savage

I know you don't want to hear it but, forget about the Tandem, there is an awful lot to learn even after you have passed everything. I had the same idea and bought a tandem capable motor and reserve, four motors later and with the reserve nearly out of date I am getting into tandems. At your weight, you can't go wrong with the Top80 Miniplane.

On a beautiful April evening last week...... Life doesn't get much better (however you fly). Stuart.

Early days, a bit messy but, it definitely goes alright.

Hi Wallboy. The zips have gone on my Dickies suit and i need a new one, so i am after a bit of info on the suit you have. I'm 6 foot, do you think one would be long enough for me, did you go for the red or they grey and are you still happy with it? Cheers. Stuart.

Hi Wallboy. The zips have gone on my Dickies suit and i need a new one, so i am after a bit of info on the suit you have. I'm 6 foot, do you think one would be long enough for me, did you go for the red or they grey and are you still happy with it? Cheers. Stuart.

Second vote for the £50 Dickies here, been flying round french ski resorts in it in January (Bourg-st maurice to Val D'Isere and back) and was toasty (lots of layers underneath). No good if you are over 6 foot though.

Yep, good call. But. Doh! I Can't do the 19th. Shame about the 12th, current forecast says it could be ok.. Stuart.

This sounds like fun, (or carnage ). Fingers crossed this lovely weather stays till then. Count me in as a Pilot please Simon, I've done the Paypal thing already. Roll on the 22nd! Stuart Savage.

I had a nice flight yesterday too, the weather was so nice that I lugged up my great big old SLR to take some pics, only to find the wife had used it and left the SD card in the laptop....Doh! Worst bit was I couldn't have a moan at the wife because I was supposed to be having a busy day in the office...

Here is another one and I'd say it could have been worse, considering the set up they are trying to fly with..... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e-NNsEr8A2I Stuart.

I had a great time too. I haven't been to many fly-ins where it's been flyable all day every day. Over an hour Friday evening, more than 3 hours Saturday, including a fantastic flight up through a 1000 foot deep hole in the clouds to break out into the sunny, blue sky world of cloud mountains, valleys and walls. Superb! If only I had borrowed a GoPro it would have made a great video, especially with the camp site still visible through the hole. Anyway managed another hour on Sunday morning before ATC demanded I come back home to look after the kids. Great to see some old faces and meet some new ones. Hope to see you all again soon. Loved the fireworks. Cheers all and well done Carl. Stuart. Gin Airflex 28 (orange) + Miniplane

key question - at what point do you come off full reflex and start actively flying and does active flying mean you need to be on full slow and brakes or could you be on neutral and brakes? (PS I PG also so I know what active flying is..just have not done it on a PPG before) Gainers answer is, a lot. Davidreckitt answer. There is no set point. I paraglide and can actively fly. I always fly active on slow trim and enjoy moderate thermals. I will fly active up to neutral if it's windy and I 'need' the speed (not much good for thermaling though as the sink rate is fairly high also the wing is no longer certified here, so best to avoid collapses, I should imagine). I have had the odd small deflation when active flying, but never with trims out and I have switched to trims out when it's been getting too much for me to actively fly (i.e. take me home now coz I've had enough of this!). As someone else suggested, fly in the morning and aim to stay up as the first thermals appear, then try to use them and get used to them, active flying is not rocket science and if it gets too much you can always trim out and zoom home with your tail between your legs. Read the manual though, not all reflex wings are alike. I take no responsibility for anything if you follow my advice, I'm just telling you how I did it and I had no issues. I am probably more likely to actively fly all the way to the landing now (rather than land with trims out) just because I am better and more confident with it now. Stuart. Gin Airflex 28 (flying every day at the excellent pmc flyin).

I am more than happy to be proved wrong, but I don't think it has got battens, the 'light leading edge' referred to in the blurb is exactly the same blurb that was used for the Airflex and is Marlar with a lot of it cut away to reduce weight, I think they have just changed colours and material suppliers, which is not surprising as it is such a nice wing anyway. Stuart.

Come on guys, 165lbs is 75Kgs not 85kgs, which puts him perfectly in the weight range of a Miniplane Top80. It' will have plenty of power, especially if he goes for an XL and a new carbon prop. Anything with a Simo engine is going to be overkill power wise for a beginner and will probably make him give up the sport after spending a few days running up and down trying to launch the thing with all that wight and power, Fresh Breeze are just as heavy too, unless you go for the Snap version, but why would you when the Top 80 is lighter more powerful and more efficient? Air Conception Ultra 130 may be another to consider, if you can get them and the parts in Oz(?) and Simon101, it's the wing that governs the speed, not the motor, so the flat top giving 50mph is nonsense. Stuart 80kgs Miniplane Top80, Gin Airflex 28 reflex wing and still climbing at 150 ft/min trims full out and full bar.

Apparently Air Conceptions Moster Titanium weighs 21.9 Kgs.. Goggles....Can't recommend these highly enough.. http://www.globaleyewearstore.com/html/flare_smoked.html Small form factor, pretty much draft proof, perfect all round vision (unlike ski goggles) and only a tenner!! so you can afford to break/ scratch/ loose a pair and not cry coz there go your +£100 Oakley's/ Black Flies etc. OK, in the depths of winter they may mist up while you are on the ground, but as soon as you take off they are fine. Buy a dark set and a clear set, then you can swap over as the sun goes down. I have nothing to do with the company by the way, just bought a few as I break/ scratch or loose them. Stuart.

http://www.ppginfo.com/bungee%20start.html Stuart.

Bogging down when you accelerate is nearly always cased by an over rich carb setting. Only knowing Bing 'float-bowl' carbs from microlighting (it may different with your carb), can you not drop the needle down a notch? Otherwise you may need a smaller jet? If the problem only happens after a sustained time at part throttle, then it could be carb icing which float bowl carbs are prone to. Stuart.

Thanks for the clarification Alan. It looks like I will have to go back to butchering the phone style earpiece that came with the radio (add 2 speakers/earphones and move the PTT button away from the mike). I got your PM too thanks, sorry i didn't respond earlier but I've been away from the pc all day. Cheers again. Stuart.

Thanks Alan. I can go ahead and order a Kenwood compatable headset now (with a stereo 3.5mm and mono 2.5mm plug). Cheers. Stuart.

Hi Alan. Thanks for the excellent review. I have bought the UV-5R which has the same Kenwood compatible headset connector as the UV-3R+. All the Kenwood compatible headsets I have seen seem to have a mono 2.5mm plug and a stereo 3.5mm plug, unlike the one in your picture (both stereo). Can you confirm the mono/stereo plug will work? looking at your adapter circuit diagram it appears the extra connection does nothing anyway(?) Many thanks. Stuart.

Thanks for the original post, that saves me having to buy a Christmas present for the wife as it looks like she's getting a new I-pod now....

Whilst the 125 prop and std cage will be absolutely fine for you, as you suggest, why not go for the bigger prop/cage and get better efficiency/thrust with a bit less noise at cruse. There is no disadvantage with the XL cage. The prop to go for is new T2HA carbon in 130cm on a 19/73 gearbox, you could go for the 135 carbon, but i think it's a step too far being very close to the cage and only really for competition use, also the new T2HA prop is a totally new profile that Diego did a lot of testing on to improve it's efficiency over the previous version, i think it's output is very close to the 135, also the 135 is horrendously expensive. If you want all the power you can get, don't go for an inefficient wood prop unless you think you are going to break it. FYI I still climb at about 150-175 feet/min on full fast with full bar. Stuart 78Kgs. XL MIniplane, 130 T2H prop. 28 Gin Airflex

I am sure others have said, but just to make clear. Choose one line (usually an A or brake line) and undo the knots it by passing the risers through, around or whatever needs to be done, when it's undone, the others will automatically be undone too. Repeat on the other side of the wing. Job done. Good luck. Stuart.

Generally, you are going to need a large harness (Italians are smaller) and Miniplane haven't been able to get the Sup air harness for at least a year, so you will get a Miniplane one. This is certainly true of the Large size and i am pretty sure it's true for the medium as well. Stuart.

Because the rear pivot point of the arms is about 5 inches higher than on a low hang point machine, the motor always hangs down at the correct angle. It is possible to move the wing attachment clamps fore and aft (no holes & bolts) but as they are roughly at the highest point of the bend in the arms it's generally not necessary for different weight pilots. A few mm adjustment on one side or other will also totally remove any torque effect. Stuart.