RDS -> Who makes em.

[odendan 0]

Hi all,

Wondering what my options are for buying an RDS and any reviews on the ones out on the 'market'.

Blue Skies!!

whips n' chains n' hand-grenades with a little ugly on the side.

[BenG 0]

Mel at Skyworks Rigging makes a RDS that several of the guys at the Colorado PST event will be using. That will be my next purchase, just low on funds right now.

[RMURRAY 1]

I have on of MELs for my VX. a buddy got one (from MEL) for his Velocity. works great!

rm

[Spizzzarko 0]

Definatly call Mel or Joe Bennett at Skyworks rigging.
Their number is 864-429-8428. I have had nothing but amazing customer service from these gentlemen, and they make great products. Give them a call and you will not be dissapointed, as they know their stuff and then some.

Grant

[skyedivr 0]

Nothing but good stuff from Mel and Joe.
two thumbs up.

my power is beyond your understanding.

[cessna54tango 0]

yea, excellent work from joe. got one of his on order for my xaos. i have the one that i didnt sell off my xf2. lemme know what size yours is, im looking to get rid of this one. ill measure it tonight. its about a year old and is a joe benette creation. but again, his work is top notch quality.

smizo

[odendan 0]

I have a velo 90 and a 103. Not sure if I want one for both yet, but prefer to outfit the 103 first.

whips n' chains n' hand-grenades with a little ugly on the side.

[AggieDave 6]

Quote

i have the one that i didnt sell off my xf2. lemme know what size yours is, im looking to get rid of this one.

What size was your XF2? I've got a XF2 and I've been thinking about an RDS lately.

--"When I die, may I be surrounded by scattered chrome and burning gasoline."

[Velopilot 0]

I've got my Velo 96 rigged up with one from Joe B.
I take it to terminal all the time with no problems.
Whether it's the full system or I've reattached the d-bag to the top skin, I always pull the slider off. It's totally worth the extra time on the pack job. They definitely make an outstanding product.

[freeflyn 0]

How are the openings? Does anyone have Joe's RDS on something around an 83/ 84. Do you find the rings pivot on opening resulting in an exaggerated swimming opening or increased propensity for line twists?

[cessna54tango 0]

hey, mine was a 99, but there is a chance the slider is the same size. i heard they are on velos of different size, but thats only what ive heard could be wrong. anyways the slider measures 26 x 18. i also have taken this to terminal on many, probably a quarter of the jumps on it. ive had it for a little over a year and about 300 jumps. believe me, it really made the canopy. you will notice a huge difference when you remove it. plus the visability is so much improved. but like previously mentioned, joes slider has no problems with terminal openings, even used it on a few tandem videos that i got conned into doing did a nice slider removing instruction video after opening. that was funny. anyways, the xf2 opened exactly the same with this slider. i watched it the first time, then that scared me. it was strange seeing the pilot chute and bag attached to the slider pop off the canopy, trail above and behind then all this junk sliding down the lines. so for the next few jumps i just pitched and waited, you know you can feel if the opening is going good, plus no worries with the xf2, but then it got fun to watch this freak show going on after the pitch. you know what, once you pull off the slider and are reeling up the pc and bag, its amazing how much drag the thing actually creates even though it collapses. a few times i just sat there and pulled it in then threw it back out behind me and tugged on it and thought, no wonder getting this thing off makes such a big difference. its like retracting the gear on an airplane. plus it is so quiet, just wind noise through the lines. no flapping beast above your head anymore, ok enough pr for the rds

smizo

[cessna54tango 0]

oh yea, mine has the tape and grommets that go on the lines not the new stainless rings joe sells now. no difference in operation but just the stainless look nicer. i have had no problems with any of the tapes snagging or anything like that, has anyone else had a problem with the tape and grommet setup?

smizo

[Velopilot 0]

Freeflyn, my opening's have been better. This slider tends to hang up at the cascade points longer but never appears as though it wants to get out of control and spin me up.

Cessna, Joe told me that all the sliders are the same size. I had only 10 jumps on the tape and grommet set up before Joe shipped me the newer rings. I never had a problem with them snagging anything or floating back up my risers in a dive like I had heard some people say had happened to them before.

Originally I had contacted PD about the tendency for my canopy to want to spin up. They told me that it was a common tendency for Velo's and at the time that the factory team was jumping bigger sliders and they sent me one. When I measured it against my stock slider the new one was only 1 inch longer and 1 inch wider. It made a big difference and the canopy didn't want to search so much on openings. When I got Joe's system it measured about 7 inches longer and 5 inches wider than the stock slider. It's pretty close to the size of a pillow case. Overall my opening characteristics have dramatically improved. It's spun me up once on a sub-term opening but it was a "race to make the next load, trash pack," along with a little "Hey my left shoulder is way low, I think I'll dump now" kinda jump.

[SkymonkeyONE 4]

Quote

How are the openings? Does anyone have Joe's RDS on something around an 83/ 84. Do you find the rings pivot on opening resulting in an exaggerated swimming opening or increased propensity for line twists?

I have had Joe's slider on both my 79 and my 84 Velocity and I have never had a bad opening. I had one of the very first ones he ever made.

edited to add: I still have my "tape and grommets" rings on my 84 even though Joe gave me the new stainless rings. I am simply too lazy to re-rig it with the new ones. Never had a problem with the "old" rings.

Chuck

[Vectracide 0]

I jumped one of Jeff Bell's (Kapowsin's Rigger) RDS systems this last weekend. I jumped it on my Katana 107 loaded at 1.8. 1 jump at subterminal and about 9 at terminal. It quickened my openings just slightly, but the KA openings were smooth to begin with. It however, increased the on heading percentage greatly. As for ease of removal, it couldn't be easier. Grab the handles with one hand, yank it from behind and bring it to your waist and wrap it up. Stuff in shirt (tucked in well).

As for the performance after removal, it makes no difference which one you get. What I would really like to investigate is the performance increase differences between x-braced and non-xbraced canopies. Being that the X-braced is so much flatter across the top and more efficient to begin with, I'm wondering if the non-xbraced canopies tend to benefit more from the decreased resistance and wing deformation due to the PC/D-bag drag. I was absolutly blown away by the difference in how the canopy feels. Everything seems smoother. My turn feels smoother and I could swear that my rears are more sensitive, due to increased speed. I went over 300' on a crosswing landing at sea level yesterday. I have only been able to do that with a downwind component before. I will never jump without a removable slider ever again, and its fast to reattatch the D-bag for when you're not training/competing. Just stuff the lines in the back of your mudflap.

I will get a chance to jump one of Joe's sliders soon, so I will post what , if any difference there is between them.

------------------------------

Controlled and Deliberate.....

[cessna54tango 0]

hey, i had one on my old xf2 and it made a big difference. you were asking for 9 cell performance. one thought is since it removes drag from the pilot chute pulling back on the canopy it allows it to dive more resulting in a longer recovery arc and more speed. just what ive found with about 300 jumps on the xf2 with it.

[shadowswoop97 0]

There is a RDS available through Nick Batsch from the rigging loft Para Concepts, we have RDS available for the JVX the JVX2.0 the Velocity , vx and so on, If you have any questions or would like some video of the system, contact nick Batsch at 314-708-0440

[cessna54tango 0]

how does the jvx open with one, i heard it was like shizzle

[shadowswoop97 0]

It opens better than the original slider,. I can upload some video of the openings a litlle later this evening when I have time. The overall design is very thought through, and made specifically for the jvx. each corner has two conection points to the grommet system and they are cut in on the corners to allow for the proper shape of the slider on opening due to the extra material on the grommets different from regular sliders. I like the system very much and prefer it over any of the rds I have seen on the matket thus far. Also the gromnmets used are Icarus grommets, rather than some custom made metal alloy grommets that you have no idea what they will do to your lines because of the metal they are made of. call me if you have any questions

[superstu 0]

mine opens good with an RDS, but it's not made by these guys.

nick, have you guys tested this system with mel's HMA lines? with these types of lines there might be a problem with the canopy opening too slowly and spinning up resulting in a mal. at least that's what happened to my friend.

Slip Stream Air Sports
Do not go softly, do not go quietly, never back down

[marks 0]

Quote

how does the jvx open with one, i heard it was like shizzle

they are getting better. when you get the right slider size it is ok. the slider HAS to be 29' by 24'.

[shadowswoop97 0]

Mike whittenburg has 200 jumps on it and myself have 20 jumps on it now. I notice no slow openings or mals or line twists. The slider is made to the true shape of the original, and will open better because of the rigidity of the grommet system. These grommets are actual icarus griommets, they are set into a hard plastic, and work great. I can send you a video clip of the openings a bit later when I get time tonight, thanks for your concern. This is likeno other rds on the market different grommet system.

[masterrigger1 2]

Nick,
A couple of points:

1. First, the two point system is no better that the single.
We have been there and tried it.

2. Second, we do not use grommets. We use Machined SS rings and I do have a idea what they do to the lines.

3.How many jumps have you got on our system?

4.There are two patents pending on our RDS system and I believe one for PD 's version, so it will be interesting to see yours!


Blue ones,
MEL

Skyworks Parachute Service, LLC
www.Skyworksparachuteservice.com

[superstu 0]

hey nick, i know you have the regular HMA lines, but mel's lines are those HMA lines that are braided differently and have the blue look to them. i've heard that no matter what the slider is it will come down just a hair slower with those lines but wasn't sure if you guys had tried it with your RDS yet. or were you saying that mike has 200 jumps on your RDS with those types of lines?

Slip Stream Air Sports
Do not go softly, do not go quietly, never back down

[cessna54tango 0]

so im under the impression that mels and joes are the same thing. i have used theirs on my old xf2 for about 250 jumps and now on my xaos for about 20 jumps. i think theirs are the greatest. i do have an idea of what type of metal ring you refer to as i was going to have our machine shop make them for him..... but it seems he had a lower bid anyways, they are perfect, the rings that is. deburred and polished nicely so they will not harm the lines at all. just think of how bad brass grommets are on lines after they wear, and those are on stock sliders!