help choosing a Nos/RES ship for my 1st comp...

[Raymund Reyes]

Hi all,

I am hoping to see and compete in my first contest on the 27th, the Inland Empire RES Challenge (4, 6, 10 and 7min TD, 25' landing tape, in or out, taking place at the Ayso Soccer fields in Riverside, sponsored by the Inland Soaring Society)
http://www.sc-2.com for more details(if I didnt already give em all:))

and am in need of a good RES ship. I threw away..er retired my Spirit yesterday and am hoping to buy build and practice before the end of the month. Its gonna be hard but if you guys help push me along I might just make it. Settled on a few Nostalgia/RES designs;

Skybench Windfree
DC Hobby Grand Esprit short kit
DC Hobby Grande Aquila short kit

and/but was wondering about other suggestions. The Windfree looks like the way to go but I really would love to pilot a Grand Esprit or Aquila Grande..a friend so happens to have an old fuse for an AG in storage..wonder if he'll let it go ;)

Any feedback would gladly be appreciated on the aforementioned ships to the kits themselves(such as construction, etc) or other recommendations

OR...if you have something suitable for a good price, lemme know ;)

thanks for your help/suggestions

Godspeed and see you on the flipside,
Ray

[Ollie]

In 1998 Jim Thomas won the LSF/AMA Nats. Nostalgia event with a Grand Espirit. It will out perform the others you have mentioned.

You might also want to consider a Bird of Time because its airfoil has a wider usable speed range than the others you are considering. The quality of the BOT kit is somewhat problematic but, if you are willing to replace any bad wood, it could be a very good choice.

[Raymund Reyes]

what the....
I thought I deleted this post!
ah well...

thanks for the tips Ollie, you always seem to have some very good recommendations. I was thinking of the BoT but have been set off by the balsa horror stories. Replacing the wood though would be fine, worried mostly about the wing ribs. Got an email back from DCH, they have the Grand Esprit in stock. Any idea on which would be the "easier" construction project? My Guess the GE would since it has preshaped Spruce LEs and laser cut ribs.
I could get a glass fuse for the BoT to save some time...
but like you said in the building a BoT thread...a Skybench Big Bird is a better way to go if ease of construction is a priority.

My building progress is that of "touch it for a little, leave it for a long time, come back and finish it all in a few days" so when push comes to shove I might just get a ship in the air :D

Ray

[schrederman]

From what you said and for your time frame, I'd get the 100" Big Bird from Skybench. We have one of the 2-meter Birds here and it flys nice. I have built one of the DC Hobbies Grand Esprits and I can say it's a wonderful sailplane and kit, but you will be building on it for a good while. It took me a long time to get mine going, and I have a reputation of being a fast builder. The Bird of Time is a good sailplane, but I just got one of the Dynaflite kits and there's no way to make it come out at 41 ounces with the die crunched oak, (I think it's really balsa, but it's that hard and HEAVY,) that came in the kit. I've started all over by making plywood templates and going to all the shops around Houston buying good wood. I may yet order a fiberglass fuse for it, because I have too many projects. For a nice winter project, watch the Skybench site for the next couple of months...the Legionairs are coming........I have 2 scratch built ones and I still can't wait!!!!!

Best of luck with your choice.

Jack Womack

real men scratch build...