On Saturday, May 29, 2021 at 11:32:47 PM UTC-4, Eric Greenwell wrote:
On 5/28/2021 5:28 AM, Hank Nixon wrote:
On Friday, May 28, 2021 at 4:45:40 AM UTC-4, LoftusRoadLad wrote:
New to gliding (won't say "soaring" since I haven't been accused of doing much of that) and was interested in buying a forgiving starter glider. I've flown the 1-26 extensively but would like a bit more performance--feel like I'm stuck at the field.
I've seen the 201 on Wings and Wheels. I've read a couple of online items on the Libelle and they seem to be fairly glowing--not bad anyway. However, they are all, naturally, pretty old and with them being early glass birds I was wondering if I should be concerned about that--maintaining condition, repairs, upkeep etc. Also, the airbrakes from what I can tell aren't great at spoiling lift--I'd like some views on that. I looked on the NTSB database for Libelle accidents and quite a few of the accidents were regarding landing out and not being able to lose altitude quickly enough--though I understand it slips well, or not having much braking once on the deck.
I also read that although it is supposed to be easy (a gem) to assemble/disassemble, there might be an historical issue with a pin that could have dire consequences.
Finally, although just about every thing I've read is encouraging, there are quite a few for sale on W&W. I was wondering about that too--but there's a few 1-26s as well, so...

RS JD
These are a nice older glider to own. The finish holds up remarkably well for their age.
Light and easy to rig.
Not as rugged as more modern gliders.
Well supported by Streifeneder.
Forgiving and fairly easy to fly once you learn how to use the rudder.
Learn good energy management and pick big fields.
Good luck
UH
I agree with Hank, but it does have a drawback that most older gliders have: poor crash
safety, compared to gliders like the ASW24 and later, which have far more protective
fuselages. This negative feature needs to be balanced against it's positive features by
the pilot.
--
Eric Greenwell - USA
- "A Guide to Self-launching Sailplane Operation"
https://sites.google.com/site/motorg...ad-the-guide-1
My thanks to everyone (finally figured out how to "reply to the group") for their input. Really solid info. I've talked to a couple of experienced pilots in the club I belong to and they have all said your input was spot on. Hadn't really considered the "crashworthyness" to be honest. It's a great point but I don't think it will prevent me getting a Libelle. Again, thanks to all.

RS JD