nimbusgb wrote:
Which of the popular 1st generation club class ships now freely
available on the market represents the best buy at the moment with the
following in mind.?

1 - I may want to fly club class competition
2 - It will get passed on to my youngsters
3 - in the UK so it will have to go through EASA garbage.


There are a handfull of Cirrus, ASW 15's and Libelles around.

My priority list is something like

Easy to rig
gel coat condition
Good or excellent trailer
good instruments and radio

Damage history - not too concerned provided it was well repaired and
weight and ballance is not adversely affected

I'm biased, but of your list I'd say the Libelle 201 hits the spot,
especially if its been refinished in PU - mine was refinished in 1984
and still looks immaculate. Here's my take on the three you mention:

- Std Cirrus carries a price premium because they're perceived to have
the best Club Class handicap. I haven't flown one, but I have sat in
a Cirrus 75/16.6 and thought the wide turtle back and seat position
restricted rear vision. Huge amounts of room in the cockpit, though
If you don't like the all-flying tail, look at the Cirrus 75, which
has a conventional elevator.

- ASW15's look great and apparently go well but they do need the annual
spar rot inspection. A Danish friend with a share in one says their
offset belly hook causes weaving on both winch and aero-tow launches
and that a crosswind from the right is bad news. His has only a belly
hook: they're planning to fit a nose hook since its mainly aero-towed.

- The Libelle's only drawbacks are the snug cockpit, a tendency for
aileron stall when thermaling at 45 kts in a 45 degree bank and, more
serious, a tendency to snap-rotate on a winch launch unless you have
full forward trim plus a bit of forward stick pressure. Against that,
it is really easy to rig and there IS enough space in the panel. See
http://www.gregorie.org/gliding/libelle/panel.html and look at the
second picture to see what I've managed to cram in. The GPS stalk
grows from a blanked 80mm hole, so I should be able to get a
transponder in with a lot of jiggling or a replacement panel
structure.

Have you considered an Astir or a Jantar? Both seem to be a lot cheaper
than any of the Big Three. I've flown a Club Astir on a ridge and
thought it was pleasant and easy to fly, with good brakes.

Of course your other points apply to individual gliders, so I'd just add
that I'm a total SDI C4 fan and I'm also very pleased with the Borgelt
B.40 that's peering over my GPS - if you're offered a second hand one,
grab it. Mine had a power switch problem but Mike did a full overhaul
fast and at a reasonable price. There's a 9v battery strapped on its
rear, so it will still get you home if the main battery dies. Tasman
V1000s are also nice: I've flown with one and found it easy to read,
quick responding and it made nice noises. The price is good too.


--
martin@ | Martin Gregorie
gregorie. | Essex, UK
org |