PatPux

Is the fast landing (or perhaps lack of brake authority) a feature of full reflex wings?

Don't know the answer to that, all I can say is that when I have seen someone flying a paragliding wing at Membury they have always been much more "floaty"

So, not really any closer to saying what the turning problem is. Let's hope if was me being un-observant a just not noticing the webbing being snagged.

The landings just need another try with my ......Erhem.....modified brakes.

My straps are fully loose, even removed the buckle thing to give me extra length on the shoulder straps. It's not that I can't move because I'm done up too tight, just that my attitude is too laid back.........Physically, that is....not mentally!

Glad you got up , Gary. Now the the fun really begins, a bit less sweating cobs on the ground and more cooling breeze in yer face.

And congrats to all the others, too. Sounds like a crazy hectic day

Pete, I understand exactly what you are saying and how you have addressed the problem and I could, I suppose use the same sort of measures, especially the asymmetric trims. The big but , though is that I had a rig that was trimmed perfectly for straight flight at my normal throttle setting, but something has changed for the last two flights.

And I think I need to identify what has caused it rather than address the symptom .

Stevie

Did you notice the webbing thing when it was happening, I mean not just the symptom, but could you see it and realise that was causing the problem. I want it to be that because it will be the explanation but I sort of feel I would have seen it twisted over, but I didn't.

And another Vote for taking a wrap.

Hann,

Lots to think about here.

I can identify with the leaning back thing, and although I can't see myself I feel exactly like the position in your photo. I can also identify with that wanting to pull myself upright. Col is always saying "stick you chest out", I just don't know what to pull on or push against to get myself upright.

I do feel that I run out of brake travel when trying to flare, so I have took the decision myself to shorten the brakes and I raised them 4" yesterday.

I have done quite a few upright landings and I do know that feeling of getting right, but I suspect they have been into enough head wind to help me out.

At the moment I just run out of travel before I have levelled off and get the final stall,hence I just drive into the ground.

My take offs have been OK recently but I'm under no illusions that it could all go pear shaped , but I do feel more confident now , particularly on the reverses.

Thanks for the encouragement on the blog, although I reckon I spend at least twice as much time writing the blog as I do in the air!!!!

So perhaps tomorrow evening to give it another.[sMILING FACE WITH OPEN MOUTH][sMILING FACE WITH OPEN MOUTH]

Wow, here's the forum working as it should, tell the story , ask for advice and get loads of it.

Thanks ,Pete,Stevie, Hann, and Simon,

I will read it, think about it and see where it makes sense to me and where I need a bit more explaining

Thanks, guys, I will respond.

............and......Simon , I never heard a word!

if your approach is to low your wing will be in Pangbourne and your

boots and teeth will be in Paddington

LOL

Nice!

Friday 20th June- Flight 19

http://www.everytrail.com/view_trip.php?trip_id=2834181

Chuffed.jpg[/attachment]

Keep an eye out at the end of the video for my audience on the passing Virgin X-Country train, luckily, I think they passed by the time of toudhdown

Nice one mate.

We will be doing late ones this weekend if you fancy flying in.

SW

Thanks, will see how I go.

No more excuses

Can you give me a clue how to get rid of this drat wind that has been plaguing this region for the past two weeks,

Alan

Yes, get your paramotor to develop a fault, go away on business, twist your ankle, or have the other half insist on your attendance at some do or other.............weather will be perfect, then

Bales still in the field. Target is Friday evening. Ascot tomorrow so will be in no fit state tomorrow evening.

They've mown it

Just need them to bale it and clear it.

Then a nice evening and no more excuses

Seems we're all waiting for silaging weather!

Saturday and Sunday 7-8th June

So a beautiful windy and thermic weekend. The sort of weather where, when you mention it to your non flying friends, they wonder what conditions are right for Paramotoring.

I was hopeful yesterday evening would calm down enough for a maiden and unsupervised flight out of the field I have the use of in Pangbourne, certainly the wind direction looked good, so I waited patiently for things to quieten down, but gave it up around 7pm, only to find it did indeed calm down a bit later, but by then I'd had one too many "sharpeners" to drive, let alone fly

So I just hadn't been patient enough!

As it turns out it didn't matter, because in my resolution to not make the same mistake again today, I decided to reccy the field mid afternoon, and set the windsock up. Wind direction looked absolutely perfect, giving me the longest free space across the field. But the grass is really long now, and although the corner in which I would set up is well eaten down by rabbits , I would soon have found myself running into the long stuff.

Which I tried, just to see what it was like......................It was definitely too long, I was at serious risk of tripping even without 70kg of thrust and 34m of sail to contend with. And I can manage that even on the mown stuff at Membury

I had a look further up the field where the floods had killed the crop and there was some very nice short grass growing in its place, but, though there was plenty of running space it was a bit close to the transmission lines at the West end of the field, especially with the V2 torque steer liable to send me that way. While I reckon it was probably OK, Best not to risk it for my maiden flight out.

Hi Pat

I'm not aware of a henge in that spot. A large equestrian business runs in that

location. Looks a bit like jumps but in a strange shape.

Rich

Yes, I think that's exactly what it is ! Part of a cross country course.It's certainly not an antiquity.

I flew over this on my flight last Saturday. It's a mini Stonehenge, of some sort, near Lower Denford on the Wessex Downs, but I can't find anything about it on the web.

Can anyone shed any light?

I had no camera, so these are Apple maps screen shots and this is the Googlemaps link.

http://goo.gl/maps/z12jI

An update on the belt. Parajet can't explain why the problem exists but have endorsed the use of a 533J belt in place of the standard 559J. That's a shortening of 26mm on the belt which will result in moving the two pulleys closer together by just under 13mm.

I have ordered both sizes, just in case the 559 I had been trying was a duffer.

Day 36 31/5/14 Flight 18

Forts, a White Horse and not much fuel

Had a great cross country today, to Liddington Fort, Barbury Castle and picking up my second Wiltshire White Horse at Hackpen.

It was quite overcast at home this morning and pretty miserable for a summers day, so I want sure I'd be going anywhere. Bu it soon brightened up , so I rang Simon , packed the car and headed for Membury.

Ross was back and Richard was there after a couple of months break, and two or three new faces on the first days training...and making a decent go of it, too.
Ross was flying his new Minari Macro, but had a slightly hairy launch that nearly had him ordering his Starbucks from his paramotor as he went a bit low over the coffee shop in the motorway service area.

The wind was initially quite light but strengthened a bit to make it just right for easy reverse launching, but through a combination of waiting for the wing walking plane to finish and general faffing around on my part, that opportunity was missed as the breeze died away again.
So after a failed reverse attempt, I went for a forward, bringing up the wing cleanly, but had, immediately to turn 90 degrees left as the wind veered, that all went well, but that left me staring at a 3m high bank, not 20m away, so there was no alternative but to bin it. Shame, because I think I anticipated and dealt with the changing wind direction during the launch.
After a bit of a rest I had another go at a forward, which went fine. Climb out was the usual fairly slow affair but I was soon on my planned 25 mile round trip XC to a couple of Wiltshire hill forts and the Hackpen White Horse.

As I set out West , I started to notice an uncharacteristic tendency to turn left , that required me to hold a constant light pressure on the Right tip steer. I looked up at the lines but couldn't see anything.

It was to turn out to be one of the trailing edge lines which had looped round itself and had been noticed by those on the ground as a bunching at the back of the wing.
That was the first thing! Next, I now know with hindsight that my belt had started to slip at about 3/4 throttle, but I hadn't recognised it at the time thinking it was the motor getting into a power band at that throttle opening.

Finally, it started to look like I was going to have a fuel problem, probably as it turned out to do with the other two issues.
I have quite a good handle on my fuel usage now and had calculated to give myself about 2lts spare, but on the return leg with some 5 miles still to go I could see very little left in my "fuel gauge" mirror, so was constantly assessing the landing options of every field I flew over! so it was some relief that Membury hove into view.
I celebrated with a few tight 360s and esses to lose height- OK, so I didnt manage a spectacular spiral dive with the wing standing on its ear, but they were as tight a turn as I had yet tried on a paramotor :dive::dive:
 

That brought me into for my usual landing, uneventful and unconventional, erhemm

But the dramas were not quite over! Why when I looked over my shoulder could I see the prop gently spinning when I had stopped the motor 30 seconds earlier before I landed?
The answer was the belt had come off completely and the cam adjuster was completely loose
It must have happened exactly as I stopped the motor.
And the fuel...........less than 1/2 a litre.

So an eventful flight, the events of which didnt really become apparent , till I was over, leaving me to enjoy some great views.

I cleaned up the mess when I got home, and fitted my spare belt, but wasnt satisfied with the tension even with the adjuster cam at its full extension. Certainly I wasnt getting the required mid belt play of 2-3mm, more like 10mm.
A full dismantle and inspection at the field today by paramotoring cognoscenti- Simon, Col and Pete B couldnt spot anything wrong or a reason. So a discussion is to be had on Monday with PJ, with a suggestion of trying the next available smaller belt a (533mm to the standard 559mm)

I have quite a good handle on my fuel usage now and had calculated to give myself about 2lts spare, but on the return leg with some 5 miles still to go I could see very little left in my "fuel gauge" mirror, so was constantly assessing the landing options of every field I flew over! so it was some relief that Membury hove into view.

If you can get some gasket paper of the right thickness , you could make it yourself

Yeah......I was willing it, to say that, too.

Paul, hope all goes well, may well see you there myself.Patrick

26/5/2014 May Bank Holiday Weekend

What a frustrating weekend, so unlike the last Bank Holiday.

Sunday looked possible for my first flight out of my home field, a Southerly wind direction but it was just showing too strong all day on WeatherPro.

I even went down in the afternoon to check it out for direction, which was perfect, giving the maximum space, in the hope that it would calm down in the evening

I waited and waited for it to subside ready to choose that moment when I could get a nice easy reverse and fly off into the developing calm evening air!

But, to no avail, it was still going and gusty at 8:30, so no go.

Well......today.........very calm, but all that meant was that the rain didn't move anywhere. What a disappointment!

Can anyone running a Parajet Macro with the 2 blade prop tell me the belt code that goes with that reduction gear.

Something like...PJ508 200J?

Paramotoring from the ground up.

SW

But surely that falls under the instructional heading