Thinking of flying gliders, but you are not sure? That is how I was.

I started with electrics with no interest in gliders. Then I met a group of
guys who fly gliders. After watching them for a couple of months, in between
my electric flights, I had to try it. Now I am hooked. I have 2 electric
parkflyers but I have 4 gliders. I love to fly the electrics, but it is the
gliders that I think about all the time.

By the way, gliders and sailplanes are the same thing.

What does it take to get started? For under $200 you can be in the air with
a real glider, a real radio and a real great time ahead of you. If you
already have a radio, it can be even less. Read on and see if gliders are
calling you like they called to me.

Here is a link to a picture essay I did on flying gliders. I hope it helps
you understand why I have become so passionate about them. I call it,
"Sailplanes are wonderful".
http://www.********.net/forums/showt...&threadid=5356

So, what would it take to get started with gliders?

I will outline some of the things to consider if you are going to fly thermal gliders from an open
field. There is also slope soaring, which I have never tried so I won't address it here, but it is another fun way to soar without the need for a motor.

Here is a link that has a real good introduction to gliders.
http://www.mrcss.org/pdf/articles/a_beginners_guide.pdf

FIRST GLIDERS

I started my glider flying with a ready to fly package as I am not into
building.
The Great Planes Spirit Select: $139 complete with radio.
http://www2.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin...I=LXVK55**&P=7

There are lots of other excellent first gliders. The other two that were
highly recommend by our club were the Aspire and the Gentle Lady. All three
are 2 meter planes which means they have a wing span of about 2 meters or
about 6 1/2 feet. This is a good size as it is easy to transport with the
wings removed, but large enough to see in the sky as you catch your first
thermals. Of course there are others, but these three have introduced
thousands of new flyers to the joy of soaring. They are available at most
hobby stores as kits or almost ready to fly packages. Kits run about $50 and
the ARFs are typically about $100. Of course you can also get them on-line.

The major difference between the planes, for me, and the reason I selected the
Spirit was that it also has spoilers that can be added. Spoilers are not
designed into the Aspire or the Gentle Lady. Many experienced glider
pilots will tell you that you don't need spoilers, and they are right. But I
am really happy I have them on my Spirit.

Which ever plane you try, they are all great first gliders.

RADIOS

If you get the RTF Spirit Select, this part is taken care of for you. The
radio is included, the servos and receiver are already installed in the plane
when you get it. I think there is a RTF package available for the Aspire as
well. I have not seen one for the Gentle Lady.

If you have a radio, most introductory gliders are two channel planes with
rudder and elevator control. In fact there are a lot of really large gliders,
like the Bird of Time, that are two channel, rudder and elevator only, so you
don't need an expensive radio to fly gliders. The Spirit Select comes with a
three channel radio. The third channel will let you add spoilers later, or
can be used to control an add-on motor if you want to add one later. If you
are buying a radio, I would recommend at least three channels.

If you plan to buy a radio, the Hitec Focus 3, at about $ 60 for the AM
version with two standard servos or $80 for the FM version with two micro
HS-81 servos, is a good low cost radio for gilders, as well as three channel
electric or glo planes. The AM version under the Hobbico label, is what comes
with the Spirit Select, which is part of why I considered that package such a
good value.

I find the single stick design very very comfortable to use. It also has
servo reversing and elevon/v-tail mixing built in which would be needed for
flying wings or v-tail gliders/planes. These features used to require a
computer radio. http://www2.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin...I=LXFAA2**&P=7

If you have a larger budget, for about $180, the Hitec Flash 5X is a much more
capable radio that will allow you to fly more sophisticated gliders, electrics
or glo planes. It is a computer radio that adds mixing capabilities. This
package comes with three HS-81 micro servos.
http://www2.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin...I=LXRT20**&P=7

Add another $100 and you come to the Hitec Eclipse 7 which would be my
recommended radio, if you have the bucks. While it would be over kill for a
first glider, it has enough channels to handle a full house glider with a wide
variety of mixes for planes, helos and gliders. This package has four full
size servos.
http://www2.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin...I=LXWB59**&P=7

There are many other good radios from other makers, but these are my reference
models. I like my Hitec radios and their support and service is outstanding.

If you get a radio package with servos, and you have a choice, I would
recommend you look for packages that come with HS-81 type micro servos rather
than the larger heavier standard servos. You won't need the strength of the
bigger servos, you don't need the weight. The smaller servos are easier to
fit into the tighter spaces found in many gliders. However the Spirit can be
fitted with standard servos and flies great with them, if that is what you
get.

Launching

LAUNCHING

You will need some way to launch your glider. You can get a glider with an
electric motor, but I prefer the pure types which I refer to as sailplanes.
You usually launch these with a hi-start or a winch.

Almost everyone starts with a hi-start because they cost under $100, they are
small, and they easy to transport and store. A winch can be over $500 and is
big and heavy. Save the winch for later, or join a club that has winches. That
is what I did. Personally I find the winch harder to use.

If your flying field is less than 800 feet long, a full length hi-start may be
too big for you as that is how much room you will need. Or, you may wish to
start with something smaller which will feel easier to control for your
training flights and for practice sessions. There are also mid sized hi-starts
that will work fine in a 500' field.

For smaller fields, or for practice sessions, there is the up-start which
works fine in about 300', about the size of a football or soccer field. It is
just a smaller version of a hi-start. Typically this has about 25' of surgical
tubing and 75-125 feet of line. The rest of the suggested room is for space to
stretch the elastic.

Up-starts are great for practice or for people who fly at smaller fields. I
have an up-start and a hi-start and I use them both. It only takes a minute or
two to set it up an up-start and another minute or two to put it away. I love
up-start and hi-start launches. They are exciting and graceful all at the same
time.

This Upstart from Tower Hobbies, for $30, would be good for a 2 meter plane.
http://www2.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin...?&I=LXE638&P=7

If you want a hi-start this works well for 2 meter planes and perhaps up to 3
meters.
http://www2.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin...?&I=LXE636&P=7

Just as a point of reference, I would not recommend less than 3/16 tubing for
an upstart or 5/16" tubing for a hi-start for a 2 meter plane like the Spirit,
Aspire or the Gentle Lady. Smaller tubing will launch your plane, but I feel
it is better to have more power and pull it back less then to be short of
power when you need it. Plus if you go to a 2.5 meter glider in the future,
you will have the power you need to launch it. Another good source for
hi-starts is NE Sailplanes. www.nesail.com.

Personally I find hi-start launches a blast. The plane goes up like a jet
launched off of a carrier. When it leaves the end of the launch, it just
floats off the line like a sailboat on the ocean. Or you can "zoom" off the
end and gain even more height.

I wrote an introduction to using a hi-start which you can find at this link:
http://www.quietflyer.com/cgi-bin/ph....php?p=126#126

The nice thing about hi-starts is that you can control the power of the launch
by how far you pull back, so for your first launches you might pull back half
the length of the elastic. Later you might go to double the length of the
elastic, or more. Also, once you release the plane, all you have to think
about is steering, the elastic does the rest.

Off the up-start you can get launches of 125 - 200 feet depending your talent,
the amount of line and the wind conditions. That is enough to start you
learning and to begin hunting for thermals. Later, if you have the room,
launching off a larger hi-start or a winch you can get 450-600+ foot launches
which really puts you up there to hunt longer and further.

As mentioned above, you can also launch with a motor. A power pod can be added
to a sailplane for launching with a glow or electric motor. This works well
for people who have small fields, or those who like variety in their launches.
I have one of these as well. Here is the one I have. I can put it on and take
it off the plane at will.
http://www2.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin...?&I=LXJ769&P=7



Thermal gliders are all about hunting. The higher the launch, the easier to
search for those big thermals. These are really exciting launches.

So, that's my intro to gliders and what it takes to get started. For $139 for
the RTF package + $30 for an up-start + $10 for incidentals, you are in the
air. No fuel to buy or clean off. The only battery you need is the ones in
your transmitter and your receiver. Flights can range from 2 minutes to
hours. It all depends on how good a hunter you are. Every flight is an
adventure!

Gliders are great! Give 'em a try. If you have questions, ask. Others
helped me. I am happy to help you.