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@@mnice59 head down-toes up or head up-toes down doesn't change your CofG relative to the glider at all so doesn't make any control inputs. Being head down is uncomfortable but gives you more ability to control the glider.

@@Zbigniew_Nowak it is becoming a more and more common way of flying HG. It means you need a club and a tow plane. But no exhausting climbs up hills and you get to rig and de-rig by your car. Aerotowing is a real luxury! But there is a buzz to flying off hills as well. I wouldn't want to only have one method. Where do you live? There might be an aerotow club near you...

@@petermontgomery6498 In Poland, so I'll probably find such a club sooner than you know ;) What about towing behind a fast car or a device that winds a rope onto a spool? This seems cheaper than a towing plane.

@Zbigniew_Nowak yes there are various methods of surface towing. Static winch, truck towing, step towing. There will be a club in your area. Look them up and ask for advice on how you can join in!

@@petermontgomery6498 Only money, money! :) But you know what, when I have more money and join there, I will tell them about this possibility of taking off a hang glider, if they don't know it yet. ;)

@alanhughes51 I did measure Steve's ATOS (VR?) on both of our trolleys. I can't remember the actual numbers but it wasn't quite as much as you are saying. But yes, I agree with your analysis that a Flex will be unstalled at a much lower keel angle than a rigid. And on the flex, when we come out the keel will often hit the stand proving that the wing flies just fine at that angle. A lot of the ATOS launches I watch at MAC, the keel doesn't really lift before lift off. I will bring my inclinometer the next time we get out and we can get some more real-life numbers.

I was loaded at 1004lbs (MAUW is 1058lbs). Climb rate was 555fpm (down at sea-level to 1500ft) at 55kts IAS. Natural buffet was 33 KIAS and min airspeed in the stall was 30 KIAS. I didn't do any cruise checks on this flight (my one and only flight in this machine). VNe on this one is 100 KIAS which I did test it to. It isn't fast. It just plods along but it is oh so graceful in handling which makes it a joy to fly. Add in the evocative factor and it is a winner!

You are missing the point. It is irrelevant what the stall speed of any one type of hang glider is. The principle is what is important here and it follows through regardless of how they differ relatively. Just because one has a higher stall speed (and the DHV claim the VQ and VR have the same min speed by the way) doesn’t make it ‘trickier’. It just changes the RELATIVE speeds at which each stage happens. But that is the whole message of my video. FLY the machine. If one machine takes a longer ground roll because it needs more airspeed before it is safe to lift off, that doesn’t make it harder or more dangerous! And FYI - the real risk with the single surface gliders is how slowly they produce lift meaning that if you do not get the tail up they can seriously roll in the cart. I have a couple of bits of footage of exactly this, one on a Falcon and one on an intermediate but could not use it in this video because I did not have the permission of the pilots to use them. You can have just as clean and safe a trolley launch on a really tricky to aerotow glider as you can on a really easy to aerotow glider. But even those distinctions are subjective. Many pilots say that the ATOS is easier to aerotow than any flexwing. Certainly in my club we have had people who struggled with flex so they switch to rigid and have no issues. But like I say, this relative difference is irrelevant. The need to fly the glider through launch is the same regardless.

That is a VQ Race. Same min speed as VR anyway.

This article discusses the difference between flex and rigid wings. With the same angle of attack (airflow relative to wing) you have different keel angles between the glider classes (see picture on page 54). So it looks much more "nose up" when you see a single surface glider start or fly and I think this has to be considered when setting up the trolley. www.dhv.de/media/jahre/2024/02_fliegen/Lehrmaterial/Artikel/Flugtechnik/Haengegleiter/249_Sicher_starten_mit_dem_Drachen.pdf

@@kimp8079 yes but being that upright was the cause not a "bad trolley". Here is another one of my videos using that trolley. No issues. th-cam.com/video/xeqDQxCqHsA/w-d-xo.htmlsi=5gol6CM7cDmzjiI4

@@petermontgomery6498 Hi ! Yes. But I do not think being that upright is a problem in the dolly which has the "V" design. I have done, as my memory serves me, maybe two dolly- launches, so not an expert on that😅, but plentiful of static line foot launches, and I like to hang a little bit upright in the harness on tow...just for comfort. Better breef the pilots about their feet on that "T"- dolly ? Anything wrong with the short brief: Hang flat enough, Pull somewhat for speed and let the dolly almost lift, or lift a little, before letting go ?

@kimp8079 if you are too upright in the V design trolley you hit your feet on the rear of the two front bars as you come out. That is why this pilot actually prefers this T trolley!

@@thomasturl5147 wouldn't want to wear the runway out eh! I had forgotten about our Mach Loop fun. That was this same plane!

@@chrisjonesbath I don't want to bore people with long videos. HG approaches take a loooong time so I condense them down for my videos. But maybe you are right and I should make some videos dedicated to the approach and landing...

@@Love2FlyKAP you can see me doing both in this video. The one lots of people forget is full into-wind aileron on roll-out. Even if there is only light wind. Not using ailerons on the roll-out is the biggest cause of ground loops in my opinion.

@@petermontgomery6498 No, it is the rudder. As you land....mantra: rudder, rudder, rudder, etc

@@edstoro3883 no - the thing people forget is aileron! Watch the video again, there is "rudder rudder rudder". But you will also see into-wind aileron which is the one that people forget when they are surprised when they still ground loop despite loads of rudder.

@@petermontgomery6498 I shall inform the Bristol Bulldog of this. Oh, wait, the ailerons gave up, even when at 100% deflection. Dumb aeroplane.

@@VTSifuSteve it is perfect for that! Although, that does depend a bit on how much you weigh and where you fly... The Alpha doesn't rig flat so for smaller, windy hills a Falcon would be better for you.

@@petermontgomery6498what does it mean to “rig flat?”

@@b7gwap there are two ways to rig a hang glider. One is typically called "on the frame" and is when you assemble the control frame first and then stand the glider up on the frame before spreading the wings. The other way is called "flat rigging" and is when you spread the wings first, with the wing on the ground. Once everything else is rigged you stand it up on the control frame as the last task. Rigging the glider with the wing on the ground is so much easier to do in any wind because the wind doesn't affect the wing until you stand it up. The Alpha will only rig on the control frame. Although I have a mod in mind that would solve this... I just need to try it out on one for myself first!

@@petermontgomery6498 thank you for explaining. I learned in Utah so we always rig “on the frame” since “rigging flat” would get dust, dirt, weeds, thorns and burrs on your sail. I imagine if you had a nice grassy area and it was windy flat rigging would be great. Why is it that the Alpha can’t be so rigged?

@@b7gwap yes the norm these days is to rig on the frame. But you can imagine how hard that would be with this much sail (235 square feet!) in a 20mph wind... Our sites here are typically only a couple of hundred feet high so you need decent wind to soar or it is a 30 second sled ride to the LZ. On the plus side, all our sites are lovely and grassy so flat rigging and packing doesn't damage the sail (other than mud and sheep poo!). The Alpha can't flat rig because the lower side wires are too tight with the frame folded under the wing. So you can't spread the wings far enough to hook in the pullback unless it is stood on the frame.

@@michaelschulz6204 the original SE5a used a V8 engine. Hence having 4 leads each side. On this replica, the front 2 leads each side are actual ignition leads and then the rear 2 are dummies. As is the radiator cap on the top front of the cowling.

@petermontgomery6498 well that makes sense now. Thank you for the clarifying. Currently, I have a set of planes for the SE-5a, full scale Fokker Dr-1 and a volksplane VP -1. Can't decide which one to build first. That is if I live to be 200 years old!

@@davidhines4716 I love the look of the D VII! Where are you? I'm assuming not the UK as we don't have any of them flying here I don't think...

No, I’m in the US. You can see mine fly at @HangarGang

What engine are you using? I have a 65 hp continental on mine.

@@davidhines4716 O-200 so 100hp Conti.

I didn’t build my D7, but I have modified it some. After doing that and watching Scott Mathew’s build an Airdrome Aeroplanes sopwith camel (same brand kit as mine), I think it would be fun to build. www.youtube.com/@HangarGang

Mine was the Siemens Shukhert DIV. But then I was always a nerd!

@@vipertwenty249 I had to Google that one, I thought I knew all the planes of the era, but had never heard of that one!

@@PRH123 Adequate speed, phenomenal climb rate, good manouverability, powerful but unreliable engine.

they dont make a turbon

its called a turbine