Need For Speed III 1998 With Modern Patch 1.6.1 And Cop Patch Repack
Kristen Szmalc
I am commuting 7 miles a day (round trip) in all weather in New England (temperate, moderately wet climate, cold winters). Overall I am putting about 1000 miles per year on my commuter bike, a 2009 Giant Transend DX with lower-end Shimano components (Alivio and whatnot).
Need for Speed III 1998 with Modern Patch 1.6.1 and Cop Patch repack
Download File https://vittuv.com/2yMFam
Looking at the spec of your bike it says the BB is a cartridge unit. This probably isn't serviceable -- it's designed to be replaced when worn out, so just keep riding it until it grinds or gets excessively sloppy.
The hubs might be serviceable. If you ride a lot in nasty conditions, or you're aggressive with the degreaser you might want to service them. However, if they're well-sealed (like most modern hubs and in particular Shimano hubs) then they almost never need servicing. If you're worried, learn how to service them yourself and see what they look like. If they're still packed with grease and nice and clean inside they don't need servicing. Servicing them isn't hard but it's a bit fiddly -- you'll lose a bearing under the fridge, then you won't be able to remember if there should be 9 or 10 balls, and whether they're 3/32" or 1/8" or 5/32", and so on. Don't do it for fun.
I ride a lot. My Campagnolo Neutrons have probably seen 10,000+ km. In that time I've had a look at the bearings once or twice. Still greasy, still smooth. The rims will wear out before the hub bearings do.
I ride about 3,000-4,000 miles a year and my rule of thumb is to do the hubs every 300 - 500 miles or so, and the bottom bracket twice a year. Works out to a hub overhaul about every other month. Both of these are more frequent than the suggested schedule.
That said, there have been a couple of times I have ridden in an area and ended up with the bottom bracket or hubs completely submerged. When that happens I like to overhaul them at my earliest convenience; preferably within a day or two.
Another point here is - I do the maintenance myself. Hubs are easy and you should be able to learn to do them yourself from a book and with a $10-15 investment in tools - bottom brackets are a little harder and you will probably just want to include that as part of a "shop service" unless you want to learn and invest a little more in doing your own maintenance.
I would personally with your type of riding, only consider getting the bottom bracket done when the bike has to go into the shop for something else or after a few years if you have not had to visit the bikes shop in the mean time.
A friend of mine goes to the trouble of installing a grease nipple in the shell of each hub. Then, instead of having to take the hub apart, all you need to do is pump more grease in every so often and wipe the excess that comes out around the axle away. This has the advantage of pushing any dirt and gunk out of the bearings when you add more grease.
My bike (good quality, but not top-of-the-line) is about 7 years old, and I ride around 2,000 km per year. I have never serviced the hubs or bottom bracket, so far without any problems. I don't do extreme off-road riding, but I do cycle in winter and in the rain, plus the bike is sometimes parked in the rain.
Water (and its cousin mud) more than anything affect grease bearings. The more rain, and or mud that you ride in the more often you will need to repack your grease bearings. When they are freshly packed pay attention to how easily the wheels spin when you hold them off the road or the bike is upside down. Then do this every so often and if they seem to be getting even the least bit slower then it is time to pack. You will get a feel for their condition over time. I do mine every 1000 to 2000 miles and I ride mine through everything.
My airplane partner and I are looking to sell our ELSA airplane and replace it with a motorglider. Neither of us have experience in motorgliders, both of us have lots of taildragger time, and retractable time and I am currently working on getting a glider add-on (8 flights in past two weekends). , (Apparently, I will need to do the flight test and self-launch endorsement out of state as we have no FAA examiners for either here in Nebraska).
In my usual OCD way, I have built a spreadsheet with the various options available right now. Several are Super Ximango S200, two are Distar/Urban Air Lambada, plus a couple of SunDancers and Diamond KHK36TC or Katanas, at least two Pipistrel Sinus Flex, and one appears to be a pretty nice Grob 109B. One of the Ximangos and one of the others had a belly landing and both are reportedly all fixed up now - good as new). Some of these aircraft don't seem to have been flown much in the past 12 months or more.
1. With the wing tips removed (takes 30 seconds; they weigh 15 lbs each), the Phoenix wingspan is 35', so it will fit in any standard T Hangar. The Lambada and Pipestrel motorgliders have 41' wingspans with the tips removed, so they won't easily fit in any standard US T-Hangar
2. The Lambada's cockpit is relatively short and the rudder pedals are not adjustable. If you are 5'11", after an hour or so, you will be very uncomfortable. The Phoenix has a longer cockpit and is very comfortable for 5+ hour flights.
The only downside on the Phoenix is a 2+ year wait to get a new one delivered. There are about 25 flying in the US. Each year, one or two become available on the US market. Virtually all the Phoenix motorgliders in the US have Dynon Skyview glass cockpits with autopilots and ADS-B IN & Out. In addition they all have ballistic recovery chuts. They all have 100HP Rotax engines. Cruising speed is 110 knots burning 4 gallons / hour with a range of about 700nm. With full fuel you can carry 2 adults and 100lbs of baggage.
Before buying the Phoenix, I almost bought a Ximango. Two things totally turned me off. With full fuel you barely have enough gross weight to carry two adults without any baggage. The official baggage capacity is limited to 20lbs, even if you are only carrying partial fuel. The absolute deal breaker for me was the folding wing. It is VERY heavy and awkward, and scary to fold. On the way down, you are holding the wing just above the hinge, and have very little leverage. If you don't have the exact right technique, you will loose your grip and the wing will crash down causing major damage. Before you buy one, make sure you try out folding the wings so you know what you are getting into.
I only have experience with a Pipistrel Sinus Max that I purchased new Oct 2017 and operate here in South Florida. It is the Tailwheel version that I would recommend as it has better soaring performance. I use it mostly for recreational soaring but on the occasional cruising flights I can usually average 110kt ground speed over a round trip on about 3gph. The 80 hp Rotax is the most reliable engine you will find (other than electric) and easy to maintain. I now have 332 hours on the airframe and just 127 hours on the motor. I fly from a controller airport so it takes a little extra motor time to taxi and get out of controlled airspace to soar. I have 48ah lithium batteries so 5+ hours of soaring is not a problem. The tips go on and off in under 5 minutes for hangaring. If you take the Light Sport Repairman course you will be able to take care of your own maintenance. So far I am very happy with my Sinus and I will keep flying it until the Elfin 20.ex is available (Electric Stemme) but at 3x+ the price. You can contact me if you have any questions at under...@bellsouth.net.
All of the above inputs are great and should help guide you. I owned a lambada 80 horse for six years. Loved it except for speed, Vulnerable gelcoat and baggage capacity. It fit in my standard hanger. The phoenix is a great airplane but be aware of the takeoff and landing site picture.
I think you are making a big mistake in rejecting a used Stemme S10 out-of-hand. Many used ones go for less than $160,000...and they are so vastly better than any other motorglider that they are well worth their price. (I bought a new S10 VT back in 2012 and LOVE the bird!!)
The Stemme has roomy side-by-side seating, 40 pounds of storage space behind the seats, a convenient cubby for two O2 bottle (good for 22 hours with a Mountain High. M2D2 nasal cannula set-up), and the wings fold easily for T-hangar storage.
The only thing the Stemme lacks from your Wish List is a ballistic parachute, but the canopy is ejectable if you want to wear a parachute. By the way, Reiner Stemme is currently building a new RS20e-Elfin all-electric 20 meter motorglider that WILL have a ballistic chute.... see it at www.reinerstemme.aero
I bought a TMG to go flying with my wife instead of her following our gliding safaris on the ground. The aircraft was bought from two previous owners who had owned it since new and put a lot of hours on the aircraft when new, and once they'd done what they wanted to do, flew it less and less. That being said, both jumped at the change of a 2000 mile delivery flight to say goodbye to it. If I had to toss up between an SLG and a TMG, I'd take the SLG but then I would be flying alone because she doesn't like flying in circles!
Most TMGs will go downhill pretty fast if you put the nose down when gliding. While they might do 32:1, it's only at slow speeds and they'd never keep up with most modern sailplanes which can retain a good LD at speeds over 90 knots.
In your suggested types, there are two classes of TMG. The old-school certified types like the Ximango and Grob and the newer LSA types. Without looking up the numbers, a Ximango has got an MTOW of 850 kgs while the LSA types are about 450 kgs less. Quite a lot of the extra weight of say a Ximango compared with a Lambada seems to go into the structure. I doubt whether if you had a tantrum in a Ximango that you'd do much damage, where most of us could wreck an LSA with a good kicking. In rowdy air, even on low finals, the Ximango is very stable and controllable. I doubt you could say the same with something 400 kg lighter.
I'm staggered at what a Ximango will absorb. An owner I know said the "Ximango is like a jeep, it'll go anywhere.' I'm not sure about the LSA ratings but Ximangos etc are certified to utility category - 5.4 G +.
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