X-Calibur Finally Flew
02-03-2005, 08:13 AM
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X-Calibur Finally Flew
I finally fly my 130" X-Calibur in the dreary, windy, cloudy snowy weather this past weekend. To be honest, I didn't think that my 3 year old hi-start would pull up a 7lb 7oz sloper very high off of the ground even with a good wind. And eventhough some people had told me this moldie was an excellent thermal ship, I didn't see how that could be possible with a wing loading of 22 oz/square foot. I basically had visions of a glide ratio comparable to that of a brick and expected carnage. But after my flying buddy Jun threw it, the thing went up straight as an arrow even with a 30 degree crosswind. And once it came off from the line, it just went where ever I pointed it regardless of the wind. The entire flight was made with about 10 degrees of flaps which were mixed with my elevator. And landing was a piece of cake with great aileron control. Since it was getting close to dark, I only had time for 3 5-minute flights but at least there was some lift coming off of the parking lot...don't ask me how. The only problem was how far it slid across the snow. On the next fights, I'll experiment with crow and I really can't wait to put it to the test on the slopes. So without a doubt, this is the best all around glider I've ever flown that seems like it'll do any type of flying you demand. SoaringUSA.com has them in case anyone wants to check them out.
Chillybee
Chillybee
02-04-2005, 01:20 AM
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RE: X-Calibur Finally Flew
ORIGINAL: Chillybee
..... The only problem was how far it slid across the snow.....
Chillybee
..... The only problem was how far it slid across the snow.....
Chillybee
Great looking ship. It's not really a surprise that it'll thermal at that loading with a clean design. The hot fai electric gliders are at least as heavy as your 'Bee and they thermal just fine. It's also no wonder that it didn't really pay much attention to the wind!..
02-04-2005, 03:27 PM
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RE: X-Calibur Finally Flew
BMatthews
This glider has the heaviest wing loading of any thermal ship I've ever had so it just surprised me. Thanks for the compliment on its' looks. I'll be flying this thing quite a lot in the future.
This glider has the heaviest wing loading of any thermal ship I've ever had so it just surprised me. Thanks for the compliment on its' looks. I'll be flying this thing quite a lot in the future.
