Sabre 2 openings

[heavision 2]

  I've just ordered a Sabre2 170 which I'll be loading at about 1.3 to 1. I have 360ish jumps.Current canopy is a Pilot 188. I've taken Flight 1 courses 101 and 102.

  I've been reading reviews, discussions etc about the Sabre2 and there seems to be a recurring theme regarding openings: off heading, end cell closures and hard openings come up often--very often, in fact. Off heading and slow-to-inflate end cells aren't a huge concern for me. Hard openings are.

  PD describes the openings as predictable, soft, on heading etc.

  Now, I don't wanna get all into the intricacies of marketing and advertising crap, but I'm inclined to trust PD. They are a proven outfit and clearly one of the beacons of professionalism in our sport.

  The Sabre2 being one of, if not the most, popular canopy out there gives us ample data. It doesn't seem plausible to call it a fluke--there's just too many instances to chalk this all up to poor body position, crappy packing and the like. 

 

 So I suppose my question is: what gives?

  Has PD addressed this? Are people really just lousy packers and/or always out of position when they deploy? Or should I be a little nervous?

(MY APOLOGIES IF THIS HAS BEEN ADDRESSED IN SOME OTHER THREAD. I know its been discussed but I haven't seen anything conclusive. Blue skies!)

[wolfriverjoe 1,523]

I jump a Sabre2 loaded about  1.15:1. 

It does some funky stuff on opening. Off heading isn't unusual. I don't get closed end cells much. I usually pack myself.

I was getting some random 'hardish' openings a while back. Not 'injury' hard, but 'kinda hurt' (especially my back) hard.

I had a conversation with a fairly knowledgeable master rigger who told me that his understanding was that they had found that the sides of the slider are important for avoiding hard openings. 

He said to make sure the sides of the slider are well pulled out when quartering it. Front and back matter, but nowhere near as much as the sides. 
I took this suggestion and had a lot of success with it. As long as I pull the sides well out, the openings have been much more consistent and not hard. Not 'buttery soft' (like a Crossfire or Silhouette) but not hard. 

[jumpsracer 6]

Mine almost always open with end cell closures, Most of the time if I leave the canopy alone they inflate without having to pump the brakes. There's a video on You Tube of Greg Windmiller packing which I've adopted. The front of the slider is pulled forward and the nose of the canopy gets pushed back towards the tail.

[ghostdog 7]

13 hours ago, jumpsracer said:

Mine almost always open with end cell closures

Same here with my Sabre 2

never had hard opening when a rigger packed for me. has some semi-hard openings when packed by myself. I assume it's just a packing issue not Sabre 2

[gowlerk 2,190]

All ram air canopies are capable of hard openings. Sabre 2s are so common that it sometimes seems that they are every second canopy. There are bound to be some from them. The reason so many people buy them is that they like them. The marketing and advertising crap is just that. Pay no attention to it. The people speak with their dollars.

[timski 80]

The Sabre 1 has a long history of "hard openings", hence the need for the "2"!  You should have scored yourself a nice 7 cell. ;^)   Pack for yourself, that way you know who to thank for the opening!   

[Nabz 30]

I have a Sabre 2 loaded at 1.05:1, openings are off heading at times, the shittier my position when i pitch the more off heading it is, the most i get is a 180, most of the time its between 90-45.

As far as hard openings, all I feel that is hard is the snatch force when it gets out of the bag, the rest is pretty smooth. When I do hop and pops I don't feel a single thing and is smooth as butter.

[Thelonriver 2]

I did about 500 jumps on Sabre 2s - 150 and 135 loaded 1.2 and 1.35 - never had a hard opening, but sometimes had to pump breaks to bring slider down or deal with end cell closures.  I did get a hard opening once on a (seven cell) Spectre - it is the Sabre, not the Sabre 2, that is infamous for hard openings.  I thought it was a great canopy.  

[theplummeter 15]

I’ve been jumping Safires and Crossfires for a long time, but spent my last four jumps on rented Sabre2 canopies. I hate the openings (harder and more off heading than what I’m used to) but once open they fly great and have an amazing flare.