Jesus Strings

[TomAiello 26]

BASE rigs are currently available in both pin and velcro closures. Velcro was long the standard, and pins are the current majority of new gear, with the result that gear in the field is an almost even mix of velcro and pin. I know many jumpers (myself included) who own at least one of each type.

Very interesting stuff. I'm wondering why there isn't just a "side flap cutaway" similar to the wing cutaway on a 3 wing style wingsuit. Perhaps I'll start a thread in G&R when I've had a bit more time to think about it.

Thanks for the education, everyone!

-- Tom Aiello

Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com
SnakeRiverBASE.com

[airtwardo 7]

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BASE rigs are currently available in both pin and velcro closures. Velcro was long the standard, and pins are the current majority of new gear, with the result that gear in the field is an almost even mix of velcro and pin. I know many jumpers (myself included) who own at least one of each type.

Very interesting stuff. I'm wondering why there isn't just a "side flap cutaway" similar to the wing cutaway on a 3 wing style wingsuit. Perhaps I'll start a thread in G&R when I've had a bit more time to think about it.

Thanks for the education, everyone!

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I was right...CONFUSED as ALWAYS!


Like I said...been awhile!

~ If you choke a Smurf, what color does it turn? ~

[tbrown 26]

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Tom.

These were used on rigs that were closed with pins and cones. Sometimes when you pulled your ripcord the cones would get stuck in the grommets and not release the flap to let the pilot chute go. The "Jesus" cord just pulled on the top flap to dislodge the locked cone/grommet and open the flap. They were often attached to the reserve ripcord and were usually red 550 with a little slack tacked with seal thread.

USPA used to warn people not to attach the JS to the reserve handle, because if you threw or lost the handle the string would catch it and it might snarl deploying reserve lines. In fact, a JS attached to a reserve handle was partially to blame for a fatality in the northeast in 1977 (the other factor being a so-called "disreefing pin" system used on one brand of round reserves, instead of the more prevalent diaper system). USPA suggested that if you were going to use a lanyard, to attach it to the chest strap or MLW.

I used to own a 1978 Hanbury rig that something of a JS built into the reserve ripcord. This was when Kevlar ripcords were being used on some rigs instead of steel cable. The ripcord was split like a "Y" and the pins at each end of the Y were bent around at the end they attached to the Kevlar cord. When you pulled the ripcord, the pins would come out of the loops, but could go no further than the grommet where the soft cable housing came out of the upper flap, then they'd stop and by continuing the pull you'd manually peel the whole upper flap up & away.

I used my reserve on this rig a couple times and could feel the peeling when I hammered that ripcord out. And here I am, older. fatter, reasonably happy and very much alive.

Your humble servant.....Professor Gravity !

[wartload 0]

This topic's been pretty well hashed over, but I thought that I'd add two pics:

http://home.gwu.edu/~brobie/jeeziz_string.jpg

http://home.gwu.edu/~brobie/jeeziz_string2.jpg

This particular modification was put on one of the first piggyback rigs ever manufactured, so it might be close to the original "Jesus String."

Note that the reserve container is still very much like the front-mounted reserve containers--and they'd sometimes stay closed when the ripcord was pulled all the way out (one standard procedure was to pull the ripcord and punch the container). Since this one was on the back, and most people can't reach that far back, the cord was intended to be pulled in case the container stuck on the cones.

Or, as one guy put it, "It may not actually help you, but it at least will give you something to f*** around with while you're waiting for the ground to smack you."

[JerryBaumchen 1,354]

In first photo I noticed the Speed Links used to attach the reserve risers to the harness. Bad Ju-Ju there; those guys are known to fail.

[JohnGraham 0]

Is that also a blast handle right at the bottom of the second pic?

By the way thanks very much for the replies everyone - much appreciated!

[airtwardo 7]

Is that also a blast handle right at the bottom of the second pic?

***

Sure is!

Boy does THAT bring back memories!


Question for the riggers....can someone still USE a blast handle if it's drilled out?

I would love to have one on my bailout rig...

~ If you choke a Smurf, what color does it turn? ~

[frawley308 0]

I contacted the USPA about 8 months ago regarding the prohibition against blast handles and they told me that it no longer exists. They said that it was not a case of reversing the prohibition but rather that it was deleted with the feeling that it has been so many years since anyone wanted to use one that it was just taking up space in the regs. I was rather fond of my old blast handle (drilled).

[mjosparky 4]

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Is that also a blast handle right at the bottom of the second pic?

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Sure is!

Boy does THAT bring back memories!


Question for the riggers....can someone still USE a blast handle if it's drilled out?

I would love to have one on my bailout rig...

If the rig was TSO’d with a blast handle, you can still use one.

Sparky

My idea of a fair fight is clubbing baby seals

[airtwardo 7]

If the rig was TSO’d with a blast handle,


***

~ If you choke a Smurf, what color does it turn? ~

[JohnGraham 0]

I know they [blast handles] are banned in the UK - how does a drilled blast handle differ from an un-drilled one?

[JerryBaumchen 1,354]

John, I'll try to describe this for you (but understand, it is like trying to describe a cloud to someone over the phone).
The 'original' blast handle (and I do not remember what it's original use was for) had an aluminum "T" shaped handle. At the end where the cable came out of the handle was a chromed ferrule that was shaped to snap onto the end of a military-type ripcord housing. At the center of this ferrule the aluminum had a boss that came up (the ripcord cable came out of this boss) to center this thing in the housing. The problem was that the boss caused some very hard/impossible pulls. So, for sport use, the handle was changed to where this boss was removed by drilling it off. Do you understand what I am trying to convey to you?

[airtwardo 7]

The problem was that the boss caused some very hard/impossible pulls.

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It worked exactly as designed, you need to pull straight...in line with the housing.

If you pulled at an angle it would stay put (a lot of the time)

~ If you choke a Smurf, what color does it turn? ~

[JohnGraham 0]

I think so... so the ferrule snaps onto the outside of the ripcord housing, with the boss in the middle that ends up getting inserted inside the housing, and all you do when you drill it is remove the boss? And the boss was the bit that caused the trouble because it wedged itself a little too well inside the housing?

[RogerRamjet 0]

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The problem was that the boss caused some very hard/impossible pulls.

***

It worked exactly as designed, you need to pull straight...in line with the housing.

If you pulled at an angle it would stay put (a lot of the time)

Yes it did. The trick was to tack the housing 1/2 to 1" from the handle so the housing could follow your pulling direction a bit to prevent this from happening. I used the blast handle unmodified until the PVC stuff came out on Booth's rigs. I went back to a blast handle when we went back to metal reserve ripcords on the Wonderhogs. When I had a B12 main and belly wart reserve, I used a unmodied blast handle for my main ripcord, never had a problem.

The blast handle was originally designed for use on ejection seat rigs (hence the name). I think they were standard on the original HALO military rigs as well (but not sure about that).

-----------------------
Roger "Ramjet" Clark
FB# 271, SCR 3245, SCS 1519

[airtwardo 7]

The blast handle was originally designed for use on ejection seat rigs (hence the name). I think they were standard on the original HALO military rigs as well (but not sure about that).

***

....AND if drilled out another way...made an interesting PIPE!

~ If you choke a Smurf, what color does it turn? ~

[crewdog2 0]

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The problem was that the boss caused some very hard/impossible pulls.

***

It worked exactly as designed, you need to pull straight...in line with the housing.

If you pulled at an angle it would stay put (a lot of the time)

I owned one for a while ...never had any problems. I thought the reason USPA banned them was because a couple of people went-in tugging on an open capewell cover. You know, didn't look at what they were pulling, and the cover had the same T-shape.

[airtwardo 7]

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The problem was that the boss caused some very hard/impossible pulls.

***

It worked exactly as designed, you need to pull straight...in line with the housing.

If you pulled at an angle it would stay put (a lot of the time)

I owned one for a while ...never had any problems. I thought the reason USPA banned them was because a couple of people went-in tugging on an open capewell cover. You know, didn't look at what they were pulling, and the cover had the same T-shape.

***

I don't think that was the reason...

I 'heard' there were problems with "Hard Pulls" because people were pulling out and away instead of down as the design required....

I had one on an old Wonderhog, pulled it once without any problems...but as Roger said, it was tacked 2+ inches up at the housing.

~ If you choke a Smurf, what color does it turn? ~

[mjosparky 4]

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The blast handle was originally designed for use on ejection seat rigs (hence the name).

Rodger is right; the "blast handle" was for ejection seat rigs. The older ones where the pilot got in the plane with a rig one. (back or seat) When he ejected there was a "butt strap" that would tighten up and pop him out of the seat and he had to but the ripcord himself. With the outside splines over the housing and the “post” on the inside the windblast of ejection would not blow the handle loose. See attached pictures.

Sparky

My idea of a fair fight is clubbing baby seals

[JerryBaumchen 1,354]

John, you have it exactly. Also, well shown in Sparky's photos; you can see the 'boss' that needed to be drilled out/removed.

[airtwardo 7]

Hey Sparky...I'm still looking for one if you happen to come across one in your travels!

~ If you choke a Smurf, what color does it turn? ~

[billbooth 10]

They were called "anti-windBLAST" Handles. I loved them. They were very secure (nearly snag proof), but if you installed them incorrectly, as Roger said, the were a little too secure. They were the inspiration for my Sigma Tandem main "golf ball" handles...with no center post, of course.

[JohnGraham 0]

Thanks all for clearing that up - from what I had heard before, blast handles were just absolute death traps, plain and simple! Mind you, that was mostly based on 2nd hand information from people who had never actually seen a blast handle in real life...

[mjosparky 4]

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Hey Sparky...I'm still looking for one if you happen to come across one in your travels!

I will check around and see what I can come up with.

Sparky

My idea of a fair fight is clubbing baby seals

[wartload 0]

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Is that also a blast handle right at the bottom of the second pic?

By the way thanks very much for the replies everyone - much appreciated!

Yep. Here are some better pics of the blast handle and reserve for you:

http://home.gwu.edu/~brobie/blast_handle.jpg

http://home.gwu.edu/~brobie/crossbow_reserve.jpg

http://home.gwu.edu/~brobie/crossbow_reserve2.jpg

Note that, in this installation, the housing was secured by a blue fabric sleeve placed about 1.5" above the point where the handle snapped into the metal housing. That 1.5" of remaining housing was then (think it was a later modification) secured by a band of elastic. That allowed the handle to still come out if it was pulled at an angle, but helped to keep it still in freefall.