Wingsuits and Velcro Rigs

[imported_Tom Aiello]

In this thread:

http://www.blincmagazine.com/forum/board/260.html

I noticed this comment:

>It is a custom rig from ParaTech Rigging with four articulation points...to eliminate any velcro peel from body movement. In addition, it has extremely aggressive velcro that is also available from ParaTech. The entire rig was built to withstand terminal conditions. I tested the rig in a variety of configurations going in and out of terminal, and it always worked perfectly. I'm happy with the rig...

I was looking for opinions on the use of such a custom velcro rig for wingsuit flights.

Questions for Jim:

1) What made you conclude that a pin rig was inappropriate for your use?

2) Is the rig also tested at subterminal speeds? What is the lowest test jump on the rig?

3) Can you give us more details on your testing program?

4) Does the rig have the potential to create a hesitation or PC in tow at low airspeed?

5) Can you elaborate on the special velcro used? I'd be very interested to hear specifics on manufacturer, product name, etc.

6) Is this a versatile all purpose rig, or is it a specialized (wingsuit only) rig?

7) What is the meaured pull force required to open the rig? Is it greater than the pull force required to open other velcro rigs you have tested?


Other Questions:

1) What is the view of Bird-man International on the use of specialized velcro rigs for wingsuit flights?

2) Is anyone else testing wingsuit velcro rigs?

3) Are any of the really fast flyers (you know who you are) involved in the testing?

If anyone has more info about this new rig, I would really appreciate it.

Thanks!

--Tom Aiello
tbaiello@mac.com

[PerFlare]

Hi Tom,

I love to hear more about the data on this rig. It is an exciting concept.

Personally I do not recommend velcro rigs when it comes to wingsuit flying ... it just look dangerous :) and I do think pins are the best right now.

Yuri, please tell me more about the pre-releasees you experienced. Why did it happen?

Stay alive!
PerFlare
Team Bautasten

[Yuri]

Yo !

The long report is somewhere in the Board archives, so here's a short recap:

The pin-cover flap of the old Warlock didn't have any plastic stiffners (made with a full range of super-low to terminal freefalls in mind). It has worked great on regular jumps and lower-speed wingsuit flights. After a couple of years, once i've learned to fly a bit better and started playing more, it came open when i dove down into the narrow gorge and picked up extra speed (and also exposed it to more airflow). The bridle starts flapping, extracts the pins and there you go. I got a quick clean deployment that time and thought the PC has escaped. Then it happened again in one or two more flights - and there i felt the flap flapping and the canopy lifting up. I was lucky that PC got pulled out cleanly. The pin-cover design has changed since (and it's really nice now) but there are still old Warlocks out there - people need to know about this.

Unprotected velcro has the same problem: it may stay secure while handling the rig but the high-speed airflow can peel it out fairly easy.

bsbd!

Yuri.

[PerFlare]

Yuri,

Thanks for the info. I will look for Warlocks from now on and if I see someone use one without the stiffeners I will talk with them about the problem.

Thanks again!

PerFlare

[birdman robert]

My two cents,

Assuming that the jumper using 38'' PC for his W/S jump, the pulling force is high enough to open any Velcro rig, BUT problem is not the opening, the problem is premature opening !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
If you fly FAST and in very good body position the beginning of the Velcro shrivel will be exposed during the entire flight.... this is the dangerous part and please keep this in mind!!!
Also no one of the base jumper has scanner capability to discover when the Velcro become bad!!!
With pin this is much easier, right!!!

Bird'Man inc. DO NOT RECOMMEND the VELCRO type rig for W/S BASE jumps.


Best regards
Robert
BirdMan inc.