RC SLOPE SOARING
What makes a good sailplane?
by Dave Garwood
When I asked several slope-soaring aficionados two questions about sailplanes, I received a variety of answers. I hope their responses can be helpful to modelers of all skill levels, and maybe even generate a chuckle or two. Maybe you'll see yourself in the remarks of these fliers.
Flight characteristics that make for a great-flying slope sailplane
- Michael Gantner (Ohio): "A refined, efficient design that is perfectly weighted and balanced."
- Dave Sanders (California): "I want aerobatic capability in light lift. I want a low wing loading. It's easy to make the plane heavier, but when you're too heavy to fly, you're just stuck with shopworn, dirty jokes to pass the day."
- Bill Del Hagen (California): "The most valuable characteristic of an excellent slope plane is the ability to convert upward air flow into high forward speed under the widest possible range of slope and air conditions."
- Tom Nagel (Ohio): "Versatility combined with simplicity."
- Jeff Carlton (Ohio): "What I want most is a plane that dances through the light air and then screams like a falcon when the winds crank up."
- Doug Blackburn (California): "It is an extension of my thoughts and does what I am thinking."
- Alex Paul (Bahamas): "It goes from floater to rock-and-roller with added ballast."
- Michael Richter (California): "Good or bad habits aside, the best design to me is flying art—the one that the pilot has purposefully crafted using his own ingenuity and creative passion."
- Carl Maas (California): "It's fun to fly. It looks really cool with a unique design. It has an interesting paint job and is visually pleasing. I like responsive controls—fast roll rate, but stops on a dime and tracks straight and true."
- Mark Mozo (New York): "A sailplane should fly like a dream."
- Don King (Ohio): "Looks good, flies better, and is durable."
- Wayne Flower (California): "Ha, ha. That is a trick question. There is no one ideal slope glider. To me that is one of the great things with aircraft; there is never a single do-it-all design. Every plane is a series of compromises the designer selects to best meet a given need.
With that said, I always trend toward aircraft that offer a wide range of performance. I love a plane that can float in light lift, penetrate in strong lift, and be capable of aerobatics when asked. It must be forgiving and have a nice recovery from mistakes, but also reward precision. A plane that is simple and easy to repair is a plus. Most of all it must be fun to fly. Those traits keep me coming back to the slope."
- Carl (no location given): "You will know which plane is your favorite, as it will be the most worn out!"
Favorite slope sailplanes (responses and highlights)
Common favorites that came up repeatedly:
- Charlie Richardson Renegade
- GEMS F1 Racer
- GEMS flying wing
- Frank Cavazos Boomerang
Selected comments:
- Tom (about the Boomerang): "Like my wife, I can take it almost everywhere without it embarrassing me."
- Doug Blackburn: "My favorite plane will always be the now-defunct Frank Cavazos Boomerang."
- Larry Blevins (Tennessee) on the Renegade: "The Renegade by CR has been my favorite plane of all. I got so comfortable with that plane that I knew exactly what it was going to do before I told it to."
- Don King: Prefers the GEMS F1 Racer because it has "better wind speed range."
- Alex Paul: "For great handling and looks, Jack Cooper's foam slope jets [by Leading Edge Gliders] set the bar for others to match. Have to add the all-time favorite 'don't travel without it' DAW [Dave's Aircraft Works] 1-26."
Other aircraft mentioned as favorites:
- First-generation Weasel
- Leading Edge Gliders EPP Le Fish
- P-93 Airacobra
- F3F sailplane
- Magnum Models Bad VooDoo and Duster
- Bob Martin Talon
- K&A Models Mini-1
- KnifeEdge Wing
- TUDM Freestyler
- Pat Bowman Sonic
- Hobie Hawk
Notable notes:
- Dave Sanders on the K&A Models Mini-1: "I can still see 'Ken Williams' on the drawings, in that old-school Leroy lettering. Good times! If you built it light and used mini gear, that thing would tear it up, even in really weak lift. Roll rate was insane!"
- Wayne Flower and Michael Richter like the Hobie Hawk. Wayne: "If I could only have one plane, it might be a Hobie Hawk; a ton of fun in a wide range of lifts, and great looks. [It] can thermal, and [is] still a blast in heavier lift. And it also has the nostalgia of a classic glider with an interesting story. What is not to love about that?"
- Michael Richter: "Designs that have left a lasting impression on me over the years: Bob Martin Talon, Charlie Richardson Renegade, Hobie Hawk. These aircraft are a nice synthesis of form and function."
The author's view
Sailplanes that fly like they're in a groove are good. Controls that feel smooth, natural, and effortless are a plus. I like airplanes that turn and burn, and I favor the smooth-flying turners and burners.
My favorite aircraft:
- DAW 1-26 in light lift
- Leading Edge Gliders warbirds in medium lift
- Slope Scale warbirds in booming lift
My informal survey returned more material than what can be presented here. If this becomes a popular topic, I will later share more in-depth replies from sailplane designers.
SOURCES
- League of Silent Flight (LSF) — www.silentflight.org
Transcribed from original scans by AI. Minor OCR errors may remain.
