Temporarily operating a German registered glider in the US

At 02:55 15 August 2017, wrote:
2017 and looking to do the same, (Temp import of a G reg glider)
From what I can see, almost zero hassle (bar trailer wiring and having
to
drive on the wrong side of the road :-) )
Possibly moving to Louisiana but will almost certainly be flying out of
Houston.

Just posted this to resurrect the thread.

I have imported a number of gliders from Europe and dislike having to
wring out the trailer wiring on the docks upon pick-up - as the weather
is invariably bad, and I don't want to spend the whole day there doing
that. I made up a pig-tail adapter which goes from the USA vehicle
"flat 4" connection to the old standard Euro 7 pin connector. In the
middle of the pig-tail I have one of these converters that make the
brake and signal lights function properly on a 4 wire system:
https://www.etrailer.com/Accessories...rt/C56196.html
With this pig-tail, one can just hook up the trailer on the dock and drive

it away. This kind of set-up should work for you, especially if you
intend to take the glider back home and not sell it in the USA. You
won't have to do anything to the trailer wiring itself.
Good luck..
RO

Not to inject any logic into the discussion, but when buying a new
trailer from Germany, why doesn't the buyer simply specify the wiring
and connector that he plans to use? You'd think that, for the price
being paid for the trailer, it would make little difference in the
overall cost. Heck, Spindelberger might even do it for free.

On 8/15/2017 7:04 AM, Michael Opitz wrote:
At 02:55 15 August 2017, wrote:
2017 and looking to do the same, (Temp import of a G reg glider)
From what I can see, almost zero hassle (bar trailer wiring and having
to
drive on the wrong side of the road :-) )
Possibly moving to Louisiana but will almost certainly be flying out of
Houston.

Just posted this to resurrect the thread.

I have imported a number of gliders from Europe and dislike having to
wring out the trailer wiring on the docks upon pick-up - as the weather
is invariably bad, and I don't want to spend the whole day there doing
that. I made up a pig-tail adapter which goes from the USA vehicle
"flat 4" connection to the old standard Euro 7 pin connector. In the
middle of the pig-tail I have one of these converters that make the
brake and signal lights function properly on a 4 wire system:
https://www.etrailer.com/Accessories...rt/C56196.html
With this pig-tail, one can just hook up the trailer on the dock and drive

it away. This kind of set-up should work for you, especially if you
intend to take the glider back home and not sell it in the USA. You
won't have to do anything to the trailer wiring itself.
Good luck..
RO


--
Dan, 5J

At 16:12 15 August 2017, Dan Marotta wrote:
Not to inject any logic into the discussion, but when buying a new
trailer from Germany, why doesn't the buyer simply specify the wiring
and connector that he plans to use? You'd think that, for the price
being paid for the trailer, it would make little difference in the
overall cost. Heck, Spindelberger might even do it for free.

Used trailers come as they are. If you buy a new glider with trailer,
the trailer gets pulled to the glider manufacturer by a European car.
Once the new glider is loaded into the trailer, it is pulled by another
European car to the port for delivery. One needs the European wiring
to work in Europe until it gets to the port. I suppose that they could
put USA wiring into the trailer at the factory and then put the trailer on

a truck to get it to the glider factory, and then truck the glider -in -
trailer to the port, but that is a LOT more expensive than just making
up a pig-tail here. Besides, my pig-tail works for any of the 7 pin
connectors. I have probably used that thing on 10 different glider
trailers I have picked up at the dock. The reverse also worked for me
when I shipped my glider overseas for a WGC, as the trailer was
already (still) wired for their cars. That is where the logic is. The
rest
of the world doesn't conform to USA standards.... If you have $$ to
burn, yes go ahead and have the USA wiring installed at the factory,
and then pay out the nose for getting it all the way to the port...
RO

....Or the factory could use a pigtail that would work on a European car
and I was only referring to new trailers.

Of course all of your points are valid.

On 8/15/2017 10:36 AM, Michael Opitz wrote:
At 16:12 15 August 2017, Dan Marotta wrote:
Not to inject any logic into the discussion, but when buying a new
trailer from Germany, why doesn't the buyer simply specify the wiring
and connector that he plans to use? You'd think that, for the price
being paid for the trailer, it would make little difference in the
overall cost. Heck, Spindelberger might even do it for free.

Used trailers come as they are. If you buy a new glider with trailer,
the trailer gets pulled to the glider manufacturer by a European car.
Once the new glider is loaded into the trailer, it is pulled by another
European car to the port for delivery. One needs the European wiring
to work in Europe until it gets to the port. I suppose that they could
put USA wiring into the trailer at the factory and then put the trailer on

a truck to get it to the glider factory, and then truck the glider -in -
trailer to the port, but that is a LOT more expensive than just making
up a pig-tail here. Besides, my pig-tail works for any of the 7 pin
connectors. I have probably used that thing on 10 different glider
trailers I have picked up at the dock. The reverse also worked for me
when I shipped my glider overseas for a WGC, as the trailer was
already (still) wired for their cars. That is where the logic is. The
rest
of the world doesn't conform to USA standards.... If you have $$ to
burn, yes go ahead and have the USA wiring installed at the factory,
and then pay out the nose for getting it all the way to the port...
RO


--
Dan, 5J

On Tuesday, August 15, 2017 at 9:45:08 AM UTC-7, Michael Opitz wrote:
At 16:12 15 August 2017, Dan Marotta wrote:
Not to inject any logic into the discussion...
RO

Wonder if Marc shipped his glider "S2" three years ago?
Jim

On Tuesday, November 19, 2013 at 10:57:58 AM UTC-5, wrote:
Dear US-gliding community,

it seems likely that I am going to spend about 2 year in the US (NJ area) starting next spring and I would like to bring my German registered glider along. Given it is for 2 years only, I would like to keep the ship under its German flag and keep any changes to glider and trailer to a minimum. This raises a couple of questions and I am hoping that some folks out here can provide some guidance

1) Import duties/taxes: Is there a procedure that exempts me from or minimizes US import taxes/duties? (I would bring it into the country as part of my household belongings, I paid full VAT in Germany on the ship and I do intend to bring it back and not to leave it in the US...) Uli Kremer of Schleicher mentioned a "carnet" but that would only cover 1 year after which the glider would have to leave the US again. Any thoughts?

2) Insurance: Does anybody have recent experience with an insurance that covers a D-glider within the US? Mine seems a bit reluctant....

3) Trailer: Unsurprisingly, the towing hitch and electric connection between the German trailer and US cars are not directly compatible. I am perfectly willing to exchange the hitch at the trailer itself for a US hitch but is there a way or adapter that "bridges" the electrical systems and allows legal traffic operations in the US?

4) Annual inspection: I am tempted to put the glider on a CAMO+ regime which only requires a physical inspection every 3rd year unless someone here is telling me that there is a D-Inspector (Pruefer Klasse 3) living in the East coast area.

Any fact based ideas? When I searched this forum, I did find some older bits and pieces, in particular from a "Thorsten" im CA and a "Michael" in PA who might already have mastered this little challenge but I couldn't find their personal contacts.

Any help or contacts are much appreciated.

Thanks in advance and best regards
Marc

Why do anything, keep the German registration, speak english, get a 50mm ball for 29 bucks and a seven pin connector. you should be good to go.