Samson4721

well i just finished building my first glider (gentle lady) and have flown all weekend. i had a hand launch close to 10 mins.! cant wait to put it on a high start. im now ready to maybe look into another glider to begin building. im just really looking for suggestions. i dont really want anything to fast just maybe something that will thermal and handle a good amount of wind. the lady seems to get pushed by gusts easily. thanks

bckyrdbshr

My Feedback: (35)

Check out [link=http://www.arthobby.com/]Art Hobby[/link] I've built 4 of them the Hyper DL , Boar , Thermic and Castor fixing to start on a Sierra.

Samson4721

those are some cool planes. i liked the looks of the colbri 1 meter, pretty expensive though or is it an arf? just running through tower hobbies and i saw a plane called "skeeter" has anyone flown this plane? i want something smaller to hand launch the fling that everyone talks about is another choice but i personally like to build them myself. also ive heard the fling does not thermal as well as other hand launchers.

Landi

My Feedback: (1)

Hi

Have a look at www.xl-sailplanes.com. They have all the Multiplex contest line planes. And also some nice 1/3 Scale Sailplanes.


Best regards

Landi

bckyrdbshr

My Feedback: (35)

Also check out [link=http://www.laserartco.com/]Laser Arts[/link] they have some good kits all laser cut and they are all on sale right now. I'm working on one of the Scepters right now and am thinking of getting one of the Majestics.

fprintf

Skeeter is an OK plane. But it won't thermal any better than your Gentle Lady will. I second Monkeybone's recommendation of the Laser Arts kits. You could also get a DJ Aerotech Crysalis 2M or go a bit bigger and get a 100" Big Bird from SkyBench Aerotech.

aeajr

My Feedback: (2)

The GL can handle more wind if you add some ballast over the CG. Try in the range of 3-9 ounces going up in 1-2 oz increments. That will give you ballist in the 10% to 30% range, depending on the weight of your plane. You will see a significant improvement in the handling of wind.

Give us some more info for your next plane. What is the goal/objective of the new plane? What is the budget

Bigger? More controls? More of the same?

Just some ideas -

A 2M RES plane - Great Planes Spirit, Sig Riser

A 3M R/E plane - Bird of Time

A 3M RES plane - M/M Glidertech Marauder

2M Full house - Spirit Elite

100" RES or Full House - Spirit 100, Sig 100

The list can get very long and very high priced. I would say fly the GL for at least a few months before you start building something else so you can get a better feel for what you really want from the second plane. The GL is a great floater thermal plane. Some people also fly them on the slope. Sounds like you are also hand throwing it.

Maybe your next plane should be a discus launched glider. Have you thought of that?

Landi

My Feedback: (1)

You should let us know what inspires you.

Non scale or scale glider

What is your skill level.

Are you ready for a plane with airlerons.

How much do you want to spend.

Saludos,

Landi

Samson4721

well the GL was my first ever kit that i had built. i have a trainer that i have flown for a while. but the gliding really hooked me when watching others fly. it seemed like a challenge and it is! thats what i really like. while im flying the GL i would like to have something to build at night when i have nothing to do. i feel comfortable and confident when flying and building. i have 2 servos, reciever and radio to use so as far as price i cant see spending much over 80 on a kit at the most. i want a larger glider (I think?). the BOT seems to grab my attention. mainly want some opinions

aeajr

My Feedback: (2)

Bird of time would be an excellent second plane. Large, beautiful in shape and a great floater. Something like a big GL. I think they were designed by the same person, Thornberg.

as an intermediate sided plane, you could build a Sprit 100 kit with the RES wing. Rudder/Elevator/Spoilers. Bigger plane, new surface, kit is about $80.

Two good choices.

Samson4721

what excactly do the spoilers do?? both gliders can have them i think. are they hard to make and use?

slopilot

Spoilers help the glider lose. Helps with landings. I'm not an expert, someone good will reply

aeajr

My Feedback: (2)

Spoilers - Typically used in landing gliders or sailplanes, these are on the
top of the wing. When these are raised, they reduce, or spoil the lift of the
wing in that area. They can help slow a plane down and raise the stall speed
of the plane causing it to descend from lack of wing lift. These can also be
helpful in getting sailplanes out of strong thermals.

You can see the spoilers opened on the top of the wings of my Spirit.

Landi

My Feedback: (1)

Spoilres...

The spoilers are generally used to loose altitude fast.

You use them in two ocasions: 1- During a landig approach 2 - when you are high in a thermo and want ot loose altitude.

What they do: Once your spoilers are up they will intrupt the airflow over the wing causing the wing to become ineficient with the result of a rapid loss of altitude.

the air attaches to a wing like a glove and flows over and under it maintainig the plane a float. The airflow is normally laminar. This means it flows over very close to their surface with out generating turbulence. Using any interuption it will release that air bubble and make it turbulent. This can be beneficial if you want more reaction on you flying surfaces...elevator, airlerons this why the turbulators where invented. With the spoilers this interuption is very drastical causing big waves over the wing with the result of abrupt loss of lift.


Saludos,
Landi

KJohn

If you want the 118'' wingspan of the BOT and the light wingloading of the BOT and the ability to penetrate some wind at a light wingloading like the BOT then ... better build a BOT and get it out of your system !! I am working on a hand cut somewhat modified BOT right now. I hoped I would have lost interest in the design but then I see another picture of it on the internet and I get hooked again. The 'Big Bird' design also has 'the look'.

A sailplane I liked very much was the Prophet 941. It launched well off a heavy duty highstart, thermals very well, looks good, builds well and is rather easy to build, has D-tube wing construction and penetrates a mild breeze that is typical in northern Ohio. You would have to find a set of plans as they are no longer in production. But I really liked that design. The 2 meter Prophet version plans are available from MAN. I have not built one of the 2 meter versions but it would be a good step up from the Gentle lady. It has a good reputation. The link is:
http://www.rcstore.com/rs/general/li...t=20&catego=PL

The Prophet 941 looks the same but is larger (100'' wingspan) and had the 'Eppler 193 Modified' airfoil. There might be similar planes currently made now. The Marauder I think was similar and uses the 'Eppler 195 Modified' airfoil and is 115'' wingspan.

Whatever you choose make sure it is something you 'really want' because it will keep you inspired to finish it and you will enjoy the building process. It is good you are willing to start building your next sailplane while you enjoy your present sailplane.

It does make a big difference when you change to a sailplane that can perform well in local wind conditions. The first time I flew a Sagitta 900 and flew it UPWIND I knew it was a turning point in sailplanes choices for me.

By the way, the Gentle Lady really can shine in the right conditions. You can learn a lot about the subtle control and proper tuning of sailplanes from the Gentle lady. I found it somewhat delicate compared to some of the other designs, but if tuned properly it is also capable of great performance and can strike fear in the hearts of competitors if the conditions are right! It is funny to hear the competition say 'Oh no! He brought his Gentle Lady. We're all in trouble now.'

hattend

My Feedback: (20)

I'll add my vote to a couple of posters above.

Any of the "Bird" series models from Skybench would be a good choice and also the Sceptre or Majestic from Laser Arts although those are little more work to build than the "Bird" series.

Don

hattend

My Feedback: (20)

No biggy, just a minor nit...

The Gentle lady was designed by Carl Goldberg
The Bird of Time was designed by Dave Thornburg (or berg...whatever )

Don

aeajr

My Feedback: (2)

Thanks. I new Glodberg produced it but I thought Dave designed it.

Here is one that I was going to buy when someone gave me 3 planes. My friend built one and loves it. A few dollars more than you planned but it could be well worth it.

http://www.mmglidertech.com/marauder.html

This is a 115" RES sailplane.

This is a thread I started that eventually tuned into a build thread by a friend of mine.
http://www.rcgroups.com/forums/showthread.php?t=158826

Take a look. I think you will like it!