C

Clouddancer

Well Known Member
We are in the stage to do the layout of the front seat of our 4. As we have everything prepared for inverted flight we plan to use a parachute. We are probably going with a seat pack substituting the seat-cushion.

Now the question for all those using a seat-pack in a 4: How have you done that the bolts from the spar do not damage the seat-pack? Have you built some kind of protection over the bolt-heads? I'm curious to see the solutions.

The other question is regarding comfort of the seat-pack? We might wear the parachute all-time and having no seat-cushion at all, if this reveals to be a practicable and comfortable enough solution.

Thanks for your advice!
 
protecting chute

I had the same concern with the seat pack when the metal seat is removed. I removed the box part of the seat, but left the top aluminum sheet which covers the spar and bolts. I'm sure there are better ways. Can't comment on the comfort since the butt is pretty dead by now. I'll try and take some pictures if you like. I've used both the Strong 304 and the Softie seat pack. Both work fine.
Bill McLean
RV-4 slider
Alabama
 
Bill
I'm mainly concerned that bolts at the aft side of the spar could damage the seat pack. Does the top aluminum sheet cover that part? Then it would need some kind of a bend (vertically down). I picture would certainly help my understanding.

Because you happen to use both, Strong 304 and the Softie seat pack. Which would you prefer? Are there any major differences?
 
Take a seat...

Andreas,

I wore a Strong seat cushion parachute in my RV4 and now my RVX that works very well. I didn't like being pushed any closer to the canopy and removing my bottom cushion was easier. My RV4 seat cushion sat directly on the spar and fit against the bolt heads underneath, so I duct taped a piece of foam over the Spar bolt heads to protect my seat cushion and chute, worked great.

Another option...

V/R
Smokey

http://parachuteshop.com/strong_ model 314 RV-4, RV-8 Seat.htm
 
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RV-4 seat mod for chute

Andreas and Smokeyray,
Here's a picture of the RV-4 seat with the box part removed and only using the top aluminum sheet. I also velcro a towel to the sheet for further protection for the chute. The chute will be higher in the front than the back which changes your seating posture, but it's comfortable to me. I have more pictures if you send a message with my regular e-mail address. When not using the chute, the cushion in the Softie chute has the same thickness as the chute without the cushion. It would be nicer to have different seats to swap out when using or not using the chute.

100_3845.jpg
 
took measurements on the seat-pack

Thanks Bill and Smokey,

Thanks Bill, for the picture. I got it now.

I checked the dimensions of the Strong (Para-Cushion 304) RV-4 seat-pack parachute (link that Smokey sent):
RV-4 pack: 16" wide, 10.5" (front to back), 4" thick (without additional cussion)
Standard pack: 16" wide, 12" (front to back), 3" thick (without cussion)
The RV-4 seat-pack is escepecially sized for it because of the limited space behind the spar.

It happened that I was at the Aero Messe in Friedrichshafen today, where I met Dan Tarasievich from Softie Parachutes. They have a very similar model to the Strong 304 and Dan was very competent and knows the Rv-4 situation well. He advised us to make some kind of protection ofer the bolts so the parachute pack does not get damaged over time. Just what we thought...

Softie standard pack: 15" wide, 14" fore & aft, 2" thick
Specific RV-4 pack: similar dimensions as the Strong chute above

I also realized that with a 16" wide seat pack there will not be too much space left for the passenger's feet while wearing the parachute. Any comments on that?
 
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