Looking for 1-26E with trailer and some thoughts

On Thursday, October 15, 2020 at 6:09:12 AM UTC-7, Eric Greenwell wrote:
ken smith wrote on 10/14/2020 9:54 PM:
On Wednesday, October 14, 2020 at 8:58:36 PM UTC-7, wrote:
Not to start the usual argument, but why? There are many great first generation fiberglass gliders available for the same price, much better condition, and much better performance. Everywhere you fly in Norcal your first thermal is a perilous glide away from the airport in a 1-26. I love the old 1-26, but around here I can't see it practical if you want to stay up.
John Cochrane.

Hi Ken,
I’d agree with all the posters. The 1-26 is a fun machine, but it won’t go anywhere! They held the 1-26 nationals at Minden a few years back and most never got out of the valley! There’s an ASW-15 in Salt Lake for 7K and a H-301 Libelle at Air Sailing for 10K. I’ll give you a free look-see, but you got to bring it to me in Placerville, Ca.
JJ

Thanks for all the useful feedback. I have heard that the L33 has a weak tail boom and is prone to damage
and the Std Cirrus wants to spin. Would apprecaite more info on these if you have experience wth them.

On Thu, 15 Oct 2020 07:55:51 -0700, ken smith wrote:

Thanks for all the useful feedback. I have heard that the L33 has a
weak tail boom and is prone to damage and the Std Cirrus wants to spin.
Would apprecaite more info on these if you have experience wth them.

Don't discount Libelles - either 201 or 301. My 201 (Std Libelle) is the
least willing to spin of any single seat glider I've flown. Light and
easy to rig and, if you put foam or felt pads on the underside of the
canopy frame at the rear, you can slide the canopy back along the
fuselage (I've not done this, but have seen pictures...).

Disadvantages? Notably weak airbrakes, long but narrow cockpit, so those
with wide shoulders may not fit in them.

More handling etc info he
https://www.gregorie.org/gliding/lib...201_notes.html

Others may chip in about the 301 Open Libelle - I've never even seen one,
let alone flown it.

If you see a 205 Club Libelle at a nice price, go and look at it too.
Reasonable performance despite a fixed undercarriage. Roomy cockpit,
powerful airbrakes, hinged canopy. There's one at my club: its owners
like it a lot.


--
Martin | martin at
Gregorie | gregorie dot org

On Thursday, October 15, 2020 at 7:55:54 AM UTC-7, ken smith wrote:
Thanks for all the useful feedback. I have heard that the L33 has a weak tail boom and is prone to damage
and the Std Cirrus wants to spin. Would apprecaite more info on these if you have experience wth them.

I was a partner in the L-33 for years and flew it for 100's of hours. It was a lovely flying glider. It only had 2 negatives that I had issues with. The first is the metal construction and the tow hook installation (with poor sealing) makes a very cold cockpit for your legs and feet. The second issue was the factory paint job was substandard and prone to peeling.
I've often considered (still do) buying another and have it tied down during the summer at my soaring club for a quick flying fix instead of rigging and derigging daily my ASH31.
Craig

It's not about ambition or big xc flights, though that bug will grab you sooner than you think. It's just about staying up. Every site I have flown west of the rockies involves a 20:1 plus glide from the first possible thermal location back to the airport. Finding a thermal within a safe glide to the airport in a 1-26 is a serious limitation. And handout options between the first thermal and the airport are usually not great.

Why is the canopy a big deal? Don't get fixated on small issues is a good piece of advice for glider buying.

Assembly of glass gliders, especially with a half-decent trailer, is much easier than any metal glider. Ask how many glass owners use a sledgehammer as part of their assembly kit! There is no reason on earth to want to tie out a 15 meter glider, which it can go in a trailer. And metal doesn't like being tied out either. (Nor do canopies).

Don't get me wrong, I love the old 1-26 and have great memories of flights in them. But for practical flying in the west, any first generation glass or gliders like the russia mentioned here are just way more practical.

John Cochrane

ken smith wrote on 10/15/2020 7:55 AM:
Thanks for all the useful feedback. I have heard that the L33 has a weak tail boom and is prone to damage
and the Std Cirrus wants to spin. Would apprecaite more info on these if you have experience wth them.

The wing twist was changed around serial #170 or so, much improving the spin behavior. Mine was
a later one, and it seemed quite docile, never surprising me in 500 hours. I think there is a
Std Cirrus owners group that can give details.

--
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

At 14:55 15 October 2020, ken smith wrote:
Thanks for all the useful feedback. I have heard that the L33 has a
weak tail boom and is prone to damage and the Std Cirrus wants to
spin. Would appreciate more info on these if you have experience with
them.


Most aircraft will spin, some better than others but and only if you put
the incorrect control inputs. I own a standard cirrus and its very
sensitive in pitch but not prone to spinning unless I make it. I use to
own an IS29 D 2 and that had a reputation for "spinning" I spun it
unintentionally once at around 1000 ft agl when i was trying to get
away in a tight thermal and forgot to put it in thermal flap. The aircraft

responded immediately to the correct control inputs and I only lost 150
feet in altitude. The club I fly at teaches spin recovery well. I would
suggest a Cirrus is a good aircraft for you provided you get the gel coat
checked etc (same as any older glass ship really)

safe flying

On Thursday, October 15, 2020 at 10:55:54 AM UTC-4, ken smith wrote:
Thanks for all the useful feedback. I have heard that the L33 has a weak tail boom and is prone to damage
and the Std Cirrus wants to spin. Would appreciate more info on these if you have experience with them.

Hi Ken,

I owned an L33 for several years when I was a new pilot and I now have many flights in a Standard Cirrus. I left the L33 tied out in South Florida protected by wing and canopy covers and the horizontal stabilizer removed. Like the Standard Cirrus the L33 was not as easy to assemble as some other ships. I did not find any bad handling characteristics in the L33 and did not baby it. I was taught to always land gliders level on the main wheel with no "flare." Having trained in Blanik L23's I found the L33 comfortable, durable and fun to fly. I like the Standard Cirrus that I occasionally fly as well and it is a significantly better performer but I do seem to recall that it drops a wing sharply in a stall. The only reason I would consider a 1-26 (have only one flight) is if I was planning to leave it assembled for local flights but an L33 is a better glider for that.

Stuart

Hey Ken
Do you know the US For Sale Classified ads on Wingsandwheels.com?
There is a SGS 1 35 on there right now for 16.7k. Might get 38/1 if its clean.
If thats out of your price range, as Dan mentioned, a partnership can go a long way towards a much better ship.
Nick
T

Being taught to land with "no flare" did you a disservice as it requires
landing at a higher speed and, as we all know, energy is directly
proportional to the square of the speed.Â* That means longer landing
rolls.Â* Not necessarily bad if you have lots of space but, when that
outlanding is at a short field and you don't land at the minimum speed,
you might hit something at the far end.

On 10/16/2020 5:37 AM, rec.aviation.soaring wrote:
On Thursday, October 15, 2020 at 10:55:54 AM UTC-4, ken smith wrote:
Thanks for all the useful feedback. I have heard that the L33 has a weak tail boom and is prone to damage
and the Std Cirrus wants to spin. Would appreciate more info on these if you have experience with them.
Hi Ken,

I owned an L33 for several years when I was a new pilot and I now have many flights in a Standard Cirrus. I left the L33 tied out in South Florida protected by wing and canopy covers and the horizontal stabilizer removed. Like the Standard Cirrus the L33 was not as easy to assemble as some other ships. I did not find any bad handling characteristics in the L33 and did not baby it. I was taught to always land gliders level on the main wheel with no "flare." Having trained in Blanik L23's I found the L33 comfortable, durable and fun to fly. I like the Standard Cirrus that I occasionally fly as well and it is a significantly better performer but I do seem to recall that it drops a wing sharply in a stall. The only reason I would consider a 1-26 (have only one flight) is if I was planning to leave it assembled for local flights but an L33 is a better glider for that.

Stuart

--
Dan, 5J