Mike Gruwell

The Parachute Industry Association has released Technical Bulletin TB-266 that gives its interpretation of the FAA regulations for sealing a packed reserve container. This bulletin addressed the common use of lead seals, which are banned in some countries due to environmental and health issues.

The PIA Rigging Committee completed a review of other available materials being used outside the United States, and found these to work just as well as lead seals while satisfying 14 CFR 65.133.

14 CFR 65.133 Seal. Each certificated parachute rigger must have a seal with an identifying mark prescribed by the Administrator, and a seal press. After packing a parachute he shall seal the pack with his seal in accordance with the manufacturer's recommendation for that type of parachute.

The popular speaking audible altimeter from Freefall Data Systems has an available update for improving the sound quality, volume and reliability of its built-in speaker. Reports of failing speakers was determined to be a firmware issue, which is resolved with a firmware and sound file update.

If you have a SonoAlti 3V unit with a firmware of 1.0 or 1.1, this firmware update is for you. To find out what firmware version you have, press the button adjacent to the speaker with a paper clip to hear the firmware number.

With most skydiving helmets over $200, and the most common at $500 or more, it's a smart investment to protect your helmet when you're not using it.

Most skydiving helmet bags also have additional pockets to carry your smaller skydiving gear and helmet accessories together so you're able to keep everything in one place whether you're at the drop zone, the wind tunnel or traveling around the world.

Henry Kochen of the ChutingStar Crew took some time to show off a few of our most popular helmet bags this week to show you which helmets fit and the features of each.

Check out this video as well as a video from Mike Gruwell on the new Cookie Flight Bag, and then click the links below for additional info and ordering information.

Skydiving Helmet Bag Overview from ChutingStar.

Looking for that perfect gift to surprise the skydiver in your life? We've got an entire section of skydiver gifts for a birthday, milestone jump, the holidays or the like to help you find just what you've been looking for!

Click here for a direct link to our Gift Ideas section online. And then below are highlights of several gift ideas we know will be a hit.

ChutingStar makes it easy for you to save plenty of money when buying all the gear, goods and toys you want and need to enjoy your days of skydiving to the fullest.

Here are the top 11 ways you can reduce the price of a product, save on shipping fees or find a great deal on gear you need to make the most of your weekends!

#1. Free ChutingStar Gear Bag, $100 Off, Plus FREE US Shipping of a Complete Skydiving Rig!

All complete rig purchases get a free ChutingStar Gear Bag! Our package pricing at this link also includes a $100 discount off the prices if purchasing each item separately.

Plus, you can select Free Standard Shipping at checkout to any US, APO or FPO address!

#2. Free Standard Shipping in the US for orders of $499 or more!

More often than not, ChutingStar usually has the best price around on every product we sell and support, but we're human and we miss price changes or just flat out didn't price something correctly.

Our ChutingStar Crew doesn't want to lose you as a customer, or for your next purchase, just because we didn't realize our pricing was higher than that other shop. So ChutingStar offers all of our customers Price Match Rewards!

In the most simple terms...if you find a price lower than ours on the internet for a product you purchased from us, we're going to give you the difference in SuperStars Rewards Points value to use on your next purchase. So if you find something $10 lower in price, we'll give you $10 in SuperStars Rewards Points...or if it's $100 lower in price, we'll give you $100 in Rewards Points...etc.

Just a quick note that all accessories and mounts that work or fit the HERO9, HERO10, HERO11 and HERO12 also will work and fit with the new GoPro HERO13.

The GoPro HERO13 works with all GoPro accessories that were made and designed for the HERO9, HERO10, HERO11 & HERO12, so if you see any noted as working with the HERO9 and/or HERO 10 and/or HERO11 and/or HERO12, these will also work with the HERO13.

And then since the HERO13 camera is the exact same size, shape and form as the HERO9/10/11/12, it also will fit into any GoPro mounts designed to fit the HERO9/10/11/12.

ChutingStar is updating all the HERO9/10/11/12 accessory and mount listings, names and info to reflect this, but in case you come across any that indicate it is made for the HERO9/10/11/12, just know that it will also work with the HERO13.

See the video and links below on the GoPro HERO10 and HERO9/10/11/12/13 Mounts for more information:

The GoPro HERO9, HERO10, HERO11, HERO12 & HERO13 Black cameras are slightly bigger all the way around compared to prior GoPro versions. So make sure you have the correct mount for your skydiving helmet!

First-off the HERO9/10/11/12/13 can mount to any mount that attaches to the bottom GoPro attachment spindles. This means the Vmag system can be used right now for your HERO9/10/11/12/13 on a Cookie G4, G3, KISS or Skyhelmet Funjin.

There also is a HERO9/10/11/12/13 top mount option available from Zkulls for TFX, G3, G35 and G4 with a cutaway option, and Cookie has it's HERO9/10/11/12/13 Roller. We're talking with the other helmet mount manufacturers that use a base cradle or cage, to add more HERO9/10/11/12/13 mounts.

Helmet and camera mount manufacturers continue to stay on top of giving you plenty of options for a wide range of mounting options for just about any current GoPro camera.

Below are the most popular available options from ChutingStar for mounting a camera to a Cookie G4, Tonfly TFX and KISS helmet.

Please keep in mind that the G4 helmet does not have a cutaway system, and the helmet is tighter to get in/out of than the G3. So take that into account when choosing a mounting system. Some have a cutaway or breakaway feature, while others don't. Same for TFX and KISS helmets.

One other note is that drilling into the G4 helmet does void the impact protection rating. So keep that in consideration on your mount choice if that's important to you. See the full Cookie G4 camera mount disclaimer at the bottom of this post.

Bluetooth connection, 32 alarm sounds and syncs jumps to a Logbook, are just a few highlights of the SonoAlti 3 that shows off the unique design of the newest audible altimeter at ChutingStar.

Thanks to designer Casey Mongoven of Freefall Data Systems who integrated the Bluetooth connection, you can manage the SonoAlti G2 settings from an app on your phone. Any of 32 alarm sounds can be selected for an unlimited number of alarms for freefall or canopy flight, and then those alarms can be further adjusted by volume, pitch and tempo.

See this overview of the new SonoAlti 3 below, which is now available at ChutingStar at this link.

The SonoAlti 3 is one of 18 audible altimeters currently stocked and supported by ChutingStar.