L 33 Solo Gliders

A weak point of L-33s (aside from the abrupt stall characteristics) is the weak (spar-less) outer wings. A common faith of these gliders is digging the wingtip into the ground. Holding wings level is therefore mandatory until full stop.

An interesting quirk can be the misalignment of the airbrakes: If they extend way too much, laminar airflow can reestablish through the gap between the top of the wing surface and the bottom of the perforated airbrake plates, giving the impression that the glider actually flies slightly better with fully extended airbrakes. I observed this only on one example so far but it was noticeable; probably can be easily fixed by adjusting the airbrake stop.

Overall the L33 is a great glider, good climber and fun to fly. Perfect for local soaring. Got my silver distance in it, but could easily have flown barn doors on that day.

On Sun, 15 Mar 2020 15:32:10 -0700, Marton KSz wrote:

A weak point of L-33s (aside from the abrupt stall characteristics) is
the weak (spar-less) outer wings. A common faith of these gliders is
digging the wingtip into the ground. Holding wings level is therefore
mandatory until full stop.

An interesting quirk can be the misalignment of the airbrakes: If they
extend way too much, laminar airflow can reestablish through the gap
between the top of the wing surface and the bottom of the perforated
airbrake plates, giving the impression that the glider actually flies
slightly better with fully extended airbrakes. I observed this only on
one example so far but it was noticeable; probably can be easily fixed
by adjusting the airbrake stop.

Overall the L33 is a great glider, good climber and fun to fly. Perfect
for local soaring. Got my silver distance in it, but could easily have
flown barn doors on that day.

It would be interesting to compare with the SZD Junior as a first solo
singe seater.

BTW, thinking of rigging, we had a private Pilatus B-4 on our field
several years ago, Its owner liked it, but it was one of the harder
glider on the field to scare up a rigging crew for. This was due to two
things:

- There was an absolute prohibition on lowering the wings below rigged
dihedral because this would bend the underwing root fairings.

- mating the wing attachment lugs with the corresponding fuselage
fittings. These parts had SwissWatch-like tolerances so there was a lot
of time spent holding each wing at the right position to avoid bending
the fairing while jiggling it until the lower pins pins went in. The
upper pins were easy after that.


--
Martin | martin at
Gregorie | gregorie dot org

On Saturday, March 14, 2020 at 11:33:59 AM UTC-4, Nick Kennedy wrote:
In the W&W Claasifieds there is a L33 Solo listed for 13K Canadian, that about 9400 USD.
I read Dick Johnsons flight report and he liked it, he was concerned that it had very little aerodynamic stall warning and would readily drop into a spin. He thought it best if low timers had real spin training before taking it out.
He also measured the performance at 31/1
For those who have owned these...
Are they easy or difficult to rig?
How have they held up?
Can you leave them tied out for the season? [ There all metal except for the rudder which is fabric]
Is the 31/ 1 LD sufficient for day in day out XC?
Are they nice to thermal?
Are they suitable for beginners with proper spin training?
Do you guys give them the overall thumbs up or thumbs down?
Thanks in advance!
Looking for a 1st ship for my 14 yr old son.

Nick -

I purchased a PW-5 before I soloed. I took 6 solo flights in our club ASK-21 and then soloed my PW-5 and never turned back. I loved the PW-5.

It is a perfect glider for a new pilot. Easy to rig, flies beautifully, climbs on mouse farts, and very forgiving. I did all legs of the silver badge, 3 contests, and almost 100 hours in the PeeWee before moving up into an 18m ship.

I have rigged and de-rigged an L-33. I'm told they fly beautifully but they are a pain to rig / de-rig vs a PW-5.

Lou

But you have to pay people to take photographs of the PW-5, as it is so ugly that the camera may be damaged.

One of our club members observed that it "looks like a pot-bellied pig wearing orthopedic shoes."

On Sunday, March 15, 2020 at 8:46:19 PM UTC-5, wrote:
But you have to pay people to take photographs of the PW-5, as it is so ugly that the camera may be damaged.

One of our club members observed that it "looks like a pot-bellied pig wearing orthopedic shoes."

Yeah... Indeed very funny to read, and I remember very well 20+ years ago on this newsgroup someone would ask every few days: 'Do the PW-5's still suck?' But IMHO it was that kind of mood created around this glider which killed the idea of the World Class aiming at making soaring popular again (MSPA as inspired by MAGA, lol). So now we can ask and discuss here on r.a.s. again and again 'What can be done to attract more people to our beloved sport?' Self-destruction mode, full-speed.

Since its normal to answer questions not asked on RAS, I throw this out there. The ASW 15 is a very suitable glider for a beginner, especially the ones that don't have the off-center release. Very easy to rig and fly. east to land short due to great spoilers. It just so happens I have one for sale that, due to a low max gross, would be great for anyone under 184 lbs. - like a 14 year old!

Well here in France it seems all gliding clubs have been asked to
close voluntarily for now....Covid-19.
So, back to the "thread". I think the advice to get some spin
training is missing the whole point. Obviously ALL glider pilots
should have spin training: they all do don't they? Or am I missing
something about glider training in the US of A?
My point is that it's irrelevant to be able to recognise a spin in the
final turn: you're probably going to die.
Now I know the plan is that all circuit manoeuvres are flown at
appropriate air speeds, angles of attack etc BUT pilots are human
and humans make errors. Who has not had a "Jesus" moment?
So, given that pilots make errors, why put your son in an aircraft
that spins readily? Choose a glider that is reluctant to spin and
gives lots of warnings; plenty of suitable gliders mentioned in
earlier posts.
Certainly spin training is a good idea but it's not a criteria for
choosing a glider.

On Saturday, March 14, 2020 at 11:33:59 AM UTC-4, Nick Kennedy wrote:
In the W&W Claasifieds there is a L33 Solo listed for 13K Canadian, that about 9400 USD.
I read Dick Johnsons flight report and he liked it, he was concerned that it had very little aerodynamic stall warning and would readily drop into a spin. He thought it best if low timers had real spin training before taking it out.
He also measured the performance at 31/1
For those who have owned these...
Are they easy or difficult to rig?
How have they held up?
Can you leave them tied out for the season? [ There all metal except for the rudder which is fabric]
Is the 31/ 1 LD sufficient for day in day out XC?
Are they nice to thermal?
Are they suitable for beginners with proper spin training?
Do you guys give them the overall thumbs up or thumbs down?
Thanks in advance!
Looking for a 1st ship for my 14 yr old son.

I owned and flew an L-33 for about 3 years and 500 hours. It never once stalled without warning or spun. I was able to complete my Gold distance and Diamond Goal flight in it, flying in Kentucky. Overall, I really liked the glider and only sold to move up in performance.

On Saturday, 14 March 2020 09:33:59 UTC-6, Nick Kennedy wrote:
In the W&W Claasifieds there is a L33 Solo listed for 13K Canadian, that about 9400 USD.
I read Dick Johnsons flight report and he liked it, he was concerned that it had very little aerodynamic stall warning and would readily drop into a spin. He thought it best if low timers had real spin training before taking it out.
He also measured the performance at 31/1
For those who have owned these...
Are they easy or difficult to rig?
How have they held up?
Can you leave them tied out for the season? [ There all metal except for the rudder which is fabric]
Is the 31/ 1 LD sufficient for day in day out XC?
Are they nice to thermal?
Are they suitable for beginners with proper spin training?
Do you guys give them the overall thumbs up or thumbs down?
Thanks in advance!
Looking for a 1st ship for my 14 yr old son.

Nick, you planning on basing it in Telluride? If so and interested in partnering, call me at (+ you know what) 880 0390.