Wanted: Sport Canopy for 1-26
Burt Compton
I don't have a 1-26 yet - working backwards here.
Still looking for a "round-tail" 1-26 with good trailer to soar at
Marfa in west Texas.
My understanding is that the factory sport canopy will only fit A & B
models. Call me with any info toll free at 1-800-667-WING(9464)
Thanks!
Burt Compton
Marfa Gliders, Texas www.FLYGLIDERS.com
Ernie Schneider
there is a 1-23 with a Sports Canopy(and normal canopy) flying at our
field. It's not flown too much so I guess it would probably be for sale if
you are interested. Email me if interested and I'll get you in touch with
the owners.
It's in good shape, the trailer isn't a very good one but looks like it
could be "modified" for better ease of use.
cheers
Ernie
"Burt Compton" <FBCo...@aol.com> wrote in message
news:7501ecd9.0210...@posting.google.com...
Jim
I flew a C model at Estrella in 1977 that had a sport canopy.
However, a C-model is really just a kit-built B-model, so your
statement is valid. (See the Type Certificate)
Here's more info from the 1-26 Association web site:
http://www.126association.org/indexstart.htm
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From: Roger Felton
I have a "factory" sport canopy for my 1-26D #405. I've only flown
with it a few times due to the fact I fly from a dirt strip (a
moderate crosswind is required to keep from eating dust). I believe
there is little or no performance loss if flown between minimum sink
and best glide speed. I can say this after thermalling with a B model
and a C model for more than an hour. I am sure there is some loss of
performance at higher speeds, but nothing drastic. I only have had it
up to about 70 mph so I can't comment on anything over that, but you
could generally say that the faster you fly- the more the performance
loss. The wind noise is very moderate at the lower speeds- you can
hear the radio and the audio vario very well. In fact at minimum sink
to best glide speed I would say the wind noise is only slightly more
than the regular canopy. As far as "draftiness" goes I would say it is
about equal to the back seat of a poorly sealed 2-33. There is very
little wind in your face- no goggles are needed unless you have to
deal with dust on takeoff. An interesting note- you can "rumble" the
tail by hanging your head or your arm over the side into the airflow.
It does mess your hair up some- just like a convertable.
The sport canopy is in two parts that simply replace the forward
canopy and the aft canopy. They mount in the same way and require no
modification to the glider. The forward sport canopy is made of
aluminum over steel tube with a plexiglass bubble. The plexiglass
bubble is curved so that it's trailing edge is parallel to the
airflow. The aft sport canopy is made of fiberglass with formed
aluminim bulkheads. It has a headrest incorporated into it's forward
bulkhead, and has a teardrop shaped fairing flowing off the rear of
the headrest. Its kind of hard to describe but imagine the plexiglass
bubble of the forward canopy forming the rounded end of a teardrop
shape with the headrest/fairing of the aft canopy completing the
"tail" portion of the teardrop, blending into the aft canopy.
I have seen another type of homebuilt sport canopy that was one piece,
replacing just the forward canopy. It had a rather upright windscreen,
made from a "wrap" of plexiglass. Supposedly this arrangement rumbles
and buffets , due partly to the air turbulating off the lip of the
windscreen and partly from the stock aft canopy acting like an
airscoop. I would suppose that the performance of this arrangement
isn't very good, the penalty greatly increasing with airspeed.
From: Gary Swift
I owned 1-26A #198 for about 3 years in the early 1990s (sold it to
active 1-26er George Powell). It came with a factory sport canopy
which I used several times. One of the 1-26ers based at Hemet wanted a
sport canopy for himself and talked "Steve" of Steve's Soaring Service
into making a female mold of my canopy so he could make a fiberglass
duplicate for himself. If Steve still has the molds, he might be
interested in making another canopy for you.
I didn't fly with the canopy enough to compare performance with other
1-26ers, but DID notice a higher than normal sink rate and small
constant buffet用robably caused by disturbed airstream hitting the
vertical stabilizer. You would not want to use the sport canopy during
a contest or other condition where you needed max performance. But it
is great fun for just messing around! I even wore a leather flight
helmet, goggles, and a white silk scarf for old tyme flying image.
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Jim
szd-55 flyer
Dale and Rosemary Thompson
>Wanted: Sport Canopy for a SGS 1-26 sailplane. ...snip, snip
You can make one with a "real" canopy and a saber saw. I have seen
one like that. Pretty nice.
Dale Thompson
Dale
To reply by e-mail, remove the "knot" from my address.
Robertmudd1u
Thompson <dale...@sinewave.com> writes:
>>Wanted: Sport Canopy for a SGS 1-26 sailplane. ...snip, snip
>
>You can make one with a "real" canopy and a saber saw. I have seen
>one like that. Pretty nice.
And pretty illegal too.
Robert Mudd
Ken Ward
want to experiment on it?
Ken
San Jose, CA
In article <20021025095636...@mb-fz.aol.com>,
Bob Mowry
had never flown without one until this past weekend. This is due to
my height - 6'3" and the fact that the seat pan in the one I fly sits
higher than normal. With the closed canopy on the glider I have about
1/2 inch between my shins and the instrument panel and about 1/2 inch
between my head and the canopy. Too close for comfort.
This past weekend, given that it was in the 50's here in Pennsylvania,
I decided to give the closed canopy another try. This time I pulled
out the seat cushion and sat on the COLD, hard aluminum. I had almost
the same amount of clearance that I get with the open canopy and it
was a calm day here so I decided to give it a try (this also
encourages those soft landings).
It was a much different ride than having the open canopy. In
particular I would rarely fly slower than 40mph with the open canopy
(due to the buffeting and general feeling of lack of control). I was
very easily able to fly at 32-35mph (had to keep reminding myself to
speed up to 38mph - min sink). In general I was feeling much more in
control at the lower airspeeds. I just wish I would have tried this
earlier!
The open canopy is lots of fun, but now I can't wait until next year
to try the closed canopy on a nice thermally day.
-bob
fstead@earthlink
myself) to make a thin seat cushion out of. Might prevent a broken
back.
--
Fred Steadman
Irving, Texas