Keenaviator

Funny, some time ago I mentioned something like this with my UL450 Jabbie which has a claimed 17:1 glide and relatively low sink rate. I was pretty much pounced on and firmly chastised! Luckily I have a couple of CFI mates who are also into gliding ;)

Laurie

I agree. Speaking from hang gliding experience, driving for 1.5 hours then lugging your aircraft up a hill, for about 2 minutes of flight time when the wind isn't right - (or even worse, having to lug it back down again) - that's got hairs on it.

I'd love to go paragliding, even more to get my own licence and rig. I'll hopefully be moving to Newcastle after training at the Police College here in Goulburn so would have a grand spot for it.By the by... has anyone got any links to or pictures of electrically powered paragliders? That'd surely be a good starting point for electric aircraft.

 

Cheers - boingk

Good that they survived but isn't it interesting the he says "the plane stalled" when in fact, he stalled the plane. Left to their own devices, a correctly trimmed plane will not stall.

Sounds great! I was very taken with the one I mentioned above and it certainly sounds like it'd be a hoot to fly. Nice indeed. Would've been even better knowing you'd made it.Good point on the corrosion proofing on the 140's. Our local 150M Aerobat has recently been out with corrosion on the gear legs - small pits that are just on the service limits. New gear cost... wait for it... an arm and a leg.

 

Cheers - boingk

Cheers, Laurie

Boink, you asked how did the Starlet go? Well it went like a cut cat with the new Jab engine and Patroney prop. Easily exceeded VNE straight and level and still accelerating strongly. Climbed at around 1500 fpm and had nice light and balanced controls. The downside is size. After getting the Starlet I got into paragliding and there was no way of carrying my paragliding setup. In the last year of ownership I only dd 16 hours in it. A mate was very keen to have it so selling it was very easy.

Regarding Cessna 120/140s, these are very old aircraft. I don't think they were ever made to last because after the Second World War Cessna churned out thousands of them promoting them to be as common (thus disposable) as cars. There was no internal corrosion proofing and chasing corrosion is a never ending task - this I know well because thats what i had to do with my 1961 150.

Keenaviator/ Where are you with the Corby Starlet, are you building?If you are building there are a couple of tips I could pass on about the elevator and tailwheel attach.

I think a there was an authorisation for them to be fitted, would have to check with either the factory or in original documentation.- boingk

In 1997 I bought a Cessna 150A which was made in 1961. I later overhauled it and did a Texas Tailwheel conversion to it. This model has the same fastback fuselage as the 120/140 series. All 120, 140 and 150's had Continentals, apart from the Reims which was built in France.

I waited in hope for many years for the proposed 750 kg MTOW in RAAus but it didn't happen. So I sold the 150 and got myself a Corby Starlet project allowing me the freedoms and advantages of the RAAus.

Lycoming 235 as an option on a Cessna 140, I don't think so. They were fitted to the Cessna 152 series.

A paramotor apparently.

Yes, today.

GA8 Airvan?

Actually, someone here might be able to remind me of the actual type of the largest aircraft I have flown.It looks like a Cessna Caravan but, I believe it's made in Oz, high-wing, 8-seater single engine propellor machine.

The flight however was definitely memorable.

 

It was from Papeete, Tahiti to the island of Tetiaroa, which used to belong to Marlon Brando :D

 

.

Not sure where you got that info, Mike Coburn attended the inaugural HGFA Coures and one of the fifteen first trike CFI's to be approved by CAA.

Cheers, Laurie.

Very sad news. My condolences to Wayne's family and friends.

Regards, Laurie

These are wonderful to see - brings back great memories since I started hang gliding and trike flying when this course was being developed. Another name not mentioned there who had input into the development of the approved weightshift pilot certificate course was my instructor, Mike Coburn.

Hi Clive. . . . . I think that the temperature thing has been discusssed to death in other threads,. . . but I'm somewhat intrigued as to why our Jabiru users in the UK are reporting NONE of the massive problems I've seen on this particular forum. . . . . . . Interesting to say the least of it. . . . . . . . Simon,. . . A close friend and operator of a Jabiru engine, said that he'd looked at the Rotax 912 series, and opted for the Jab engine as it looked a bit more sensible,. . . .whereas the Rotax version looked like a BORG warrior from Star Trek,. . . with pipes and wires going everywhere, . . . he thought that the Rotax looked a little too complicated, and therefore, it might be more liable to silly system failures,. . . where the Jabiru appeared to be a more sensible choice,. . .and he is still happy with his Jab engine after flying with it for over 700 hours. . . . . .Maybe it actually IS a temperature related problem,. . . . . . . but unless there is a straw poll from the Aussies,. . . then we'll never have a benchmark to make a sensible conclusion. . . ?

Regards, Laurie.

You'd thinks so but they're always moving so circulation is maintained. Also your arms are supported by the brakes - minimum sink is achieved with about arm weight brake pressure. If you haven't flown for a while you may notice muscles you didn't know you had the next day :) Flying the paraglider is also a pretty good abdominal work out as turning is a combination of weight shift and brake - using weight shift and minimising the use of brakes is more efficient.

Beware, if you take this sport up as it is very addictive! I've just clicked over 300 hours.

Ok so 5nm for a decrease of 1000ft.......Google convert 5nm to ft...answer 30380ft so we have a glide ratio of >30:1 Im impressed!!! In fact so impressed that I note my B/S detector is going gangbusters.......I guess we need a bit more info like:-

 

• Winds at the time speed/direction
   
   
  
• Trike heading so can work out wind relativity
   
   
  
• what does "Cut the power mean" I can do that on climb to cut back to merely cruise and I dont drop at all does that mena my old 582 is even better?......
   
   
  

 

 

 

Please if we are going to quote performance figures make sure enough info is posted so that people cant be mislead into thinking one thing when in reality

 

30:1 is well into the envelope for a proper GRP 3 axis glider and anyone comparing a trike to a glider in terms of L:D would normally be doing so to highlight opposite ends of the spectrum.. not to compare neighbours......

 

Andy

Pretty sure Cessna bought out Cirrus or something similar a few years ago.

The early Jab engines are absolutely not suitable to use with composite/carbon props. They had 1/4" grub screws on the fly wheel to crank. Later they increased the size to 5/16" (still not suitable for carbon prop), then they added dowels and later a steel 'spider' reinforcing plate. I updated the Jabiru engine in my (ex) Corby Starlet to one with all the mods so was able to fit a Patroney carbon ground adjustable prop which is still performing very nicely (correct me if I'm wrong Darren if you are watching!).

Cheers, Laurie

welcome Peter! Is paragliding where you jump off a high place such as a mountain and glide your way to the bottom under a steerable parachute? If so, I remember once when i was in Bozeman, MT USA I was hiking up one of the local mountains with some mates and there were a couple of guys doing that, and I remember thinking how much fun that looks and how serene it seems just floating your way down. That was before I started flying lessons, but the memory stuck with me... have to try it some day.cheers!

 

(Adam)

Cheers, Laurie

Odds on those glasses are the type that automatically adjust the tint for given lighting.