Picture courtesy of RocketChutes
48 Red/Sun Yellow, 2 18 inch drogues, 37 Royal Blue

Brief:
Not long ago, I discovered the ROCKETCHUTES brand of parachutes. These chutes are made in Delaware and have been available at Maryland/Delaware Rocket Association (MDRA) launches for some time. They are extremely sturdy and an excellent bargains, offering a lot of "bang for the buck".

Here are the specs:

• Semi-ellipsoidal panel design - Chutes 60" and up have 8 panels, under 60" have 6.
• The canopy is made from mil-spec rip-stop nylon.
• The edges of adjacent panels are rolled into each other before taping
• All seams and edges are taped with 300lb. test, flat nylon tape.
• Shroud lines extend over and cross the spill hole
• The suspension ("shroud") lines are 300lb. test braided nylon (1000lb. test Spectra line on drogues).
• The suspension lines pass through and are box-sewn into a tubular nylon sleeve that forms a nearly indestructible attachment point to the recovery harness (except 18" drogues).

I bought an 18" drogue chute and am very happy with it. This chute has been used as a drogue on my 12lb. Landshark and as the main on several smaller rockets. The chute worked flawlessly in both applications. These chutes become more and more economical as their diameter increases. My chute cost a few of bucks more than an inexpensive single piece nylon chute, but is *significantly* more durable. When you get to the 60" inch range, they are competitive with any chutes I've seen, and much less expensive than most. Oh, and since shipping is included, there is a discount if you pick them up on-site.

The only down side is they are produced on a limited basis. Please check their web site for availability.

Overall Rating: 5 out of 5