New SOLO pilot looking for suitable glider

Hi All

I am new to this forum and new to gliding and would like some info on Looking for and purchasing a suitable glider. Where in the UK is best to look??

I have a couple of hours in an LS4 and i have seen a few Discus and to be honest have my heart set on a discus. Am i aiming to high?

There are so many different versions of the discus out there! What is the difference between them.

Would a discus 2c or 2ct with both set's of wing tips 15m-18m be ok for a newbie. 18m when i get more experience.

Any info you can give on gliders and suitable website will be great appreciated.

Welcome to the soaring community! Use the search function and you will find may threads (and opinions) on this subject. The most common advice is buy the best you can afford and don't discount the trailer, it is very important.

On Monday, October 1, 2012 9:41:34 AM UTC-4, (unknown) wrote:
Welcome to the soaring community! Use the search function and you will find may threads (and opinions) on this subject. The most common advice is buy the best you can afford and don't discount the trailer, it is very important.

I'll also add that since you fly in the UK much ownership there is done by
syndicates. Ask around your club to see if anyone wants to take you on as
another owner on their plane.

-- Matt

All variants of the Discus are kind to the pilot and would be suitable for someone with LS-4 experience. I fly a Discus 2 and its benign handling has saved my bacon a few times when I got sloppy.

Mike

On 01/10/2012 11:29, ukpilot wrote:
Hi All

I am new to this forum and new to gliding and would like some info on
Looking for and purchasing a suitable glider. Where in the UK is best to
look??

I have a couple of hours in an LS4 and i have seen a few Discus and to
be honest have my heart set on a discus. Am i aiming to high?

There are so many different versions of the discus out there! What is
the difference between them.

Would a discus 2c or 2ct with both set's of wing tips 15m-18m be ok for
a newbie. 18m when i get more experience.

Any info you can give on gliders and suitable website will be great
appreciated.



www.gliderpilot.net has a UK forum at:

http://uras.gliderpilot.net/

It also has a Classified Adverts section in which there is a currently
Discus B for sale.

Adverts for gliders available across multiple european contries can be
found in the classifieds section of the German site www.segelflug.de

http://www.segelflug.de/cgi-bin/clas...lassifieds.cgi


regards,

Nick Hill







--

Nick Hill

On Monday, October 1, 2012 5:34:41 PM UTC+1, Nick Hill wrote:
On 01/10/2012 11:29, ukpilot wrote:

Hi All



I am new to this forum and new to gliding and would like some info on

Looking for and purchasing a suitable glider. Where in the UK is best to

look??



I have a couple of hours in an LS4 and i have seen a few Discus and to

be honest have my heart set on a discus. Am i aiming to high?



There are so many different versions of the discus out there! What is

the difference between them.



Would a discus 2c or 2ct with both set's of wing tips 15m-18m be ok for

a newbie. 18m when i get more experience.



Any info you can give on gliders and suitable website will be great

appreciated.







www.gliderpilot.net has a UK forum at:



http://uras.gliderpilot.net/



It also has a Classified Adverts section in which there is a currently

Discus B for sale.



Adverts for gliders available across multiple european contries can be

found in the classifieds section of the German site www.segelflug.de



http://www.segelflug.de/cgi-bin/clas...lassifieds.cgi





regards,



Nick Hill















--



Nick Hill

The OP asked about models of Discus. Before the Discus 2 there were Discus A, Discus B and Discus CS. The Discus A, like other A model gliders from Schempp-Hirth, had a slimmer fuselage, and therefore gave slightly better performance, but at the cost of a very tight cockpit only suitable for slender pilots. The Discus B is probably the most common, and has a slightly wider fuselage. The Discus CS was pretty much the same as the B but made in an Eastern European factory whereas the B was made in Germany. Choose between CS and B on condition. Most (maybe all??) were originally supplied without winglets, but many have had winglets added, which are said to improve thermalling performance.

The Discus B and CS are generally perceived as equivalent to a Schleicher ASW 24, and perhaps to the LS7.

The Discus 2 replaced the Discus. It originally came out as a standard class glider only (ie 15m span), and is perceived as equivalent to an ASW 28 and an LS8. Because the LS8 was first of these in the market, and the newer ones were not significantly better, there are many more LS8's around, probably from lower prices, and people love them. A couple of early solo pilots at our club have bought 15m only LS8's.

Any of the gliders mentioned here are suitable from an early solo stage, though you should take careful advice on converting to a new type.

Soon after I got my Silver I bought a half share of a Discus CS, sharing with a more experienced pilot, and I learned a lot both about gliding and about owning a glider from my syndicate partner. I have always enjoyed sharing a glider (though I am just buying one on my own!). I certainly recommend getting into a suitable syndicate if there is one available at your club.

Someone else mentioned the importance of a good trailer. Think carefully about all the equipment you will need, and the price you pay should reflect what is included (think parachutes, loggers, PDA's, tow-out aids etc).

Originally Posted by waremark

On Monday, October 1, 2012 5:34:41 PM UTC+1, Nick Hill wrote:
On 01/10/2012 11:29, ukpilot wrote:

Hi All



I am new to this forum and new to gliding and would like some info on

Looking for and purchasing a suitable glider. Where in the UK is best to

look??



I have a couple of hours in an LS4 and i have seen a few Discus and to

be honest have my heart set on a discus. Am i aiming to high?



There are so many different versions of the discus out there! What is

the difference between them.



Would a discus 2c or 2ct with both set's of wing tips 15m-18m be ok for

a newbie. 18m when i get more experience.



Any info you can give on gliders and suitable website will be great

appreciated.







www.gliderpilot.net has a UK forum at:



http://uras.gliderpilot.net/



It also has a Classified Adverts section in which there is a currently

Discus B for sale.



Adverts for gliders available across multiple european contries can be

found in the classifieds section of the German site www.segelflug.de



http://www.segelflug.de/cgi-bin/clas...lassifieds.cgi





regards,



Nick Hill















--



Nick Hill

The OP asked about models of Discus. Before the Discus 2 there were Discus A, Discus B and Discus CS. The Discus A, like other A model gliders from Schempp-Hirth, had a slimmer fuselage, and therefore gave slightly better performance, but at the cost of a very tight cockpit only suitable for slender pilots. The Discus B is probably the most common, and has a slightly wider fuselage. The Discus CS was pretty much the same as the B but made in an Eastern European factory whereas the B was made in Germany. Choose between CS and B on condition. Most (maybe all??) were originally supplied without winglets, but many have had winglets added, which are said to improve thermalling performance.

The Discus B and CS are generally perceived as equivalent to a Schleicher ASW 24, and perhaps to the LS7.

The Discus 2 replaced the Discus. It originally came out as a standard class glider only (ie 15m span), and is perceived as equivalent to an ASW 28 and an LS8. Because the LS8 was first of these in the market, and the newer ones were not significantly better, there are many more LS8's around, probably from lower prices, and people love them. A couple of early solo pilots at our club have bought 15m only LS8's.

Any of the gliders mentioned here are suitable from an early solo stage, though you should take careful advice on converting to a new type.

Soon after I got my Silver I bought a half share of a Discus CS, sharing with a more experienced pilot, and I learned a lot both about gliding and about owning a glider from my syndicate partner. I have always enjoyed sharing a glider (though I am just buying one on my own!). I certainly recommend getting into a suitable syndicate if there is one available at your club.

Someone else mentioned the importance of a good trailer. Think carefully about all the equipment you will need, and the price you pay should reflect what is included (think parachutes, loggers, PDA's, tow-out aids etc).

Thank you all for the quick reply's

I will keep a look out for a share in a glider. But finding a good or ideal glider at a club local to me seems like trying find needle in a hay stack.
I thought the Ls-8 would have needed a more experienced pilot. I will put that on my list of gliders to look out for.

I also like the idea of a sustainer... I know a good pilot shouldn't need one! But with a budget of 20-30k am i seriously going be able to find a good 2ct or LS-8 t for this budget.

On 02/10/2012 11:05, ukpilot wrote:


Thank you all for the quick reply's

I will keep a look out for a share in a glider. But finding a good or
ideal glider at a club local to me seems like trying find needle in a
hay stack.
I thought the Ls-8 would have needed a more experienced pilot. I will
put that on my list of gliders to look out for.

I also like the idea of a sustainer... I know a good pilot shouldn't
need one! But with a budget of 20-30k am i seriously going be able to
find a good 2ct or LS-8 t for this budget.


In the UK you will not get any varient of a Discus 2 or LS8 for £20-30K
to own by yourself, with or without a turbo. As a syndicate member you
will struggle for a half share of a 2ct or and LS-8t, may find a share
without an turbo.

You did mention you had flown the LS4 - I have seen the description from
others who have flown the LS4 and LS8 that the LS8 behaves the same as
an LS4 but can do it all 10knts faster.

A lot of fun can be had in an LS4 which you would get for your budget.
You can also compete in the club class which you cannot in a 2c or LS8.

For interest we bought our LS4 in Austria and imported it to the UK. Not
too much hassle and buying from the continent gives you a much bigger
market to search from. See the segelflug.de classified links I posted
previously.

have fun looking.


--

Nick Hill

With the budget you are indicating, I would recommend a Discus to own outright. The Discus is a great performing glider with good handling characteristics. By owning outright with a machine of this performance, you can fly with other more experienced pilots increasing your soaring knowledge and enjoyment.

Alan.

Also check out a Pegase. Good performance (similar as ls4), easy handling and not that expensive because it's not so famous as a discus/ls4. But hard to find as not many owners sell theirs...



Op donderdag 4 oktober 2012 10:20:39 UTC+4 schreef Ventus2NZ het volgende:
With the budget you are indicating, I would recommend a Discus to own outright. The Discus is a great performing glider with good handling characteristics. By owning outright with a machine of this performance, you can fly with other more experienced pilots increasing your soaring knowledge and enjoyment.



Alan.