Safire Discontinued

mrfalconfixer · July 19, 2010

Where do I start……I finished my AFF in 6 jumps and after 3 coaching/fun jumps decided to take the plunge and purchase my first rig. I heard both sides for buying a rig this early. Wait until you know what you want………learn with your own gear……..on and on for both side of the argument! I am here to tell you, I am a believer in having your own gear when you are ready! I found a great used rig; Mirage G3 M7, Safire 229, PD 253, Vigil, etc., the money was right and after a thorough inspection from the master rigger, it was off to the drop zone. I was a bit nervous on the first jump being I had only been under 2 other canopies at this point (Manta 388 & Triathlon 220). After a nice freefall from 10,500, pulled @ 6000, and when I looked up there was beautiful yellow and purple canopy, control checks done and it was like we were old friends. To be honest the first landing I didn’t flare as far as I should have, but the next flights were stand up landings!!!! I was a bit nervous about the flare after reading the other reviews; but a nice staged flare is all it took to settle right in. I have a wing loading of 1.09 and it is great to be able to cover some ground once under canopy. I am also learning to pack and finding out what causes a solid and soft opening on my set up…….lots to learn still but the Safire performed as advertised. A+

everymansaved · March 21, 2007

This is an excellent canopy! It opens beautifully, is an absolute blast to fly, and forget what you hear about it not having any flare. I heard these rumors as well, and I can tell you for fact, they are not true. I usually come in double front risers, so I carry a bit of speed, but a nice smooth flare will give you a beautiful landing, with just a hint of run out at the end. It is forgiving of body position on opening, as well as packing technique.

freeflydemon · October 5, 2005

I have 100 jumps on my safire 149 @1.83, it has amazing and predectible openings, good fly, nice for learn how to use your risers (front and rear), not too fast but I make nice flares on it. When you are high after a hook turn with front risers, the canopy doesn't response very good but when you have speed.... it has excellent toogle response and an amazing flare power.

cram6892 · December 11, 2004

The Safire is an excellent canopy for all levels depending on the wingloading, a small draw back is the off heading dives on opening, but a slight rear riser pull cures all that.

alain · March 4, 2004

getting close to 400 jumps with a Safire 1 135 loaded @ 1.3+:1, here's what I can say about it...
The vectran lineset will probabely last another 100 jumps, that will take it to 500 jumps or so. I've checked the lines length not too long ago: they are all within 1cm from the factory specs !!!
I use to find the flare quite tricky at first but now I realise that it was mostly due to me not being experienced enough for that wingloading at the time.
The openings are nothing but sweet: I don't even bother to slow down my track before pulling, which gives me some consistant 700ft nice openings, on heading 90%. I reckon the last 10% are mostly due to lazy body position, anyway the canopy never dives nor spin. I look forward to jump that canopy with a wingsuit !
The glide is very good if you need it (rear risers), either to get back from a long spot or if you want to wait for trafic to clear...
Despite what many people have said, this canopy has heaps of flare even on a classic strait in apporach, you just need a little research to find it...
Flat turns are quite easy to dial in too.
No issues with strong or turbulent wind.
Now, the very good side of the Safire-1 compared to many of it's kind is it's ability to dive and swoop, don't expect 400ft though ;-). Recovery arc is not too short, front riser pressure is manageable (I had the lower steering lines lenghten of 3 inch to avoid some wierd reactions on front riser input). Best thing to do* is a front riser carve approach, starting slowly for 45°, then pull harder to make it dive and get some speed for another 90°, what you need for the last or so 45° needed to complete a classic 180 is to release the riser smoothly or eventualy pulling the other one a little bit if you find yourself too high: the canopy won't level out untill you want it to and it will keep heaps of speed.
Then: the flare is cool ! After a smooth approach like I described, I usualy just need a little break input to flaten the glide and then the canopy flies horizontaly on it's own, pretty much toggles up, for about a third of the swoop. You just need to apply some breaks progressively to shut it down. Once dialed in, even on a hot no wind day, you won't have to run it out, not even a single step needed. slide&stop, that's how it works!

My 0.02 euro advice to intermediate jumpers willing to progress safely would be: get one (with the spec-1) and take some time to learn how it flies.
If you are more conservative and don't want to get into HP landings, maybe a Safire-2 or Sabre2 would be an easier option...

* I would not recommend any front riser approach at first or for beginners, you don't need that to land the canopy proprely. But if you want to, do your home work and take the time and jumps to get there progressively (double front at first, then 90's, etc...)

edit, 3 things I wanted to add (120 more jumps and a new line set since):
- i'm now jumping it with my S-Fly wingsuit: great, no hassle, sweet openings. I got a couple of twist once, no worries the canopy flew strait and I had plenty of time to kick them out. just as good as I expected :-)
- I had the opportunity to throw some nice 270's at higher elevation (1800ft) in Morroco lately, just one thing to say: leave your self some room 'coz the thing will swoop!!! No problems to shut it down though. Considering that sort of altutide density is fairly equivalent to one size smaller at home (sea level) and how enjoyable it was, I'm hunting for a 119 ;-)
- I discovered how to make it dive steeper&longer, thus building more speed, by pulling on both risers during the carve. More speed means slightly longer recovery arc and better swoop, plus you to start the swoop higher with this trick which is a good safety point !

safe ones !
Alain

mountainman · December 4, 2003

My wife and I got our new Safires several months ago and we love them. They open very nice no matter how you pack them. They open on heading and fly very nice. They will get you back from a long spot and low pull. Once you find that "sweet spot" for your flare, you can have some really awesome landings. It has a weak flare compared to other canopies. This can easily be packed with no jumps on it with psycho packing. Highly recommended!!!

madflying · May 25, 2003

I purchased a Safire 139 (second hand) (1.1 wing load), after I crashed landed a Sabre 120. I spent 8 months recovering, then I started looking for a new canopy and I came across Icarus, in UK most ppl don't even want to talk about it. I read everything possible that I found online about Safire, and I thought it was the canopy for me. First jump I landed off, I was a bit afraid, then things started to work again. Now after 250 jumps on it I have only two words "AWSOME CANOPY".

As I said it is a second hand, after about 100 jumps i re-lined and the improvements in perfomances was amazing, I m not saying it wasn't performing, but i became a lot more responsive.

I psyco pack, only becouse my bag is for a sabre 120 and psyco packs smaller than pro-pack. I always get nice opening, in 250 jumps i had once two twists, and once half, i guess both due to the opening position.

These days I'm doing risers approch and it keeps going, and it stops whenever i want it.

Few weeks ago I jumped a Safire 119, and it blew my brain, but i also realized that i have a lot more to learn about my canopy before thinking downsizing again.

Moreover customer service is fantastic, they are very nice, Joris and Martin, based at Empuria Spain, are fantastic...

Thanks ICARUS

skymedic · April 23, 2003

funny thing is I wasn't going to buy a safire when i did. It was a few weeks before WFFC and I needed a canopy fast. This canopy happened to be for sale at Square 1 as one of there used Demo fleet. they said it had a relatively new line set and just a few holes. I really didn't care about what color it was.

well this was the start of my journey with the safire. my first 20 plus jumps I got the snot slammed out of me...on opening and on landing. I just could not figure this thing out. it was making diving off heading openings. the flare was awful(so i thought at the time). well then I learned that I needed to start psycho packing the canopy. this helped tame down the slammer's to a more acceptable level. I still had off heading openings now and then. But I could handle that. then I finaly figured out the sweet spot of the flare. I went from standing up 2 out of 20 to standing up almost every single landing and even having the thing pop me back up into the air. this was just after one of the low jump# skygods at the local DZ told me the safire has no flare...even thoug he had never jumped one in his life. the canopy literaly lifted me 10ft plus back up into the air which I rode out and landed on my feet nice and softly.

Well then a few weeks after making a post about the slammers HooknSwoop PM'd me about a mod that he does to help slow down the openings and improve flare.

I finaly got the mod done after waiting almost 6 months.

well let me tell you. I now have a few jumps on the mod and the thing is just awesome when it comes to openings. nice SLLOOWWWW snivels the way I like them. I have none of the diving tendency's like I had before. it is realy nice not to cringe when I deploy like I had before at times. On the Bottom end I have mega flare. it seemed to me that I am not even using half of the available flare. I am sure I can swoop the thing much longer than I am. I am more than capable of shutting it down any time I wish. for an extended swoop or a nice and short flare to a full stop in a relatively small space.

to sum it up, I love my canopy, it is a ton of fun in the sky, turns are great with no oversteer, easy to stall and recover, recovery arc is relatively short(which is fine with me right now), I'd definately recomend the mod be done for anyone with the safire, it really does make a great canopy better.

cardinalfalling · April 8, 2002

I am a new time jumper with 80 jumps. After ten jumps trying to find this "sweet spot" that requires a "full flare" I went back to the basics and determined that my steering lines were just a bit too long. My rigger looked at the rig and doubted my call on the length of the lines. He abliged my requests after I did two jumps confirming that I could not stall the canopy up high unless I hyper-extended my shoulders (and I am 6'4"). He shortened my steering lines by three finger widths. I gave him two big hugs and I owe him some beer after loving the new responce of the canopy. Now I really like the canopy. If you are having trouble finding the "sweet spot", test the steering line lengths up high to see if they are too long. Don't just have someone look at it on the ground, as this did not help me.

Blue skies and enjoy.

June 5, 2001

BIG DISCLAIMER: I am a newbie to skydiving. Most other skydivers have more experience and knowledge than I do; therefore what you are about to read may be inaccurate, incomplete, totally off-base, or just plain wrong.
I currently have 79 jumps under my belt and of those, 65+ have been under either a Safire 189 or 169 (wingloadings respectively 1.1 and 1.24). I rescently bought my first rig and it is equiped with a Safire 169. So from the get go, it should be understood that not only is my experience limited, it's also biased .
The Safire is a 9-cell slightly eliptical ZP canopy. As such, it tends to come in flater than a similar sized and proportioned (aspect ratio)7-cell. This is neither good or bad...just different if you've only flown 7 cells.
I love the way the canopy flies, especially at the higher wing loading. It responds immediately to toggle input and straightens out promptly when you release tension. In other words, it doesn't continue to turn when you let up on the toggle. When I first started flying the Safire ( about jump # 9)I thought the canopy was abit twitchy to inputs, but I quickly adjusted to it and after about 4 or 5 more jumps the twitchiness was no longer a factor. If you like to go horizontal durings spirals you'll like this canopy. My 169 slings me from out under the canopy very easily under hard toggle turns and remains rock solid. I've done 6 or 7 sequential 360 degree spiral turns and then flipped it in the opposite direction to complete several more spiral turns and the whole time felt under complete control. During the transition from opposite directions the canopy exhibited no tendency to induce line twists.
The control range is on the longish side. To stall the canopy requires a deep pull of the toggles. Perhaps because of this, you may have heard that you have to land Safires differently. I don't know how to interprete "different" but I will say that when flaring the canopy on landing you want to progressively apply input to the toogles throughout the entire range. You do not want to just yank down on the toggles in one quick motion. If you do this and are high when you flare, you will plane out and drop straight down when the canopy stalls (ouch). It may even gain a little altitude at the end of the plane-out phase and drop you from a little higher up (double ouch!) Should you just yank on the toggles on the lowish side for flare time, if you're lucky, you'll have to run off the landing speed, and I do mean run. If you're a little less than lucky than you will get to do a really good PLF. I'm not trying to intimidate you or make it sound that this canopy is hard to land. The secret here is smooth progressive control inputs, and feeling for feedback from the canopy.
This is how I land it...your mileage may vary....On final approach I have the toggles all the way up or only slightly pulled down (literally only a few inches.) When reaching flare altitude (when feet are about six feet off the ground.)pull down on the toggles smoothly but at a moderate rate. As soon as the canopy begins to plane-out is where the real work begins. The idea is to continue to pull down on the toggles but vary your pace depending on the the conditions. Some people call this a two-stage flare but I don't like the term because it implies that you hold or stop the flare for some distinct time period. I think of it as "milking the flare". If I find myself a little high during the plan-out phase I slow down the rate I pull down on the toggles. Conversely, If a little low, you'll need to pick up the pace. If done correctly ( at least in my mind.), as you reach the end of the plane-out phase and you're skimming above the ground about a foot (it's imporatant to be very close to the ground if you do this.)pull quickly done on the last bit of control range that you have left, and the canopy will lift you up just a bit as it stalls and losses all or most of it's forward speed. At this point it will drop you to the ground quite nicely and all you'll need is a step or two for the last bit of momentum you might have. Nice landing!
This method has worked consistantly for me. I've stood up every landing except two, once I dialed it in. So that would make about 65 jumps total.
Front riser control takes a little bit of muscle but not bad for diving turns. Pulling down on both risers requires some real heft. It's essentially like doing a pull-up. I'm not an expert in front riser maneuvers so'll I'll just leave it at this.
This canopy is a blast to fly. It may take a little more attention at first, but the investment is well worth it.

April 24, 2001

I've ordered a Safire 149, having read the reviews i'm really looking forward to getting it!!

ryanehrler · April 8, 2001

I am a new skydiver with only one year in the sport. I recently bought a new Safire and am completely in love with it. I have read about problems finding the sweet spot in the flare, but I have had nothing but great landings with this canopy. I jumped some other comparably sized canopies (Sabre and flight concepts) and have found the Safire to be the most fun and controllable. At altitude, I can really let the chute fly. It spins and turns like a champ. I really like the recovery when I ease off of the brakes. The best part of the canopy, though, is its performance near the ground. I was a little afraid on my first few landings thinking I would come in too hot. But, the canopy has been so smooth. Even with no wind, the canopy flares well and I have yet to run too hard. I am really pleased I got this canopy for my first and would reccommend it in a heartbeat to someone who wants something that will be a blast to fly but not scare them out of trying to play with their landings. I'm still far from a skilled canopy pilot, but this chute is definitely a step in the right direction. Try one!

mattb · March 7, 2001

I learned on a Safires and recently purchase one I that I've flown before loaded at 1.3:1. They are a fun canopy to fly and versatile (docile or aggressive - depending how you fly). The only trick is landing them. My advice is to make sure you flare completely in order to find the sweet spot. I was talking to an Icarus rep. last week and found out 2 interesting things:

1) A Safire 170 is smaller than a Spectre/Sabre 170. Icarus is changing this because PD has more market share and in the future the sizes will match up. This isn't necessairly a "bad" on Icarus. PD gave a presentation and one of the topics was on how difficult it is to fairly/evenly measure canopy size.

2) Icarus will be modifying the steering lines on the Safire to be more like the configuration on the Crossfire. Many people wrap the steering lines once around their hands because the "sweet spot" is at the very end of the flare.

The Safire is a great first canopy!

January 19, 2001

I jump a Safire 189 loaded at about 1.3lbs/sq. foot. I have about 50 jumps on it and I love it. I psyco pack it everytime (in about 10 minutes cause its sooooooo easy) and get great on-heading openings.

Upon opening I loosen my chest strap all the way, stow the slider behind my head all the way down the risers to the 3 ring, and then let it fly. I can really stay up there in deep deep breaks for awhile, but landing is the best part about this canopy. It definately was designed to surf in. I hit the breaks fairly hard and abruptly about 7-9 feet off the ground, at which point the canopy levels off, I swing under and ahead of it, and then just let it go until your ready to punch it out and stand it up. I can even carve turns during the surf if needed to avoid obstacles or others.

Front riser pressure is pretty high, but if you keep the canopy in trim, and yourself, you can really gain some speed on approach using the front risers. All in all, I would reccommmend this canopy to first time buyers, cause with the proper wing loading, you can make this thing act like a hp ellip, or a big student sail.

January 13, 2001

With about 175 jumps I started pulling the slider down and loosening the chest strap. The landings went from good to perfect, try it.

October 24, 2000

I have about 100 jumps with the Safire 149, loaded at 1.5:1 I pack it like a ZP 7-cell, ie: clear the lines and roll it up Psycho style. The openings are nice, and always on heading when I am in the proper body position during deployment. If I am unstable or shoulder way low, then I give myself some line twist, but nothing too serious. The canopy is quite responsive with toggles as well as riser turns. The landings are somewhat different than much older designs, such as the Sabre. The Safire loves to surf! A straight-in approach with the proper toggle flare will produce a really cool surf! Using the risers will only make it better and longer! The Safire is an excellent canopy, and Icarus is an excellent company that believes in first-class customer service and cutting edge technology.

July 30, 2000

I have over 30 jump on my SAFIRE, wing loading at 1.4, I love this canopy. It does what i want it do. Great openings, i did have problem with trash packing, but since then i have changed to pro packing and no opening problems. Simply great canopy for all types of flying. Thanks to ICARUS.

July 17, 2000

I have about 50 jumps on various sized Safires.

The one thing that I can suggest if you are going to try a Safire, is to give it a chance. There were a couple of reviews that eluded to the fact that the landings may take some getting used to. At first the flare is a little different than other canopies, I didn't think it seemed quite as responsive. But like Lisa said earlier, once you find that sweet spot, you are set.

Depending on your loading of the canopy, and your approach, the canopy really allows you to fly/land any way that you want to. I have had various types of openings on the Safires, but have found that as with most things, if you spend an extra minute giving it the old TLC when packing, it will treat you well.

I think this is a great beginner canopy, if loaded properly, as well as a good transition canopy, for someone wanting to get a taste of higher performance, without altogether giving up the forgiveness.

And that's all I have to say about that. :)

February 21, 2000

I recently purchased a Safire 134 after 700+ jumps on the Sabre 150 (I'm personally about 93kg) Only 3 words come to mind - I LOVE IT

After 8 jumps, 6 of the openings have been smooth as, one I had to shake the risers a little to bring the slider down, and the last, a brake off on opening... had a reasonable spin going, but pulled on both brakes, thus releasing the other and she was flying straight and level again

My ProTrack kept recording decent rate down through 60mph on that one, instead of cutting out in the 85-100mph range. On long distance spots, I've managed to fly further than I thought, and when I'm open over the top, it's let's get dizzy time

Packing it has been easier than I thought it'd be too (remembering back to when I initially got the Sabre) - 8 packs down, and she goes in the bag with only a little bit of a 'come on, stay in there'... the Vectran lines are noticable in their colour when seen by others (I was prewarned they'd be a little yellow)

Here in the land Down Under, the Safire was also cheaper than the Sabre (Safire 134 was AUD$1990, whereas someone else paid $2300 for a Sabre 150 with 4 jumps on it!!!). Keep up the great work Jyro

Blue Skies
Andrew Bassett-Smith
APF E-1111
FAI FS Judge

January 12, 2000

I purchased a Safire 135 a few months ago, transitioning from a Sabre 150. At first I thought the canopy snivelled way too much (especially compared to the 'vertebraic correction' of my Sabre), but using the psycho pack and exposing the centre nose cell has sorted that issue.

The canopy opens cleanly and on-heading, flies sweetly (more responsive than the Sabre) and flares smoothly. Overall, an excellent 'first' canopy that should also stay exciting in the long term.

December 21, 1999

I load my Safire at about 1.1. Took a few jumps to dial in the landing, but once you find that "sweet spot" it's easy, even in no wind.

I really like the way it FLIES!! Turns are quick and tight and it handles turbulence well. Feels faster both in the air and on landing approach than a similarly sized Sabre or Spectre.

If you are looking for something a bit more than a Sabre or Tri but not quite a Stiletto or other fully elliptical main, put some jumps on a Safire and you'll see what we mean!

November 29, 1999

I have a safire 129, wingload around 1.3. It is my first canopy after the Sabre 150, and I do have difficulties landing it. This is more a pilot problem, than a canopy problem :-) I do like the perfect soft on heading openings, the great forgiveness and the great flying characteristics. I really love this canopy, so I will practice on my landings...

November 1, 1999

I have to agree with Alex Gagescu, this canopy is a nice step up from a Sabre class canopy. It is a nice introduction to elliptical canopies. My wing loading was about 1.5 and I felt it handled much like the Diablo at the same wing loading. I felt that the front riser pressure was much higher than a Sabre of the same size, but overall, I felt it to be superior to the Sabre.

If you are considering moving into your first elliptical canopy, you should give this canopy a try.

October 19, 1999

I flew one at 1.7:1, what Precision would call "spirited" performance. Nice canopy. On-heading quick (not hard) openings. Much better than a Sabre, not quite a Stiletto. Excellent glide and very forgiving. Way too much toggle input to make it do something but front risers very nicely. Too much rear riser pressure. You are better off leaving the brakes stowed on a long spot. If you are considering a Sabre or a lightly loaded (<1.5:1) Stiletto, try a Safire before you buy.

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