kinsell wrote on 10/9/2020 7:47 AM:
Now that this discussion is totally off in the* weeds, I'm wondering what the
conclusion is?



On 9/15/20 11:48 AM, Nick Kennedy wrote:
Didn't want to hijack the current FES tread so I thought I'd start a new one.
This topic came up over dinner a couple of weeks ago.

When you add all the following into a pot and stir, whats the "Best"
Say for Western Great Basin flying.

I think it may be the Carat, but I don't know much about it.
CX thinks its the DG 800 series, but all I know is since he bought that thing
its been a endless battle to keep it running.* But it does climb well.

FACTORS

Reliability
Maintenance required* to keep it running
XC flyability, performance and control feel
Storability
Rigging
Initial cost
High density climb performance
Range
Cockpit layout and seating
Parts availability
Insurance cost
Landing gear complexity
Overall quality
Nick
T


Well, the weeds were interesting at times :^)

I hope Nick will tell us _his_ conclusion, since he asked the question. Given his
list of unprioritized factors, the rest of us can't give him the answer. The
discussion illustrates there are many acceptable choices that you have to rank
using your priorities. It also illustrates how motorgliders have a much wider
appeal than 25 years ago, when I got my ASH26E. Back then, the discussion often
focused on whether they were "real" sailplanes; now it's about "which one should I
get". And some, no longer interested in the "real" sailplane argument, are now
eager to argue where to draw a line between "real" self-launchers and "just"
self-retrievers!

--
Eric Greenwell - Washington State, USA (change ".netto" to ".us" to email me)
- "A Guide to Self-Launching Sailplane Operation"
https://sites.google.com/site/motorg...ad-the-guide-1