Good Reliable trike

[mile high]

Hi,

I am a rookie in this amazing new lifestyle of mine but I need help.
I am looking to buy my baby for the sky but I dont know what to buy.
Not all of us can afford GT450's!

Can anybody give me info on what I need?

Please tell me what you guys are flying with and some stats on your microlight.

[Boet]

Look for a good trike in reasonable condition. If the engine is timex? 300hrs Buy an HKS engine. a Trike should fly just fine with it.

[mile high]

If the engine is timex? 300hrs Buy an HKS engine

Still very new at this, trying to learn all the mumbo jumbo.
What is an HKS engine
and what is timex

[Thatchman]

Hi Mile High

If u are just starting your MPL, I would advise u not to rush it. Most of the trikes available are all ok so have a good look around. Come to some breakfast fly-ins and meet the guys and check out what is available. There is lots happening with respect to the CAA and engine maintenance issues so its another reason to give it some time and hopefully that will get sorted out too

[mile high]

Thanks Thatchman,

Just for interest sake, What do you fly?

[Andre]

Welcome Mile High

Take your time and look around before you decide on which trike to buy.
Speak to the people at your school. Try and get flips in different trikes at fly-in's, schools. It all depends on what you want to do with your trike once you have your licence.

If you stay at the coast then look at a 503, enough power for pilot and pax. highveld however a different story. Will you mainly fly solo or with paxs, what kind of runway will you use, are you planning on doing long distace X country flying, will you be flying with buddies, what is your budget ect. are all the questions you should ask yourself before buying

But believe me, your first trike will not be your last trike you buy, most people upgrade after a couple of years to something better, faster, nicer

[mile high]

Howzit Andre,

Thanks for the help. I am in the highveld, will probably be flying most of my time with a pax. I would love to do lots of X-country flights(a weekend away)
and my budget is reasonable.

[Andre]

Then I would suggest a 582 with a new generation wing (double skin)
There are lots of different types of trikes on the market
Try and test fly as many as possible or speak to as many pilots of different trikes as possible before you buy. I fly a Airborne Edge (have flown Aquila's, Air creation, Viper, Pegasis, windlass already) and will not swop it for any other trike except a GT 450. If you are in the Krugersdorp area give me a call and I will take you for a flip as soon as CAA lift the grounding of all Airborne trikes

[mile high]

Great,

Would love to go for a flip in your Airborne. I stay in Roodepoort and attending Centurion Flight school. Please let me kwow when this CAA thing passes and we can go for a flip. How do you feel about a Raptor?

[Arnulf]

How do you feel about a Raptor?

Strong solid trike. Possibly a tad heavier than others. Check out the spares availability situation first.

Regards,
Arnulf

[Big-D]

I must say deciding which trike is right for you ain't easy. You will probably find that you either have speed or lift, very few have both (GT450 has)

Let's talk 582's:

Raptor is nice, as Arnulf says, make sure about spares availability.

You can't go wrong with Aquila - Not hell of a fast (unless you have hangpoint mover like Larry Eschner) but will probably outclimb any 582 and comfortable seating, eventually you would want something faster if you are like me. Oh, the glide on an Aquila 2 wing is the best I have ever felt

Other trikes I have owned or flown

Aerotrike Safari - Nice, solid, landed her very hard no problem, 50 mph hands off cruise, max speed 60mph, climb was excellent, turbulence handling ability reasonable, short take off roll

Mainair Gemini - Eish, should not have sold her. Very comfy, not good for taking pax, lift not good, very fast hands off 60mph, top speed 85mph, turbulance handling ability superb, take off roll long - If you get one buy!

Airborne Edge - Got setup perfect now (eventually), climbs like Safari (perhaps a little better), reasonably fast hands off 62mph (Hangpoint middle), top speed around 75mph but I never really pulled to see, take off roll reasonably long, turbulance handling ability like Gemini, problem is Airborne's grounded untill we find out what caused accident in Groblerdal

Then, IMHO the best cheapish trike around:

Air Creation Clipper - Climb is reasonable (Better than Gemini), VERY FAST I was climbing at 80mph max over 90mph , handles bumbs like you cannot believe, comfy, short take off roll, closest I have got to GT450 was in a Clipper

Hope that helps you, this is my opinion - Worth 2c


D

[SkyJunkie]

[quote="mile high"]Thanks Thatchman,

Just for interest sake, What do you fly?[/quote]


LOL!!!

[Thatchman]

I fly a GT but owned a Raptor before that. It was a good reliable trike and served me well.

Skyjunkie, you going to catch a clap......and thanks for the hangover.

[mile high]

Thanks Demon,

Flo and I stopped there one sunday, alot of nice planes there. You just say when and I'm there. Will be quite something to fly in a GT450 seing as I got that nice background of 2 GT450's on my PC from the Misasa website. Isn't that Raptor localy made. Shouldn't spares be easy to find then?

[mile high]

Mr BIG D,

Obviously you have been around for long enough to give very good info like that. it's great that there are guys on this forum to help us rookies out. Just a question: What is a hangpoint mover and What does hangpoint middle mean. Feel dumb asking but I just might be making the wrong assumption about the hangpoint