JLCR Step by Step Burrito Style

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grouch

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I have seen a few post where people question the viability or reliability of the Jolly Logic Chute Release in high power. I wanted to share my method of using this little game changer. I am a huge fan because of the unit's simplicity and the fact that I can use it in all my rockets. Also the simplicity extends to the chutes as well. I use Top Flight flat chutes because they work well and fold up nicely. I have also used a Fruity to good use but the sew nylon bridle gets in the way of my "super burrito" method.


Start out with a rocket...duh, a small quick link, a chute, a nome blanket and the JLCR. I like to use a much larger chute than normally required. Pictured here is a Top Flight 24" flat chute in florescent pink because it shows up well in the air and on the ground.

IMG_0408-L.jpg



Next spread the chute out and fold the gores back on the chute. Troj's excellent sticky is a great resource for flat panel chute folding.

IMG_0409-L.jpg



Then fold the chute over onto itself leaving the ends of the gores poking out. I like to collect mine, make sure they are even then place a zip tie to form a loop. Sexier and easier to do than tying a knot in them.

IMG_0410-L.jpg


Next fold it over on itself again then one more time. Make sure each fold is smooth and even.

IMG_0411-L.jpg


IMG_0412-L.jpg
 
Next make a Z-fold.

IMG_0413-L.jpg



Make sure the Z-fold is tight and evenly spaced then put the JLCR around the chute bundle. I use the stock rubber bands than came with the unit. They stretch to the right tension for the tri-folded chute. This is kinda important. If you test the JLCR now the chute will pop open smartly. Notice the red retaining string is even with the gore ends on the chute.

IMG_0414-L.jpg


IMG_0415-L.jpg


IMG_0416-L.jpg



Next place the JLCR and the chute on a Nomex blanket and get ready for some tight burrito rolling. Make sure your red retaining thread, chute gores, and shock cord are all connected with a quick link.

IMG_0417-L.jpg



Arrange the chute bundle in the center of the Nome with the shock cord coming through the hole. I like to use as tight of a burrito roll as I can get. My thinking is it helps speed the opening once the bundle leaves the body tube.

IMG_0418-L.jpg



Now fold the ends of the Nomex up to completely seal off and protect the chute. Make sure the shock cord is inline with the chute bundle because the bundle will get some more wraps and you want to keep the shock cord from tangling.

IMG_0419-L.jpg


Then continue rolling until you are out of Nomex. You should end up with something that looks like this. A nice neat and tight little bundle of cute.

IMG_0420-L.jpg


IMG_0421-L.jpg



Lastly, collect the shock cord in the method that makes you happy and drop it into the body tube of your choice followed by your nice and tight chute bundle. This is a 54mm body tubed LOC Nuke Pro Maxx for size reference. You can see if fits loosely into the rocket and that every bit of the chute is tightly rolled up and protected from the ejection charge.

IMG_0422-L.jpg
 
That looks like a great technique. Thanks for sharing with everyone.

Curious:
1. Is that the larger band you're using? (Hard to tell from the picture.) I'd probably use the small one on a small chute like that to make sure it didn't shake out at apogee. Maybe that's just me.
2. Have you ever had your blanket stay wrapped around your chute on the way down? I saw one do that once (would have sworn it wasn't possible!) and since then I've advocated tethering the blanket on the shock cord such that it gets pulled away from the bundle, and can't just stay up around the bundle.

I think it's cool that people are routinely tucking in their shock cords now, rather than wrapping them around.
 
Very nice technique. I will practice this and use it with my JLCR.
 
Nice write up and excellent visuals.

One suggestion that I might make, from experience with the nomex square. It appears that the nomex square isn't tethered to anything I have had a bad experience where the nomex square pushed up the shroud lines and reefed my chute a bit, causing a much faster descent than I'd prefer. Its possible that the knot you have on the "inside" of the nomex will stop this from happening but I have taken to attaching the nomex to the quick link. I am not sure if this helps or hurts, but a suggestion that others may want to work from.

I like John Beans' suggestion to tether it lower on the shock cord - that might be the best solution of all to ensure that the nomex is pulled clear from the chute bundle. I will file this away for future memory/reference.
 
I omitted the tether for the visual. I normally teacher the nomex just below the shock cord loop so it won't slide up. If you look closely at the nomex tip, you'll see a small slit that. I use to pass a tether through. Thanks for pointing that out. As far as the nomex not opening up, I have been rolling up my chutes like this for several years before the JLCR and it's never failed. I'm not sure which rubber band I use, just one it the kit. It holds the chute tight for sure.


Sent from my iPad using Rocketry Forum
 
Excellent writeup and very helpful. Before sending it in for any publication, I'd recommend changing some of your wording. You refer to "gores", when I think you mean shrouds or shroud lines. Gores are the curved pie-shaped pieces of fabric sewn together to make a hemispherical or similar domed parachute.

Thanks for posting this!
-Ken
 
I use the same chute folding technique (but mine is seldom that tidy), and same method of connecting the chute release. My burrito technique is a bit different, but I might give this a try. Thanks!
 
Oh, I just noticed you took the trouble to slide your rubber band into the pin ring, rather than use a cow hitch on that end. That's why the band looks longer.
Anyone else do this? As long as you don't nick your band, it gives you more length to the small band.
 
Hi John, I'm glad you figured the rubber band thing out. I remember taking it off and reattaching it to make it cleaner. I'm a sucker for details like that.

Thanks for the positive replies all. I just want to see that people use and enjoy the JLCR as much as I do. A little bit if background here, when I first got into HP I was racking my brain to come up with a way to have a single break dual deploy. I researched chute bags, tether releases and cable cutters but all had drawbacks. When the JLCR came out I wanted one immediately. I figured it checked all the boxes for me but seemed there was some learning that needed to be done as early on people were still sorting it out. It always bugged me to read that people were having deployment issues even though the CR opened as expected. So I thought I'd share what I do and why. In my opinion, John's little gadget is the single most important break though in rocketry electronics mostly because it allows all the old school simple rockets to be flown within an inch of their lives and still get them back. What do I mean by that? Take a LOC Onyx and stick an AT250G in it. Little simple rockets flown big is a hoot.


Sent from my iPad using Rocketry Forum
 
Hi John, I'm glad you figured the rubber band thing out. I remember taking it off and reattaching it to make it cleaner. I'm a sucker for details like that.

Thanks for the positive replies all. I just want to see that people use and enjoy the JLCR as much as I do. A little bit if background here, when I first got into HP I was racking my brain to come up with a way to have a single break dual deploy. I researched chute bags, tether releases and cable cutters but all had drawbacks. When the JLCR came out I wanted one immediately. I figured it checked all the boxes for me but seemed there was some learning that needed to be done as early on people were still sorting it out. It always bugged me to read that people were having deployment issues even though the CR opened as expected. So I thought I'd share what I do and why. In my opinion, John's little gadget is the single most important break though in rocketry electronics mostly because it allows all the old school simple rockets to be flown within an inch of their lives and still get them back. What do I mean by that? Take a LOC Onyx and stick an AT250G in it. Little simple rockets flown big is a hoot.


Sent from my iPad using Rocketry Forum

I totally agree that the chute release has been a great development for people who have older rockets not set up for dual deploy. I can fly my old G-Force much higher than I ever dared to before.
 
I totally agree that the chute release has been a great development for people who have older rockets not set up for dual deploy. I can fly my old G-Force much higher than I ever dared to before.

Flew Ross Dunton's LOC Magnum on an AT K1100T with one of these last year and it was great!
 
I took this video of the JLCR opening on it's test cycle but didn't put it in the first round of post because I don't know how to imbed video. You can see the chute detaches from the JLCR in a hurry.

[video]https://photos.smugmug.com/Other/Rocket-Stuff/i-cgBCCKD/0/de1400af/640/MVI_0430-640.mp4[/video]
 
Jarrett,

Thanks for the clarification on how you roll! I figured that you had something setup for that to prevent the reefing issue.

I agree that the JLCR is a breakthrough! I dislike making separation charges and dealing with the electronics - especially on MPR. Small AV bays, crowded electronics, often times no av bay to work with. For large rockets it's not too bad but it's a hassle that I try to avoid. Honestly - dealing with dual deployment turned me off from rockets for a while and flying smaller rockets on 38mm without dual deployment is a risky endeavor.

Nice work on the write up and thanks John for making a useful tool!
 
Have you ever had your blanket stay wrapped around your chute on the way down? I saw one do that once (would have sworn it wasn't possible!) and since then I've advocated tethering the blanket on the shock cord such that it gets pulled away from the bundle, and can't just stay up around the bundle.

I think it's cool that people are routinely tucking in their shock cords now, rather than wrapping them around.

Totally agree with those points! I have had that happen to me with the blanket staying with the 'chute and stopping it from opening fully. I always fold the chute this way as I don't trust the wrapping technique at all - I've seen too many chutes get tangled.
 
Next make a Z-fold.

Make sure the Z-fold is tight and evenly spaced then put the JLCR around the chute bundle. I use the stock rubber bands than came with the unit. They stretch to the right tension for the tri-folded chute. This is kinda important. If you test the JLCR now the chute will pop open smartly. Notice the red retaining string is even with the gore ends on the chute.

Next place the JLCR and the chute on a Nomex blanket and get ready for some tight burrito rolling. Make sure your red retaining thread, chute gores, and shock cord are all connected with a quick link.

Arrange the chute bundle in the center of the Nome with the shock cord coming through the hole. I like to use as tight of a burrito roll as I can get. My thinking is it helps speed the opening once the bundle leaves the body tube.

Now fold the ends of the Nomex up to completely seal off and protect the chute. Make sure the shock cord is inline with the chute bundle because the bundle will get some more wraps and you want to keep the shock cord from tangling.

Then continue rolling until you are out of Nomex. You should end up with something that looks like this. A nice neat and tight little bundle of cute.

Lastly, collect the shock cord in the method that makes you happy and drop it into the body tube of your choice followed by your nice and tight chute bundle. This is a 54mm body tubed LOC Nuke Pro Maxx for size reference. You can see if fits loosely into the rocket and that every bit of the chute is tightly rolled up and protected from the ejection charge.

Sorry for the late reply but one little suggestion/annotation to this technique. The pictures above are fine with
the "loose/soft" cloth-like chute protectors. There are some protectors out there of a Nomex fabric type that are really
quite stiff and have a tendency to hold a crease. What I do with those is actually fix them with a knot to the harness and prepare the JLCR/parachute pack so there is a short length of lax harness between the chute protector
and the chutepack. I just coil this short length of "leader" in the chute protector with the
chutepack.

As everything is blown from the rocket, as the harness stretches out, it will pull the chutepack out of the
stiff protector and get it out in the slipstream. I had two hard landings in small fiberglass rockets (they were unharmed) before I realized the need for this with the "brown" stiff chute protectors. The stiff chute protector stayed curled around the chutepack and even though the JLCR did its thing, the chute couldn't open. The JLCR and chute has to be pulled away from these stiff chute protectors if used. Keep that in mind.

Otherwise if one is using a protector like Jarrett shows, shouldn't have any trouble. Kurt Savegnago
 
Sorry for the late reply but one little suggestion/annotation to this technique. The pictures above are fine with
the "loose/soft" cloth-like chute protectors. There are some protectors out there of a Nomex fabric type that are really
quite stiff and have a tendency to hold a crease. What I do with those is actually fix them with a knot to the harness and prepare the JLCR/parachute pack so there is a short length of lax harness between the chute protector
and the chutepack. I just coil this short length of "leader" in the chute protector with the
chutepack.

As everything is blown from the rocket, as the harness stretches out, it will pull the chutepack out of the
stiff protector and get it out in the slipstream. I had two hard landings in small fiberglass rockets (they were unharmed) before I realized the need for this with the "brown" stiff chute protectors. The stiff chute protector stayed curled around the chutepack and even though the JLCR did its thing, the chute couldn't open. The JLCR and chute has to be pulled away from these stiff chute protectors if used. Keep that in mind.

Otherwise if one is using a protector like Jarrett shows, shouldn't have any trouble. Kurt Savegnago

Have you ever considered using the protectors like dog barf? Just stuff them down the tube to protect everything without wrapping just the chute in them? If they are used like a dog barf replacement, they protect not only the chute, but the shock cord too.
 
Have you ever considered using the protectors like dog barf? Just stuff them down the tube to protect everything without wrapping just the chute in them? If they are used like a dog barf replacement, they protect not only the chute, but the shock cord too.

I have done the nomex replacement for barf with not good results. The charge seems to blow by the nomex and burn the chute.
 
Yeah,

I'm sick and tired of burn holes in pricey chutes. I've had my share so's I'm not willing to risk using nomex cloth like dog barf. Nice thought though and I give you
kudos if you've mastered it. I've got too many Spherachutes with burn holes I'd confess I've decreased the risk by wrapping them. I affix the stiff chute protector on the harness and put the chute upstream and the pack gets pulled away from the protector after the pack is blown from the airframe.

With the soft cloth protectors I do it like Jarrett shows. Kurt
 
Yeah,

I'm sick and tired of burn holes in pricey chutes. I've had my share so's I'm not willing to risk using nomex cloth like dog barf. Nice thought though and I give you
kudos if you've mastered it. I've got too many Spherachutes with burn holes I'd confess I've decreased the risk by wrapping them. I affix the stiff chute protector on the harness and put the chute upstream and the pack gets pulled away from the protector after the pack is blown from the airframe.

With the soft cloth protectors I do it like Jarrett shows. Kurt

So how do you keep holes from getting burned in the wrapped protectors. I've got several with burn holes in them and matching holes in the chutes they were wrapped in. I now use dog barf as buffer.
 
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