Chutes- which one and where to buy

[Bryan Cotton]

All,
It has been a while since I have owned a chute. Had a National 425 backpack for my glider. I sold it long ago. What chute style works best in the Waiex? Should I buy new or used? Anybody have one to sell? Looking for all opinions.

[WaiexN143NM]

Hi bryan,
Good article in kitplanes june 2016 issue on emergency chutes. Check it out.
See u this summer at osh 2016. Keep at building! Always fun to see your progress!

WaiexN143NM
Michael

[Bryan Cotton]

Michael,
I read it and it got me thinking. Seems like a seat bottom chute would be bad in a Sonex due to lack of room behind the stick.

Regarding Kitplanes, I thought the last issue was top notch. Also good to see two Sonex completions, plus a neighbor's Javron cub.

[kevinh]

I've had Strong and Softie chuts in the past (foolishly sold with my last plane). I'll buy a softie when the time comes for my waiex (hopefully used if I can find one). No idea yet on what shape fits best but I look forward to seeing what folks say...

A good place to find good used chutes is the vansairforce classifieds - one shows up there at least once a month (because folks decide aerobatics isn't for them or they only wanted it for phase 1)...

[rizzz]

I've got an older model Mini Softie. I remove the back cushion when I wear it.
It's not extremely comfortable but it's doable, I don't think you can get much better than that in an aircraft like a Sonex wearing a chute.
I wore it a lot during my phase 1 testing, for example when flutter testing, stall testing and things like that.
Now I only wear it doing aerobatics.

I bought it second hand of Barnstormers, the previous owner was kind enough to have it freshly repacked before sending it to me.
I might sell it again some day in the future but I'm not that comfortable yet doing aero's in my Sonex that I would do them without wearing my chute.

[fastj22]

I had a national flat. Removed the interior and sat on a thin camping pad. Sold it last year when I found myself not using it much and realizing the usefulness is rather minimal with the type of flying I was doing.

[NWade]

IMHO: I've owned two Softies (for my glider-flying habit) and like them a lot. They're based out of my local airport (KAWO, near Seattle) - good people, been in the biz a long long time. They're expensive brand new; but you can often find gently-used ones that are a few years old for a lot cheaper. As long as they've been stored in a clean, dry place they last decades!

Not sure which Softie would be right for the Sonex/Waiex; but in the glider I tend to use a Mini Softie.

Good luck,

--Noel

[ViennaVA223]

NO!!! The long feature article about emergency parachutes for sport pilots in the latest issue of Kitplanes was NOT good--it was LAME!!!

I am at home, recovering from surgery (elective, so I oughtn't bitch too much), grinding through the days of pain, swelling, and fatigue. I'm probably a bit tetchy right now as a result. However, I must say I was very disappointed by the quality of the Kitplanes article. I consider Kitplanes to be a superlative publication, but this article fell quite short of their normally high standards.

FWIW, I do not now nor have I ever worked for or represented any parachute manufacturer anywhere on the planet. And I only made 200 jumps during my misspent youth. However, I've been wearing emergency parachutes in various aircraft since the early `70s and have long been a keen student of the subject.

The Kitplanes article was a nice, soft (Softie?) advertorial for Para-Phernalia and the Softie line. Period. Not a single other manufacturer was mentioned. The ram-air canopy option was not mentioned.

SO MUCH MORE can be said, and SHOULD be said, about the subject of emergency parachutes for sport pilots. I will try to come back to this later; right now I have to ice myself.

Jan W. Steenblik/ViennaVA223
CML ASEL/ASES, IFR Airplane, PPL Glider
USPA B-4416
Future Sonex builder: Sonex, tailwheel, perhaps Rotax 915

[Sonex1517]

As a former hard core skydiver I will toss in my two cents.

First, getting out of a Sonex/Waiex in an emergency is dicey at best. But, regs are regs. (Regs say you do not need one in a Onex)

There are several manufacturers of emergency parachutes. I have zero interest in any of them so I am not going to 'recommend' any.

Softie is a reliable manufacturer. Strong enterprises also makes good gear. National parachutes is also a long time brand.

But I will say that getting a used parachute may or may not be a good investment. If you do, much like buying a used airplane - get it checked out by a reputable certificated parachute rigger before you buy.

If it's been stored incorrectly or casually (like in a car trunk) or exposed to solvents or battery acid then you are wasting money. Used gear can be a great deal or a huge mistake. Stolen gear is not uncommon. Be wise.

I spent 17 years making 3000 jumps so I do have some experience with skydiving and parachutes.

It's not cheap, so don't approach it that way (I am not suggesting you are). The day you need it you won't even think about how much it cost.....

Finally, if you are going to wear one, do yourself a favor. Learn how to use it. Practice how to open the canopy in flight (in one of our aircraft that is a challenge). Practice how to get out. Learn how to arch in Freefall. Practice how to deploy the parachute. And learn how to steer it and land it.

Better yet - go make a few jumps so the first one is not an emergency.

[GordonTurner]

3000 jumps Robbie....

Right there we know you need your head examined!

Gordon