Gliders
Gliders are graceful planes to
watch. What is interesting about these planes is the challenge to find a
thermal to keep the plane up in the air under wind power. A thermal is a
rise of hot air cause from the ground being heated by the sun. It's a
great learning platform, they can be very slow fliers and yet very
responsive. There are several way to launch the glider into the air.
Hand launched from a cliff , bungee cable launch, and motorized launched. My
preferences is motorized mainly because where I fly. I have built a few sail
planes, a couple of my own designs and a couple of kits. I suggest to
start with a kit. They are quite reliable, and now you can find a variety of
configurations that will intrigue your fancy.
My first glider and electric plane was the Goldberg Electra. A fine plane,
easy to build and steady to fly. unfortunately I flew the glider once to
many time nears trees, planes worst enemies. The plane was damaged beyond
repair in the attempt to retrieve it from the top of a tree. Word of
caution..., When choosing a field for flying try to pick one with fewer
trees in the surrounding area. This makes a good criteria when landing an
aircraft, especially with beginners, since they are not to familiar with the
orientation and perspective of the landing process. Trees just get in the
way if they are near the landing path. I learned this the hard way. ;o)
The Tomcat
Has been my old faithful. Still the plane I use to get my confidence back. It is a cliff glider modified with electric .05 motor and Leisure long gear box 3.0:1 driving a Sonic Tronics 13x7.5 folding prop powered by 7 cell. The Leisure long gear box allowed me to maintain the narrow nose configuration the Tomcat had.
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This WEB page was last updated:
2008 01 19.