The Mumbo Jumbo Voodoo of Packing…

[AFFI 0]

First off, I claim to have no basis of proof that the knowledge being shared is accurate information upon which to convince anyone of anything. So please do not be alarmed by this broadcast and run to the hill’s, kill you families or punch speed holes in your slider, this is quite possibly, only fiction.

When someone was trying to convince me that the little things I was taught to do on the packing room floors for years, did in fact, not make a difference. This dinosaur rigger and old champion style accuracy dude both tried to convince me through words, but they had to prove it to me and they did.

The moment of inflation beginning, it’s mostly about body position, descent rate and proper slider functioning. Then there are a bunch of little variables that are so entirely enigmatic that is lures people (like me) into thinking that a minor difference between packing method spread across a few jumps is going to give a good illustration of the dynamics of this Hand Made piece of fabric hitting an ever changing wind condition after being launched from an ever changing body position - and because there hand made, no two canopies are exactly and totally alike they all have their own personalities and nuisances. Some function well within their design parameters and some are just plain evil, especially when improperly used.

I was in Deland a couple years ago and I made a few freeflys with this really cool person who was complaining about inconsistent openings on a new Stiletto. I did my standard 8 minute pack job on it and gave a 5 minute dissertation on properly launching the PC and maintaining body position at deployment time. They reluctantly, with extreme trepidation made a jump on this totally “improperly packed” mess. Upon landing I was asked to "please teach me to pack that way". This was someone with over 500 jumps and quite current that was just willing to listen to something that was a little contrary to what they had learned over the years on the packing room floors of the world.

Something 2 guys who knew what they were talking about with 40 years experience between them taught me, no, had to CONVVINCE me because I am a smart guy and it is hard to convince me that my understanding of the universe is sometimes a little misunderstood. Then this person tells me “You’ve been living in a dream world Neo”. And it was like these guys showed me the freaking Holy Grail because now I pack in 7 to 8 minutes and I am not worried at all about what is going to come off my back and besides, I have a “never been used” PD Reserve on my back I am just itching to see.

With properly configured equipment, a pack job is simple, its 4 flaps and a pilot chute, there is not much that can go wrong when properly used and maintained. Me personally, I am not quick witted enough to complicate stuff when so much is at steak.

Ummmm, steak…

Imossible to give a packing lesson online, but basically it is more a matter of learning what is and is not important in getting consistent openings then taking the important things and do them, keeping it as simple as possible as possible. Then put your own personality in the pack job on properly maintained gear. Use common sense, especially to the totally obvious stuff like setting brakes and whatnot.

1) Slider should be properly sized for the control of inflation one desires.
Note: Slider sizes that ship with canopies are paired for reasons involving some sort of adding and subtracting I am most qualified to say nothing about. So I called the manufacturer of the canopy I fly and made a request for a larger slider. The largest slider Jon Leblanc was willing to send (for the type of canopy) was deployed high to check it out, though not too high for added thrill and the openings were much more the way I desired, it made a huge difference for what I was looking for, openings much more “screws in back” friendly.

2) Slider should be fully opened and quartered completely.

2a) Nose:
Note: The philosophy that was expressed to me is the counting and flaking of the nose and all the other nose fixations in the pack job are of no concern, “they are sewn together, where are they going to go”? It has been my experience that the neater I try to make my nose, overall it bears no difference to the consistency of the openings but the prevention of the Line Over explained by Bill V.

(The nose can go) "Through the tail, thus causing the most common propack malfunction - the lineover. Control of the nose and tail (specifically the C/D/brake lines) is pretty important when it comes to avoiding mals. by BillVon


3) Neat and orderly line stows in maintained rubber bands.
Note: Rubber Bands are often jumped past their prime.

4) Bridal properly routed and container properly closed.
Note: Closing loops are often jumped past their prime.

5) Pilot Chute
Note: Although I use a specific method there seems to be a million ways and reasons upon which and entire manual could be written, torn up and burned. Just make sure the freaking thing is cocked. Dem Kaisers are choice.

6) Proper decent rate and good body position at deployment time.

7) Be prepared to deal with malfunctions.


So basically I was told to take those steps, and add between the lines add as little of the other stuff I learned in packing rooms that I was personally comfortable with and go from there, let it evolve.

Make it a great day.

Mykel AFF-I10
Skydiving Priorities: 1) Open Canopy. 2) Land Safely. 3) Don’t hurt anyone. 4) Repeat…

[mark 107]

Quote

Pilot Chute... Dem Kaisers are choice.

Cazers?

Mark

[billvon 2,990]

>“they are sewn together, where are they going to go”?

Through the tail, thus causing the most common propack malfunction - the lineover. Control of the nose and tail (specifically the C/D/brake lines) is pretty important when it comes to avoiding mals.

[AFFI 0]

Quote

>Through the tail, thus causing the most common propack malfunction - the lineover. Control of the nose and tail (specifically the C/D/brake lines) is pretty important when it comes to avoiding mals.

Perssonally I am consistently neat with my nose and simply tuck slightly and make sure my lines (secially the C,D/Control) are where they are supposed to be. It only takes like 10 to 15 seconds.

They guys that gave me all this "quirky" advice years ago are much messier with thier noses than I have become.

[billvon 2,990]

>Perssonally I am consistently neat with my nose . . .

I am too, and I am careful with the C/D lines. I think much of learning to pack is learning what you have to be careful with and what just doesn't matter.

[FrogNog 1]

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... learning what you have to be careful with and what just doesn't matter.

Which AFFI wisely pointed out varies by canopy to some degree. (Some things may apply to all canopies, but some things are model or even canopy-specific.)

-=-=-=-=-
Pull.

[riggerrob 643]

When teaching junior jumpers how to pack, I emphasis FIVE MAJOR POINTS:

1. Lines straight
2. brakes set
3. slider ALL the way up
4. rubber bands tight
5. bridle routing

[jheadley 0]

One thing I've always found funny about packing methods is one person will say "doing xxxx will be sure to give you a malfunction", and then you'll find people who do just that who have thousands of jumps and have never had a malfunction, and then they'll say "doing yyyy will help prevent a malfunction, and then you'll find another guy saying, "no, that's actually MORE likely to give you a malfunction". There are lots of little tricks that people have that are suppose to help with packing but I'm not convinced they actually do much. Like riggerrob said, as long as you do a couple simple things and make it a clean pack job, it'll work. I've talked to a lot of senior and master riggers, and even rigger examiners about packing, and even they will say different, sometimes even opposite, things.

[koppel 4]

Well my "simple rules" are

Lines tensioned and to the centre of the pack job and material to the outside
Slider up against the stoppers and pulled forward of the nose


anything else is fluff and nonsense

I like my canopy...


...it lets me down.

[nicknitro71 0]

Maybe I should start doing a 5 min pack job on my reserves and BASE canopies

Memento Audere Semper

903

[iGGy 0]

Me: ~650 jumps, no mals, no line twists on an elliptical (~430 jumps) that did not clear themselves within 1 second after slider down (and max 5 of those).

Packjob latest 350 jumps on everything except velocity: Follow lines up in normal fashion, shake canopy fairly violently, look at canopy making sure everything looks "normal" (nose, steering lines, d lines). Do the slider. I usually pull it out in front, depending on canopy.

Next, pick up tail in normal fashion and make sure lines stay in place when folding top skin around rest of canopy (using knees). When on the ground, just squish fabric together, making sure not to push the tail/fabric between d/c lines underneath anything (I think this part is Really important, and a lot of people sin against this, more or less rolling the tail in front of the packjob.)

So, IMO, important parts: Slider. Lines. They can be placed neatly enough using canopy shaking only. Make sure they dont move much the rest of the packjob.

BASE canopies and reserves are a whole different story as far as packing go, of course.

[NelKel 0]

One thing I've always found funny about packing methods is one person will say "doing xxxx will be sure to give you a malfunction", and then you'll find people who do just that who have thousands of jumps and have never had a malfunction, and then they'll say "doing yyyy will help prevent a malfunction, and then you'll find another guy saying, "no, that's actually MORE likely to give you a malfunction". There are lots of little tricks that people have that are suppose to help with packing but I'm not convinced they actually do much. Like riggerrob said, as long as you do a couple simple things and make it a clean pack job, it'll work. I've talked to a lot of senior and master riggers, and even rigger examiners about packing, and even they will say different, sometimes even opposite, things.<<<<<

Some of the weirdest tecqunecs I have seen involve jumpers who don't understand the dynamics of the RAM canopy trying to pack a Sabre to open soft.
I once watched this guy propacking. He rolled his nose all one way tight untill he passed his B lines. I asked why so much? He stated it opens hard while he was hiding his slider all the way inside of his pack job. Sometimes it best to just smile and say oh.

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Someone dies, someone says how stupid, someone says it was avoidable, someone says how to avoid it, someone calls them an idiot, someone proposes rule chan

[Fast 0]

The resident "old timer" at my DZ (Mike 'Ravin' Stark, if anyone has seen him pack) has proven to me a few times over that packing can be much more simple. He doesn't flake his nose or do any other crazy stuff. He has a simple "lines in the right place" lay it down and a few folds and a tuck or two later its in the bag. He packs faster than anyone I know and that probally is because of the 10k+ odd jumps and many more packjobs he has done. Everyone calls it a "trash" pack, but it really isn't. He knows what he is doing. Everything (lines, fabric, slider) is in a specific place. Its just done without all the crazy flaking and counting and whatnot that goes into packing for just about everyone else.

I have always been unwilling to learn the way he packs because I know there has to be something in his mind that he knows that I'm not seeing. I stick to a fast pro-pack. "Lines mostly to the center, fabric out, watch the slider, and put it in the bag." I "count" my nose cells but not really. I just pull them out front where they should be, I am sure that i have missed one here and there but it has never made a huge difference.

~D
Where troubles melt like lemon drops Away above the chimney tops That's where you'll find me.
Swooping is taking one last poke at the bear before escaping it's cave - davelepka

[NelKel 0]

He stated it opens hard while he was hiding his slider all the way inside of his pack job.<<<

That is the punchline, get it?

_________________________________________

Someone dies, someone says how stupid, someone says it was avoidable, someone says how to avoid it, someone calls them an idiot, someone proposes rule chan