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Which canopy has the best glide ratio as of now.

Pleace dont mix openings headdings etc etc into it and only BASE canopyes thanks

Im sure the info is out there im just either too lazy to dig it up,or want first hand experience..

Personaly i would say Flik from Apex but then again im no vitnessing alot of gear from other manufactors arround here

If you post please tell why you think the canopy you choosen.

Not sure, but the ACE seems to consistently outfly other canopies in terms of distance. It's very difficult to say really because of other factors like wing loading, speed of pressurisation and how fast you are in popping the brakes but from a very unscientific observational point of view, if reaching a landing area is a factor in a jump i tend to go for the ACE rather than the TROLL. I also know DTM favours his ACE over his Flik given the same factors. And having now flown a Fox 285 vtec i'd say the ACE is way ahead.

ian

Even more unscientific as none of us have ever jumped both, but of the 4 of us last week, the BlackJacks appeared to glide 'back home' better than the Trolls. Dunno about the wingloadings (I'm sure i was the lowest) or exact opening heights/handling, so it's all a bit pie in the sky.

I have no conclusive evidence, but at the Turkey Boogie last year about twenty of us went off of a tall cliff where we had to fly over a dwelling towards the main road. Most people were landing about 1/2 way to 2/3 the distance between the house and the road.

I said on top I was going to land at my vehicle parked on the road and that is what I did. I was jumping a vented Flik!

Estimating glideratio you´ll need 2 canopyes as of the same size and same wingload.

from what ive seen Troll has a bad glide ratio.

I know from my vented Fox and vented Flik that the Flik has a better glide ratio,but not surprising as its the newest design.

As of Ace and BJ i guess the Ace is the best(about glide ratio) but i never saw a Ace outfly a Flik,that said it could be that all Apex jumpers are pussyes and are pulling way higher

As already said it depends on the jumpers and many factores aswell..

What about Rock Dragon i dont seems to hear alot of it even as its newish(only a few years old).

What about the old Mojo?(i never saw one in the air and if i did so i didnt notice)

Same size, same wingloading, same wind conditions, same pull height (that's why judging it over static line jumps would be best) and of course same reaction speed in getting the brakes released.

ian

Wingloading, atmospheric conditions, and pilot input can drastically effect a canopy's glide ratio, so determining the best glide ratio by observing a load of jumpers is tough to substantiate.

Determining glide ratio after a long canopy flight on a cliff jump is even more difficult. I've routinely outflown several folks in Moab simply be flying in thermal pockets and on ridge lift. All it takes is a slight breeze, and the right angle based on the terrain below, and you can go a long way.

And most folks out there do not have substantial experience on a wide range of canopies. Some do, but I would say they are in the minority here. So in the end, we'll probably just end up with a bunch of opinionated answers...

Bryan

Ace/Blackjack.

I've done some measurements using GPS and I'm pretty convinced that Ace/BJ has the best glide, followed by Flik, followed by Troll, followed by FOX, followed by Mojo. I have not measured Dagger or Rock Dragon.

There will always be measurement error, and I don't think anyone can say for certain. Also, my measurements are subject to the canopies I used for them, which means I might have had a particularly high glide Ace, or a low glide Troll, or something, since no two canopies (even of the same manufacture and size) are ever going to be exactly identical in performance.

Ace. No doubt about it.
DTM.

I assume you took wind conditions into account for these tests, could you post the details of the canopies used and the GR measured for each?

Did you figure out anything else useful from these tests e.g. how much higher a vented version (Blackjack or MDV) starts to move forward?

knowing the jumps faber does and the pilot chutes he uses my old TU has a better glide ration than anything he may be jumping...hehehehe

I've been pretty damn impressed by the Flik so far.
pope

I can't believe that the ZP Composite topskin on the Blackjack/Ace hasn't been mentioned yet...

I would have to say Fabers canopy as I have seen that thing glide for miles!!!
Sorry , couldnt help it.
Alan

Hey Pope,
Long time no see. Don't you have several jumps on a dagger, how does that compare, I know Jay swears by the glide of the dagger.

That my freind were a Vented Flik 266 loaded about 0.78 and yes it does fly forever,even off low objects
I still didnt look at the vid how long a flight that were but it were as long as i rember canopy time as you skydive,and on a BASE

ANYONE dont be a fool(as i were) and go to one of Alan´s "great" objects" you will hike longer than needed to and after he has used you as a testdummy he then will make a fool out of you,please dont jump whith him before he pays me a visit to get some disiplin into his body.

Alan say hello to that pretty wife of yours,i miss you guys

sorry but your old fox seemed to glide well over the landing area, over the fence and into a tree that stopped you hitting a brick wall at a nice little house somewhere too................

Why do you want more glide? I think you need more sink!

>>Oh that's okay, just don't ride with black death bill!

thats the fox im flying right now.. but if i should do that jump again i would take my Flik.. i could have turned that fuckerbut hey what you really mean is that i should have taken a deeper delay off that B(which were my first),which i as of a fool i am didnt think off as i stood at the roof all by myself looking down at the concrete basketball feild i HAD to land on,that i proved that you has a second lz off that B(also used by Ian if i know correct)..

Jason,its not Bill you need to be afraid off,its his killer truck,specialy when Bill is behind the weel and your in the trunck,lucky me FAT Alan were there aswell,that helped the trackcontrole of the car which prevented us to crash on our way back up again after the camera guys