L33

I have a 94 model that's been tied out in the North Carolina Sun for 10
years. The paint has lost much of its shine and there are some "fish
eye" bubbles especially on the horizontal stabilizer, but the paint is
all still intact, and it waxes up quite nicely. Nothing at all like
the paint (or lack of paint) on Tony's example. That's the worst paint I
have ever seen on anything. That being said, I now keep my glider in a
T-hanger.

If I were ordering a new L-33, I think I would order it unpainted or
maybe with just the trim paint.


Regards,
David Walsh

Jack wrote:
I'm contemplating the purchase of a used Blanik L33 Solo, as an upgrade
from my 1-26E, and seeking advice concerning the type.


Jack

Well, there's nothing wrong with the L-33. It's all metal (except for
some control surfaces), so can be kept assembled and tied down (I
assume this is what made the 1-26E attractive to you). It's quite
docile, has reasonable performance for a metal ship, and in general is
a pretty sensible ship for a club or a pilot with low total time who
doesn't want to mess with assembling and disassembling after every
flight and doesn't have a hangar available.

The downside is - and this is of course subjective - it's not really
much fun to fly. It doesn't have the light touch of the 1-26, or its
ability to thermal on a fart. On the other hand, it doesn't really
penetrate well either, so it's hard to consider it a serious XC
machine. Sure, you can fly XC in it, and people do - but the same is
true of the 1-26. I'm not sure the trade is enough of a step up to
make the it worthwhile.

Also, for some reason I recall thinking that your total time was pretty
high. If so, and if you must have metal (I assume for assembled
outside storage), I would seriously consider one of the HP's instead.
Significantly better performance at less cost and all metal (no fabric)
so even better for outside tiedown. Not the hot tip for someone with
50 hours total time (handling is a bit challenging) but no big deal at
500 hours.

Michael

Michael wrote:

[The L-33 is] all metal...so can be kept assembled and tied down...
and...is a pretty sensible ship for...a pilot with low total time who
doesn't want to mess with assembling and disassembling after every flight
and doesn't have a hangar available.

I like the all-metal part, so that I can leave it out for a weekend
whenever possible, but the real reason for needing to part with the
wonderful 1-26E is that the wings are getting heavier with each passing
year, and I can't assemble without a helper or two. This is partially a
fault of the open trailer design and partially just me getting older, in
addition to the design of the 1-26. I enjoy flying it, and if it unloaded,
assembled, disassembled, and loaded as easily as a modern design
combination, I'd stick with it indefinitely as the price cannot be beat.
It's the most flying fun I've ever had for so little money, and going to any
type that did not handle as well in the air would be a disappointment.

Another consideration is dues, insurance, storage and operating expenses
which will not change much, so the actual cost of a 50 percent performance
boost is not huge. However, if I could leave the 1-26 assembled in a hangar
I would not consider parting with it for the foreseeable future.


...I recall thinking that your total time was pretty high. If so, and if
you must have metal...I would seriously consider one of the HP's instead.

Not the hot tip for someone with 50 hours total time...but no big deal at
500 hours.

Total time is ~20,000 hrs, the usual military/airline/private stuff; but, my
glider time is ~35 hours (2-33 and 1-26), so I am not embarrassed being seen
in low performance sailplanes. Hey, I'm still getting used to the idea of
flying beyond gliding range of the glider port -- I have done it a few times
when conditions were very good.

Consideration is also being given to the 1-36 and the PW-5, and the PW-5 is
a strong contender. If a ship is easy enough to assemble/disassemble and has
an enclosed trailer, I don't mind putting it together every day of a
three-day weekend. I hope to get checked out in the Club's PW-5 this season
and that will aid the decision process.

Either way, it's good to have a glider of my own.


Jack

Consideration is also being given to the 1-36 and the PW-5, and the PW-5
is a strong contender. If a ship is easy enough to assemble/disassemble
and has an enclosed trailer, I don't mind putting it together every day
of a three-day weekend. I hope to get checked out in the Club's PW-5
this season and that will aid the decision process.

OK, now we see what your needs are. If you want L33 performance and ease
of assembly and light wings are important, you need not look further
than the Russia AC-4, IMHO. If you do plan on rigging the ship a lot,
the desirability of a decent clam shell trailer can not be over-emphasized.

Either way, it's good to have a glider of my own.

You Bet!

Tony V. LS-6b "6N"
http://home.comcast.net/~verhulst/SOARING

The AC-4 is extremely light and easy to assemble.
And the
trailers are tiny compared to the bigger span ships.

But the 15 meter ships didn't seem like a huge weight/disassembly
step up. Enough to consider it, but
my goodness, the gliders less than 10-15 years old
seem pretty well set up for disass3embly.

The 304c got a few purchasers locally. I haven't had
a chance to assemble/disassemble one, though. I'm
not a flap guy (I'm a non-flap 'tilter') but there
is a cz variant with flaps also, I believe. 150# wings
aren't exactly lightweight, though.

I really like to help assemble gliders when I can to
get a feel for what the wings weigh. I suggest you
spend a day at a gliderport 'volunteering.' It seems
like a lot of people actually LIKE help putting the
wings on or off

Good luck! Of course you can always go the other way
and get metal, and leave it out in the weather instead...

At 22:00 13 July 2005, Jack wrote:
Michael wrote:

[The L-33 is] all metal...so can be kept assembled
and tied down...
and...is a pretty sensible ship for...a pilot with
low total time who
doesn't want to mess with assembling and disassembling
after every flight
and doesn't have a hangar available.

I like the all-metal part, so that I can leave it out
for a weekend
whenever possible, but the real reason for needing
to part with the
wonderful 1-26E is that the wings are getting heavier
with each passing
year, and I can't assemble without a helper or two.
This is partially a
fault of the open trailer design and partially just
me getting older, in
addition to the design of the 1-26. I enjoy flying
it, and if it unloaded,
assembled, disassembled, and loaded as easily as a
modern design
combination, I'd stick with it indefinitely as the
price cannot be beat.
It's the most flying fun I've ever had for so little
money, and going to any
type that did not handle as well in the air would be
a disappointment.

Another consideration is dues, insurance, storage and
operating expenses
which will not change much, so the actual cost of a
50 percent performance
boost is not huge. However, if I could leave the 1-26
assembled in a hangar
I would not consider parting with it for the foreseeable
future.


...I recall thinking that your total time was pretty
high. If so, and if
you must have metal...I would seriously consider one
of the HP's instead.

Not the hot tip for someone with 50 hours total time...but
no big deal at
500 hours.

Total time is ~20,000 hrs, the usual military/airline/private
stuff; but, my
glider time is ~35 hours (2-33 and 1-26), so I am not
embarrassed being seen
in low performance sailplanes. Hey, I'm still getting
used to the idea of
flying beyond gliding range of the glider port -- I
have done it a few times
when conditions were very good.

Consideration is also being given to the 1-36 and the
PW-5, and the PW-5 is
a strong contender. If a ship is easy enough to assemble/disassemb
le and has
an enclosed trailer, I don't mind putting it together
every day of a
three-day weekend. I hope to get checked out in the
Club's PW-5 this season
and that will aid the decision process.

Either way, it's good to have a glider of my own.


Jack

Mark J. Boyd

Buy a SparrowHawk !

Should be easy to assemble/disassemble.

They're pretty expensive but I'm willing to live vicariously through
you !

Doug

"it's not really much fun to fly".........

Wow, Hard to believe a knowledgeable glider pilot could express such an
opinion about L-33's.

Sincerely,
David Walsh


Michael wrote:
Well, there's nothing wrong with the L-33. It's all metal (except for
some control surfaces), so can be kept assembled and tied down (I
assume this is what made the 1-26E attractive to you). It's quite
docile, has reasonable performance for a metal ship, and in general is
a pretty sensible ship for a club or a pilot with low total time who
doesn't want to mess with assembling and disassembling after every
flight and doesn't have a hangar available.

The downside is - and this is of course subjective - it's not really
much fun to fly. It doesn't have the light touch of the 1-26, or its
ability to thermal on a fart. On the other hand, it doesn't really
penetrate well either, so it's hard to consider it a serious XC
machine. Sure, you can fly XC in it, and people do - but the same is
true of the 1-26. I'm not sure the trade is enough of a step up to
make the it worthwhile.

Also, for some reason I recall thinking that your total time was pretty
high. If so, and if you must have metal (I assume for assembled
outside storage), I would seriously consider one of the HP's instead.
Significantly better performance at less cost and all metal (no fabric)
so even better for outside tiedown. Not the hot tip for someone with
50 hours total time (handling is a bit challenging) but no big deal at
500 hours.

Michael

Doug Snyder wrote:
Buy a SparrowHawk !

Should be easy to assemble/disassemble.

They're pretty expensive but I'm willing to live vicariously through
you !


I'd be glad to accept donations, and in return mail out a free video of me
smiling to each benefactor.


Jack

Stay with the gteen pickle Jack, but pink?
Rich

Total time is ~20,000 hrs, the usual military/airline/private stuff; but, my
glider time is ~35 hours (2-33 and 1-26), so I am not embarrassed being seen
in low performance sailplanes.

The reason I mentioned total time is this - I don't generally recommend
an HP to someone with low total time because the handling is somewhat
challenging - more so than is normal for a glider. However, someone
with a reasonable amount of airplane time would have no problem with it
(and certainly someone with hours in 5 digits including military time
would not find the handling challenging). The advantage is this - you
get a ship with reasonable XC performance (35:1 and up, depending on
model, and much better penetration than you're going to get in any of
the other gliders you are considering) in an all-metal ship that can be
kept assembled and tied down. It's not really a good choice for a
glider-only pilot, because someone with enough experience to deal with
the handling usually won't be satisfied with the performance (it won't
match a modern glass ship) and a 50-hour pilot is usually going to have
problems with the takeoffs and landings (a friend of mine bought his
HP-18 at 50 hours and ground looped it at least half a dozen times
before he learned to fly it). However, it is a great choice for a
transition pilot. I think it would be ideal for you.

The 1-26E can be kept tied down outside, but it's not ideal. The
control surfaces are fabric, so they will deteriorate. I agree with
you about the flying qualities of the 1-26 - it's great fun. I think
you will find the L-33 disappointing by comparison; I know I did. It's
a shame you don't have a hangar available - the Ka-8 is like a 1-26,
only more so - just as light on the controls as the 1-26 but with
better feel, and a much better soaring ship. If you ever have the
chance to fly one, take it. But it's wood, so outside storage is a
problem, and it's just as much of a pain to assemble as the 1-26 if not
more so.

If you're going to assemble and disassemble daily, I don't really see
any advantage to a metal ship. A PW-5 or Russia would make a lot of
sense (note - I haven't flown either, so can't comment on the flying
qualities) but why not something like a Libelle? I would not recommend
an HP if you are going to assemble and disassemble daily - those wings
are HEAVY.

Michael