Ace and BlackJack vs. Mojo

[guest]

I'm about to get a new canopy, and wonder if anyone can give me an opinion on the ace and blackjack.

I now have a PerigeePro, with a Mojo260, and I've done about 120 jumps on it. I'm beyond happy when it comes to performance, and I've said I'd never jump any canopy but Mojo. . Still... If the Ace and Blackjack has caracteristics that outperform the Mojo, it might be time for a change of mind.

Any experince shared would be appreciated big time

By the way.. How would the BlackJack open when you're terminal?

cya

CJ :-)

[feral]

^By the way.. How would the BlackJack open when you're terminal?^

Buy throwing the p.c

I just couldn't help myself

bsbd feral:D

[guest]

Feral, You Crazy dude... ;-)))

Sadly I couldn't meet you in Norway...

Greetings from the Blonde Dutchman! :D

[imported_Tom Aiello]

Hi CJ:

I think that no one feels very comfortable answering your questions, because no one yet has enough experience under an Ace or Blackjack to have a good basis for comparison.

My very limited experience has been that the Blackjack is a far superior canopy to the Mojo. However, it is VERY different, so you'll need to make some "get acquainted" jumps on it to feel comfortable.

As far as terminal openings, I asked Adam that question, and he said he'd recommend a sail slider at terminal due to the speed of the openings. I plan on testing that aspect some time in the next few months (I'm a big mesh slider believer). But, the manufacturer's recommendation appears to be "sail only" due to the speed of the openings.

--Tom Aiello
tbaiello@ucdavis.edu

[feral]

Tom I have been told by cr jumpers and seen jumpers use sail sliders for terminal jumps on there mojos .When I asked why they said That was the manufacturer's recommendation .And most jumpers quickly change to mesh .Why is that the recommendation , Does it just open harder or does Adam say that it can cause a problem if you use mesh. My V-tec opens harder with mesh but I don't like sail sliders in base I think they fu(k up your headings. What do you use and why do you belive in mesh?

bsbd feral :D

[Dwain]

This is an interesting topic and many jumpers have mixed results with both mesh and sail sliders at terminal.

I personally have had better results with a mesh slider with both FOX and Mojo canopies. I found that I wasn't getting consistent opening speeds (in terms of altitude used) with a sail slider. Sometimes it would open fast and sometimes it would snivel – even when other things (such as pack jobs, p/c and deployment airspeed) remained a constant.
If you are conservative in your deployment altitude then this variability in opening speed usually isn't a problem. However if you intend to squeeze in as much freefall as possible then this degree of variability can have interesting results.

My theory for the increased variability with sail sliders is that the bottom skin of the canopy is presented with highly turbulent airflow during deployment (whereas with a mesh slider the airflow is still somewhat clean after passing through the slider). Turbulence introduces a large degree of variance in deployment and thus the difference in opening time - even if you pack exactly the same and deploy at exactly the same airspeed on each jump.
Mesh opens harder but this can usually be successfully controlled by restricting the nose, extra wraps on the rubber bands used for both direct and indirect slider control and double folding the A-B, B-C and C-D folds as one unit. This tends to create about the same opening force as a 1 sec delay slider down opening (i.e. hard but still acceptable).
If center cell stripping is controlled (which can create HUGE variances in deployments) then mesh reefing at terminal is reasonably consistent in terms of altitude used on deployment.

[imported_Tom Aiello]

I know that CR recommends using a sail slider at terminal on all their canopies. I have always used a mesh slider on Mojos (hence my desire to try the mesh slider on the Blackjack).

I prefer the mesh slider because I think (basically from personal experience) that it yields faster, more consistent openings. This means that you can pull lower, and closer to the object (better heading) with a mesh slider.

Also, I've witnessed a sail slider snivel a jumper into the ground (just a twisted ankle, thank god) as the slider bumped the links. He had pulled at the same altitude with the same rig and packjob on several jumps done earlier that day. This one just snivelled strangely, and we watched him slam into the ground (it was a heart stopping few moments--until he popped up with a strained "I think I'm ok--ready for another one?).

Anyway, that's my two cents.

--Tom Aiello
tbaiello@ucdavis.edu