Newbi set up advice.

[ganers]

Hi all,

This is the first time Ive posted anything on any forum so I appologise if this is in the wrong place or anything.

Any way my Dad has just decided to get into Paramotoring and has been taking lessons, Ive been to watch a few times and find my self bitten by the bug as well! My dad has bought a Solo 210 paramotor second hand, the manual quotes it as a Fly Catelluccio Mach4, it looks like a decent piece of kit from what I can see, Im a petrol head but Ive never seen anything similar before. It has the ectric start and pull start but its not as new and flash as the ones Ive seen on line. His wing is a dudek reaction TST, again it looks nice but thats as much as I know.

He has recently done his first solo flight, he got up fly round and came back down all in one piece, great stuff, but I was a little surprised at the length of take off. There was a steady wind of around 4-5 mph but he took a good 15-20 steps before he left the ground, and then the rate of climb seemed to be very slow. To be honest I thought he was going to end up tree climbing!

Once back down he said that he wa giving it full throttle, from what Ive read on the forum and in general people seem to describe three or four steps and up they go.

Ive started wondering if the motor is powerfull enough or if the prop is right, Ive only ever messed with props on boats and but know the length and pitch can have an effect on the resulting thrust.

My dad is six foot and around 13.5 st = 86 kg, also I was wondering if this set up would suit myself for learning but Im 6' 2" and 16.5 st = 105 kg.

I would really appreciate any advice.

Cheers Lee.

[bholleran]

I cant comment on the specific kit you have, but I am 120lg and on my old wing and motor itwoul take me about 15 steps toget of in a 5 mph wind, so i would guess that is quite normal.

But in general you just need to match the wing and motor and weight with the right combination.

Good luck.

[alan]

Hello Lee,

Check the trimmers are in take off mode as this would affect your climb rate.

[haze]

Hi Lee,

I've taken the below from the Fly Castelluccio website....

I'd say that the motor has enough thrust for your Dad and would JUST have enough power for you, but you'd be at the top of it's weight range.

How much lift (and therefore how quickly you get airborne) would also depend on what wing (and size of wing) he is using. You would probably need to use a different wing than your Dad due to your weight being higher.

Model -------------- MACH 4 **

Engine type------- SOLO 210

Cylinders-----------1

Blades ------------- 2

Weight kg -------- 17 Kg

Weight of pilot -- 110 Kg max

Tank lit. -----------10+5*

Fuel endurance - 3/5

Propeller --------- 114

C.C. --------------- 215 cc

Static thrust ----- Kg 53

Assuming that the wing is the correct size for your Dad, in a 4-5mph wind, that sort of takeoff (15-20 steps) is quite normal even with a more powerful motor. We often find that we are taking only a few steps when the wind is a little stronger (say in the 7-8mph region).

You also mention that you thought he was going to be tree climbing...

Was the wind flowing into the field over the trees? (and are they tall)

If they are large enough, they might have caused the end of the field nearer to them to be more shielded and therefore to have less wind strength than that recorded where he was setting up.

And like Alan said, the Trim settings must be in...But I'm assuming he was under instruction, in which case the instructor should check these things.

Hope that answers some of the questions...

Let me know the wing make and size (m2) and I'll be able to confirm if it is big enough for you.

All the best

[aquatix]

Hi Lee - the Solo 210 has been around for almost 2 decades, and should put out around 20Hp at 6000 rpm. Problem is they can easily go 'off tune' and produce less power if everything is not spot on, plus on an older unit there is a good chance the prop has been changed and might not be optimal.

Whereabouts do you fly (or train) ? There are lots of people with experience of these motors who could probably tell you straight away if it feels 'right' or not.

My first motor was a 21Hp Corsair which got me off the ground fine (at 105kg) on an XL sized classic wing. It took around 15-20 steps in nil wind, but would have been a lot harder with a smaller reflex wing.

I'm a bit lighter now and use a bigger motor - everything is much easier with less running - so you may want to look out for some decent secondhand kit. Anyway, you will need it if you are going to fly at the same time as your Dad, which will be much more fun than flying in turn ....

ETA - Steve just beat me with his post so apologies if any repetition of advice.

[alan_k]

Hi Lee,

I have a Solo 210 powered machine plus a ReActionTST 29m2 wing, here is video of my nil wind take off viewtopic.php?f=17&t=5362

Check out http://www.para2000.org/ for information on wings.

Dudek wings quote all up weights not including fuel (motor+wing+pilot+accessories), the ReAction 27m2 is all up 80-105 kg and the 29m2 is all up 95-125kg.

Cheers,

Alan

[ganers]

Hi all,

Thanks for the replies, Ive had a look at the wing and its 29.8 m2 which looks like its going to be fine for my dad, judging by what alan says it having an all up weight of 95 -125kg, but I reckon I would definately be pushing it using that setup being 105kg to start with.

Haze, thanks for the specs on the motor, with regards to the trees, the wind was coming into the field over the trees, and they were quite big ones, so Im guessing your spot on with this having an effect.

With regards to the tuning, the motor was srviced and prepped prior to my dad picking it up, so Im hoping its spot on but its definately something Ill keep an eye on.

I've gone through the wing manual and see that the best trim setting for take off is 30%, after speaking to my dad this was set at 30% by his instructor, but Ive just checked them and found that they are on two different settings. To be honest there are just a load of numbers and bar marking s on the trim tabs, which dont mean much to me. Im hoping these have been altered whilst it was being packed away and he wasnt taking off with different settings?

By the way Alan really nice vid, but from the landings Ive watched so far I thought you were supposed to land on your backside!

Cheers Lee.