PARATEC ZR

[horny955 0]

Anyone out there using a Paratec ZR helmet? any feedback would be of great help as im looking to buy and have my eye on one on ebay

[TeraTon 0]

I own a freeZR helmet and one thing to note is its shape, the inside shape is not as wide as other helmets, for example cookie G3, so take that into account when figuring out the right size for you.

[horny955 0]

ok thanks for that, im going to be borderline on the sizing in that case

[bofh 0]

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Anyone out there using a Paratec ZR helmet? any feedback would be of great help as im looking to buy and have my eye on one on ebay

I bought a new one and after less than 50 jumps the visor started to crack around the buttons (starting from the holes and going towards the edges). Paratec claimed I had abused it and refused to exchange the visor.

The reseller let me keep the old visor and buy a new one for half the price (and do check out the price of the replacement visor, they are not cheap).

It felt good when I first tried it on, but with glasses on and an Optima in the pocket it became slightly too narrow, yet it moves back and forth a little bit in freefall (when tracking, the visor touches my not so big nose).

[horny955 0]

[irishrigger 32]

i have a paratec ZR and i find mine excellent.i have excellent vision with it and its very comfetable with it.
i have seen a couple visors crack,but it was due to the fault of the owner. i never had a problem with mine,but you do have to be a bit more careful with the visor.
rodger

[Abedy 0]

I got one of the first FreeZR helmets (FreeZR 1 nowadays) in 2006. I've used it more or less continuously since. (I have a frap hat for tandems.)
I used it in a great number of jumps and didn't experience any problems. You need to adjust its inside size with the correct paddings. (But you can refuse to and complain about it being too small/large (*) )
The visor might bet cracks around the holes for the attachment pins, but only if you close your visor quite violently for a good number. But this isn't necessary as you may close the visor 30s before the green light shows - the visor won't fog up because the FreeZR is quite spacious in the area before your face.

(*) Seriously: It's very important to read the instructions and correctly adjust the inside size with the paddings provided. I was lucky and Stefan Ertler himself adjusted mine when I approached him at the Paratec Stand at the WPC2006 in Gera

The sky is not the limit. The ground is.

The Society of Skydiving Ducks

[skydiverek 63]

I have one. Very comfortable, your mouth is visible, so other jumpers can do a little bit of lip-reading in tunnel, and are able see your emotions in freefall (your smile will also be on photos and videos, unlike other jumpers', whose mouths are covered ). See attached photos of mine.

Since the mouth is not covered, you can talk easily with it on in the plane (and be heard!), unlike with other helmets. Does not fog. Due to many multiple padding panels (for each shell), and multiple shell sizes you can obtain tens of size combinations.

I also like that the helmet's 'chin' is about an inch away from your face - gives me the 'spacious' feeling when I have it on. With other helmets I felt a bit 'claustrophobic', when the helmet's 'chin' was touching my mouth.

Cons? The visor does not flip up very much, so it is visible all the time when it is up. You can fix that by unscrewing the screws which limit its movement. But that may cause the visor to shut down on its own when you do not want it to. I also read someone's opinion here that due to helmet's 'looseness' it may not be the best choice for sit flying (spacious helmet's chin catches air and there is nothing to tighten the liner around the back of your head, unlike Z1 for example).

http://www.paratec.de/en/products-parachutes/69/

http://www.dropzone.com/cgi-bin/gear/review.cgi?ID=464

[bofh 0]

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The visor might bet cracks around the holes for the attachment pins, but only if you close your visor quite violently for a good number. But this isn't necessary as you may close the visor 30s before the green light shows - the visor won't fog up because the FreeZR is quite spacious in the area before your face.

I can't remember I've ever closed it violently and I find it a bit unlikely that I would have done that. But the drilled holes were a bit rough so I would be surprised if it didn't start to crack from the holes when it got tension from lifting the visor out to open it up. I agree it doesn't fog up in the plane and I often close it quite early if it is cold. It often fogs up under canopy for me though, but then it is easy to open up the visor.

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(*) Seriously: It's very important to read the instructions and correctly adjust the inside size with the paddings provided. I was lucky and Stefan Ertler himself adjusted mine when I approached him at the Paratec Stand at the WPC2006 in Gera

There were no extra paddings nor instructions provided with the helmet to me and I got it new in the box.

[horny955 0]

Thanks guys for your help, im going to have a bid on it and see how it goes.

[hellfalcon 0]

I have one and it is awesome, extremely comfortable and the visor open mechanism is much better than the likes of a Z1. My only complaint is I can't find a reseller of visors, specifically tinted visors.