gowlerk

FYI, 2007 Argus just sold on ebay for $159.50. It was a 7 day auction, 6 bidders and 16 total bids. Pretty cheap, but the unit is due for service. Not definitive by any means, but it does give an idea of what the market place values them at. Ken Always remember the brave children who died defending your right to bear arms. Freedom is not free.

I'm glad there is some support. What you have said does clear up some of the questions in my mind. However, I'm wondering about the continued existence of Aviacom. I must confess, I know nothing about this company. Perhaps they have other products and other reasons to exist. But a Google search turned up nothing at all about Aviacom except references to "supplier of skydiver information systems" Given it's history, I find it unlikely that the principles will be able or willing to provide much in the way of support. And I can see no good prospect for this company to continue to function. Perhaps someone will swoop in and salvage something from the wreckage, but wreckage is all I see at the moment. Ken Always remember the brave children who died defending your right to bear arms. Freedom is not free.

I can't imagine paying anywhere near full price for one of these. Even if it's allowed, and you believe it is effective, which are both in at least some question. It is an orphan, with very limited support, a dwindling supply of cutters, and only the most simple basic testing available. Anyone buying one of these at anywhere near retail is being taken advantage of. Buyer beware. I must say that I'm very disappointed by the failure of this unit to succeed. It just goes to show the difficulty of launching and sustaining such a critical product in such a small market. Always remember the brave children who died defending your right to bear arms. Freedom is not free.

Many people would say zero. We've all seen them for sale at various asking prices. I'm not looking for one or selling one, but I am curious to know if there is any market for them at all. I've seen a couple on ebay at fixed prices, but someone just put one up for auction. The result of that may give us an idea what they can sell for. Ken Always remember the brave children who died defending your right to bear arms. Freedom is not free.

People starting out typically end up paying between $2500 and $3000 here in Manitoba. The lower end of that usually involves an AAD that is almost ready to retire. In other words a 10 or 11 YO Cypres. Don't buy anything unless you have a good relationship with someone you trust who can advise you. Preferably a local instructor and or rigger who has nothing to gain from the sale. It's not so much that you will be cheated, although that is possible. It's more that you don't know yet what you need without some help. I have found that if you have the cash in hand you can often get a decent price. There are a lot of people looking for gear that really can't afford to buy it. So sellers will often ask too much, but end up taking what they can in the end. Old reserves are ok up to a point. It is complicated and that's why you need an adviser. Usually the best person to ask for help is whoever you think will be the rigger packing and maintaining it for you. If they feel you will become an on going customer they will likely be willing to spend at least some time helping you out. And remember, advice given in online forums like this is free. And it can sometimes be worth every penny you pay. Good luck Ken Always remember the brave children who died defending your right to bear arms. Freedom is not free.

I see it here: http://www.wingstore.aero/150-mars 803.86 euros, compared to 1090.98 for Cypres and 1052.65 for Vigil. Finally, real competition. I'm looking forward to being able to have this choice. Ken Always remember the brave children who died defending your right to bear arms. Freedom is not free.

I've only seen those black bands a few times. I'd love to know where to get them. Anyone? Ken Always remember the brave children who died defending your right to bear arms. Freedom is not free.

Simply put. Trust, but verify. Ken Always remember the brave children who died defending your right to bear arms. Freedom is not free.

I had to deal with the firmware problem on a couple of these units. Both made this spring, with consecutive serial numbers. I contacted Vigil USA by email, and I had a reply within an hour. After a short, and very professional conversation, They agreed to immediately ship new control units. They arrived at my house 48 hours later. I am in Canada, so this was an international shipment. I can only praise the level of service and understanding of my problem displayed by the people I dealt with. This should not be surprising to anyone who realizes just who the North American distributor of this product is. All I can say is that good companies keep good company. And that I believe that any reasonable person can deal with confidence with these people. Ken Always remember the brave children who died defending your right to bear arms. Freedom is not free.

So.....that picture is not that good, but it seems to show two RSLs, one on each riser, with two separate pins, in two separate loops, correct? If so, I wonder how well the various AAD cutters work on that? I wonder if the pins can interfere with each other? Sometimes the cure is worse than the disease, but I'll never be a rig designer, just a mere question asker! Ken Always remember the brave children who died defending your right to bear arms. Freedom is not free.

I know, these are all just electronic back up units made by people, for use by people. But the level of emotion and frustration I`ve seen around these devices is just amazing to me. My guess is that it`s because of the fact that no one can really check it and be sure that it will work when needed. It`s just an electronic box with wires and batteries. You can`t test it, or check it other than observing the read out during it`s POST. It just goes against human nature to trust such a device, and then some authority may just decide that you must have one to jump. And oh, by the way, we may decide that the one you own is no good here anymore. Depending of course where the cutter is mounted, or maybe not depending on how the management of the DZ feels, or of course your National Association! I think I`ve just answered my own question about the emotions and frustrations. I hope the M2 is available soon. I want to be an early adopter so everyone can tell me how crazy I am to be a test jumper! Ken Always remember the brave children who died defending your right to bear arms. Freedom is not free.

Ya... but I`ll bet NASA`s contractors don`t coat them with sticky silicon before the they vacuum pack and heat press them into the available space! Ken Always remember the brave children who died defending your right to bear arms. Freedom is not free.

What is it with people who own Cypri and feel such a strong need to slam other devices? Is it related to a need to brag about all the money they spend? Or are people just emotionally attached to this miracle device that that may save them from doom? Ken Always remember the brave children who died defending your right to bear arms. Freedom is not free.

I've been told that any time nylon webbing has had enough uv exposure to be noticeable to the eye, it will have lost at least half of it's strength. I am betting that before long some one with much more knowledge than me is going to post some hard facts about this. Hiding a problem by coloring it would obviously be wrong. Dyeing it solely to change the color is not technically feasible, as well as possibly damaging to the material. Harness webbing has colored threads woven into them for identification purposes. All in all there are several good reasons not to try this. Ken Always remember the brave children who died defending your right to bear arms. Freedom is not free.

That may be true, hard to say with out a test drop. But I will say that it wanted to maintain it's cocooned and S folded shape, like a brick. If it started to come out of that shape, I'm sure the airflow would do the rest. But I'm not sure it would have been able to start. Ken Always remember the brave children who died defending your right to bear arms. Freedom is not free.

Early this summer I bought an ebay rig that had been a closet queen for 10 years. I came with a Diablo 170 and a PDR160, both packed. Judging from the rusty hardware it was not stored in a cool dry place. The Diablo came out of the bag in a brick, I had to peel it apart to hang it up. There is no way this thing would have opened, that old South African ZP fabric may as well have been coated with glue. Although it works fine now. The PDR on the other hand, stored just as poorly, and for just as long seemed like a normal repack. It didn't even seem to stay wrinkled longer than usual. I sort of wish I could have tested it first. I guess if I had just put the rig on and jumped it, I would have! Ken Always remember the brave children who died defending your right to bear arms. Freedom is not free.

Good question, lousy place to find the answer though. Send an email here info@flyaerodyne.com All will be revealed. Ken Always remember the brave children who died defending your right to bear arms. Freedom is not free.

Go to Henderson's website here: http://www.hendersonsewing.com/default.asp Enter 549385 into the search window ( that's the part number you need ). It comes up as being $4.74 each. Whether or not they actually have stock is another matter, but that's where I'd start. Ken Always remember the brave children who died defending your right to bear arms. Freedom is not free.

Poll? You would take a vote to decide this when RI is a phone call away? You are just kidding, right? Ken Always remember the brave children who died defending your right to bear arms. Freedom is not free.

I have a Reflex to pack. DOM 05/01 Serial#2162. Part # RA01-1 (1) The only manual I can find is for a Reflex II. I'm not sure if there is a difference or not. It's possible that it is a Reflex II, but nothing on it indicates so. I'm guessing there is some knowledge about this available in this forum. If you can give me some information on this, please let me know. Thanks Ken Always remember the brave children who died defending your right to bear arms. Freedom is not free.

I agree with all the reasons you list for possible delays. I'm not asking for Mars to explain the hold up. I'm just saying that they need to keep us informed about the launch date. Once they announce one, they should follow through or give a new estimate of the date. They should do this as soon as possible after they realize that they can't deliver on time. I can be patient, but I need information that is realistic and timely. The time they gave has come and gone without a word. Who knows? Maybe there are hundreds of them sitting in the warehouse ready to ship next week. I'm right with you on the fantasy thing, but I would note that if you happen to own an AAD that Big Brother won't let you use, and he also won't let you jump without one, it's going to feel pretty real. Ken Always remember the brave children who died defending your right to bear arms. Freedom is not free.

Just as a matter of interest, have any container manufacturers approved the Astra for installation? Of course none have banned it so can it be used? Ken Always remember the brave children who died defending your right to bear arms. Freedom is not free.

That may be among the reasons they have not yet done what they said they would do. When you announce a launch date for a new product, you need to follow through. Or at least keep your potential customers informed of changes. Otherwise you look like you are not organized or professional. This is not the image the AAD industry should be stiving for at this time of turmoil. Ken Always remember the brave children who died defending your right to bear arms. Freedom is not free.

Actually the website looks nice to me, but obviously English is not their first language. The user's manual is there, and the English is much better in it, but not perfect. I can remember when the Cypres website was not the slick marketing tool it now is. Don't let the glitter fool you! Ken Always remember the brave children who died defending your right to bear arms. Freedom is not free.

After a splashy announcement at the PIA Symposium, including a shipping date of June 2011 we have heard nothing from the distributor or the manufacturer about this product. I fully understand that this is a complex project, and that delays are almost inevitable. But at the very least, the customers need an update on when or even if this product will be made available. I am waiting for more information so that I can make a decision. As far as I can see, the announcement was made so that people would hold off on buying and therefore potentially boost sales. The Mars website still says shipping in June. The Alti-2 site has an announcement saying more information will follow the Symposium. I don't know who is dropping the ball here, but the lack of an update is reflecting poorly on both companies. Ken Gowler Always remember the brave children who died defending your right to bear arms. Freedom is not free.