Hann__

Does the classic have the bushing - i thought it was only on the silent and plus? Anyway, 25 hours.............

If all you want is an altimeter then a Thommen will do the trick in an olds-cool kind of way, they`re nice things to use. You can pick them up for 30 - 50 quid on ebay. I used to use a Foretrex 401, although it gives you info like altitude, groundspeed etc it`s limited for use when on XC routes because there`s no map as such and inputting all the waypoints was a right pain... My iPhone has made both these gadgets redundant, which is a shame in some ways....

Mine doesn`t it`s an iPhone 4s! (a hand-me-down from offspring number 1....)

Flyskyhy is great, everything you need is on there - i have the airspace extension, too. Height above sea level via GPS signal rather than barometer pressure is the way it operates, very accurate, also has height over ground - when i fly over the sea they both read the same then over ground the height changes instantly as i fly over the beach. I fix mine to the Bulldog bars with a microphone stand iphone holder like this; https://www.thomann.de/gb/millenium_iphone_clamp.htm

Lee, can you get into your Bulldog harness without a helping hand (or thumb..)? I can hang-testing when wearing say, jeans, but the addition of my bulky flying suit seems to hinder the process and it`s become second nature just after lift-off to swoop down with the left hand and thumb my seatboard under my ass - it just needs a little help.

How many times did you fly this motor prior to the coil problem? What carburetor do you have?

Woah! Before delving that deep check the basic stuff first. If it hasn`t been run in a while the fuel system may need `refreshing` - carb and lines primed, fuel deffo getting to carb, enrichening devices working etc, try another spark plug (even though the one you`re testing to see the spark may seem OK - they behave differently when under the stresses of the firing conditions when fitted).. It may just need a little more `coaxing` after being inactive for so long.

If the starter motor and circuit on your paramotor is all 12V then i don`t see any problem. A motor will only draw the current that it requires to operate so even though you are hooking up a relatively small load (your paramotor starter motor) to a very high capacity supply (car batteries can deliver hundreds of amps) it will only pull the current it needs. Just be careful not to crank the motor for extended periods which may overheat components as the car battery could probably have enough juice to keep it spinning for hours... Does your V4 charge the battery in flight or have a reg/rec and accessory socket?

I got mine from here, i think they`re the UK distributors; http://trailtechproducts.co.uk/acatalog/Temperature.html Price has gone up a tad but i don`t think there cheaper anywhere else... "The TTO is available in Black, Red or Orange, the silver TTO instrument has been discontinued. Please make a note in the shipping comments as to which colour you prefer."

My motor fully fueled up with 15 litres plus reserve etc weighs in at just over 40kg. I weigh 78 on a good day. That initial stand up after putting the motor on takes some effort!

Odd that the lines are catching on the hoop - there`s not really any snags on the Bulldog frame for the lines to catch on, the joins where the hoop sections butt against each other are pretty snug and any gap is taken up with an o-ring - unless it`s because your arms arn`t stretched out to the side as AndyB says above, they do look like they`re more out in front of you in one vid increasing the angle of lines-to-glider. Yes, it`s a totally different ball game with a motor on your back, isn`t it? Now imagine carrying another 14kg + of fuel, reserve & other gubbins, in a restrictive winter flying suit and multiple layers on underneath, clumpy boots, isolating helmet and earplugs, gloved hands decreasing tactility, a spinning prop and the pressure of aiming to launch first-time in nil wind without faceplanting, damaging lines, busting a prop, blending your wing or hurting yourself! It can be done - we`re all doing it (mostly without mishap)... The best thing you can do is practice, practice practice with the motor on your back until your fully confident in your ability to get the wing up and running and only then start to add power. All good fun though, keep the vids coming, we`ll soon be seeing your `first flight`..

I`m not a believer that fuel `goes off` - not to the extent that it will make a noticeable difference to the running of an engine, anyway. For example, the fuel in my paramotor in the winter can be sat in both the motor`s fuel tank and the fill-up jerry can for weeks on end, sometimes up to 6 - 8 weeks. The engine always starts fine, no differently than if it had `new` fuel in it. I don`t believe that the oil somehow magically `separates` from the petrol either, like i have read on t`internet from time to time. I`d accept definitive and scientific evidence to the contrary if any were available! I do give the fuel a `shake up` though just in case, and there is always a good proportion of new, fresh fuel when i top up the tank to what`s left of the previous flights fuel, so i`m not running on completely old fuel. I`ve always had similar experience on my motorcycles. Up to last year i had four in the garage (only 3 now - 4 including the pitbike...) which i tended to use in rotation so some `bikes were sat unused for 12 to 18 months or more with 12 to 18 month old petrol in the tanks. They always started up no problem after their lay-off..... At the end of the day though just go with what you believe, if you`re happier binning old fuel after a month because you think it`s `gone off` then do it for piece of mind. My fuel `regime` is based upon my experiences above, i`ve never had any reason to believe i`m doing any harm so i won`t be changing.

^^^^^^This. Crawling along at 15 mph or less just ain`t fun.

....i thought you were going to say you found £500 in there that you`d forgotten about!

If i stare at that pic long enough i can see an image of Jesus` face in the long grass.

This is the field i fly from mostly - the long, thin one. Look at all those trees! And the ground to the left is higher. It`s not ideal. Crops permitting i can fly from the higher ground which is much better, or the field to the right (still surrounded by trees) in wind conditions are agreeable. I do have another field (only in winter when no crops) of 14 acres and completely open.

I`m ~120kg all up inc. wing but no fuel. Medium is 100 - 160kg (quite a wide range?) so `im at the lower end, but it doesn`t feel like it - see above. I don`t know why i went for the M as the S is 75 - 140 and i would of fit that perfectly fine, i think at the time i didn`t want to make too large a jump earlyish in my career from my 31 down to a 25.8.. So yeah, the Lift has transformed my flying really, looking back at the fifty or so flights i`ve done it seems difficult to imagine how i`d of coped with launching the old Synth in the conditions and site i fly from. Are you thinking of trying one?

I usually take a bottle of wine with me to the field. If i see the farmer he gets it, if i don`t see him i take it home and drink it myself! ......and a bottle of whisky at Christmas.

I`ve been flying a Lift EZ for the last ~20 months. The wing i had before that was a Synth1 so anything i say i am comparing to that wing as they are the only two wings i`ve flown after my training, i`m not experienced on flying loads of different wings.. The reason i opted for the EZ was it`s apparent ease of launch - especially in low/nil wind, and on that point it has fulfilled my expectations every time. Towards the end of my ownership of the Synth i ended up despising the bloody thing such was it`s recalcitrance to forward launch in nil-wind and after failing to fly on two out of three visits to the field i could quite easily of set fire to it! It was about then i decided to chop it in for the EZ... I`ve gone from dreading forwards to doing them virtually all the time now, if i had nil-wind every time it wouldn`t bother me in the slightest. It`s a relatively light glider at 5.9kg (my Synth 31 was 7.6..) for the medium which must help a lot. Not quite as light for example as the Sirocco/Spyder though. So yeah, it launches well, although there may be other wings out there which launch just as easily. In stronger conditions which dictate a reverse the EZ is quite flighty and needs controlling quickly such is it`s willingness to fly in the stronger winds. I don`t think it glides particularly well - and that`s saying something after coming from a Synth was wasn`t exactly known for it`s glide prowess! Even on neutral trim it comes down quite quickly, and with my preferred landing trim settings of fully out i`ve seen sink rates of 600`+ a min. Flare control at these settings is fine though - it`s got loads of speed to give a long float to bleed off the momentum. I never really achieved the desired landing consistency at neutral or lower trims - my landings got better the further i trimmed out, that might just be me though as the Synth was the same. I prefer a firm, `tight` flare feel which trims out gives me, trims in feels mushy and vague to me. I usually fly at +2 trims which seems to be the `sweet spot` giving good speed and engine revs - about 26 - 28 mph via the GPS. I`ve just acquired - for free - a windmill type anemometer which i intend to take up with me next time i fly to see what that says, so i`ll know if trims fully out gives any increase on that. I don`t use speedbar. It does oscillate a bit at times, damping with a brake sorts it out. It flies straight and true - my Synth used to require fiddling with the `TEA` line constantly which was annoying. Handling? Feck knows, i pull left it goes left, pull right it goes right, tipsteering is very effective - you could probably do wingovers with them if you were so inclined but i don`t do any of that stuff, i just do XC. Build quality wise it looked quite flimsy compared to the Dudek (eg: thin risers and lines) but that`s where the lightness comes from i would think - the Synth was a proper heavy old fecker and was maybe why it was so reluctant to launch in light winds. I went for the medium, if i bought now i`d go for the small as the extra potential speed and agility would be a bonus as is the preference these days for the smaller glider. I`ve done 50 flights for just under 100 hours on it now and i`m very happy i went for the EZ and think i`m well prepared to jump onto something a lot `hotter` as my next wing (i`m not thinking of changing anytime soon, though..). I

The Moster seems to be the `default` engine choice these days but it doesn`t have to be. It`s a poky unit but i for one don`t necessarily need all the power - although it`s nice to have making take-offs easy, low-level shenanigans safe and climb rates high. Knowing what i do now and the type of flying i have settled on i would of gone for a smaller, more frugal engine to extend flight times and improve economy - the Moster isn`t known for it`s frugality.. I`ve got a Bulldog Moster i would of been perfectly fine with the Evo 100 option i think - the last time i saw Clive Bunce (he makes the Bulldogs) he was flying an Evo 100 at 90Kg+ on a Nuc which was a perfectly flyable combination for him, so the larger engines aren`t always the way to go even thought it seems to be the popular way to go - it depends on what type of flying you`re intending to do i guess. I was about 90kg when i bought mine so i was advised to get the Moster, i`m well over 10kg lighter now so need the power even less. I`m not changing now though... Having said that though, the Moster would be the safe option being a well-proven engine with plenty of pilot feedback, you`ll not go wrong at your weight, and the 4.5 - 5L/hr consumption is fine for most folk and their flying endurance i would think. Like all engines though they do have their `foibles` and known reliability issues, no engine is perfectly reliable - check out the Faceache group. I`m not experienced enough to give advice on any other engine option though, sorry. Have you got the Lift EZ?

...or you could ask the farmer if he`d mind if you cut all those trees down `cos they`re getting in your way. I don`t think he`d mind....

^^^^That field looks similar to one i fly from. The fact that your asking is a clue that you`re not entirely happy with it (i`m not entirely happy with the filed i use, either), but if it`s the only one you have access to.... Be prepared for the wind to behave in a way that may be at odds to what you expect, two windsocks 50 yards apart may indicate completely different conditions, for example. The ideal field is a large, open one free from obstacles giving a nice, linear wind across it from any direction. Conditions on the ground on that field could be quite different to what`s aloft - ensure you`re not going to fly into turbulent air soon after take-off. It looks sheltered, too. There may not be any breeze in the late evening to give you a cushion to land into so you`ll probably come in a bit quick. It`s not ideal for a novice, but it`ll hone your flying skills quickly! Be prepared for launch failures at a site like this due to the changeable wind direction. Only flying from there when the wind is blowing in the ideal direction could severely limit your flying opportunities. It`s difficult to judge without actually being there, but if you only fly in benign conditions it should be ok. Finding a suitable field can be difficult, can`t it?

Excellent video, Juan. Great editing, great flying skilz and most importantly - appropriate music! So many vids you see have a soundtrack with bloody awful music or a screeching distorted engine noise in the background.. I enjoyed watching that.

Hi Pat, Now you`ve had all summer to get to know your new wing what`s your thoughts on it now? Is it a lot faster, more fuel efficient, landings any better?

The ground handling vid is seriously impressive. The Spyder is even lighter than the Sirocco whose light weight they were touting a year or so ago as being the major feature of that wing. Light weight wings are the way to go i think - i certainly noticed it when i made the switch from my old wing which was 1.9Kg heavier than my current one. I`d like to see a wing made from graphene - it would probably weigh a few hundred grams, might be a bit spendy though....