A aviation & planes forum. AviationBanter

If this is your first visit, be sure to check out the FAQ by clicking the link above. You may have to register before you can post: click the register link above to proceed. To start viewing messages, select the forum that you want to visit from the selection below.

Go Back   Home » AviationBanter forum » rec.aviation newsgroups » Soaring
Site Map Home Register Authors List Search Today's Posts Mark Forums Read Web Partners

First glider Nimbus 2 ?



 
 
Thread Tools Display Modes
  #1  
Old January 4th 21, 10:30 AM posted to rec.aviation.soaring
krasw
external usenet poster
 
Posts: 668
Default First glider Nimbus 2 ?

These old open class gliders were designed for max LD at quite low speed, nothing else. Their handling in the air is not good and on the ground it is just awful. You will fly less because of this. I usually fly modern glider from std. class to 18/20m class. I flew one summer mostly Std. Cirrus and did enjoy xc flying exactly same as with any other type. You fly exactly same tactic as with modern glider, only with lower airspeed duirng glider and taking few more climbs. With a glider like Std. Libelle, thermalling is actually fun. Saying that thermalling is fun with N2 buys you a ticket to hospital with padded walls. There is a very good reason N2 is cheap to buy.
  #2  
Old January 4th 21, 11:02 AM posted to rec.aviation.soaring
gregv
external usenet poster
 
Posts: 9
Default First glider Nimbus 2 ?

Le lundi 4 janvier 2021 Ã* 11:30:06 UTC+1, krasw a écritÂ*:
These old open class gliders were designed for max LD at quite low speed, nothing else. Their handling in the air is not good and on the ground it is just awful. You will fly less because of this. I usually fly modern glider from std. class to 18/20m class. I flew one summer mostly Std. Cirrus and did enjoy xc flying exactly same as with any other type. You fly exactly same tactic as with modern glider, only with lower airspeed duirng glider and taking few more climbs. With a glider like Std. Libelle, thermalling is actually fun. Saying that thermalling is fun with N2 buys you a ticket to hospital with padded walls. There is a very good reason N2 is cheap to buy.


I own a N2C since years, and I also fly other gliders (mainly discus 2, duodiscus, ls-4), I fly in Alpine area. I disagree when you say thermalling is not fun with The N2C, actually it is the most fun thing to do! You can litteraly outclimb every other ship, handling is superb, light and precise controls, yes you have to manage your feets and you loose 2 seconds when doing -45/+45 but is it an issue? When flying cross country I am faster than a duodiscus in every aspect. With 200L water, I feel unstoppable.
  #3  
Old January 4th 21, 01:30 PM posted to rec.aviation.soaring
Eric Greenwell[_4_]
external usenet poster
 
Posts: 1,939
Default First glider Nimbus 2 ?

gregv wrote on 1/4/2021 3:02 AM:
Le lundi 4 janvier 2021 à 11:30:06 UTC+1, krasw a écrit :
These old open class gliders were designed for max LD at quite low speed, nothing else.
Their handling in the air is not good and on the ground it is just awful. You will fly
less because of this. I usually fly modern glider from std. class to 18/20m class. I flew
one summer mostly Std. Cirrus and did enjoy xc flying exactly same as with any other type.
You fly exactly same tactic as with modern glider, only with lower airspeed duirng glider
and taking few more climbs. With a glider like Std. Libelle, thermalling is actually fun.
Saying that thermalling is fun with N2 buys you a ticket to hospital with padded walls.
There is a very good reason N2 is cheap to buy.


I own a N2C since years, and I also fly other gliders (mainly discus 2, duodiscus, ls-4), I
fly in Alpine area. I disagree when you say thermalling is not fun with The N2C, actually it
is the most fun thing to do! You can litteraly outclimb every other ship, handling is
superb, light and precise controls, yes you have to manage your feets and you loose 2
seconds when doing -45/+45 but is it an issue? When flying cross country I am faster than a
duodiscus in every aspect. With 200L water, I feel unstoppable.

The original poster is looking at a N2, not an N2C. Is there a significant difference in the
thermalling and the general handling of the two gliders?

--
Eric Greenwell - Washington State, USA (change ".netto" to ".us" to email me)
- "A Guide to Self-Launching Sailplane Operation"
https://sites.google.com/site/motorg...ad-the-guide-1

  #4  
Old January 4th 21, 02:58 PM posted to rec.aviation.soaring
Christoph Barniske
external usenet poster
 
Posts: 11
Default First glider Nimbus 2 ?

Eric Greenwell schrieb am Montag, 4. Januar 2021 um 14:30:19 UTC+1:
The original poster is looking at a N2, not an N2C. Is there a significant difference in the
thermalling and the general handling of the two gliders?

--
Eric Greenwell - Washington State, USA (change ".netto" to ".us" to email me)
- "A Guide to Self-Launching Sailplane Operation"
https://sites.google.com/site/motorg...ad-the-guide-1


The Nimbus 2 series had many changes during the quite short production run. Some are mentioned in the TN/AD list on the Schempp-Hirth website, additional details were given in a Schempp-Hirth book published in the 80s ("Vom Wolf zum Discus"). For example, the N2B introduced a new mixer for flap/aileron deflections (similar to Janus) and changed the all-flying elevator to a conventional one. This should make quite a difference in handling.

Christoph
  #5  
Old January 4th 21, 08:11 PM posted to rec.aviation.soaring
kenward1000
external usenet poster
 
Posts: 18
Default First glider Nimbus 2 ?

On Monday, January 4, 2021 at 3:02:52 AM UTC-8, gregv wrote:
Le lundi 4 janvier 2021 Ã* 11:30:06 UTC+1, krasw a écrit :
These old open class gliders were designed for max LD at quite low speed, nothing else. Their handling in the air is not good and on the ground it is just awful. You will fly less because of this. I usually fly modern glider from std. class to 18/20m class. I flew one summer mostly Std. Cirrus and did enjoy xc flying exactly same as with any other type. You fly exactly same tactic as with modern glider, only with lower airspeed duirng glider and taking few more climbs. With a glider like Std. Libelle, thermalling is actually fun. Saying that thermalling is fun with N2 buys you a ticket to hospital with padded walls. There is a very good reason N2 is cheap to buy.

I own a N2C since years, and I also fly other gliders (mainly discus 2, duodiscus, ls-4), I fly in Alpine area. I disagree when you say thermalling is not fun with The N2C, actually it is the most fun thing to do! You can litteraly outclimb every other ship, handling is superb, light and precise controls, yes you have to manage your feets and you loose 2 seconds when doing -45/+45 but is it an issue? When flying cross country I am faster than a duodiscus in every aspect. With 200L water, I feel unstoppable.


Consider the LAK-12. The Russian Sport Gliding Federation used to put newly licensed pilots into them, for XC training. The rationale was that they wanted to hook pilots on XC. They found that putting pilots into 30:1 gliders resulted in many landouts and discouraged pilots from flying away from the field. The 48:1 12 allowed pilots to successfully complete longer and longer XC tasks, especially with 200 liters of water. The clubs had well organized retrieve teams and plenty of large fields to choose from. They are a piece of cake to fly, can be left rigged all season and they're cheap (15k us$). Good decision making can mean that outlandings only occur at aero retrievable airports.
  #6  
Old January 4th 21, 09:34 PM posted to rec.aviation.soaring
2G
external usenet poster
 
Posts: 1,439
Default First glider Nimbus 2 ?

On Monday, January 4, 2021 at 12:11:35 PM UTC-8, kenward1000 wrote:
On Monday, January 4, 2021 at 3:02:52 AM UTC-8, gregv wrote:
Le lundi 4 janvier 2021 Ã* 11:30:06 UTC+1, krasw a écrit :
These old open class gliders were designed for max LD at quite low speed, nothing else. Their handling in the air is not good and on the ground it is just awful. You will fly less because of this. I usually fly modern glider from std. class to 18/20m class. I flew one summer mostly Std. Cirrus and did enjoy xc flying exactly same as with any other type. You fly exactly same tactic as with modern glider, only with lower airspeed duirng glider and taking few more climbs. With a glider like Std. Libelle, thermalling is actually fun. Saying that thermalling is fun with N2 buys you a ticket to hospital with padded walls. There is a very good reason N2 is cheap to buy.

I own a N2C since years, and I also fly other gliders (mainly discus 2, duodiscus, ls-4), I fly in Alpine area. I disagree when you say thermalling is not fun with The N2C, actually it is the most fun thing to do! You can litteraly outclimb every other ship, handling is superb, light and precise controls, yes you have to manage your feets and you loose 2 seconds when doing -45/+45 but is it an issue? When flying cross country I am faster than a duodiscus in every aspect. With 200L water, I feel unstoppable.

Consider the LAK-12. The Russian Sport Gliding Federation used to put newly licensed pilots into them, for XC training. The rationale was that they wanted to hook pilots on XC. They found that putting pilots into 30:1 gliders resulted in many landouts and discouraged pilots from flying away from the field. The 48:1 12 allowed pilots to successfully complete longer and longer XC tasks, especially with 200 liters of water. The clubs had well organized retrieve teams and plenty of large fields to choose from. They are a piece of cake to fly, can be left rigged all season and they're cheap (15k us$). Good decision making can mean that outlandings only occur at aero retrievable airports.


I reread the original post and noticed that the glider Piotr is talking about is an N2, not an N2C that I saw in a latter post. Knowing this, I definitely recommend that Piotr pass on this glider; he simply doesn't have the experience to handle a glider of this type.

Tom
  #7  
Old January 4th 21, 02:43 PM posted to rec.aviation.soaring
kinsell
external usenet poster
 
Posts: 546
Default First glider Nimbus 2 ?

On 1/4/21 3:30 AM, krasw wrote:
These old open class gliders were designed for max LD at quite low speed, nothing else. Their handling in the air is not good and on the ground it is just awful. You will fly less because of this. I usually fly modern glider from std. class to 18/20m class. I flew one summer mostly Std. Cirrus and did enjoy xc flying exactly same as with any other type. You fly exactly same tactic as with modern glider, only with lower airspeed duirng glider and taking few more climbs. With a glider like Std. Libelle, thermalling is actually fun. Saying that thermalling is fun with N2 buys you a ticket to hospital with padded walls. There is a very good reason N2 is cheap to buy.


The OP was clear that he wanted "airchair soaring" doing 300-500K tasks.
Apparently he thinks he can buy a carefree experience with long wings.
Maybe his expectations aren't realistic. He also thinks it's a
particularly pretty glider, that shouldn't be a purchase consideration.
  #8  
Old January 4th 21, 03:58 PM posted to rec.aviation.soaring
Martin Gregorie[_6_]
external usenet poster
 
Posts: 699
Default First glider Nimbus 2 ?

On Mon, 04 Jan 2021 07:43:22 -0700, kinsell wrote:

On 1/4/21 3:30 AM, krasw wrote:
These old open class gliders were designed for max LD at quite low
speed, nothing else. Their handling in the air is not good and on the
ground it is just awful. You will fly less because of this. I usually
fly modern glider from std. class to 18/20m class. I flew one summer
mostly Std. Cirrus and did enjoy xc flying exactly same as with any
other type. You fly exactly same tactic as with modern glider, only
with lower airspeed duirng glider and taking few more climbs. With a
glider like Std. Libelle, thermalling is actually fun. Saying that
thermalling is fun with N2 buys you a ticket to hospital with padded
walls. There is a very good reason N2 is cheap to buy.


The OP was clear that he wanted "airchair soaring" doing 300-500K tasks.
Apparently he thinks he can buy a carefree experience with long wings.
Maybe his expectations aren't realistic. He also thinks it's a
particularly pretty glider, that shouldn't be a purchase consideration.


The OP will be used to good thermal climbs and relatively low XC speeds
from time spent he's spent in an SZD Junior. I know them well. My club
owns two for new solo pilots to fly when transitioning to single seaters,
and I got my Silver in one of them.

Now I fly a Std Libelle and would agree with the nice things others have
said about its thermalling ability. There's very few gliders resident at
my club that can out-climb either a Libelle or a Junior, especially in a
narrow thermal. IMO both are nice to fly though the Libelle is smoother
flying and quite a bit faster XC due to a better high speed polar, though
both Libelle and Junior have the same Vne.

About the Nimbus 2: here's all I know. I once helped an owner put his N2
back in its trailer when I was visiting Sutton Bank. He used a rope and
pulley to slide the wings into what seemed quite a long trailer: I
thought that was a clever trick. That's the only N2 I've seen.


--
--
Martin | martin at
Gregorie | gregorie dot org

  #9  
Old January 4th 21, 06:08 PM posted to rec.aviation.soaring
Frank Whiteley
external usenet poster
 
Posts: 2,099
Default First glider Nimbus 2 ?

On Monday, January 4, 2021 at 8:58:17 AM UTC-7, Martin Gregorie wrote:
On Mon, 04 Jan 2021 07:43:22 -0700, kinsell wrote:

On 1/4/21 3:30 AM, krasw wrote:
These old open class gliders were designed for max LD at quite low
speed, nothing else. Their handling in the air is not good and on the
ground it is just awful. You will fly less because of this. I usually
fly modern glider from std. class to 18/20m class. I flew one summer
mostly Std. Cirrus and did enjoy xc flying exactly same as with any
other type. You fly exactly same tactic as with modern glider, only
with lower airspeed duirng glider and taking few more climbs. With a
glider like Std. Libelle, thermalling is actually fun. Saying that
thermalling is fun with N2 buys you a ticket to hospital with padded
walls. There is a very good reason N2 is cheap to buy.


The OP was clear that he wanted "airchair soaring" doing 300-500K tasks..
Apparently he thinks he can buy a carefree experience with long wings.
Maybe his expectations aren't realistic. He also thinks it's a
particularly pretty glider, that shouldn't be a purchase consideration.

The OP will be used to good thermal climbs and relatively low XC speeds
from time spent he's spent in an SZD Junior. I know them well. My club
owns two for new solo pilots to fly when transitioning to single seaters,
and I got my Silver in one of them.

Now I fly a Std Libelle and would agree with the nice things others have
said about its thermalling ability. There's very few gliders resident at
my club that can out-climb either a Libelle or a Junior, especially in a
narrow thermal. IMO both are nice to fly though the Libelle is smoother
flying and quite a bit faster XC due to a better high speed polar, though
both Libelle and Junior have the same Vne.

About the Nimbus 2: here's all I know. I once helped an owner put his N2
back in its trailer when I was visiting Sutton Bank. He used a rope and
pulley to slide the wings into what seemed quite a long trailer: I
thought that was a clever trick. That's the only N2 I've seen.


--
--
Martin | martin at
Gregorie | gregorie dot org

I know virtually nothing about soaring in Poland except what friends have shared. However, I did have 10 1/2 years of UK soaring, ending in the mid-1990's. My experience was that a club member should consult with the chief instructor before buying a glider. If the glider was considered too advanced or complex for the member's level of experience or skill, they wouldn't be permitted to fly it until they exhibited that proficiency. I don't now if the same is true in Poland, but Piotr needs to have that talk perhaps. Some RAF gliders even had plates indicating minimum PIC time required to fly certain gliders. Perhaps things are different now.

Any comment Martin?

Frank Whiteley
  #10  
Old January 4th 21, 09:44 PM posted to rec.aviation.soaring
Martin Gregorie[_6_]
external usenet poster
 
Posts: 699
Default First glider Nimbus 2 ?

On Mon, 04 Jan 2021 10:08:10 -0800, Frank Whiteley wrote:

Any comment Martin?

Thats pretty much how my club works. Get permission from the committees
to keep a glider on the field and, if they and the CFI are happy, do it.

However, the closest I've been to Poland was Sazena in the Czech
Republic. I a bunch of us were camping on the glider field there, because
it was hosting the 1997 Free Flight Model World Champs.

Learning to fly full-size gliders was still 4 years in the future for me,
but I did notice a well cared for Antonov A-15 in the hangar. I realise
I'm unlikely ever to have the chance to fly one, but its definitely on my
bucket list!

Besides, who can resist a good-looking all-metal V-tailed glider where
the trim control is a length of bungee, its ends attached to the bottom
corners of the panel and hooked to one of a row of hooks on the front of
the stick! As far as I can tell, its performance isn't a lot different to
a Std Libelle. Martin Simons quotes best glide 40:1, an ad for the one I
saw at Sazena claims 37.5:1 at 95 km/h - my Libelle is about 37:1 at
52kts (95 km/h), but the A-15 is a lot heavier at 320 kg.


--
--
Martin | martin at
Gregorie | gregorie dot org

 




Thread Tools
Display Modes

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

vB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off
Forum Jump

Similar Threads
Thread Thread Starter Forum Replies Last Post
FS: Nimbus 3-25.5 JS Soaring 0 February 19th 08 07:49 PM
FS Nimbus 3 Roy Bourgeois Soaring 0 December 26th 07 07:47 PM
Nimbus down? [email protected] Soaring 2 November 21st 06 02:10 PM
Nimbus 4 Ray Gimmey Soaring 0 May 17th 04 06:46 PM
F.S. Nimbus 3DM Tom Stowers Soaring 0 October 18th 03 07:06 PM


All times are GMT +1. The time now is 10:21 AM.


Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.6.4
Copyright ©2000 - 2025, Jelsoft Enterprises Ltd.
Copyright ©2004-2025 AviationBanter.
The comments are property of their posters.