Right. This is the reason I'm checking in here. I get a lot of tangles too. Braided lines. I also move chutes from/to different rocket. And I have swivels on them but don't understand how the lines get so messed up. No love for that issue. Any suggestions to help avoid this issue.??I like PML Dura-chutes. They all have spill holes which minimizes spin on descent. I spend so much time unraveling twisted shroud lines and shock cords it's insane. I also shift chutes between rockets, so they minimize turnaround. They also don't cost an arm and a leg...
Interesting. I was just in Walmart looking at material. I think I'm going to make my own. I love a big chute but I fully understand the negatives to that.I have 5-6 chutes in inventory, all custom made from (mostly) thin mil ripstop. One small (12”), two medium (30”, 36”), one drogue (12”x form), one stupid big (66” x form).
I like PML Dura-chutes. They all have spill holes which minimizes spin on descent. I spend so much time unraveling twisted shroud lines and shock cords it's insane. I also shift chutes between rockets, so they minimize turnaround. They also don't cost an arm and a leg...
Interesting. I was just in Walmart looking at material. I think I'm going to make my own. I love a big chute but I fully understand the negatives to that.
Mike's reply suggests spill hole chutes. I have one that's 18". I'm thinking about a Jolly Logic chute release. I'm just not ready for electronics yet.
Walmart nylon probably isn’t thin mill but that’s OK too. If you already have a sewing machine and rudimentary sewing skills, you’ll be fine making a chute. Smaller ones 12”-18” you might just as well make a flat sheet with shroud lines. Once you get bigger it seems like making gores is easier. Once you go there, it’s easier to build in a spill hole than not since you don’t have to make all the seams join up.
I think it is a LOT to do with technique. 1) "Z-fold" don't "wrap".And I have swivels on them but don't understand how the lines get so messed up. No love for that issue. Any suggestions to help avoid this issue.??
Traction.... In all due respect, meaning, I'm by no means coming at you so please bare with me here...... You are telling us that you take 40 to 60 minutes to pack a chute.?? Wow. That is a crazy number right there. But here's the thing..... You packed a chute the night before a contest and it didn't deploy.?? My gosh.!!!! You speak like a beginner and then in a snap you are giving expert advice. LOL ..... That's a big spectrum right there. Couple questions.....I think it is a LOT to do with technique. 1) "Z-fold" don't "wrap".
2) orderly in => orderly out
3) consistency so effects of small changes in technique can be observed in how it effects outcome.
(Plus lots of practice.)
We did a duration contest with a Big Bertha on a B motor limit. I made a 60" parachute out of .5mil plastic with (48) 72" fine thread shroud lines....first launch I left it sit too long (overnight) and it didn't open. After fluffing, and repack 2nd flight was cool and NO tangled lines, but packing it takes about 40-60min of tedious work.
The 3rd flight it caught a telephone line and got a little damaged during getting it down. I need to find video I think I have it on my phone of the last flight.
Depends on type of chute. 1.5 times the diameter is the general idea for flat sheet chutes. Then reef it shorter for faster decent speed based on rocket weight, field size, and wind, etc.Do you recommend longer shroud lines or shorter lines.??
Nylon IS harder to handle when folding and rolling. (I have numbness and have lost some feeling in my hands. That makes it even more so.) Just don't rush.I find that I pack a plastic chute better than a nylon chute. Nylon is preffered but its very slick.
You will. Just need to figure out what works for you.I wonder if I'll ever get to that point.?? Hope so...... It's a pretty sight to see.!!
BOTH, but mainly during the deployment process. Anything you can do to make that more orderly and less violent will help. Spinning on decent will just twist, not braid, the lines.how about ejection. It's violent. Do the lines tangle at that point or is it the big wide circling on the glide down that 'braids' the lines.??
Super reply. I appreciate that. Thanks a lot.Depends on type of chute. 1.5 times the diameter is the general idea for flat sheet chutes. Then reef it shorter for faster decent speed based on rocket weight, field size, and wind, etc.
Nylon IS harder to handle when folding and rolling. (I have numbness and have lost some feeling in my hands. That makes it even more so.) Just don't rush.
You will. Just need to figure out what works for you.
BOTH, but mainly during the deployment process. Anything you can do to make that more orderly and less violent will help. Spinning on decent will just twist, not braid, the lines.
Chute release will not do much for less entanglement, and ADDS more complexity. It cuts down on drift. The flopping around before main deployment CAN make tangling worse.
I did just get (2) 4 line Rocketman Parachutes to "play with" this summer. So TBD for me.
Asking how to pack a chute will just get an argument going. Lots of people feel their way is the only way, and will put down all others. That is not useful. General conversation, then take bits-n-pieces, try it and see what you like. It's a refinement process for each of us.
(If you want to see how "I" do things I can take photos and post "my" process. But there are LOTs of that type of thread already in this forum.)
Mike
Depends on type of chute. 1.5 times the diameter is the general idea for flat sheet chutes. Then reef it shorter for faster decent speed based on rocket weight, field size, and wind, etc.
Nylon IS harder to handle when folding and rolling. (I have numbness and have lost some feeling in my hands. That makes it even more so.) Just don't rush.
Asking how to pack a chute will just get an argument going. Lots of people feel their way is the only way, and will put down all others. That is not useful. General conversation, then take bits-n-pieces, try it and see what you like. It's a refinement process for each of us.
(If you want to see how "I" do things I can take photos and post "my" process. But there are LOTs of that type of thread already in this forum.)
Mike
does anybody make :
1. thin mil chutes with spill holes?
2. printed thin mill chutes......
specifically a 18 to 24" thin mill chute with that Skull and Crossbones on it from the new Estes DRM kit
well here's a business opportunity for you. you're welcome. And if it's made in China, no thanks.
it just dawned on me that if one were to use a hot knive blade you could cut and seal a nylon chute if you put a spill hole in it .I usually go 1:1 shroud to diameter. Next time I will try longer, I always wondered what effect that had on descent but never bothered to ask.
Honestly thought you were kidding with an hour for packing, but that is a huge chute in a comparatively small rocket.
Not sure but I'm curious, what about a thread embroidered pattern on rip stop nylon? Depending on the design the added weight would be minimal. Similar to a patterned kite.
it just dawned on me that if one were to use a hot knive blade you could cut and seal a nylon chute if you put a spill hole in it .
https://www.michaels.com/walnut-hollow-professional-hotknife/10389558.html
this should seal the nylon preventing it from fraying and not requiring any threading?
THANK YOU.2 gorgeous videos Traction.
The following has been my experience with making a 30" elliptical parachute, from finding fabric, to choosing a machine needle and thread, adjusting tension, etc. YMMV.I was just in Walmart looking at material. I think I'm going to make my own.
I have a similar problem with my left hand. If it's numbness (pins-and-needles feeling) in the pinky and ring finger only, it's a condition called 'ulnar compression', in which the nerve that runs past the elbow comes out of the channel that is supposed to keep it in place. The result is a constant feeling of pins and needles in those two fingers, extending down across the palm. In my case, it also leads to cramping of the hand.Nylon IS harder to handle when folding and rolling. (I have numbness and have lost some feeling in my hands. That makes it even more so.)
The following has been my experience with making a 30" elliptical parachute, from finding fabric,
That's been my experience, no matter who I'm talking to, beginning with my wife. So you're in good company.You lost me after this point.
I used to shoot archery at a professional level. Pulling an 80# bow and shooting with "back tension" for almost 20 years; is what I blame my shoulder, elbow, and wrist issues on. I do "just live with it" but I will be seeing a specialist next month. If I don't concentrate on keeping my grip tight, I drop stuff. And that is happening more and more lately.And surgery has mixed results.
I just live with it
I did follow most of your post. I have been pulling my hair out over bottom looping. I will need to check needle. I thought it was big enough. Maybe just buy some bigger eyes and see what happens.... THANKS FOR YOUR INSIGHTS.You'll tear your hair out adjusting thread tension, trying to eliminate the inevitable looping bottom stitch, when all along it's not the tension at the top rollers or the bobbin that's causing the problem. It's the thread being too wide for the eyelet in the needle
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