Head bottom ends? what are they like? some have told me they didn't like the burners?

[Dennis Morris]

Hello I was considering buying a new compete Head system in about 3 years, I think it is the best value out there and Tarp Head is super nice, and they have a buy back program, If for instance if you bank is hesitant about making a loan being un familar with LTA aviation, and you default Head will buy the system back, just to reassure the lending instiution, which should easily get you a loan for one. I was considering a 105 or a 118 i'd just like to haul 4 plus myself,
Does anyone know of these systems up close and personal, I'd like a opinion. IMC says Head Balloons are some of the cheaper to insure, almost every thing checks out, does anyone know of a negative aspect to Head balloons?
I mean for the money, I can find know fault with their systems...

[Lance Terry]

Yes I remember the BQ-11 fiasco. You know a Cameron I flew went dangerously porous at the same low number of hours as some of the BQ-11 balloons but nobody made a big deal out of it like they did with Raven. The response was well you should have put more hyperlast in it. We had a lady that had a 600 hour BQ-11 balloon with no fabric replacement in our area.

As far as lightweight fabric goes some folks have gotten some high hours out of the silicon stuff but no manufacturer will give that lightweight fabric the same warranty as their heavier fabric. They do this for a reason. I have a silicon coated top 1/2 in my balloon. I would never put it in the whole balloon though. I had to pick my friend up from the hospital a few years ago after the soarcoat balloon he was flying burned completely up.

[Ben Miller]

Anyone able to inspect the new Firefly Maxflite yet? just curious about it...Fireflys in the area that I fly are the least common balloon system present, so I don't see a lot of them up close.

Any opinions? 2.4 oz sounds heavy, but durable to me.

[Lance Terry]

I saw the new TBW Maxflite up close at their booth at the RMBF a couple of years ago. It is beautiful and hardy in appearance and I REALLY like the way the colors are shaded however, it is all silicon coated. They claim it will not burn and they have a blowtorch sample test to prove it but I have not seen it done yet. It would be revolutionary IMHO if they found a way to make silicon coated fabric non-flammable. I would definitely consider a TBW with this fabric in it if it is non-flammable.

[Daniel Salters]

Lance, that's my point exactly. I do fly an S-60 and it IS heavy. Heavy enough that there have been (too many) times where the effort required to go get it on short notice with only one or two people available to load it into the back of a truck or onto a trailer and go fly has kept us on the ground. It is for this reason that I brought up the issue of weight because that's exactly the problem we go through. Yes, it will last forever at the rate we use it, but it is a pain.

I am busting no one's chops for their choice of heavier fabric. If it works for them, go for it. I just wanted to bring up a point (from experience) in case someone hadn't thought of it. Head's 1.9 oz. gets long life under good circumstances and would be a fine option.

[Drew Egerton]

I think in the near future I will be investing in a Tommy Lift for the truck, so that should help negate some of the weight issues. My folks never got one but talked about it forever, now dad's got back problems. Hopefully I'll last a little longer that way.

Lance, was is the weight (oz.) of the silicone stuff in yours? Is it the "Head Lite" that he advertises as the light weight stuff? I thought about getting that but it's only 1.1 oz I think and I would be afraid it may not be as durable as the regular fabric. Does the silicone coating make up for that?

My experience recently with a Cameron 160 that was 50% or so Hyperlast was that the stuff is SLICK. Really hard to put it in the bag.

[Lance Terry]

Drew,
I do not have the lightweight fabric in my balloon it's all 1.9 oz. The top half with the silicon coating is not slick. It is his normal 1.9 oz rip stop nylon fabric with a silicon rather than a polyurethane coating. There is no real difference in appearance, handling, or weight between the silicon and the poly-coated fabric.

[Tony Goodnow]

I personally don't worry too much about fabric being too heavy, and I have a pick up truck with no liftgate. It would take some pretty heavy fabric to outweigh the basket which you've also got to get in and out of the truck so I don't see an extra 40# on an envelope being too much of an issue. Granted, this is coming from a guy who usually has more crew than he knows what to do with.

On the hyperlast, yeah it is REALLY slick. I sometimes crew for a local guy that has a top third hyperlast and it still amazes me how slick it is every time I touch it. The velcro envelope straps help to keep it manageable, I'd suggest doubling up on them on the hyperlast section to help keep it manageable.

[Brian Ball]

Why did Firefly move away from polyester fabric? The 300 degree redline temp was a big marketing tool for them.

[Ben Miller]

Brian,
Ballooning Magazine had an article about this switch over from Polyester to Nylon They claim that the quality of the polyester fabric that they were purchasing was getting worse and they just didn't see the justification in using it in their balloons anymore. Plus, I have a feeling that it was also switched because of the switch in management.

[Tony Goodnow]

It is my understanding that they still have the 300 degree red line with the MaxFlite.