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Sport Rocketry / Components / Recovery / Parachutes

Parachute Cutting TIP (2010-09-12)

Years back, I can remember the frustration of cutting out a thin plastic parachute with a pair of dull scissors. The old instructions simply said: "Cut out the parachute." TIP: Never bother ... [Read More]

Parachute Attachment TIP (2010-11-28)

Awhile back I read a forum post about tangled shroud lines, asking how to untangle them. You can eliminate some tangled lines by moving the parachute attachment point away from the nose cone. With ... [Read More]

TIPS: Cutting Out Parachutes (2011-09-17)

I've never understood why parachute instructions direct you to cut out the parachute with scissors! I can't cut through the sheet plastic even with my best, sharpest scissors. The thin plastic just ... [Read More]

Mylar Balloon Parachutes (2012-03-07)

Over the years I've made many parachutes out of black trash bags. They've always worked well and are cheap compared to pre-assembled parachutes. The forums have mentioned making parachutes from mylar ... [Read More]

Parachute Tape Disk Reinforcement (2012-07-03)

Sometimes in a parachute kit you'll get paper reinforcement disks. It's easy enough to check, try and tear one. Paper tears, the plastic disks won't.   Paper disks should be replaced. ... [Read More]

For NARCON - Did You Ever Try To Design A Parachute? (2014-02-28)

I'd always liked the look of the red and white parachutes used in the Apollo program. A rough count looks like there are 64 alternating red and white gores. The Estes Saturn V kit (and the ... [Read More]

Parachute Reinforcement Disks - Single or Double? TIP (2014-03-28)

Most kit parachutes are around a 1 mil (1/1,000th of an inch) thick. Polyethylene sheet parachutes can stretch and tear so reinforcement rings are needed. Some kits include the cheaper paper ... [Read More]

Old Centuri Parachute Instructions (2015-11-07)

From the older Centuri Black Widow instructions I found these parachute instructions. I knew Estes sold parachute material in square sheets but didn't know Centuri supplied square sheets in their ... [Read More]

What's Up With (Some) Estes Parachutes? TIP (2016-05-02)

I really like the retro look of the Estes kit parachutes. It's the same checker board pattern I found in my earliest Estes kits. The plastic sheet seems thicker than they used to be, a good thing. ... [Read More]

Larger Semroc Parachutes (2016-11-23)

I've run across larger Semroc parachutes in some of the bigger models. Most Semroc kits come with 1 mil. printed 12" chutes. This 16" yellow parachute came in the Starship Excalibur model. The ... [Read More]

Folding Parachutes TIP, Part 1 (2017-02-19)

A Patreon supporter asked about how I fold parachutes and what is my success percentage. Here's how I do it - My success rate is almost 100% with a rare melted spot. Look at the instructions from ... [Read More]

Folding Parachutes TIPS, Part 2 (2017-02-20)

Here's how I'd pack a 18" chute in a shorter BT-60 sized model. Sometimes a packed chute can't be long and narrow. On a squatty model you won't have room for wadding, parachute and the nose cone ... [Read More]

Ed Mitton Snap Swivel Connection TIP (2019-06-23)

For the longest time I've been tying the parachute shroud lines to the small loop on a snap swivel. It's not the easiest way to attach them. You've got to tie the line ends onto the small loop ... [Read More]

I Wish They Didn't Do That - Part 3, Tape Disks (2019-11-28)

Some smaller vendors supply parachute kits you assemble. If you can tear a tape disk before making of the parachute - the tape disk will tear under the stress of the ejection charge. If it tears, ... [Read More]