my canopy hanger.

It is large enough to hang a 400 sq. ft plus canopy on, but you could just downsize the thing some.

The garage door tracks really are great as it keeps it from swinging around.

Cheers,
MEL

Skyworks Parachute Service, LLC
www.Skyworksparachuteservice.com

[Binary93 65]

What would you say would be the minimal length of the hanger to still be functional?
If the clamps can slide over the hanger you could essentially "slide" the canopy to inspect few cells at a time.

Wanting to make a setup at home and constrained with space a bit.

Edit: Only just noticed that mark said it could be as short as 6 feet if you can slide the clamps, I was hoping that 2 meters would work, so I guess that means it will. Please still feel free to add your opinion, the more input the better. Thanks!

Edited January 31, 2021 by Binary93

[tstar 10]

Wow! Talk about bringing back the dead... This thread was 11 years old.

Of course, I know nothing and it's all still relevant!

Tim

[wolfriverjoe 1,523]

8 hours ago, Binary93 said:

What would you say would be the minimal length of the hanger to still be functional?
If the clamps can slide over the hanger you could essentially "slide" the canopy to inspect few cells at a time.

Wanting to make a setup at home and constrained with space a bit.

Edit: Only just noticed that mark said it could be as short as 6 feet if you can slide the clamps, I was hoping that 2 meters would work, so I guess that means it will. Please still feel free to add your opinion, the more input the better. Thanks!

I've done it in my bathroom. I used the shower curtain rod as the hanger. As noted above, I had several good lights. 

Not the best or easiest way to do it. 

I used some string to hang the clamps from the rod. 

I could get enough 'spread' to inspect one full cell (and the adjoining panels) at a time. It was a fairly slow process, but it worked well enough.