Now before anybody accuses me of being a glass slipper snob I need to say that most of my flat land gliders are in fact foam. In fact 2 are the “classic” Multiplex Cularis and another 2 are the great Heron. I also have 4 from St Models. What makes these so great for where I fly, is that they are electric assist model. See some of my write up here.
https://www.hippocketaeronautics.com/hpa_forum/index.php?board=14.0What is driving me to look at the Multiplex Lentus and Thermik Dream is the need to have a replacement for my Top Model Samsara while I have her down for maintenance.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q5rxb3tuQqo&feature=emb_logohttps://www.topmodelcz.cz/index.php?&desktop_back=eshop&action_back=zbozi_detail&id_back=18270&desktop=eshop&action=zbozi_detail&id=735https://forum.alofthobbies.com/inde...eter-glider-build-thread-on-alofts-forum.125/Today the Multiplex Heron is the best EPO foam glider I have ever flown. For a host of reason it appears to be rather difficult for other manufactures to make an EPO foam glider any larger than 2.2 meters. I point to the Horizon Hobbies Radian XL and the FMS Fox 3000mm as being poor larger EPO foam gliders. Now I see that Multiplex has introduced the Lentus which is right at the market point I’m looking at. I want a 3 meter flat land ship but really don’t need a gas bag (dedicated thermal) ship like the Samsara.
I’ve been trying to budget for a $400 dollar ship. Looking at the market I see the Top Models Samsara is still at this price point, the Thermik Dream also fits the price point. I also see that FMS has the ASW-17 at this price point. And now Multiplex has the Lentus.
https://alofthobbies.com/topmodel-samsara.htmlhttps://alofthobbies.com/top-model-thermik-dream.htmlhttps://www.fmsmodel.com/product/fms-2500mm-984-asw-17-pnp-pre-order-shipment-late-june-2020/1338/It is looking like the Multiplex Lentus or the Top Models Thermik Dream are the best fit for what I want. That is a sporty ship that I can fly from the flats and have the soaring performance to actually detect a thermal and have some speed to play with when I can’t find the thermals.
The reason I like "Foamy" gliders is their low cost and in some respects durability. What I like about the "Glass Slipper” glider is their performance and ease of repair, back to looking like new. I’ve been flying both brands Multiplex and Top Models for decades and am very comfortable with what they are.
They both look to be in the same weight class (aprox, 2.4 kg). They are both in the 3 meter class, They are both 6 servo ships.
The Lentus is a bit smaller than the Thermik Dream at 53dm^2 vs 61dm^2. The Thermik Dream is advertised as having a S7012 airfoil. This is a modern RG15. I‘ve always liked how the RG-15 carried weight. The Lentus doesn’t advertise the airfoil. But I suspect it is much like the Heron. This has proven to be a rather good airfoil even with the thick trailing edges we see in EPO foam wings. It also responds rather well to camber changes. At today’s exchange rate the Lentus is not what most would think of as a low cost glider. The Lentus is around $330 USD and the Thermik Dream is about $350 USD. A big point in favor of the Lentus is that it come set up for a retractable wheel. The sad thing is to meet a price point this is an add on option. In my opinion this is NOT an option but a necessity with the 2kg plus EPO foam fuselage. (It would be easy enough to engineer a landing gear for the Thermik Dream. But the heavy glass fuselage should hold up to most grass and carpeted runways).
I’m looking at only the kit as I tend to have my own ideas as to what I want as far as equipment. (The RR supplied stuff is more than adequate for what it think are the the performance limitations of the Lentus. I think there are better valued components than the ones offered by Multiplex. The kit also allows me to upgrade the performance a bit for the same price point of the RR offering).
The Thermik Dream looks to me to have more performance potential at both ends of the speed range. The larger wing should allow for a bit better thermal performance. And I assume the stiffer wings and fuselage will allow for more speed (in the dive or on the prop).
I fear I’d be just as happy with ether model. So which one to get while I have my Samsara down for maintenance? I’m leaning towards the Thermik Dream only because I think it will have a stiffer airframe than the EPO Lentus. But if the Heron is any guide this might not be all that obvious an advantage.
Am I missing any 3 meter glider in the $400 range than might fit my need for a temporary replacement for my Samsara?
All the best,
Konrad
