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By once&future
#400404
Finally the folks in Australia listened and built a Gecko for dudes bigger than "Gecko Girl". Apparently optimum for pilots in the 176 - 207 lb (naked) weight range it looks really nice, but I've only seen pictures of it flying in the UK and OZ so far. Anyone have one in the states yet?
#400439
Yes, Just got my Gecko 170 Technora, (I think they only do the 170 in technora (not Dacron)) in UK. Clip in at about 100kg. Only flown it twice in very strong coastal conditions (22mph at 1750ft above sea level) and very strong on the hill (hill height was about 550ft) . Love it so far and love the look. Easy handling at all stages of VG. Very light bar load at full VG and went very straight and fast, and I am Rigid Wing (Atos VR) pilot going on to Flexwings and I did expect some pilot induced yaw, but coped OK straight away (Although I have stayed current on Flexwings by flying regularly on a WW Sport 2 155, so that I remember how to fly them!!) . Not landed it in no wind yet, but I test flew the Gecko 155 and landed that in no wind OK. Not aerotowed it yet. looking really good from my experience so far. Maybe I'll report some more after more flights.
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#400446
What a sweet looking wing. Please continue to post some general performance impressions when you have flown a bit more. In particular I'm curious about the sink rate and glide angle. You have already said the handling was fairly light.

I've been flying my U2-160 in sport class competitions against smaller Geckos and they no trouble keeping up. In fact they usually beat me by a healthy margin that's mainly because they are better pilots.

Thank you,

Dan
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By flyzguy
#400488
My order is in. I currently fly a S2 175, a Litesport 5, and a Falcon 3 Tandem. Both the litesport and the sport 2 are a bit older, and I am ready to get some new gear and hopefully replace them both. The Falcon is my paraglider and I don't think I could ever let it go!
#400621
I haven't seen the 155 Gecko or the 170 Gecko in real life yet and only a couple of reviews on the 155 size but the Gecko design looks refined and elegant. I have heard the climbing abilities are stellar.

Perhaps some day Moyes will also consider making a 145 Gecko for the lower weight range pilots.

..::JG
#400627
A word about size and weight if you are borderline high in that department. I have been flying the 155 for a year and a half now and weigh about 185. I'm not too big on it at all and climb as well as anybody.
#400629
Well, I'm talking about weight on a 155 Gecko. At 185, I'm over the recommended weight range from Moyes for that glider, but when in a thermal with other gliders, I'm climbing just as well typically. The point is that the weight range is bigger than they say it is, it seems to me.
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By red
#400630
lizzard wrote: Wed Oct 11, 2017 6:15 pmCan somebody help me here ...what is climb ability other than sink rate? just another new cool marketing term or am I missing something ?
Lizzard,

Over the long view, those two terms are almost interchangeable, but there is a difference. A glider with a very good sink rate may flex when hit by lift, and spill out some of the air that would otherwise drive the glider higher. A more rigid glider, with an equal sink rate, can resist flexing to "catch" the upward-going air, and be carried upward faster than the first glider.

This performance difference actually does not last long; once both gliders are climbing at the same rate, the stiffer glider has no advantage in the climb. The more flexible glider may even survive extremes of turbulence that could break the more rigid glider, bending almost like a reed in the wind, but neither glider should be airborne in those conditions. Any modern glider will be strong enough to handle reasonable turbulence.

The glider with the best climb-ability (in strong conditions) can yank you upward so fast, you may get the breath crushed out of your lungs by your harness for a moment. Across 40 years of HG, the best glider in that department was the Albatross. In my experience, nothing else could lift you as hard as that glider. Still, almost any glider today can glide better than the Albatross. Back in the day, however, it was a wonder.
#400647
gregangsten wrote: Wed Oct 11, 2017 7:43 pm Well, I'm talking about weight on a 155 Gecko. At 185, I'm over the recommended weight range from Moyes for that glider, but when in a thermal with other gliders, I'm climbing just as well typically. The point is that the weight range is bigger than they say it is, it seems to me.
It seems to me that really good pilots often feel comfortable "sizing down" a bit. They get better speed, penetration and maneuverability in strong conditions while the cost in increased sink rate is largely nullified by their skill in locating and tracking thermals. Greg is one of those very skilled pilots (who could fly rings around me) so I suspect this applies to him as well. More ordinary mortals like me sometimes prefer a bit of extra wing area.
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By flyzguy
#400650
Sink rate for a fixed wing geometry will go with the square root of your wing loading. So you'd have to QUADRUPLE your hook in weight to double your sink rate (sqrt(4) = 2). If someone is 185 vs. 170lbs, the weight difference (w/ 80 lbs of glider + gear) is 6% higher wingloading and the sink rate might go from say 200 fpm to 206 fpm. Better pilot trumps. The 185 guy has to turn a bit more aggressively, so that exacerbates the sink rate disadvantage, but on glide the 185 guy gets his best L/D at a faster speed, again - say at 31 mph instead of 30 - not enough to matter. He has to land ~1mph faster though, and that might matter the most. And of course the 185 lb pilot is swinging 15 lbs more roll authority in the control frame, which helps in all phases from takeoff to thermalling, gliding, and landing setup. Its no surprise most manufacturers will put the "tweener" pilots on the smaller glider, and why comps are full of guys way too big for their topless gliders, or smaller pilots carrying ballast.

*HGs are flexible so quadrupling your weight will significantly change the washout on the glider and the "same geometry" argument is no longer a solid assumption. Smaller weight changes can be handled with some extra VG for the heavier pilot*