- So you're about to order your new skydiving container,
but wondering, what are all those options
that you can choose from?
In this video, I'm gonna explain to you
what are those options
and which one is the best for you.
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So I don't know about you,
but if you've been looking into buying
your own skydiving container,
you did find the order form pretty complex
with all those options.
So in this video,
I wanted to go over them with you,
well, the most common one that we can see,
whatever the manufacturer you decide to go with,
and go over them to explain them to you,
show them what they exactly mean,
and let you know why you would chose those options
to see if they fit your style of skydiving.
So without further ado, let's dive into it.
All right, the first design element
that you may have to choose is the articulation.
So you know when we talk about the harness
that is articulated,
it means that it has rings that allows more movement
at certain places, usually the chest and the hips.
So if you can see a ring on the chest
where your chest strap is attached
and on your leg pad around your hips,
well, that means that it's an articulated harness.
And that brings more freedom of movement
with your skydiving container.
This option will be more considered
when you are looking into freeflying
or other disciplines like that
where you need to move freely in various direction.
The next option, the back pad.
So, depending on the company,
you may have to choose between different types of back pad.
And those are really in terms of comfort.
Some may have nothing specific in their back,
so that means you may feel your reserve canopy
or your main canopy when it's packed
or when it's not quite packed properly.
You may feel some corners and stuff.
But there are other options where you can add some layers
of pads that will make it way more comfortable for you.
Now, depending on the manufacturers, of course,
there's various types of pad
that they may add.
Some are foam pads, some are other types.
It's really up to the manufacturers.
But keep in mind that by adding a back pad option
may simply add more comfort for you
and maybe fill out the gap in your back,
so having a better fit of your container.
Another option that we see often
is the chest strap size.
So, more often than not,
you will have the chance to choose
between a one-inch chest strap
versus a two-inches chest strap.
Both are fine.
It's up to your liking.
But for females,
it is recommended to maybe look at a wider chest strap
for better comfort on the chest.
Next option, freefly modification.
Again, you'll see some manufacturers offering
specific freefly modification for an extra cost.
So that is great if you're looking to dive
into that discipline.
One example may be adding tabs on your leg straps
to allow the installation of a bungee cord
to make sure that the leg straps stay still
when you're sit flying.
So that's a quick example.
There may be some modification on the flaps
that may be doable.
So if you're looking to focus on freeflying,
take a particular attention to those freefly options
from your chosen manufacturer.
The next one is the handles.
So, that you may be more accustomed to
because that's something that we see very easily
when comparing rigs on the drop zone.
So you may see some have metal handles
for their reserves.
Others actually have two soft handles on their container.
So it's really a matter of the options they did choose
when they ordered their own container.
When we're starting out,
the student rigs always have the metal handle.
But again, here, depending on the type
of skydiving you're doing, for example,
for freefly again, you may not want to have
the metal handle because it offers a hole
where something could get in
and pull the reserve handle prematurely.
So for that matter, in terms of freefly disciplines,
we want to make sure we have two soft handles.
And that includes, as well, the main pilot chute handle.
You have different options you can choose from.
There's the hackey style handle, which is a ball.
There's a PVC tube type as well that exists,
which is actually a plastic cylinder,
mostly for students.
And the last one is really a freefly handle,
which is, again, a soft handle, a pillow handle,
but which has also a tab on it
so that you can really squeeze the tab in your container
and avoid premature opening when you're flying down
at crazy speeds because you're sit flying, for example.
Now, let's talk about the hardware.
Because again, there are some options you can choose from
for the metal pieces on your skydiving container.
The most basic one that you may see is the cadmium.
I wouldn't recommend it for a new container
because that's simply a metal alloy.
That may wear and even corrode in time.
So, its appearance will change
and it's gonna wear faster while using your container.
Another option you may see is, of course, stainless steel.
That would be really the option of choice
when you're looking
at getting your own skydiving container nowadays.
So, stainless steel hardware
makes sure the appearance rests the same
and it doesn't wear as easily.
And as you're seeing on my container,
mine are black, so that's another option
that you could add as well.
So those are still stainless steel,
but with a black tint.
Next, some manufacturers may offer a hook knife
with your skydiving container.
Again, those may be standard or an extra cost option.
And those may be located in different places,
depending on the container brand.
So some have their hook knife on the leg strap,
others on the main web here,
and I've even seen some on the chest strap actually.
You may also see some options for the leg pads.
So again, it may be for the comfort,
so the padding on the leg pads,
but there's also the design of the leg pads.
Some manufacturers may offer one-piece leg pads
or two-pieces leg pads.
So those are really to your liking.
At first, there was only the one-piece leg pads,
but now, we're seeing the two-pieces,
which provides a bit more flexibility and movement
into the harness.
So that would be more appropriate, again,
for disciplines where you fly in various orientations.
The riser covers can also have some options
from the manufacturer.
So, some riser covers,
which is actually the part where it covers your risers,
but some will use tuck tabs to close them.
Others may use magnets.
That's becoming more and more popular
amongst the new designs.
So again, that's an option that you may want to look at
and choose for yourself.
It's really to your liking.
Now, let's talk about risers.
Again, there may be some options
to choose different types of risers.
The most popular and common one are the 17-inches narrow
with the mini ring.
So, those are the most common one.
You may also see and hear about the type eight risers,
which are more for students in tandem rigs,
because those are two inches wide.
So that's less appropriate for a fun jumper.
The next option is an important one.
And it's about the safety system
that you wanna have on your container.
So here we're talking about an RSL and/or a MARD system.
So your RSL is a lanyard that is attached
to your main canopy risers.
And that goes all the way back to your reserve pin.
So, as you cut away in a situation
where you have to do a cutaway,
in a malfunction situation, for example,
when you release your main canopy,
the lanyard will actually pull your reserve pin.
So in the case where you don't have enough time
to reach for your reserve handle,
well, your main canopy will pull on the reserve pin.
So that will allow
your reserve deployment sequence to start.
The difference with the MARD system
is that the MARD system is connected
to your reserve deploying bag through, again,
still an RSL.
So the RSL, as part of a MARD system,
is connected to your main canopy risers,
but then, on the deployment bag of the reserve,
not the pin.
That way, as you are cutting away your main canopy,
the main canopy acts as a big pilot chute
to extract your reserve canopy.
That provides quicker and more reliable reserve deployments.
So those are two options that you can have.
There's also an option of not having any of those.
I wouldn't necessarily recommend that.
Nowadays, they have proven to be reliable and save lives.
So that's all what's matter in my own opinion
when talking about skydiving gear.
As an example, for me,
I have the MOJO MARD from Rigging Innovations
inside my CURV container.
It's their own design of a MARD system.
Other manufacturers will have their own design
and you've all heard about the Skyhook,
which was the first MARD system invented
and provided on the market by UPT.
Nowadays, we're starting to see a lot more different types
and brands of MARD system.
And the last option you may run into
that may or may not be relevant to you,
but if you're looking to get a container
to do wingsuit, then you may wanna look,
some manufacturers are offering wingsuit modification
a little bit with the same mindset
than the freefly modification.
But for a wingsuit container,
you might see longer bridle for the pilot chute
to make sure that your pilot chute can get out
of your burble when you're flying with a wingsuit,
because you have a larger burble.
And also, there's the dynamic corners, as they call them,
and also the bottom of the container may have a modification
to have a tailgate type of opening
to allow more space and make sure
that the deployment bag gets out in a better shape
when you have a wingsuit on.
There you go, I hope this will help you
make a wiser decision when you will buy
your own skydiving container.
Now, let me know in the comments
if you have any questions about containers in general
or what piece of equipment or what gear
would you like me to talk about next.
Let me know your questions below
and I'll make sure to make a video to answer them.
On that, as always, keep jumping, stay safe, and blue skies.
(air whooshing)
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