Hey Guys, been flying for years and done a bit of casual gliding. I am wanting to get into hlg and was wondering if there is anywhere in NZ to get a entry level or better HLG - Wood wing or arf composite. Not after a foamy but more a built up or composite - up to $300. I have seen a couple of good kits but have no experience glassing hence looking for a artf. Cheers Mikey

Hi Mikey and welcome to the site. Unfortunately the answer to your question is no - as far as I know. This is a somewhat undersupplied area of the hobby, although I am sure it will become more popular and hence better supplied in the future.

If you have had a look around, you will have seen the DLG 50 and Quick Flick at Watts Up, they are both great entry level planes, but require some building and don't have ailerons. I built the DLG 50 some years ago and it got me hooked on DLG. I was fortunate subsequently in picking up a second hand competition grade DLG from one of the guys on this site. They are very scarse as only a few guys in NZ make them.

436 Models has a hand launch section which is good for spare parts and Canterbury Sailplanes has the Eagle which is kinda along the lines you are looking at,but is not built up. It does have ailerons/flaps, my only criticism of it is the method of manufacturing means it's a bit overweight at 14 oz. A 1.5m DLG should ideally be around the 9.5/10 oz weight, but very few of the ARF's can acheive this as you really need a bagged wing and tail feathers to do it.

So what to do? There are two choices really, import one from one of the HongKong or Singapore online shops - there are heaps around like: http://www.r2hobbies.com/search.php?pg= ... ype=&scat=

Or, try and score a locally produced hand made one. Most of the regulars will see this post and will chime in if they know of someone with one for sale. There are quite a few owned by flyers in Auckland and Christchurch. Also I think there are a couple of guys on this site who could make one for you, but that might be out of your price range. I will PM details of one to you so you can follow up with him and maybe get a quote.

Where do you live anyway? A pic of my DLG Raven below - this is what a comp ship looks like. Some of the top of the range comp ships can cost up to NZ$3,000.

Good luck and keep an eye on TradeMe - some DLG's do pop up there from time to time.

Hi Mikey,

Welcome to our Site. You are going to find a lot of real help fun guys here willing to help you out...just like kiwikid...

If you get stuck with stuff in NZ....you could try soaringusa.com too

If you want built-up I can recommend the Gambler. You'll need to get it from the USA though. Peak Hobby make great priced composite DLG's - check out the Binary 900 and the larger Binary 3. The B3 will blow your budget though. So will the B900 (but only just) if you include the servos etc....

I got the Binary 3 and then brought a second one for backup I like it so much. Check out the build thread somewhere on this site. The Binary 900 is also pretty amazing - ccc up here has one.

The other cheap model around is the Predator from http://hjz-model.idv.tw/eshop/en/index.php
The basic model costs $240US and about $40 shipping. It does require some reasonable composite assy skills though.

Thanks guys - awesome help! I'm in Hamilton so probably have met a couple of you in passing. I now have a couple of guys looking out for a second hand model who are in the hlg circles. I could spend a bit more but can imagine myself launching the thing into the ground lol. I'm currently just a IMAC, F3A flyer so looking forward to learning how to fly again...

Good stuff Mike, yes must catch up with you. Once you have the glider set up the first thing to do is get it trimmed for true flight and then just gently practice the DLG launch procedure - increasing the horse power as you become more confident. It's kinda like playing a golf shot and all about timing and technique.

Mark has some good vids on the shop site covering meteorlogical stuff and thermal hunting. Here's a bunch of DLG vids from RCG: http://www.rcgroups.com/forums/search.p ... &query=dlg

So before I order one from overseas does anyone out there have a used HLG they would part with? Thanks

Mikey, you could try PM'ing Steve,
memberlist.php?mode=viewprofile&u=160
he has bought and sold a few gliders including HLG's recently. Not sure, but he may have something. In any case he may be able to help with purchasing something 2nd hand too.
Paul.