On Dec 8, 9:37*am, toad wrote:
I'll put in a good word for the Grob 102 STD III.

A few negative comments were made about it's rigging and control
forces and I dispute both those claims.

Control forces are light and harmonious, I routinely fly with my hand
half way down the sitck, not needing all of the leverage. Performance
is moderate but comparable to a std cirrus. It is a very well behaved
glider, with good stall characteristics, so you can thermal quite
agressively without worry about spins.

Rigging is reputed to be hard, but is not. *The tricks are different
than a LG/ASW/Discus though. *The wings are somewhat heavy, but not
extreme. *I do use a wing dolly to rig and it takes 15 mins to put the
wings and tail on. *I bought my Grob at Sterling and the previous
owner gave me a rigging lesson. *It was easy from there on.

On the general suggestions:
1) Do not buy an inactive glider. *There might be all kinds of
problems and being a new owner will be hard.
2) Do not buy a bad trailer. *This means one that is non road worthy,
or one that makes rigging difficult.
3) Buy a glider that is easy and convient to operate. Even if the
condition or performance is worse that the other option. *People who
have to struggle to rig or fly sit on the ground a lot.

Todd Smith
3S

I'll plug the Jantar Standard as a first sailplane. I have the "2"
model (SZD-48-1) purchased when I was a 100 hour pilot. It is easy to
fly of you come from glass trainers, has a decent glide approaching
40:1, and is very strong (VNE is 154 kts). Mine rigs easily, spoiler
controls are auto-hook up while the ailerons and elevator use secure
sliding/detent mechanisms that are easy to reach. The gear is very
tall and robust. It has top and bottom airbrakes for great glidepath
control. Make sure you sit in one - long arms are plus. The 1 and 2
models have a two piece canopy while the 3 model is one-piece and
hinged up front. Outside of that and the 3 model is nearly identical
to the 2.

Like other said, a good, functional trailer and the gel-coat condition
are key factors when making a purchase.

/Adam