Posted: Thu Dec 08, 2011 2:34 pm Post subject: Tests,
Hi,
A friend sent me this e-mail....
Looks and construction:The sail is basically the same shape as the Aspen 3 with a AR of around 6 but the leading edge has more reinforcement and the glider has no lines. OK - not true, the glider has some lines, not much. And that is where Gradient got their performance improvement - far less drag means more speed and glide. In order to make this work the glider has x-ribs inside so the sail is very stiff when flying. Its a true 3-liner. Gradient has upped the ante a bit with the color schemes and you have enough choices. Who still remembers the grey colors of the Aspen 1?
Take-off: Easy peasy the wing (very) momentary hangs back before stabilizing overhead but that means its a bit easier to launch in strong winds. I have not done a front start as yet.
Feeling and handling:The handling is the biggest difference, this thing turns! Far better than any Aspen prior, so if you have ever flown an Aspen you may find it hard to believe that the handling can get better but it does. Brake travel is fairly short and very direct, turning is immediate and quick, but not more banked than prior Aspens. So for really strong cores its great, you stay in the good air and not fall into the nasty air. It also means that its easier to climb in broken up conditions. Feedback seems to be a bit more through the risers than the toggles compared to A3 but overall the level of feedback is less than other Aspens. It feels very solid and is not intimidating. The glider is very pitch stable which is a godsend in strong conditions of the 6 up 6 down type. I did find though that when the core smooths out that I had to listen a bit more to my vario to know where the core is. And with the higher trim speed understand that you can easily zip out of the core if you don't quickly turn. This Aspen like its predecessors (and other DHV2s I have flown) still don't really like to change direction in a thermal so its best to decide on a turn direction and stick to it - keep the momentum,rhythm...and work the circle shape.
Pressure:Normal wing pressure is higher that other Aspens, not as much as a tandem or a Magus 6 but you can feel the stiffness in the wing - but speedbar pressure again is nice and light and can be pushed with one leg. What a relieve my knees were starting to give in ! And even with my bugerred shoulder I could fly 4 hours with no pain whatsoever.
Performance straight line: Trim speed is very high and you need to set-up your landings carefully and make a comitted flare. Its usually hard to judge performance but I flew about 100 km with a good pilot on a XC3 and there is no difference in performance. Nothing. On half bar the speed goes to about 50 kmh airspeed and the sink rate does not change much. This is the 2nd biggest difference with the A4 - the glide at speed is much much better. The speedbar travel is a bit less than other Aspens which means with less pushing you get more speed, for average height pilots like me this again is a plus. And the glider feels very solid on bar you can zip round on it even in De Aar. I did not go full tilt.
Stability and safety. So its rated DHV (or whatever its called) 2. I did find the wing tips to be a tad softer than the A3 but it would just roll out on a small collapse. Flying 4 hours 200 km in pretty hectic conditions I did not see more than a 25% wing closure. If there is a cautionary note its simply that the glider is faster and things could happen faster and that the handling is very direct so don't be an idiot and stall the glider or do something stupid by being rough handed.
Getting down: Glider spirals easy. And big ears is really big ears. With only 2 A lines on a side....and you pull one line, there is not that much wing left. A bit intimidating in the beginning if you have never flown a 2 A-line glider before.
So what do I think? I think the Aspen 4 is simply fantastic. And with a 3 month old baby I capped my glider choices to DHV 2. The performance safety trade-off is the best I ever had. Would I like anything changed? Maybe lighter brake pressure but most gliders are going more brake pressure. Am I going to place an order for one and get a new A4 in 5 weeks? No, I simply did not give Gradient their demo glider back. I packed it in my car and drove it home. James can send me the invoice. Im keeping this one.
Flight details of First flight:
http://www.paraglidingforum.com/leonardo/flight/533063 I am getting one shortly for a test flight and lots of videos ....
Cijena okolo 2150 eur. Možda koji eur više za poštarinu.
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