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EPICENE
THE ULTRA-LOW-BULK WINGSUIT SKYDIVING MAIN CANOPY

The EPICENE is specifically designed to deliver consistent and reliable openings while wingsuit skydiving. For us, this parachute has been a game-changer, and is now overwhelmingly the parachute of choice for the world's best wingsuit pilots.

The EPICENE is based on the same design tenets that make BASE jumping canopies reliable. Released in 2014, it now has a proven track record and has gained a reputation for the best openings in wingsuit skydiving, period.

A common sensation during the opening process of many parachutes is the stage when the parachute seems to be "searching" for the final heading that it will settle on. The EPICENE opens with minimal yaw-axis search, and delivers the most consistent heading performance of any parachute we have tested.

We believe the EPICENE concept is the future of wingsuit skydive parachute design, and some of the world's best skydivers agree: Andy Farrington, Noah Bahnson, Mike Swanson, TJ Landgren, Luke Aikins, Jeffro Provenzano, Katie Hansen, Petter Jönsson, and the Squirrel Team all jump the EPICENE by choice.

FEATURES

THE OPENING

The Epicene was designed from the ground up to deliver the most reliable openings possible, specifically for modern wingsuit skydiving use. The Epicene provides incredibly consistent on-heading openings in a comparatively short amount of altitude. Part of what makes the Epicene so reliable during the opening phase is its super-low aspect ratio design – aspect ratio is an important design factor for reliability and consistency during parachute openings.

PACKING YOUR EPICENE

The Epicene is the first canopy of its kind, but contains no new parachute technology. It is a tried and true 7 cell design that is built with the highest quality materials available today. Thanks to the ultra-light low-bulk Porcher Sport PN9 material on the main surfaces and ribs, it is very easy to pack. The material lays flat quickly and without drama, and is highly formable with no propensity to expand or squirm out of your control during the fold and reduction process. Its overall pack volume is 15-30% less than ZP canopy designs depending on size and type (Example: A popular 120sqft 9-cell ZP design has pack volume of approximately an Epicene 150). Packing the Epicene is similar to other 7-cell mains. Refer to the manual for proper packing technique.

IN-FLIGHT

Piloting the Epicene is straight-forward and fun. It has a sporty and highly compact feel in the air, with direct control inputs and progressive brake-travel. Read the reviews to see what people are saying about the Epicene's flight characteristics.

THE PILOT

The Epicene is a comparatively simple and easy to use parachute system in terms of packing, opening, and flight. 7-cell designs made from 0-3cfm fabric (F-111) all require some experience to land comfortably, compared to lightly loaded 9-cell ZP designs, and therefore it is not recommended for student use. The Epicene is designed specifically for wingsuit use, but is suitable for other skydiving applications as well.

CANOPY PERFORMANCE

The Epicene is high-performance in the sense that it delivers high-quality openings for wingsuit pilots who are flying today's modern wingsuit designs. In terms of glide and speed, the Epicene's low-aspect ratio design means that it does not have glide performance comparable to 9 cell ZP skydiving canopies. If glide performance is your top priority, then the Epicene is not for you.

CHOOSING YOUR SIZE

The Epicene is designed to make wingsuit skydiving parachute openings better, and the low-bulk material packs into a significantly smaller volume than standard ZP parachutes. What this means is that you should choose an Epicene that is larger than what you would normally jump for non-wingsuit applications. We recommend a wingloading in the range of 1.2:1 for experienced skydivers. Expert wingsuit and canopy pilots may wish to fly the Epicene at a higher wingloading, but it is important to understand that the canopy‘s best characteristics can only be fully experienced at a lower wingloading. Please take into consideration where you typically jump – density altitude is a critical factor that you must fully understand before jumping an Epicene. If you skydive more in Colorado than you do in Washington State, for example, then you must choose your size accordingly. Always be aware of changing density altitude conditions.

SLICK JUMPS (NON-WINGSUIT USE)

Although the Epicene is designed specifically for wingsuit skydiving, our testing and customer feedback has demonstrated that it performs very well for non-wingsuit jumps when properly packed and configured with your container system.

DEPLOYMENT SPEED, BURBLE, ANGLE OF ATTACK

Wingsuit parachute deployments are subject to many variables. The Epicene is a specialized parachute designed for wingsuit skydivers who understand the factors involved with parachute deployments and how a wingsuit can complicate them. In order to experience the benefits of the Epicene, you should learn to control your airspeed, burble (wake turbulence), and angle of attack during deployment.

MATERIALS

Porcher Sport PN9 is the highest quality low-bulk 0-3cfm material available. The ZP leading edge greatly enhances the Epicene's longevity and performance – during the Epicene's development our prototypes performed well for more than one thousand jumps. The Epicene is delivered with 725lb Spectra lines. No other line options are available.

CANOPY LIFESPAN – PRO DEAL

Over the past two years the vast majority of the world’s leading wingsuit skydivers have chosen the Epicene and it is, at this point, a proven concept. People often ask us how long this parachute lasts – we ask them, how long does it take you to do 1000 jumps? If you're planning on making more than 500 jumps per year with your Epicene, ask us about our skydive-professional pro-deal. If you are a highly avid or professional skydiver and want to have the best equipment for each type of jumping that you do, but don't have an unlimited budget to buy new gear every year, then our pro-deal program guarantees a trade-in value for your first canopy. Contact us to apply.

EPICENE REVIEW

"The Epicene Pro is a dope ass canopy, I wish would have got one few years back! Coming from flying a ____ the opening was way better on the Epicene Pro and faster, almost scared me thought was going to get slammed but she’s soft and very fun to fly… plus the all black with green leading edge looks pimp as f!! Thank you so much for the new gear stoked as to put more jumps on them and see where they take me in the future."

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-Jonny Pearson

"After a few jumps on this canopy I already LOVE it. It opens directly on heading in a comfortable but not snively manner. The only thing I can relate it to is a soft BASE opening. I was very pleasantly surprised with the flare as this was my biggest concern with the canopy being ultralight F111. Haven’t had a chance to swoop it yet, but will see how it goes. As it says on the video, this is not an ultra-high-performance canopy, so the turn rate is not super high with toggle turns, but it is not a bus by any means. Front riser pressure is soft at the beginning but builds with speed. I was able to pull the dive loop to my shoulder level and hold it there for about a 720. When I received the canopy, I thought that the brake lines seemed a little too long, but the factory settings were actually perfect.

I had gotten to the point where I was using a bunch of special techniques before deployment and was scared of what could happen every time I threw out my pilot chute. It is going to take a little while for those fears to go away and I am very excited to be able to just deploy from full flight and have a nice consistent opening."

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-Charley Kurlinkus

"It's nice to know that when I let go of my pilot chute, I'm going to have a very predictable opening… there's no surprises, it's not going to take off on me. It's fun to fly for a canopy in this class! And for an F111 7 cell the Epicene has a remarkable flare and bottom end, allowing you to finish your flare for a textbook landing. My Epicene 190 is perfect for demonstration jumps and wingsuit flying. "

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-Luke Aikins, RedBull Airforce

"I like the 116 and the 130, but I'm flying a 130 now for most of my wingsuit jumps and demos. It’s a super fun canopy for a 7-cell F111 design, and packing it is incredibly easy. Even if you do end up with some line-twists, which is always possible, the Epicene tends to fly straight and level with no aggressive turns or other funny business. All in all this is the perfect canopy for its intended purpose. "

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-Andy Farrington, RedBull Airforce

"Packing the Epicene is so easy, it’s like a joke. I am jumping a 150 now, and it fits easily into my rig which was built for a 91 Xaos. The openings are clean and consistent. I like the Epicene better than any of the other canopies that are currently considered best for wingsuit skydiving! I love the 150 size for wingsuiting and for demo jumps. "

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-Jeffro Provenzano, RedBull Airforce

"The first thing I noticed about it was the toggle pressure and rigidity of the wing; where I expected the soft and "squishy" feel of F-111, I got something that was closer to a Velo than even my Pilot in terms of rigidity and toggle pressure. The landings were great and nothing like I expected - the flare was powerful and to me as good as a ZP canopy. I am loading it heavy (1.65-1.70:1) and did a 90 on the first landing and 180s on the next two, so I had a lot of speed, but even so, flaring up high showed me that it has a really solid flare. The rigidity of the wing and toggle pressure I felt just flying the canopy and without the speed of the landing. On the third jump, I even got a decent swoop. I was all smiles and like I said, I am just really impressed. Never in a million years would I have said that a 0-3cfm canopy could fly like that. Never. I don't know what you did on the design - if it is just the ZP leading edge, size and placement of the cross ports, shape of the cells or some of all of the above and more, but I am blown away that you could make it perform like that. More than anything I am just amazed that the canopy flies so well and is that much fun. You more than exceeded my expectations and this is a really strong canopy..."

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-David Smith

"First jumps: Every opening was on heading, every opening was very comfortable, and I was very happy with every landing, toggle response, riser response, harness response (better harness response than my S____ 120 at 1.8ish) and distance on landing when "swooped." It has noticeably less glide than the S___ 1 I'm used to, BUT much better than a 120 or even 150 S___. Planing out on rear risers was predictable and easy. Recovery arc is predictable but quick. I continued to increase air speed [at deployment] and had the exact same opening every jump. I always experienced a very comfortable "stand up" followed by a couple shakes of the canopy and then a very comfortable inflation. Feet never went above my head or anything like that. I don't miss my S____ at all!"

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-Clif Jordan

"All smooth on heading openings, super symmetrical on opening every time. Nothing but awesome things to say about the canopy. "

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-Andy Stumpf

"I finally got into my new Funk and Epicene this Saturday and all I can say is wow! Very happy with both although was immediately superbly impressed with the Epicene's opening and handling! In wingsuits I've flown a Pilot/Storm/Sabre2 and the Epicene is by far the best wingsuit canopy I've ever experienced!"

-Dennis Valdez

"The Epicene from Squirrel is the softest and fastest opening wingsuit canopy I have ever jumped! Buttery and on heading... even with bigger suits. And the best part is it fits in my container! Being a competitive swooper for the past few years, my main canopy is 64 square feet. I thought I was going to have to get a whole new system for getting back into wingsuit skydiving. The Epicene116 packs down perfectly fitting in my freefly container. Awesome! Thanks Squirrel!"

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-Cynthia Currie

"The Epicene opens better than any other wingsuit canopy I have tried. It is fun to fly and land, for a 7 cell canopy. Packing it is super easy and comfortable. Overall it’s just the best choice if you’re flying wingsuits a lot."

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-Noah Bahnson

"Dearest Fellow Squirrels,

I just wanted to give you some feedback on the Epicene 210 that I ordered. I must say this is an absolutely outstanding main. The openings are super consistent, and it flies much more agile than I expected, especially for this style of canopy. Overall, you guys did an excellent job with this main. I expected this to be my wingsuit only setup, but Ive ended up using it for all styles of jumping. It ended up being much more versatile than expected. Thanks for making a main that I can actually trust. "

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-Roland Forbes

"As far as the Epicene, I have it all figured out and have just one thing to say: This is exactly what I was looking for. I didn't have the chance to jump it before ordering, I just bought it based on what friends told me. And it does for me what I was looking for on, specific jumps.

Thank you guys, great job."

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-Tim Hedderich (German National Freefly Champion)

"Really loving the Epicene! I was completely happy with the openings I was getting on my St___, but after putting some jumps on the Epicene I can't imagine going back. I feel infinitely better about openings with the Epicene than any other canopy I've jumped."

-Zac Rubenson

"I love my Epicene! I only just got the chance to jump it at the weekend as the typical English weather has been heinous as per... The openings were nice and fast, just how I imagined and how I want them to be when wing suiting. Thanks again."

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-Roland Forbes

"I'm not a sponsored jumper. I pay for all my gear at retail prices. Just looking to give an honest opinion on the first skydiving parachute I've bought brand new. If you're a wing suit skydiver you owe it to your self to buy an epicene from the guys @squirrel.ws I hate buying new skydiving gear. But this canopy changed my mind."

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-Tyler Burrows

"I tried my new Epicene yesterday and I love it already:-). It was definitely a good choice! Packing is incredibly easy, the openings are fast and though very soft... Thank you very much!"

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-André Jund

"I have taken several flights with my Epicene and I am in heaven every time! This is the easiest canopy I have ever had to pack, she has fast openings but they are also extremely soft, and super easy (yet FUN) to fly! The flare on her has been perfect every time!

I do not have a wide range of canopy's under my belt (crossfire and spectre) but I am IN LOVE with my Epicene and am recommending her to everyone who wingsuits! Every product you guys put out is top notch and I look forward to what comes next.

Thank you again for making a canopy I know is reliable! I'll be back soon likely for an Outlaw! Keep up the awesome work! "

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-Michelle Kaszper

"I put a few jumps on the Epicene today and have been impressed with the fast and smooth openings. It’s nice to take the drama out of deployments. I did a few jumps without a suit, a couple with the Sumo 2, and I plan to jump the canopy with a wingsuit in the next week or two. So far I have been impressed with the glide performance and the ability of the canopy to not lose much altitude in turns. Being relatively new to wingsuit flying I am interested in simplifying the deployment process and this canopy appears to do just that.

<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LMc5klJQVPg" class="youtube">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LMc5klJQVPg</a>"

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-Jude Alatorre

"I LOVE my new Epicene Pro! Take any other canopy on the market and pretty much throw them in the trash for wingsuiting. I feel just as confident on this parachute as I do under my Outlaw/Hayduke BASE parachute. The flare power has definitely increased and allowed for amazing flares on no wind days. The consistent openings are what I’ve been searching for my entire lifetime. I’ve tried them all, but the Epicene Pro is literally in a class of its own. No other parachute comes close to consistent openings for wingsuiters. I can actually relax on my openings now and not worry about what sh*t show is going on behind me."

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-Brandon Mikesell

"Positive yet soft openings, responsive to harness turns, plenty of drive and glide as well as a powerful flare with or without fronts. The Epicene Pro feels as reliable as my beloved BASE canopy and is a lot of fun to fly."

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-Taz

"Hey meet my new canopy. She’s an epicene pro 116. She likes to show up on-heading and packs a punch at the end of her flare. She’s the coolest little cloud I‘ve ever flown, and the first canopy that I have customized the colors. I think we’re in it for the long haul!"

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-Jessica Maviano

"The Epicene Pro, what can I say... "I love him" , "I love him" ! It's so easy to pack, and then these openings an absolute dream! Gentle, no twists and almost always on heading! Without a doubt the best wingsuit canopy on the market! Thank you for this great Squirrel toy."

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-Marc

"I’ve put a decent amount of jumps on in since I got it last summer. All I can say is I LOVE it. I would not trade it for any other other canopy I’ve tried. I’m no professional packer or professional wingsuit pilot for that matter... but I’ve had 0, yes 0 line twist all season. It’s Simply amazing and takes all the stress out of wingsuiting. It practicly crawls itself alone in my container its so easy to pack. I’m no expert canopy pilot either but it feels great in flight. To me its a fun and safe canopy to fly and land. I did 2 or 3 slick jumps with it too as well and was suprised how smooth the opening was.

Just wanted to say thanks for another great toy I got from you guys."

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-Valerio Melikian

"Guys THANK YOU!! No really thanks...!! After many 100’s of wingsuit jumps I was beginning to really not enjoy it anymore. The unpredictable deployments and malfunctions was getting to the point of me really doubting this whole thing.

Fast forward to the past weekend when I finally got to jump my new Epicine Pro and oh FUCK YEH!! Back in the game. Man this thing is a game changer. I spent the day jumping and each and every deployment was predictable, gentle and a pleasure.

Granted I was shitting my pants after not jumping WS for 6 months with my last jumping ending in a cutaway. I’m not sure the double espresso coffee helped...!! I was shacking like a shitting dog with a BPM of probably 500. But man this thing is amazing and got some very happy screams after it opened so nice.

So to conclude why the hell do people, like myself, bother with the “cheap option” of getting some 800 jumps abused old 7 cell in the hope it’ll be ok? C’mon this needs to save my life!! Have the right gear for the task at hand!

Amazing work and thanks for a top quality product that has re-ignited my passion for WS and currently has stopped me hating, fearing and loathing deployments.

Blue skie’s!! Much love!"

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-Simon H

"So I wanted to get some time under the canopy before I sent you guys a review... I absolutely love this canopy!!! The openings are smooth and on heading every time!!! It is super easy to pack. I honestly don't know how you guys will improve on this canopy, but I know you will! I have recommended this canopy to everyone flying a wingsuit, tracking suit... I use it for my typical fun jumps as well. I feel absolutely comfortable and safe under this canopy. Thank you guys!"

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-Daniel Smith

"The Epicene Pro is a dope ass canopy, I wish would have got one few years back! Coming from flying a ____ the opening was way better on the Epicene Pro and faster, almost scared me thought was going to get slammed but she’s soft and very fun to fly… plus the all black with green leading edge looks pimp as f!! Thank you so much for the new gear stoked as to put more jumps on them and see where they take me in the future."

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-Jonny Pearson

"After a few jumps on this canopy I already LOVE it. It opens directly on heading in a comfortable but not snively manner. The only thing I can relate it to is a soft BASE opening. I was very pleasantly surprised with the flare as this was my biggest concern with the canopy being ultralight F111. Haven’t had a chance to swoop it yet, but will see how it goes. As it says on the video, this is not an ultra-high-performance canopy, so the turn rate is not super high with toggle turns, but it is not a bus by any means. Front riser pressure is soft at the beginning but builds with speed. I was able to pull the dive loop to my shoulder level and hold it there for about a 720. When I received the canopy, I thought that the brake lines seemed a little too long, but the factory settings were actually perfect.

I had gotten to the point where I was using a bunch of special techniques before deployment and was scared of what could happen every time I threw out my pilot chute. It is going to take a little while for those fears to go away and I am very excited to be able to just deploy from full flight and have a nice consistent opening."

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-Charley Kurlinkus
SPECS
SIZE / FLAT SURFACE AREA*STUBEGINTADVEXPMAX IN-FLIGHT (lbs/kg)PACK VOLUME(m)SPAN (m)CHORD (m)ASPECT RATIOWEIGHTPROJ AREANO. OF CELLSLOAD TESTCERT
Epicene 116NONO110 lbs116 lbs150 lbs198/903.7 GDLC4.62.41.9:14.5 lbs 1067126 kgNone
Epicene 130Epicene 130NONO123 lbs130 lbs169 lbs209/953.98 GDLC4.72.51.9:14.8 lbs1197126 kgNone
Epicene 150Epicene 150NONO150 lbs165 lbs195 lbs220/1004.2 GDLC5.12.71.9:15.2 lbs1387126 kgNone
Epicene 170NONO170 lbs187 lbs221 lbs231/1054.5 GDLC5.52.9 1.9:15.5 lbs1567126 kgNone
Epicene 190NONO190 lbs209 lbs225 lbs231/1054.87 GDLC5.83.11.9:15.9 lbs1747126 kgNone
Epicene 210NONO190 lbs220 lbs231 lbs231/1055.3 GDLC6.13.21.9:16.2 lbs1937126 kgNone

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