On 6/1/2012 5:11 PM, dbrunone wrote:
I transitioned from a nose-hook Blanik L-23 to my CG-hook LS1f, all on
aerotow. To be honest, I don't think there is much difference on the CG
hook, and I've taken off in some crosswind/gusty conditions. I'm not
terribly experienced either. A buddy of mine has a CG hook on his
Discus, and he had the same experience when he transitioned. Maybe some
gliders are worse about weathervaning than others, but really I don't
think it's as big a deal as people make it out to be.

It may depend a great deal on the glider (some get aerodynamic control
sooner than others) and your launch conditions: if every launch uses an
experienced wing runner, a strong towplane, and the wind is always
straight down the runway, you will not notice much difference.

All the nose-hook gliders (primarily H301, ASH 26 E, and ASW20C) I've
flown were easier to aerotow than all the CG hook gliders (primarily
Ka6e, Std Cirrus, and ASW20C) I've flown. The ASW20C was a special case:
it came with a CG hook that I used for several years, then I had a nose
(actually, a "forward") hook installed. It was a noticeable and
significant improvement over the original CG hook.

--
Eric Greenwell - Washington State, USA (change ".netto" to ".us" to
email me)