Riggers in Central Germany for "Mature" Reserve

[Guest]

When this C19 nonsense is over, I'm planning to make my time-before-the-second jumps here in Germany (I live near Frankfurt). Here's the deal. I've got a Raven 2 reserve (218sf) which is quite mature and have dealt with repack issues due to its age, so when I was at Skydive Chicago in late June 2018 I made a deal with the loft: if the reserve was unsat I'd buy a new one on the spot. The lead rigger at SDC came back later and told me he'd performed a non-destructive inspection (pull test) on it, and because it was in great shape he went ahead and packed it.

Now I've seen some people attempting to sell old reserves on this site, and although they're probably just fine, any clueless noob isn't going to realize what the risks are with an old reserve (id est, many but by no means all riggers won't pack "old" reserves no matter how excellent the condition they are in). As far as safety is concerned, the SDC lead rigger's judgment was good enough for me because I doubt that Rook Nelson would have any less than the best in the business running his loft.

I did have difficulty getting it packed again in 2019 but that's because it lapsed in Italy and so I had to locate a rigger who had a FAA ticket (got the repack at Skydive Pull-Out [pull out what? The beads? Hah]) in Ravenna.

Anyway I'm hoping for similar results here in Germany this season. Yes, I can afford a new reserve, but if the old one is perfectly serviceable and thus safe to whip out when needed, why bother?

Now I know riggers stay in pretty good contact with one another and are always sharing tips & tricks,  just like any other skill group. Can anyone therefore recommend a rigger based in Germany who has a FAA ticket and is willing to NDI the reserve in addition to repacking? Thanks!

mh

Edited April 17, 2020 by Guest
changed reserve brand name

[gowlerk 2,192]

1 hour ago, markharju said:

Northern Lite Enterprises Raven 2 reserve (218sf)

Northern Lite is a container manufacturer. Ravens were made by Precision Aerodynamics. Not that it makes any difference to your situation. I would jump and/or repack a Raven as a reserve any day. And I do. But that is not likely to help you in Europe where many National Associations are given powers by Nanny States. You may need to come to North America. Although there are even here a growing number of large lofts who will refuse to service anything over 20 years of age.

[Guest]

20 minutes ago, gowlerk said:

Northern Lite is a container manufacturer. Ravens were made by Precision Aerodynamics. Not that it makes any difference to your situation. I would jump and/or repack a Raven as a reserve any day. And I do. But that is not likely to help you in Europe where many National Associations are given powers by Nanny States. You may need to come to North America. Although there are even here a growing number of large lofts who will refuse to service anything over 20 years of age.

Thanks for the correction (edited above). I didn't really experience any nanny-state issues in Italy but that's because I was an American and DZs typically honored USPA guidelines (see my beef in 2018 about the Italian medical requirements becoming nothing less than oppressive), so as mentioned it was more a matter of finding someone who was rated for American gear than anything else. Once that person was found, it was a breeze. The rigger at Pull-Out Ravenna just wanted me to get it to the DZ by a certain time on Friday and he promised to have it ready to fly the next morning. Good as his word, I was on the first load on Saturday.