Electronics

[frenchwrench]

If you get a garmin 12 xl, you can use the 24 v capability of the fuel pump plug on the floor. 12 is only 12 volt.

 

[Big Duke 6]

Skidsup , most siesmic jobs these days use Kodiak or Dynanav. This system negates the use of convevntial GPS. Whether your flying Front end, Drills or Recording, they should be provided by the company. The conventinal GPS that is in the A/C should be sufficant for all other tasks, ie Direct the hotel etc...The use of a hand held would be redundent. As for heliskiing the most efficant tool is landmarking. Although the GPS is accurate, it dosn't account for terrain in marginal wx. The most useful tool in heliskiing is local knowlege. There are somethings that cannot be replaced by technology. B) I don't mean to discourage you in regards to using technology to assist you in making appropriate decisions, however most of these products should be provided by your employer to do the job.

 

[bag swinnger]

Hey skids i have been using a garmin gps III pilot this year and I like it for the aviation data base as well as the moving map wich I can zoom in to 120 feet scale, but i use it in the 0.5 mile scale setting and it draws me a track line as i lay out bags and when i come back whith another rack of bags to the spot on the moving map where i left off and look down my last bag is right beneath me every time and when i am working in thick bush i even set up my approach to my next bag drop using the moving map. its been quite usefull and its small enough that i can use it in any of our machines on two seconds notice. our other guys use non aviation gps's with moving maps and are happy with them. i was flying a guy around yesterday scouting some seismic jobs and he had a garmin 76 with moving map but non aviation and he had every line with every jog for three small 3d's on the screen which was cool, but he said it took him two hours to to input it all and i don't know many pilots that are that keen. what ever you choose i would reccomend that you have a look for it on ebay as there is a pile of them for sale there.

 

[VERTICAL REF]

Hey Big Duke you hear that...this guy uses a gps to lay out bags!!! What ever happened to counting pin flags. You get my PM?

A cohort has the Yasu vhf/am, vhf/fm, uhf/fm all in one, best radio I have ever seen. Lady Ref won't let me trade in the Kenwood though <_<

 

[Big Duke 6]

😱 Vert-Ref check your PM's. And your right about the pin flags. 😀 B)

 

[VERTICAL REF]

Troy Boy, now there's a pigeon from the dark ages...only guy i know that could go from YOJ to YYC and step backwards!!!you speakin' french yet boy? ha

 

[bag swinnger]

Pin flags! you guys would be lucky to even find lines on some of the jobs ive seen lately

 

[VERTICAL REF]

Long before the Dyna Nav and the Kodiak were invented "clearance avoidance cut" lines have been around since the beginning of time. Stump to stump, pin flag to pin flag. Now you just follow the target on the gps and punch the bags down thru the canopy...too easy! 😉 😉 😉 Don't even need to see a line now a days'...

 

[Big Duke 6]

Bag swinnger no lines , and no drop zones that's the way of the future. Pilots discreation, as long as the drill is within the 15m bin. What are you gonna do when your GPS sh~ts the bed? Did a job for Veritas this summer in New York. The canopy down there is much like a rain forest, 190 ft elm and maple trees 0 refrence to the ground or crew. We were forced to use 250 ft steel longline for height and durability, kevlar line would have never survived. No slashers, no drop zones, no heli-pads, no line, and no GPS system. All we used were spotlights and radio's. 140+ blind hook deliveries a day with a 3000lb drill. GPS and avoidance hand cut please. Don't waste my time, you wanna fly siesmic give us a call. B) My apologies in advance for ranting way off topic. 😀

 

[bag swinnger]

Hey guys im not saying that you half to use a gps to drop bags or drills, but that there are some advantages to them and they can be used as a tool. what is it that we are trying to accomplish here? is it that we as pilots are trying to provide a better product for our customers or are we trying to fatten are pay checks by taking a little longer. I see it this way if I can provide a better product to the customer than there is a good chance that I will be asked out on another job and I find that this little tool helps me (at times) to be a faster pilot. Now I am giving my view as something constructive to skids up whom asked for such an opinion. as i find that if i am going slow enough to to count pin flags then i am clearly taking to long to deliver the product and we are not talking about bald ass praire jobs here. having just finished a few jobs inside of a park boundry where there was no hand cut allowed, a dyna nav probably would have been a good tool but we did not have that luxury. relying on a little gps wich we have two of on board reduced my work load. Being asked back for more work is of the upmost importance as I work for a small company and this is our bread and butter. unfortunetly we do not have big company contracts to help out. as I am not yet a skilled enough pilot to be able to hover inverted with the long line on LOL. I would love to here some tricks and tips from some one a little longer in the tooth. Big Duke you can rant all you want, as i am one who enjoys hearing the adventures and can somewhat relate to the one that you just described.

 

[Vortex Ring]

Love listening to you guys and learning stuff, very cool. I'll admit I am totally clueless though, what is a Kodiak or a Dynanav?

All this GPS moving map makes sick :huh: Our SeaKings have GPS but it sure as hell doesn't have moving anything and it sits in the back for the Navigator! Man I'd love to see moving map thingy up front, I digress..... 😉

 

[Big Duke 6]

Bag swinnger, my apologies if you took what i was saying the wrong way. Vert-Ref and I were having a little fun at your expense, sorry. I agree with ya though, use whatever tricks and tools will help you be more efficant and gain the confidence of your customer and crew without sacrificing safety. Unfortunatly until you come work for us, all those trade secrets will have to stay :censored: in the mean time keep up the good work, but remember faster is not always faster. Measure twice cut once. B)

 

[VERTICAL REF]

swinger you will find as you improve your skills as a recording crew pilot you do not have time to use a gps! Seismic is a memory game in which you must picture the grid in your head and "map" yourself in and "map" yourself out. Memorize the landscape to the finest detail, different colour tree, dead tree, tallest tree, rock outcroping, past the swamp, over the rock ledge, next to the creek etc. If these donot exist make your own, gently snap the top off a nice spruce on your last bag drop or couple of drops, or drill set up to give yourself an excellent "neon sign" to return to 5 minutes or 5 hours later...if you are going to the gps to mark the start of each rack, believe it or not you are costing your client money! you should be flying seismic not flying the aircraft or gps, if you know what i mean!Between alaska and california i only have about 6000 hours of seismic, so it would be benificial to get a second and third opinion! 😉 😉 😉 best o' luck, seismic can be a tough career to hoe! remember you are only as good as your last cycle...

 

[Big Duke 6]

😱 A whole Six thousand hrs that's it, your still wet behind the ears. Here I was , thinking I was talking to a pro... 😛 😀 Just kidding. Your'e right landmarking while doing any type of production work is the key. Whether logging, seismic, skiing even fires that is the name of the game. Bang on yet again VR how do you do it. 😉 don't pass on to much to the new guys or you and I will be going the way of the 47. Think of it as job security.

 

[VERTICAL REF]

Good point Duke... 😉 😉 😉 I'm not ready to retire yet!!!