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Thoughts on using 42 vented pilot on 310' object (2,5 sec delay) are very appreciated.
Thanks in advance.

No problem. If you take the intended 2.5 seconds, you're not going to have any issues with pilot chute inflation. Even doing a go and throw (where you have more chance of hesitation) at that altitude would be fine, in my opinion.

I have used a 42" ZP AV PC from 300'
a few times and everything worked fine.

However, and with all due respect, a 2.5
second delay from 310' seems like a very
aggressive choice for someone who is not
sure about his or her pilot chute.

we all know that most "2.5" delays are usually 1 or 1.5.

Oh, okay, the guy or gal is
already figuring that in

I took 1.5 from 300 with a 46
on the way to BD and not only
did it seem like a whole week
but I landed in a tree

Let me know how the almost 3 second delay from 310' works out for you. Tom could pull it off, but...

Canopy size?

265 Troll DW

So without even thinking about it one day, I climbed up a 220 foot Tower Crane. I stood on top of the counter weights. I pulled out the PC and didnt even think about what size it was. I jumped and threw it out.....waited, waited, waited....Whazam, Open at about 50-60 feet. There might have been some hesitation but I dont think so. I had about 40 degree off heading and had to make a quick decision to land on a roof or hit some trees and swoop a turn into the sidewalk. I took the roof......

So I think that as a reminder from me that if you huck out the PC at take off, hand held style, it will get your shit out on time. If I estimate right 220 - 50 is 170. Id say thats about the range that it took my rig to open. I dont think that Id ever do that again but from 300 feet, I do it all the time, in fact last night a 296' freestander. Open and enough altitude to fly to the LZ and land safe with a nice canopy ride through the darkness.

So 310, Id say fine......... Im safe and I went 220 with a 42" Vented. Have fun, dont forget to pull.

i'd still say on low objects bigger is better.
if you have a 46 or 48 use it.
if you go stowed still use the bigger ones.
pack a super mushroom for less hesitation problems.
personally i(try not to) don't use 42s below 330.
below 200 only a badass light 52 stane made me.
i had some really really scary hesitations and firmly believe that the couple of inches more bring you the difference in feet which mean land on the roof or go through the roof.
i jump big canopys, for the lil' leaguers things might be different. but it works for me.
but 265 troll is big.

Thanks for the time.
Thanks for the space.

why not a 46?

have you been injured badly before?

i know it can be done with a 42 but is there a mitigating factor as to not use a 46?

Object configuration need to be very low to be 'relativly' safe (2.5-3 sec from 310), consistent heading opening is a must for a relativly safe end of the jump.
May be with a 46 i more chance for a dirty opening...i don't know...inshallà!

Still really new to this, so this is to get feedback not to argue with you or to assume the OPs reasons for wanting to use a 42.

My brother and I were discussing the problems with dealing with a 48 inch pilot chute last night, oddly because he was jumping a 310 foot tower (Congratulations, BTW, David on opening your first object and your first solo).

Not wanting to stow a 48 because:
a. I want to avoid stretching out the BOC
b. Several jumpers teaching me have told me not to stow a 48
c. because it doesn't seem to really even fit in the BOC
leaves you with a real nightmare to deal with (at least at my experience level) when you try to open your stash bag and remove the rig and PC and gear up on top of a windy object.

It seems like it would be much easier to go with a 42 that you can unstow once you are geared up and ready to go if it is acceptable for the height.

That said, after being completely dropped on a PCA in Twin, my brother drug a 42 inch Toxic for at least 200 feet before it popped the (very tight) pins on the rig he was jumping. There was enough time for the guy PCAing him to say. "Oh shit! It's not opening! It's not opening!" and for him to try to reach behind him and deploy by pulling the bridle. (Picture attached). If that had been on a 310 foot tower, he would have been badly injured or worse.

I have heard that you can get a larger BOC sewn over the standard one so that you can stow your 48. That might be the best of both worlds for me, because I would sure rather have too much pilot chute than too little. But then again, I worry a lot.

How do others deal with the 4 foot pilot chute when gearing up on a windy object? Or do you just shove it in the BOC the best you can?

got one too :)

I have never had an issue with the BOC stretching and I regularly stow a 48" PC. It seems to be less of a concern than alot of people make it out to be.

Having said that, I never pack my PC until I am getting ready to go jump. That way, it never stays in the BOC for more than a few hours.

i have no problems jumping a 42 on pretty much anything 250ft and above... that being said, depending on the conditions and what rig i'm jumping, i may decide to use a 46.

FWIW...
i've been stowing a 46 for a little over 4 years now, and not only do i have no trouble doing so, but my BOCs are not stretched out and hold a 36 nice and snug for my terminal jumps.

and when i say stowing it, i don't necessarily mean that i'm jumping stowed, but it's packed as if i were and then becomes an easy trasition to handheld on a sketchy object.

//

also, all this "what PC at what height" is mostly matter of opinion... and unfounded without knowing all the other factors such as landing area, obstacles, outs, canopy size, blah blah...

to just blindly say yes a 42 will work fine or whatever... i may as well tell you that yes, i've also taken a 38 from 300, and a 42 from 230.

yea...I have been stowing my 46/48 also without any probs :)

jump the pilot chute appropriate for the altitude. if your pilot chute won't fit easily, change the method you use to fold it. do a skydiving "burrito"-type fold to hold it in the spandex pouch. replace the spandex when the sucker becomes loose. i call the thing "the sphincter." too tight - big problems. too loose - big problems. fortunately, you just have to go to a rigger (or yourself if you have the slightest sewing skills) to replace it. one of the things that you should realize is that hard pin pulls and towed pilot chutes were the source of death of many a base jumper back in the 1980s. do what a rigger does after putting in the reserve pin - do a pull test to see if it has too much tension on it. it should "fluid" in extraction!!! enough to secure the rig shut, but loose enough to extract with 10 pounds of force.