Skydiver with Static Line?  
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Skydiver with Static Line? - 9/24/2004 1:32:06 AM   
saddler



Posts: 318
Joined: 1/28/2002
From: Celina, OH, USA
Status: online 		Just wondering if anyone has tried an RC Skydiver using a static line to open the chute. I have about had it with dirt dives and i'm tired of repairing the stupid thing. I am working with a buddy of mine right now who flys rc and also is a skydiver. He is working on coming up with a static line setup like used on the real chutes for students. I don't care about an RC skydiver freefalling, i want to fly it with the chute open! So, we'll give it a shot. Just thought i would see if anyone else has tried this?

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Team JR/Horizon Hobby
Wren Turbines USA ~ Altecare R/C
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RE: Skydiver with Static Line? - 9/24/2004 3:35:34 AM   
wyldman


 

Posts: 150
Joined: 6/21/2003
From: kansas city, MO, USA
Status: offline 		Solomon's skydiver is static line has a thread that hooks on to the plane and as jumper falls away it pulls the release on the pack not sure if it pulls out the chute.
are you using a pilot chute to pull out the main, works for me.
Wyldman

(in reply to saddler)
       Post #: 2

RE: Skydiver with Static Line? - 9/24/2004 4:27:24 AM   
saddler



Posts: 318
Joined: 1/28/2002
From: Celina, OH, USA
Status: online 		Yes, the static line will pull out the pilot chute which will intern pull out the main chute. We should try it for the first time on sunday afternoon so hopefully all goes well. Will post to let you know!

_____________________________

Team JR/Horizon Hobby
Wren Turbines USA ~ Altecare R/C

(in reply to saddler)
       Post #: 3

RE: Skydiver with Static Line? - 9/24/2004 2:54:45 PM   
edge_pilot



Posts: 558
Joined: 3/9/2004
From: Lagrange, OH, USA
Status: offline 		Isn't freefall part of the excitement???????????? Sounds to me you take all the fun out if you take the freefall away. Static line is just a bad fix for a bad setup, in my opinion.

(in reply to saddler)
       Post #: 4

RE: Skydiver with Static Line? - 9/25/2004 5:19:00 PM   
wjones


 

Posts: 181
Joined: 12/4/2003
From: louisville, KY, USA
Status: offline 		Edge_pilot your wrong, the free fall last for maybe 3,4 sec. if it opens. looking at the pic you posted of your man, it had a D/D was that a bad setup in a free fall? I,m like saddler I jump static line with my man, and the excitement is still big time. Last week at the Muncie skydiving Rally everyone, but myself was freefalling. I did tryed to free fall my man one time and the chute did not open. Do to bad pack job or setup, I dont know. I put my man back togather and static line my next jump and everything was all good. So lets not say static line is a fix for bad setup. you can D/D freefalling or static line jump.

Thx Wil

is the file upload not working? I keep trying to upload pic of my jumper. It want work!

Just put the skydiver Im making in my Gallery!

< Message edited by wjones -- 9/25/2004 6:50:17 PM >

(in reply to edge_pilot)
       Post #: 5

RE: Skydiver with Static Line? - 9/26/2004 7:53:32 PM   
fly103-RCU



Posts: 140
Joined: 3/23/2002
From: Sylva, NC, USA
Status: offline 		Hi Guys, Its been awhile but hope to be back for now. With the screwed up shop move and the floods from the huricanes I didnt think we would ever get caught up!!! Two more jumpers to go and we will be back on schedule. New web-site is up and hopefuly will be complete soon. As to the use of the static line, you will have to have spent as much time over the last 4 or 5 years as I have testing ideas and changes to under stand why I say free fall is fifty-fifty on chute openings. I mean you never new if it was going to open or not. I even spent two years testing different types of plastics until I came up with one that could handle a dirt dive with the least amount of damage and still be fixable at the field. I did and it even glues back together with good old Wal-Mart super glue. But then I wanted to show the skydivers off at shows and didnt feel safe with our not sure if was going to open senario so I started working on a static line system. You know why the military uses static lines for our paratroopers? Because it works 99.9% of the time. My skydiver had 119 drops with no failures, then there was that drop I forgot to take the safety pin out of the pack and I hit square in the middle of a paved runway. The spectators loved it and cheered louder for that then anything else at the show. The jumper was glued back together but the electronics didnt make it. I now use my check list every time and I dont let anything rush me. My jumper is now at 71 drops with no failures since the pavement dive. The free fall adrenaline rush only last for the first few drops then the frustration of the chute not opening sets in. My static line pulls the chute pack pin then it pulls the pilot chute out along with the main before it disconnects. I will be a Hop-N-Pop for a long time. Talk to you soon!!!


_____________________________

Ken Solomon
R/C Skydivers : www.solomonrc.com

(in reply to wjones)
       Post #: 6

RE: Skydiver with Static Line? - 9/27/2004 2:22:17 AM   
edge_pilot



Posts: 558
Joined: 3/9/2004
From: Lagrange, OH, USA
Status: offline 		To each his own I guess on the static line jumping. 99.9% of all the dirt dives I see is the pin failing to come out of the chute pack. This problem is NOT that hard to fix. Yes I have had my share of dirt dives(early on), anyone doing R/C skydiving would be lying to say otherwise. This diver in these pic's has only had 1 D/D, that was because we tried to let him go upside down set see if he would right himself. Needless to say I had to glue him back together. This is my "test dummy" so to speech. His foots all red from the last test, SMOKE canisters.(worked very well) After I have found out the problem with the release pin in the chute pack and know how to fix it the success right is ALOT higher than 50%. I am jumping with a 98% to 99.9% success rate now.( in a free fall situation) It takes alot of patience and time to freefall properly. There are a million of things to look at that can cause a D/D, but I feel its definately all worth it in the end. In the end we are all in this to skydive, and no matter how we do it WE ARE DOING IT. Lets keep the sport growing and get more people involved.

(in reply to fly103-RCU)
       Post #: 7

RE: Skydiver with Static Line? - 9/27/2004 7:32:30 PM   
saddler



Posts: 318
Joined: 1/28/2002
From: Celina, OH, USA
Status: online 		Well, got together with my skydiving buddy yesterday and headed for the field with my old beat up skydiver newly rigged with a static line setup. It is rigged just like a real chute with a static line. We made 6 jumps and had 6 perfect openings! I have never had that kind of success and is the major reason why i have been so discouraged from RC skydiving. A new light has been shed on the whole thing now!! It was a blast, everything worked as planned. Can't wait to get my new little dude with movable arms at the elbow and it should be awesome!!

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Team JR/Horizon Hobby
Wren Turbines USA ~ Altecare R/C

(in reply to edge_pilot)
       Post #: 8

RE: Skydiver with Static Line? - 9/27/2004 7:45:34 PM   
edge_pilot



Posts: 558
Joined: 3/9/2004
From: Lagrange, OH, USA
Status: offline 		Glad to hear you had a good time. I know the feeling of constantly dirtdiving in front of 10 of your buddies!! Now your next step is to freefall 6 jumps and get 6 perfect flights, Mite want to wait to try that with your new jumper though.

(in reply to saddler)
       Post #: 9

RE: Skydiver with Static Line? - 9/27/2004 9:26:38 PM   
fly103-RCU



Posts: 140
Joined: 3/23/2002
From: Sylva, NC, USA
Status: offline 		Great job!! Glad to hear your going to stay with us. As edge_pilot says to each his own. But edge _pilot is right the next real challange is to perfect that free fall opening. Our skydivers are great free fallers. You can spin him left and right and have even done flips back to controled free fall. Pulled both arms back slightly and was even able to fly him forward in free fall away from a group of trees on a dirt dive. If I could just get the jumper to reach down and pull the pilot chute out of the pack on his side and throw it out in the airstream we would have it made. Edge your right there is a thrill to the free fall and the spectators love the thrill of the wait and see if he lives. I myself had gotten to the stage of increasing forward flight and needed more openings to test my changes. I am working on a pack for free fall that should get the chute out in the airstream every time but most of the time right now is spent increasing forward flight. The real goal is to increase Skydiver numbers and not all have the patience we have had to keep going year after year so I think the static line will help with keeping them involved and we never know it could be one of these great young minds that might come up with a whole new concept for making free fall happen. Talk to you soon!!!

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< Message edited by fly103-RCU -- 9/27/2004 9:31:24 PM >


_____________________________

Ken Solomon
R/C Skydivers : www.solomonrc.com

(in reply to edge_pilot)
       Post #: 10

RE: Skydiver with Static Line? - 9/27/2004 10:02:53 PM   
wyldman


 

Posts: 150
Joined: 6/21/2003
From: kansas city, MO, USA
Status: offline 		I will have to agree that I like all the hang time I can get and free fall openings can really cut down on the time. I'm still using the free fall opening on my little dude from RC skydive usa, but I hit the release as soon as Elvis ( AKA Skydiver) clears the drop plane.

Wyldman

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(in reply to fly103-RCU)
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RE: Skydiver with Static Line? - 9/28/2004 4:06:09 AM   
fa18007


 

Posts: 9
Joined: 7/16/2004
From: Fayetteville, NY, USA
Status: offline 		Hey yall,

I was bored during the hurricain, so i made a home-made skydiver with extra servos I had and a GI Joe. What I plan to test with him is a reserve chute. In addition to his parafoil on his back, he has a chest mounted round 36" reserve canopy. He has a 3rd servo on channel 3 to open it. I plan to test him next weekend if the wind ever dies down. Ill try and post pics of him later.

(in reply to wyldman)
       Post #: 12

RE: Skydiver with Static Line? - 9/28/2004 1:38:37 PM   
broodwa



Posts: 34
Joined: 9/21/2004
From: OudtshoornWestern Cape, SOUTH AFRICA
Status: offline 		It seems you guys all have a problem with the chute openings after free fall. I scratch built a skydiver out of fibre glass and made my own move-able arms just like the MIKE kits. The chute I got from rc skydive USA. I was not impressed with the chute cotanainer and release system so I dedcided to look for alternatives. I use the same release pin setup on the servo as the RC Skydive USA and Solomon RC divers but I designed my own adjustable container for the chute. Instead of having a release pin connected to a piece of string that runs to the shoulder where the release pin sits, my release ring attaches directly to the release pin on the shoulder of the diver and the top flap of the container gets pulled back by the ellastics on the legs so there is now way the chute can still sit inside the container. I did my first jump with my diver on 11 September 2004 and since then has done 21 jumps with no D/D. I did my first display jumps this past weekend 8 of them and had 8/8 openings, an absolute crowd pleaser. I will try and post some pics of the cotainer in the next day or so, blue sky.

(in reply to fa18007)
       Post #: 13

RE: Skydiver with Static Line? - 9/28/2004 1:49:15 PM   
edge_pilot



Posts: 558
Joined: 3/9/2004
From: Lagrange, OH, USA
Status: offline 		Glad to hear some fans out there for the freefall!!! I have been having great success with mine. The pin an chute pack clip is where all the problems lye. Once you straighten that out freefalling is a piece of cake. Also glad to see another skydiver added to the bunch. Hope to have more people like you to get the itch to skydive!!!!

(in reply to broodwa)
       Post #: 14

RE: Skydiver with Static Line? - 9/29/2004 12:13:42 AM   
wjones


 

Posts: 181
Joined: 12/4/2003
From: louisville, KY, USA
Status: offline 		Broodwa, Great can'nt wait to see your pic. of you skydiver. I'm working on a fiberglass skydiver. I pulled a body box out of the mold today! Cool! I never work with fiberglass before so it is something new for me. I like It! I will try to post my 1st 2nd, and 3rd try at a fiberglass body box.


Thx, Wil

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