Newbie/Wannabe

[blur1025]

Hi, Group:

I,m a low-time UL pilot-any kind of pilot for that matter-50+ hours
in a Quicksilver Sprint. I have a CGS Hawk Arrow being rebuilt for
me. For reasons to numerous to mention, I am not as enthusiastic
about the Hawk as I would have hoped to be. Just by chance, the
fellow who is rebuilding my Hawk mentioned Earthstar recently and
loaned me the video.

Boy am I intrigued now. So I want a Gull 2K. Questions:

Any good used ones available?

I'm in Colorado and am wondering about high altitude, particularly
high density altitude performance. There are a number of short-
fields around that I would like to be able to get in and out of. The
shortest is 600'. Would the 20' wing get in and out of something
that short or would it be better to go 24' or even 28'? Quick roll
response is not a burn to me as much as STOL capability.

How would a long wing G2K do in the lazy, low and slow over the
cornfield flying?

How would a long wing do wide open when it's time to get somewhere?

Enough for now.

Thanks in advance.

Bob

[derbaier]

Here in southern California, I have not seen any used 2Ks for sale.
The last time that I was up at EarthStar, Mark had two Js that he
was selling for customers. You might try giving Mark a call?
(805) 438-5235

A J model with a 20' wing gets in and out of some pretty short
fields here (~600)in San Diego. But then, our density altitude is a
little bit lower than Denver. :-) Obviously the more lightly loaded
the wing, the quicker you will get off, so WEIGHT and WING LENGTH
matter. This is another good question that you could as Mark about,
because he is very good about answering questions by telephone. He
takes quite a bit longer by email though, so the telephone is your
best bet. :-)

Top speed for equal thrust will, of course, be less. There are two
503 powered Gulls that visit our field, and the 24' one is about
5MPH slower in cruise than the 20' one, according to their pilots.

I'm sorry that I do not have any first hand information, because I
am still building my Gull2K right now. I am building the 20' wing
version because I like the smoother ride in rough air that is
possible with that wing.


Good luck!!!!!
--Dave

Hi Bob,

You'll have a tought time with 600' in high density altitude. The gull is a
very clean aircraft and does want to float in ground effect. I have the 24'
wing on a J2. I am VERY please with my gull. Everyone I fly with raves about
it's performance and speed envelope. Mine is the tandem two seater with a
dual carb Rotax 503. I love my gull. Well, Love may be a strong word... :-)

George

[blur1025]

Thanks, George. Tell me about your performance envelope. What do you
suppose are the minimum takeoff/landing parameters at higher
altitudes?

Bob

[unknown]

Well now, I just got to San Antonio, so will have a story for y'all
in about a week or so, but speaking of short field takeoffs, I just
took off out of Brenham today and only had a 50' takeoff roll and was
to 500' before the next exit point. Of course I had a 23 kt
headwind. By the way, for you Texas boys, if you didn't already
know, they have a nice little restuarant their now. It wasn't there
when I went through a couple of years ago. Forgot to also say I was
indicating 90 on my ASI, with a GS of 46-65 depending on my crab
angle of 18-25 degrees.

Say Bob, I have the Gull 2K with an HKS engine, and I luv the plane
as well. It's a pretty good performer overall. When I was at the
high altitude airports I would really think about 800-1000' minimum
overall. Summer would be your main worry when the density altitude
gets high. Getting in would not be the problem, Its the getting
out. Overall I would go with the 24' wing - I think its a good
compromise. The few mph you would gain with the 20' wing won't
really matter, since your normal cruise would be below that anyway.
I can get to 110 in mine, but I really cruise between 85-95 since
that seems to really be the sweet spot for my particular plane. If
your staying local and not going to do much X-country, you may want
to stay with the 503. It gives a little better takeoff performance.
Outside of that I like the HKS a lot better, especially if your going
to do a lot of x-country. That's my 2 cents worth. I also believe
its the best handling of the UL types.

See you guys in another week or so when I get back to Florida. Have
fun.

[hillbilly32725]

I guess that is why Jim C. only has two pictures of his plane in the
photo section.....both pictures are of him in the air... no close
ups or panel shots. He is always going some where! (and writes
great detailed accounts) Jim, would really like to see more photos
of your plane!

Bill in central Florida

Bob,

My minimum airspeed clean is about 38-40 mph. Also one notch of flaps
doesn't seem to slow the minimum airspeed very much, it just reduces the
angle of attack at which the stall occurs at the same or slightly lower
speed. Two notches of flaps is a regular air brake :-).

My max airspeed is just about 100 mph, but I wouldn't push it that hard for
long. Normal cruise is about 80-85.

George

Jim, you should come north to the Dallas area before you go home. When are
you headed back. Are you down for Thanksgiving? You are only about 2.5 hours
south of us with that Gull 2K of your, 2 with a little tail wind :-)

George

[blur1025]

Thanks, George.

Bob