The Joy of 2M R/E Gliders
I have been flying pure gliders for 5 years. I started on a Great Planes
Spirit then went to a Sagitta 600 then an Airtronics Legend and now a
Polecat Thermal Dancer, Supra and an AVA. Add to that my slope and hand
launch and ... well I like gliders.
One Sunday I took out my 2M Spirit for the first time in a long time. I
had the Thermal Dancer with me but the Spirit was first to the launch. The
day was mild and the breeze was light. Perfect weather for my long
neglected
Spirit.
I was at the field for 6 hours and I never took out the full house, 3M
composite glider. The Spirit just flew wonderfully. It was finding lift on
almost every launch. I spent so much time in the air that I checked the
receiver battery. The Spirit sips power but I must have been in the air
several hours.
Several times, as I was coming in for a landing, I had announced my
intention to land, but the Spirit was not ready to land. It gave me a wink
and a nod and showed me a thermal at tree height. I turned into the lift
and up it went again. "Not Landing!" ( Oh, Ed is "not landing" again! Show
off! )
I wasn't timing the flights but I am sure 10-15 minutes were pretty common.
It took some work as the lift was there, then it was gone then it was back.
Easy flying, relaxing and beautiful to the eye. Never a bad behavior and I
could actually look away and when I looked back it was dutifully circling in
the lift. A real partner! A friend, too long missed and now found again.
I really like my 3M planes and unlimited competitions and slope wings and my
parkflyers but the Spirit was my first sailplane. When the Spirit takes to
the air I remember how much fun it was the very first time I put it into a
thermal and how my heart raced and how excited I was then ... and now!
There is nothing like the simple flying pleasure of a 2M R/E glider.
Spirit then went to a Sagitta 600 then an Airtronics Legend and now a
Polecat Thermal Dancer, Supra and an AVA. Add to that my slope and hand
launch and ... well I like gliders.
One Sunday I took out my 2M Spirit for the first time in a long time. I
had the Thermal Dancer with me but the Spirit was first to the launch. The
day was mild and the breeze was light. Perfect weather for my long
neglected
Spirit.
I was at the field for 6 hours and I never took out the full house, 3M
composite glider. The Spirit just flew wonderfully. It was finding lift on
almost every launch. I spent so much time in the air that I checked the
receiver battery. The Spirit sips power but I must have been in the air
several hours.
Several times, as I was coming in for a landing, I had announced my
intention to land, but the Spirit was not ready to land. It gave me a wink
and a nod and showed me a thermal at tree height. I turned into the lift
and up it went again. "Not Landing!" ( Oh, Ed is "not landing" again! Show
off! )
I wasn't timing the flights but I am sure 10-15 minutes were pretty common.
It took some work as the lift was there, then it was gone then it was back.
Easy flying, relaxing and beautiful to the eye. Never a bad behavior and I
could actually look away and when I looked back it was dutifully circling in
the lift. A real partner! A friend, too long missed and now found again.
I really like my 3M planes and unlimited competitions and slope wings and my
parkflyers but the Spirit was my first sailplane. When the Spirit takes to
the air I remember how much fun it was the very first time I put it into a
thermal and how my heart raced and how excited I was then ... and now!
There is nothing like the simple flying pleasure of a 2M R/E glider.
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Jeff K on -
I have to agree with you on the joys of flying a 2m sailplane. They're usually simple to build and have a feel that all their own in the air. 2 meter ships can be a bit more work to fly well since you don't have all that wing of the larger ships to catch the lift with. The challenge is part of the joy to me.
Two meter kits can usually be modified with a little extra effort and some mods will improve their "flyability" quite a bit. Back when I was first really getting into sailplanes I added a sub spar and flaps to a Bob Martin Pussykat. That little plane would thermal on a gopher fart and when flying on the slope at Torrey Pines, it could actually fly backwards for short distances. My current 2,meter wing project is a modified Spectra wing that is going on a pod and boom fuselage. I figure if that wing can keep a heavy plane like the Spectra in the air then it should really do well in a nice light fuselage. I've added spoilers, ailerons and flaps to the basic Spectra wing and removed the poly bend.
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Permalink Reply by alberto arroyo on -
I totally agree with the pleasure of flying gliders thermal 2m res
sloping in our flight field you can fly for hours in pursuit of thermals I flew several models of gliders, but the flight of gliders 2m res has no comparison really
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Permalink Reply by H R Ingram III on
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Mr. A.,
Did you post something like this on RCGroups or th' Universe! I saw, an' responded to, a very similar thread somewhere. I'm hopin' to be chasin' buzzards w/my Electricus soon. It's a 2M w/throttle.
Cheers,
RD
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Permalink Reply by Ed Anderson on -
Yes I did start a discussion like this on another forum. It had been very popular. Seems people love their 2M R/E planes.
I have a new one coming myself. It is a 2M Radian, an electric this time. It will be my travel and trainer plane when helping new people learn to fly.
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So did you get th' Radian?
Ed Anderson said:Yes I did start a discussion like this on another forum. It had been very popular. Seems people love their 2M R/E planes.
I have a new one coming myself. It is a 2M Radian, an electric this time. It will be my travel and trainer plane when helping new people learn to fly.
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Permalink Reply by Ed Anderson on
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Yes I did get the Radian. I had flown several Radians before getting my own. Terrific 2M glider. Flies something like a Gentle Lady and is lighter than my Spirit 2M.
This is now my top recommendation for new glider pilots or any pilot learning to fly. The motor is powerful giving a strong climb to 500+ feet in 20-30 seconds.
Parkzone really did a great job with this one.
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