Justin

Thanks guys, I've felt a bit uneasy running it only on 1.5% oil. Surely a touch too much is far better than not enough? I didn't think there were 2 stroke engines that required running on less oil than 50:1 ratio. What are the concerns on running too much oil other than being a bit smokey & not quite as much power? Justin

Hi all, I've got a Miniplane with the Top 80 engine. What oil & ratios are you all using? I've read on the Miniplane-USA website somewhere that you should use semi-synthetic oil at 2% giving a ratio of 50:1 or if using fully synthetic you should only use between 1.5 to 1.7% which gives a ratio of 67:1 & 59:1 respectively. I was always led to believe we should be using fully synthetic at 2% 50:1! For reference I've got Castrol Racing 2T fully synthetic oil & 97 octane petrol (not yet mixed!). Justin

Thanks guys, I had originally brought up this conversation regarding flying an intermediate after flying a Mentor 3. It all seems quite different in the paramotoring world what is deemed a beginner or an intermediate wing. For example, Ozone seem to produce a few non-reflex wings such as Spark, Mojo Pwr & Kona & then full reflex wings such as Roadster 2, Speeder 2 & so on. For comparison, would the Kona be deemed more advanced than the Roadster 2 as regard to handling & safety, although non-reflex yet both are classed as beginner/intermediate, but the Kona has two classed gliders below it? It all seems a bit of a grey area as I'm a beginner regarding paramotoring but I'm experienced at paragliding. Basically, are they classing beginners wings for people who have never flown paragliders before? Sorry if I'm not making much sense! Justin

Hi adamjedgar, I had looked into it & no, the Niviuk Link isn't a reflex profile. Kind of narrowed it down to the Rama Flex & Universal 1.1. Both reflex profiles although the Rama Flex has a shorter trim range but still has a good turn of speed apparently. The Universal's trim range is huge! Over 20cm I believe. I'm planning to demo fly both wings to make up my mind. Thanks for your input. Justin

Thanks Bluebanshee, It's good to know it's easy to launch. If you can keep me informed on how it goes when you start using the motor would be great. I believe Kangook sell the RAMA Flex in their own design scheme. Kangook are a respectable paramotor company & I'm sure they wouldn't put their name to a glider they didn't believe in. Thanks for the info. Justin

Many thanks for all you replies. The Universal 1.1 does sound like a favourite. The lead times for delivery are good too. Ozone were estimating 68 days! That's the autumn! I'm still interested in the AD RAMA Flex. From reading up on it, it does seem to tick all the boxes & is apparently one of the easiest wings to launch in nil to light winds. It also has a really neat, clutter free riser set. Usually most models & sizes in stock too so delivery should be quick. Air Design are a well established brand in the free flight paragliding community & seem to produce some class leading stuff. I would just like to hear from someone that owns one or at least flown one. Justin

Trouble with that is different makes of reserves can have big differences in weight & some machines can opt for bigger size tanks. Also a lot of people don't always fly with a full tank of fuel so I guess it's much easier & more accurate to give dry/empty weights. Most car & motorcycle manufacturers do so too. Justin

Hi again morgy, I've gone for a Miniplane Top 80 in the end. A guy in my local club was selling it with less than 5 hours use & only 12 months old so it has the new type frame. It worked out perfect really as I've just completed my paramotor conversion on Miniplane & this made up my mind what I wanted. No doubt there are lots of good machines out there, but having the chance to fly one is a huge bonus. A bit awkward to rig & de-rig but is lovely & light & a well proven machine. Thanks again, Justin

Hi Morgy, thanks for your reply. My intentions for paramotoring at the moment would be to fly cross country. For now I will be looking at flying in benign conditions to gain some paramotoring experience. My choice of paramotor wing would be a reflex glider that offers good speed with trimmers off but has good solid stability with good launch/landing characteristics. At first I had the idea of paramotoring to gain height with some engine off thermalling, but I'm coming around to the idea that on thermic days I'm more likely to go free flying. Maybe over time I will prove myself wrong. So, going back to first time reflex wings, is there any that you would particularly recommend, including the two I've mentioned above? Thanks again, Justin

Hi, Having recently done my PPG conversion I've bought an 'as new' Miniplane & I intend to do my first few flights on my Mentor 3. I'm an experienced free flight paraglider pilot. I know that I'm soon going to feel the need for extra speed flying the Mentor with no trimmers. I've read up a lot about popular first time ppg wings such as Roadster 2, Revo 3, Universal etc, but I'm also keen to know if anyone has any experience with the SOL Flexus & Niviuk Link. Both from well known manufacturers but I find there isn't half as much info out there about these two gliders, especially the Flexus. Is there anyone out there that has one or at least flown one that can share their honest opinion of either wing? Justin

Thanks again cas, that's been really helpful. I'll contact them at Miniplane for a chat about it but I think the Snap is the way to go. To be fair it seems really good value when you compare it to other brands like Gin & Independance! Granted the Independance Utra Cross is super light & compact. I have the Ultra Cross 100 for my Ozone Ultralite but the max weight is only 100kg. Thanks again, Justin

Hi Cas, I've had a look on the Miniplane website & I've seen the Snip reserve on there. It does look nice & compact. Any idea what the weight of it is & does it come complete with the outer container? I would probably need the bigger size as I stood on the scales with my motor & wing & 1/3 tank of fuel & was 110kg all up. Also, I see the Snip attachments fasten directly to the main carabiners, which I like, but does the container attach anywhere to the harness? Thanks again, Justin

Hi, I've got a Miniplane paramotor with the Apco harness & I want to fit a front mounted reserve. I've also got a Gin One G 42 reserve. Is there a front mounted container I could use for this reserve that attaches directly to the main karabiners on the ABM arms of the Miniplane rather than a Y bridle onto the shoulder straps? I'm thinking maybe the Gin One G 42 is a bit bulky for a front mounted reserve & the newer lighter generation of reserves would be better? Any advice on this would be really appreciated. thanks, Justin

Wasp have just released their new Titanium framed Wasp...https://www.wasppg.com/ Looks interesting at only 17.5kg total weight with an EOS 100 engine. Nobody any experience of their other paramotors? justin

Hi Simon, Thanks for the info on the Maverick. Any idea on price? It's probably way beyond my budget to be honest. Parajet seem to produce superb products but you do pay for it.

Hi, I'm half way through my paramotor conversion course so I'm on the lookout for a new paramotor. My priorities are lightweight, low hangpoints, a clutched engine & easy assembly. I've been looking with interest at the Wasp paramotor with the EOS 100 Booster engine (wasppg.com) which seems to tick all the boxes. Has anyone any experience with this unit? There doesn't seem much information out there on the web other than from their website so I'm interested to learn other people's opinions on it. Im also interested in the Miniplane Top 80, but it seems a bit of a hassle to assemble/disassemble. This is an important issue for me as I would have to break it down for storage & transport. Any input would be most welcome. Thanks.

Hi, sorry for the delay getting back to you. I've not sorted anything as yet. Still waiting to do the conversion course. With much debate I've decided I'm going to start off with my Nova Mentor 3 for the first few hours when I finally get sorted. I'm sure your Iota would be similar under power as the Mentor 3. I've been told the Mentor is quite good under power & as I'm familiar with it & it launches & lands easy, then it makes sense to me to start paramotoring with it. I'm guessing that after a few hours on the Mentor I could probably consider an intermediate ppg wing such as the Speedster. I shall keep you posted. Cheers.

Hi, out of interest which version of the Wasp frame have you got, standard or "Lite"? I'm interested in the Wasp unit with the EOS 100 Booster. justin

Thanks again morgy. I may have confused a few people. I live in the U.K. not France. I've flown quite a few times in the Alps but on flying holidays not living there. Sorry for the confusion. The advice you have given me has been really good. Very much appreciated & thanks for the offer of a test fly. I just need to sort the conversion first. The more I've read into this thread the more I think I'm unlikely to do much thermal flying with a motor. As you said, when it's thermic I'll go paragliding. For this reason I will be looking at a PPG wing which offers good cruising performance for cross country flying. I'm probably unlikely to want to free fly a PPG wing either as I have the Mentor for that. Cheers guys.

Many thanks for some sound advice morgy. I just want to initially use my Mentor 3 to get started. I was hoping that flying a wing I'm familiar with will have no hidden surprises when it comes to paramotoring. My main concern is what you've pretty much highlighted about which level of reflex wing I move on to after learning the basics on my Mentor 3. I'm sure the Roadster 2 would be a brilliant reflex wing to move up to, but I thought that if my current paragliding experience would help me to skip a level to say a Speedster/Speedster 2 without biting off more than I could chew. As you said, I'd rather do that than go for a Roadster & quickly feel the need for more agility/performance too soon. Obviously I don't want a wing that's going to hold me back either because I'm not confident enough on it. Thanks again for your advice. It's not going to be until next season when I plan to do my conversion course. Justin

Thank you Alex, That's really useful advice & makes a lot of sense. I know what you mean about lightweight gliders launching easier. I also have an Ozone Ultralite & that thing will launch if you sneeze. Just a handful when the wind picks up as it just wants to rise up, even if you pin it with the C risers as the wind just lifts the whole thing. I guess that shouldn't be a problem with paramotoring as conditions are different on the flat. I shall persevere with my Mentor 3. Thanks again for all your advice. I really appreciate it. Justin

Hi aljken, Thanks for your input. That's pretty much what I was hoping to hear as it opens up a much bigger choice of future gliders. As my intention would be to be mainly flying cross country, I would need a wing which could cruise at a good speed to cover some distance & be able to switch the motor off for thermalling, so would also need to have good slow speed handling & climbing efficiency. This is where I'd expect a higher rated wing to excel. Having said all that, I have heard so many positives about the Roadster 2 with the added benefit of easy take offs & landings. It would be great if there is a wing out there that offers all of this. As you've said though, I shall use my Mentor 3 to gain enough confidence & experience before I consider a reflex wing. Thanks again.

Hi Noe, Thanks for your reply. That does make sense & the Roadster 2 is one glider I've particularly been looking at. My biggest concerns would be ease of launching & landing, so if the Roadster 2/Spyder can offer that, along with a good cruising speed for XC, then it puts it on the top of my list! I really appreciate your input, thanks again, Justin

Cheers Vince, That all seems to add up. These long dark nights are ideal for surfing the net for some info, so anything I can come up with that can clarify the meaning of semi-reflex I shall post here. Cheers, Justin

Thanks for your replies guys. It can all get very confusing! To me it's either reflex or it isn't. Ozone, for example, have a nice range of dedicated PPG wings which all commonly have trimmers, yet they list some wings as non-reflex & others as full reflex. Nice & simple! I just wish other manufacturers would explain the meaning of their semi-reflex wings to save us all guessing & probably help sell their products! Thanks again for your inputs, the reflex with full trimmers out & full speed bar seems a logical answer. Justin