On Sunday, November 19, 2017 at 11:03:11 AM UTC-5, flgliderpilot wrote:
Low time pilot, 60hrs, have done some solo cross country flying but not a lot. Sold my 1-26E a few years ago (not by choice, business debt at the time).

My first thought is to jump into another 1-26 or 1-34 for a number of reasons (safety and availability). I could land my 1-26 just about anywhere!

My budget is 10K or less, and I am still saving, so in the meantime I'm wondering about inexpensive older fiberglass options such as the Libelle, etc.

Are fiberglass gliders more expensive to maintain and repair?

Easily damaged on rough landouts?

Qualified mechanics easier or harder to find, vs aluminum?

Insurance costs aluminum vs fiberglass?

Are fabric covered gliders (1-26 A,B) much more expensive to maintain?

I remember a local pilot telling me he spent a few thousand dollars re-covering his 1-26 and that it needed to be done every X number of years (I can't remember that number now).

As usual hangar space might be possible but is usually unlikely due to demand.

Any advice appreciated.

Thanks
Tom

Your budget, as you note, pretty much limits you to a good 1-26, or an older bottom of the range glass ship.
Some other considerations related to your choice. Would you tie the 1-26 out?
If so, it gets wear and tear, but is ready to fly immediately with no assembly required. Sometimes I fly my 1-26 when I don't feel like assembling one of my glass ships.
You can have a lot of fun with either choice.
Any glass ship bought for 10K or so and insured as such will be insured such that it will easily reach the point of not being economically repairable while having relatively minor damage. This threshold is about 70%, sometimes less, of insured value.
This could happen with the 1-26 but is not as likely given that parts are readily available and most repairs can be done by a skilled A&P locally.
Consider the idea of buying a 1-26(E preferred) and flying for 2 or 3 years while you build experience, get some off field landings in your log book, and save some bucks for the next step.
Good luck and have some fun
UH
1-26, Std Libelle, ASG-29