Thunder Gull questions
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danpete5
Thunder Gull questions
I'm seriously thinking about purchasing a J model or Gull 2000. I
still have lots of questions reqarding options. I'm 5'-5" and weight
about 165 lbs. Do most of you have the all aluminum wing or go with
the standard with aluminum and stits? I would like to install the
HKS engine so was thinking of the 24' wings to compensate for the
added weight. Has anyone out there had any bad experience with the
HKS? I sure hope that it is worth the extra money.
Can these planes be flown with the doors off?
Dan
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Jim C
Re: Thunder Gull questions
Oh, thats nice - I am 5'9" and a fatty at 225 - The Gull handles my
wieght just fine. You have 60 lbs of extra stowage I don't have,
which means better perfomance and stall speeds.
I have the all aluminum wings and they are the 24' wings. They work
just fine for me. I think they are pretty smooth overall, but I came
from a Challenger 2 longwing (@ 30' wings). Another person said he
went to the 24' wings from the 20' wings and really noticed it being
much more bouncier, so this probably depends on what you are use to.
The longer wings will give you a little better stall speed and the
ability to run at the slower speeds better if you fly with other
ultralights that don't have the speed the Gull has. The shorter
wings will probably give you better handling performance, but you
have to keep your speed a little higher.
I have the HKS engine and overall I am very pleased with it. I do
have a small oil leak somewhere I haven't been able to find yet, but
it is miniscule - it just looks worse than it is. However the engine
runs very well, and the oil leak may just be the ole proverbial 4
cycle oil leak syndrome. My fuel useage averages to about 2.3 at
5200 (80-85 mph), 2.6 gph at 5500 (85-90 mph), 2.8 gph at 5650 (95-
100 mph), and 1.7 at 4600 (60-65 mph).
Some of the older more experienced guys with Gulls will have to give
you better info than I have accumulated up to this point - I now have
about 100 hrs on this plane - oh, and by the way, I have the Gull
2000. Hope this helps.
Jim C