Skydive Gear

We heard from you! Thanks so much to the 303 responses to our full face skydiving helmet survey March 1-15, 2020! This was nearly double the responses of our last survey. Woohoo!

Full face skydiving helmet offerings have changed dramatically over the past year with manufacturers now offering helmets with impact ratings. We recently updated our Full Face Helmet Comparison article at this link with our take on the features of each, but we wanted to hear what you love, hate or want to see in your full face helmet.

There is so much great feedback we received from all of you detailed below. We hope this helps you in your next helmet purchase as well as for those of you purchasing your first full face helmet. And we've sent these notes to the manufacturers too so they can work on fixing issues or incorporating your ideas into future full face helmets.

The quick summary is that Cookie's G2, G3 and G4 helmets are clearly the most used and loved helmets, but when it comes to what helmet you're interested in purchasing next, the Tonfly TFX and Square1 KISS are also high on your list after the G4. We also found that an impact rating is important to more than 70% of our survey respondents.

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You were heard! We had exactly 160 of you take our digital altimeter survey the first 2 weeks of February 2020!

Before we dive into the results, we are thrilled to announce that the winner of the ChutingStar Swag Pack is Jake Forest of Raleigh, North Carolina (randomly selected with a blind scroll & click through the 160 responses)! We've sent him his large pack of ChutingStar goods. A huge thank you to Jake and the rest of you for taking the time to fill out our survey! We've also sent this survey results blog post to all the altimeter manufacturers in hopes they will incorporate your suggestions in future altimeter development.

The quick and dirty is that while L&B's ARES and VISO digital altimeters were the most used by you we found that Alti-2 Atlas was more likely to be your favorite altimeter and it was the Dekunu One that has piqued your interest as being your next altimeter.

Check out these response charts below as well as specific feedback from your fellow skydivers.

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Parachute Systems, known for the Vortex container as well as the Decelerator, Hurricane, Volt and Ventus canopies, stopped new manufacturing in August 2019. The owner, Chris Dales, is looking for a new manufacturing facility for Parachute Systems, so it is possible that manufacturing will restart in the future.

But for now, if you already own a Parachute Systems canopy or container, and need a new lineset, freebag/bridle, reserve pilot chute, replacement handle or the like, we can get some of those items for you. The turnaround time and price do vary, so you'll need to contact us for any of those needs as these are either in-stock with Chris, or are made to order.

Note: As of August 2021, Parachute Systems can currently only provide replacement linesets. Replacement container parts are currently unavailable due to the company awaiting a new FAA approval for manufacturing parts again. You can contact us for an update as to when parts will for the Vortex container will be available again.

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Make sure your Vigil has been updated for these service bulletins below, if your unit is affected. These were bulletins with deadlines in 2019 and 2020.

Check the info below to see if your unit is affected, and if so, please get with your local rigger to get the unit removed and returned to Vigil America for the updates.

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ChutingStar's newsletter will help you stay in the know on the latest skydiving gear with links to new gear, expert advice blog articles and coupon codes for special event sales. Our e-mail information blasts are short and sweet...getting you the info you need to know quickly and allowing you to click over if you need the full scoop. Sign up at this link, or click the image above. You can unsubscribe, or resubscribe, at any time. Continue reading →

ChutingStar is not only your go to resource for new skydiving gear, equipment education and skydiver product reviews, but we also resell a varied selection of used skydiving gear! This can include canopies, containers, altimeters, helmets, jumpsuits, cameras, accessories and random skydiver goods. The selection and quantity varies, but whatever is in stock is always at a good deal, and can be immediately returned if it doesn't fit or is not what was expected. Continue reading →

The much-awaited impact-rated Tonfly TFX full face skydiving helmet is now available for ordering! Not only is the helmet unique in its modular design and rated head protection, it's also the most custom-fit helmet available coming in 36 different size configurations. To place an order for a TFX, you can visit our ChutingStar Skydiving Gear SuperStore in Marietta GA to be properly sized for the helmet with the Tonfly TFX Fitting Kit, or you can follow the measuring guide in our online listing at this link. Either process can be used to determine the shell size, central lining size and secondary lining size.  Continue reading →

We know new skydiving gear is expensive, and that it's very tempting to buy a used rig from someone you don't know on Facebook because the price is so much lower. But before you end up spending money on a rig you'll never be able to jump, make sure you read the August 2018 interview with ChutingStar owner Mike Gruwell in USPA's Parachutist Magazine at this link. A used container can be a great deal, as long as it fits you, is in good condition and will fit the canopies you can currently jump. But it can also be the worst deal ever if you can't jump it or get your money back.  Continue reading →

Confused by the volume and names of container options when ordering a new rig or looking through the list on a used or stock rig? Fear not, the ChutingStar Crew has put together a series of 17 short, one-minute videos that explains each option available on a skydiving rig. These include videos on articulation, back pads, MARDs, free fly mods, riser covers, riser types and more! Check out this playlist! Continue reading →

Rigging Innovations has added the long-awaited MOJO MARD system to it's container options for the CURV and CPX harness/container systems. The most well-known example of a MARD system is the Skyhook by United Parachute Technologies. MARD stands for Main-Assisted Reserve Deployment System and is basically an RSL (reserve static line) on steroids. When using a MARD system and you cutaway your main, the main essentially becomes your reserve pilot chute. This results in a much quicker transition sequence from a cutaway to an open reserve canopy. The MOJO can be added to any new order of an RI Curv or CPX container from ChutingStar at Continue reading →