jcphoto

I flew and owned a Bailey Snap 100 for nearly 400hrs and weigh 80kg too. The answer to your question is Yes it can easily fly an 80kg pilot. I now fly a Bailey V5 but in my experience the Snap actually got me off the ground faster! In reality the V5 has more thrust (60kg) but it still takes longer to take off. I can only speculate as to why but as with everything the specifications on paper don't tell the whole story. The Snap had about 47kg thrust with a 130 prop and I also flew it with a 125 wooden but couldn't really tell the difference in real use. John Coutts

Hi Morgy, I think you have just answered my question. I suspect the size 28 Speedster might be a bit big for your bodyweight when free-flying but ideal for paramotoring. It will be good in scratchy conditions but not so clever in stronger thermic conditions. The Ozone site gives a range of 95-125kg for the size 28 which I suppose applies to range in which it was certified. This probably corresponds with a paragliding range too but don't take my word for it! Paramotors are often flown above the certified range and Paul Mahony was extolling the virtues of a 26 for someone of my weight (80kg) which I flew at the Nats last June. I was very impressed with it and it was well loaded and fast on landing but it is aimed at experienced pilots so that should not be a problem. I fly a Rush 1 right at the top end of the range when paragliding and it of course very solid most of the time but light conditions can be a challenge. This is a paramotoring forum but it doesn't hurt to mention free-flying (paragliding) sometimes. I have flown with Toby Colombe of Passion Paragliding in Morocco several times and he will always recommend a pilot flys towards the upper end of the weight range rather than the light end. This could be a consideration if a Speedster pilot intends to paraglide as well as paramotor. John

Hi Morgy, I see from an earlier post your weight is 76kg and I think you are flying a Speedster 28. How did it feel for free flying being so light in the range? I fly an Ozone Rush 26 and am at the heavy end of the scale all up 100kg inc wing. There is certainly no 'floaty' sensation and of course the wings are different but I am still interested in your findings. regards, John Coutts

Thanks for the offer of some trial flights. If I am ever in the area I will look you up for sure. No plans at the moment but I may be in Southampton next year sometime for a 2 day photography course. I am flying my second Reaction wing at the moment and it is still in excellent condition at nearly 200hrs. I just felt I'd like to try something else for my next wing but have less opportunity to try other wings living in Shetland. John

Thanks for the reply. I suspect I may be on a quest for something that doesn't actually exist-lighter on launch, slightly quicker for keeping up with the rest and yet as stable as the Reaction. The main reason I am looking for stability is that I often take photographs while flying. In roughish conditions the Reaction will allow me to fly without worrying about the wing and continue to take photos. All other wings I have tried seem to be more busy above me and consequently throw me about more and I have to give up taking photos. I would agree the Nucleon is not too bad but it does 'move' about more than Reaction in less stable air. The Plasma was slightly more mobile and my only flight on the Speedster was in in the evening. The solution would probably be to keep the Reaction for photos and get a second wing after some test flights which feels the best for other flights. I should add I have flown about 500hrs PPG and 100 on PG. cheers John

Thanks for the Fusion video. There is no substitute for actually flying the wing. I am looking for a replacement for the Reaction but need some more test flights on what's available. I am very happy with my Reaction and have no issues with its flight characteristics. But it is slower alongside others unless speed bar is used and is not the lightest to launch. On the plus side it is vitually bullet proof and does not roll or yaw like some of the rest and is hardly bothered by turbulence although the pilot may be! Which of the new wings has the stability of Reaction combined with a light launch? John

Is there any video showing a launch without using the prop-wash to help it lift? My Reaction is not particularly 'light' to launch in nil wind but it will fly up just as easily as the Revo 2 in the video if a power launch is used. I've never tried any of the Paramania range but found both the Dudek Nucleon and the Ozone Speedster fairly easy to launch in very little wind. John

Just to add to the previous posts - Buy a reflex definately! I learned a while ago in 1997 and flew for 3 years with a traditional paraglider. I gave up the sport for a few years because I had become borned of flying round the same area, close to my take off field. The wing was unable to make progress into wind, limiting its usefulness in a big way. I bought a Reaction in 2005 and launched it first time after a 5 year lay off. I am now on my 2nd Reaction and after about 450 hrs on reflex I have never had anything more than a twitch on the wing tips. And that was in extremely rough air while I was going weightless through bouncing up and down. You can't always be sure that the conditions you choose to fly in will remain calm and stable. Non reflex wings will not give you the same amount of security. An SIV course on recovery techniques will be essential is you want to fly a traditional paraglider. I am just guessing here but I suspect about 80% of paramotor pilots fly reflex. That must mean something. Perhaps the rest are already expert paraglider pilots with the associated skills required. John Coutts

I have also had a few days test flying a Dudek Nucleon 31 and found it quite easy to launch in nil wind. I used my 'normal' technique for nil wind. Set the trims at '0' without knowing the manual's recommendation which is what the Reaction uses. Assume the crucifix position and bend forwards slightly and give a quick blast on power (to blow some wind over the wing to help it launch) followed quickly by knocking off the power and moving forwards to launch the wing. As soon as the wing is nearly overhead get the power back on to full blast and off you go. Leaning backwards while running certainally helps to lift off earlier. As long as there is no hesitation and movements are all continuous, not allowing the wing to slow down it works virtually every time. Good luck. John Coutts

Hi Norris, I have an Ozone Addict which is a DHV2 wing and fly it as designed as a paraglider but one day took it up for a flight with my paramotor. Although it flew OK and was quite easily controllable it kept managing to set up a dutch roll even at very modest power settings. The motor kept causing it to roll regardless of what I tried. I have never had any difficulty with any other wings I have flown under power. I am not saying the Mantra will be the same but it may exhibit similar characteristics or it could be just fine. Good luck. John Coutts

I went up to 6600 ft here in Shetland in the first week of July one evening. I was surprised at just how cold it was. Probably only about 2 C. Make sure you have heated gloves and a face mask if going for the 2 mile mark and good luck - it may take a while! John

Thanks Pete/Simon I see where you are coming from. John

I have been loosely following the thread and it would seem that a BHPA Power rated pilot such as myself would need to be assessed to see if I can conform to PMC standards. Does that mean that the PMC rated pilots are trained to a more advanced level than that of the BHPA if the BHPA rating is regarded as insufficient for insurance purposes? John Coutts

Not wishing to disagree too much with Simon's sentiment but your skills won't completely vanish through lack of air time. I had not flown since 29th Dec then was out a couple of days ago for a nil wind forward launch. The launch went well and I was off first time. While aloft, the wind picked up to a nice easy reverse launch speed of about 8 mph. After my landing it still seemed too nice a day to pack up the kit so a powered up again and did a bit of practice with about 10 touch and goes. Although not full launches from scratch they are still useful practice. John Coutts

I have flown over 300hrs on Reaction now and find no need to use the TST to dampen movement in rough air with speed bar. I am sure everbody has a different interpretation as to what rough air is but if it really was rough I do not think your average pilot would be flying with speed bar on. The Reaction wing is one of the most stable around and has never given me any serious concerns in my experience. It has remained flying without anything more than a slight tip collapse when I was going weightless due to rough air. I recently went on an SIV course with Jocky Sanderson to Olu Deniz but used a 'normal' paragliding wing (Gradient Golden). It makes you realise just how stable the Reaction is. However, a tradional paragliding wing can recover very easily with the correct inputs and sometimes without. I am not sure how Reaction/Revolution/Synthesis etc would behave when things got seriously out of hand. Just a thought. John Coutts, Shetland.

You could try Bill Kerr in Kilmacolm on the other side of Glasgow. His details are on the www.paramotorsuk.co.uk website. (Fly with a pilot section). He is a pilot with a depth of knowledge who has been around longer than many. J Coutts Shetland

I use the Garmin 60csx for GPS capability and recording my flight tracks/measuring ground speeds and the like but most of the time fly only with a Vario (Flytec 6010). I don't fly much with a GPS in my local area because I know my way around. The islands only span about 100miles long by 30 miles wide. However a point that has not been mentioned is that the Garmin GPS eats batteries in comparison to my vario. The Garmin will only last a few flights before its two AA batteries are exhausted, whereas the vario can manage about 40 hours. But if you are flying in unfamiliar surroundings or somewhere with lots of scenery that looks the same (most of England! ) use the GPS. It was a lifesaver for me when I got lost amongst the patchwork of fields in the flatlands of Norfolk. I just had to follow the track back to where I started. John Coutts, Shetland. www.couttsphotos.com

Hi Joe, I started flying a few yeas ago with a motor to begin with and no free flying experience. The risks are more or less proportional to the amount you push your flying. In my early days I tried to turn tightly while under power and suffered an assymetric collapse about 300 feet from the ground. I turned through about 180 degrees and plummeted to the ground. At about 50feet from the ground the wing reinflated and thoughs of being killed went away. I was flying a tradional paragliding wing, a Trekking Civic at the time. It was not the wings fault it collapsed, only mine for asking it to do a ridiculous manoevre which caused the stall of the wing. For the last 250 hours, I have flown mainly a Reaction reflex wing and a Plasma. In all that time I have never had a flutter in the air apart from rough turbulance occassionally. Reflex wings are very collapse resistant and the modern wings are very good provided you don't fly in conditions too strong for their design. Those limits are quite high too and most sensible pilots know their limit of what is safe. Your biggest hazard is the ground as I am sure you are aware. Paramotorists have most of their accidents while attempting to take off or land. The advantage of a motor is that you have a chance to delay landing if your approach is not ideal and go around again. Another significant risk reducer is that a paramotorist is normally using a fairly flat field with plenty of room. Whereas a paraglider is often on a steep slope where take-offs can be very hairy at times. I do also have my CP and have done about 30 hours paragliding and enjoy it too. I came back from a holiday in Morocco earlier this year and then went flying my paramotor. My first thought was how clumbsy and unresponsive flying with a motor is compared to free flight! I was fortunate not to crash a break my legs though after losing too much height and doing an emergency cross wind landing but thats another story. My inexperience again at the discipline. Taking off vertically and backwards while doing a reverse launch is not the norm while paramotoring! In summary I would suggest that motoring is (probably) much safer than paragliding. Just look at Skywings and look at the accident statistics each month. However there are more paraglider pilots than paramotorists so ??? I don't know. With a few more hours your confidence will certainly grow, especially with you past experience. John Coutts

Why were you flying on full slow all the time Pete? I have always made sure I fly on fast trim if conditions are turbulent. Is it not the case that fast trim makes reflex wings MUCH less likely to collapse? John Coutts

The results of the poll on this forum may not represent the general scene throughout the UK. Obviously, a great many of the students taught by Simon have responded to the poll. I went down the BMAA route with Paul Blench in 1997. He must have taught quite a number in the past (or frightened them off). I don't know what he does now though, I have never heard his name mentioned in the last few years. John

I have just watched the video showing big-ears being carried out very near to the ground. I recently attended a course with Sunsoar and instructors Ian Currer and Ian Brown (Ian Currer is co-author of 'Touching Cloudbase'). They did not recommend practising big ears close to the ground due to the fairly obvious risks that may result. With no brakes to steer or flare IF big-ears does not pop out in time it would be easy to have an accident or cause yourself harm. Practice higher up! John Coutts

Thanks for the reply Simon. It gives me a few more factors to mull over. John

Simon, A slight change of interest with this thread - I too, fly a Bailey but it is a Snap engine using around 4 litres per hour with a 27 Reaction (I am 80kg). 2-2,5 litres would be an incentive for me to change motors. What do you weigh and what size are your wings? Does the 175 have plenty of thrust to sustain level flight on speed bar with the Plasma? John Coutts

I wouldn't be in too much of a hurry to step up to an Action GT just yet. The Paramania website does say it is for pilots with a minimum of 80 hours experience. With only a modest amount of 50 hours over 2 years the Revolution is a far safer bet. What have you been doing to your wing that it is 'showing its age' after a mere 50 hours? My Reaction is in lovely condition after 2 years/170hrs. John

Thanks Gaz and Norman, My alti-vario has gone completely 'wonky' now and is behaving erratically. Even the Germans won't be able to help! It looks like a new instrument is required. Flytec 6005 or 6010/ Digifly Flyer2 or Newton? John PS I am new to this forum and realise I have posted in the wrong section. won't do it again.