Piper XL info...

[Wind Shadow]

Hey guys....
Anyone here have a Piper XL from Mark Miller at Isthmus models?
I am VERY seriously considering one...he is selling them for a pretty good price, and I've heard some good things about them.
Just wondered if anyone cared to speak out about how well(or not?) they fly... :)
Appreciate any comments.
Thanks!
Wind Shadow

[Mark Miller]

Mr. Wind,

There is a fellow here in St. Louis who has been flying a Piper XL all year. He won our Unlimited club championship flying it against Pikes, Espadas and such. Great flyers here and he did a great job. He finally bought 2 Superiors from a club member and flew than in the last contest. He pretty much had it sewn up by that point though. I'll see if I can have you contact him for input.

Mark Miller

[little flyer]

While down in St. Louis for an OVSS series contest, I saw a Piper XL for the first time. My first impressions were that it looked strong and well built. In my opinion it is much more attractive than alot of the newer RES ships. But what really impressed me was when I saw it fly. The first day of the contest was dead air and it hung with everyone. What suprised me even more was the second day when the winds really kicked up. I was very, very impressed by the way it could come back in the wind. On top of that, it was hitting the tape with ease.

Jeff

[Jurgen]

Is it possible that this kind of wing construction must be corrected over time due to torsional deviation?
I had to do this once on my Organic which has basically the same construction, all 3 parts had a very slight torsion is same way. Not when new, but afterwards it set in.
Hopefully this will be needed only once, it was not a big deal to correct.
I heard before of possible torsion when the kevlar thread (connecting upper and lower caps) is 1 way wrapped around the spar.
I like to know if I'm the only one that did a correction after time.
J.

[Wind Shadow]

Is it possible that this kind of wing construction must be corrected over time due to torsional deviation?
I had to do this once on my Organic which has basically the same construction, all 3 parts had a very slight torsion is same way. Not when new, but afterwards it set in.
Hopefully this will be needed only once, it was not a big deal to correct.
I heard before of possible torsion when the kevlar thread (connecting upper and lower caps) is 1 way wrapped around the spar.
I like to know if I'm the only one that did a correction after time.
J.

Hey Mark, any comments on this?? :confused:
Wind Shadow

[Mark Miller]

I have not seen what Jurgen mentions in any of my Ukranian planes. After a repair to a broken tip panel on a Soprano I had a slight warp. I tried to fix it by the old twist and shrink the covering method. The untwist would not take a set. There is tremendous torsional strength in this type of construction. With the molded D-Tube and the carbon capped ribs it is a system that works. BTW...to get the twist out I had to peel back the carbon capping on the top of the rib and hold it flat against the bench. Then bond it back on. All my own doing in the original repair.

It is possible to warp the spar with Kevlar wrapping if it is done very tightly. If you see the wrapping on one of my wings it only has enough tension to hold it in place. Of course as with any hand built product consistency is not 100%.

I can't speak to Jurgen's experience. If it were commonly the case you would see warped Soprano's, Pipers, Organics and AVA's for sale all over the place.

Mark

[Jurgen]

Untwisting by heat treating the covering material did not work too in my case, the structure is too solid for that. Only way was to slightly counter twist the structure with weight and applying heat from a paint stripper heat gun very gently on the kevlar/carbon Dbox. Let it cool down and voila.

Maybe a shock from a semi crashy impact (RX failure) did the twist get into the wing. No real damage, just putting the Vtail back together was all. But I did notice the twist only after that mishap, not before. It was like a 45degree F3J spearlanding impact. The center-to-tip panel tapes were torn on both sides so it must have been quite a bump.

I keep believing and trusting the way this kind of wings are build, no doubt at all!
J.

[LVsoaring]

Hey Wind Shadow, I've just placed an order for one, and you're right, the price is pretty darn good. After kicking the idea around, and debating with myself over and over whether to stick to RES :confused: (was originally thinking of getting the Soprano) or to go full-house, Mark's sale price helped me make a decision real quick. :D I'll be looking forward to any more responses to the question posed in the first post.

Cheers!

Rick

[Mark Miller]

Sale price ends tomorrow. Only good for items in stock.

Mark

[Wind Shadow]

WHEW.....!
Timing is everything............... :)

Wind Shadow


Sale price ends tomorrow. Only good for items in stock.

Mark

[aeajr]

Looking forward to following your build and your flight reports.

[Wind Shadow]

Yup...
Me too! :D

Wind Shadow