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Flight Test - Windtech Quarx 2
by Steve Uzochukwu
Two years ago the name Windtech would have required a long introduction. Now almost none is needed. In that time the paragliding and kitesurf manufacturing company from northern Spain has been doing a lot. They have a full portfolio of solo gliders from DHV1 up to AFNOR Competition, plus tandem and motorfliegen wings (all made in Europe) and a range of emergency parachutes and accessories. A worldwide network of importers is now in place, and here Windtech and Waves UK, importer for both kites and paragliders, is carefully building up a dealer network.
The Quarx 2 is the successor to the Quarx. Launched in 1999, it (the Quarx - CB) gained a reputation for agility, high trim speed and being very good in small or broken lift. Since then Windtech designer Alvaro Valdez has come up with some interesting new ideas to improve the glider. The resulting design is completely new, not just a re-trim or development of the previous design. The four-glider range covers all-up weights from 60kg - 120kg.
Construction
There are myriad differences between the original Quarx and its successor, of which the most obvious are the new cell entries, quite similar to those seen on the Syncro. A combination of open and semi-closed cells increases the rigidity of the leading edge, with the top edge of the cell entry on the semi-closed cells joining the lower edge at certain points.
Line consumption has been reduced compared to the Quarx, with most of the lines in the centre area of the wing having only one stage of bifurcation. The wing tips have been completed redesigned and the wing has a new aerofoil section. Construction details include Kevlar lines, 20 mm polyamide risers, Porcher Skytex 9092 upper surface and 9017 lower (both with E77A water repellent coating), and a trailing edge reinforced with polyester tape. The ribs are 9017 with the E29A coating - the ‘firm’ version of the fabric with less flexibility and more stretch resistance.
Features shared with other Windtech gliders include a V-rib design that avoids the need for the ribs to run the full length of the aerofoil, saving weight, and the V-rib design changing across the span to maintain optimum shape and rigidity. All stitching on the top surface is internal.
The glider has a four-riser system (no split-As), with the speed system pulling A and B risers first, then after 1cm engaging the C-riser, pulling it by half as much. Risers have plastic insert line tidies inside the maillons. The brakes are parked by plastic covered magnets; these are totally smooth to prevent any lines getting caught on them. The speed system cord ends in high quality Austria Alpin Bru mmel hooks for easy disconnection.
The glider is supplied with a handbuch, repair patches for both fabric colours and a two-stage Windtech speed bar. The bag is simpler than previous Windtech bags but much improved, with no difficulty in getting a harness and 17cm Bump'Air, glider and helmet in it. Despite fewer straps the bag is easier to adjust for comfort on long walk-ups and is aesthetically pleasing too. Compression straps help minimise size for the squash into the car boot and take strain off the zips.
On the ground
Ground handling is straightforward and very easy; the Quarx 2 is better damped than its predecessor and comes up slightly more slowly. No special techniques are needed and the tips are quite firm. The glider is tolerant of being allowed to over-fly the pilot slightly. Unloading is progressive with plenty of warning, and this makes the glider easier to control in pitch via feedback through the harness. Asy mmetric inflations work very well and any unevenness in the pull-up can be corrected whilst the glider is coming up. In the ground-handling stakes this glider can best some 1-2s for ease. Forward launching requires a horseshoe layout as detailed in the handbuch - check the inner two A-lines go tight before the outer one as you walk forward. The canopy will then come up cleanly making for an easy alpine launch.
Letting the brakes off and accelerating the glider for take-off shows that it picks up speed very easily and will convert it to height very well when the brakes are pulled. Energy retention is excellent without excessive pitchiness, often the price paid for this quality. Brake pressure goes from quite light at the beginning through middling, becoming very firm just before the stall point, and very clearly signalling the same. The glider mushes very well - I didn't try this from any great height but it worked very well at 12 - 15ft.
In the air
In the air comportment is very good and the glider is refined and easy to fly. The glider enters the turn very smartly without the need to carefully co-ordinate the outside brake like the original Quarx. Once in thermals the angle of bank remained set without the need for further brake movement. In turns in thermals, feedback from the harness tells you whether to tighten or flatten the turn, or which way to turn on entry to a thermal, and gives just the right amount of feedback. I wasn’t bumped about or made to feel like a passenger. The Quarx 2 has all the qualities Windtech pilots have come to expect but is just more polished and refined in the way that it delivers them. The ability to turn on a sixpence, retain energy through the turn and signal which way to turn into lift are honed to a T.
The sink rate is also very good despite the apparent small size of the wing. Turning in small and broken lift, the glider could be really cranked up without the sink rate suffering. After a two hour dialling-in period I started to seriously enjoy the Quarx 2 and to dread the day I’d have to give it back. In really strong air the glider took on a new and even better character, with an excellent and very rarely-seen mix of agility and solidity. In off-the-clock lift and sink I had just one small tip tuck when I failed to take appropriate weight shift action. In the very roughest air I encountered - a wind shear - the glider suffered two frontal tucks. A small one made very little difference to the flight path; a larger one recovered itself with only a minor surge. Only one other glider reached my altitude that day, most other pilots landing due to the rough conditions. The Quarx 2 inspires exceptional confidence in the worst of air.
Trim speed of the 29 model was around 37 - 39km/h at my all-up weight of 106 - 109kg. The speed bar was easy to use and the new leading edge doesn't seem to have any flutter in it even on full bar. Top speed, measured with a trailing probe, was around 50 - 53km/h with the pulleys just about to touch. Windtech's claims for trim and top speed are accurate or even slightly conservative, but like the original Quarx the Q2 has a very good speed range between trim and stall.
The high trim speed does not mean a high landing speed, and slowing it down for slope landings or just before the final flare is easy. Even flying the 27 model (85 - 105kg) at 104kg with a borrowed harness and landing in nil wind presented no problems - the speed range on the brakes is excellent. Polar figures will be on Jerome Daoust's ‘Expanding Knowledge’ website, but there is so much more to this glider than just very good performance figures.
T
he B-line stall is very physical. The glider does not i mmediately drop in but tends to sag in over a period of a second or so. Once established the stall is stable after a couple of seconds, and the exit is snappy with nothing more than a minor surge. Attempting asy mmetric deflations results in a turn but with the riser pulling very strongly at your hand in a forceful bid to re-inflate. When pulled, big ears had to be kept in or they gradually cleared themselves, requiring only the last 5 to 10% to be pumped out.
The Quarx 2 is certificated at AFNOR / CEN Standard in all sizes except the 29 model which is DHV2. The DHV test report on the 29 reveals '2' grades for everything except the B-line stall, but this doesn't quite tell the full story. Incomplete AFNOR Standard certification on this model means it self-recovers from all manoeuvres in under four seconds.
Windtech have produced an excellent glider in the Quarx 2, with the core values of the original Quarx but easier to fly. The extra solidity in the tips and the refinement of the handling will make it accessible to a wider range of pilots. Pilot workload and required skill level are close to those of a low- to mid-range DHV2. The Quarx 2 is a ‘must test fly’ for any pilot in the mid- to top-end DHV2 market, and that test flight must include thermalling and working broken or small pieces of lift. The Quarx 2 is a superb glider and an exceptionally accomplished all-rounder.
Conclusions
| Pros: |
The combination of agility and solidity. Easiness in the air and on the ground. Quality of finish.
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| Cons: |
Nothing… except the day it had to go back!! |
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Importer's comment
Windtech's new made-in-Europe 'advanced intermediate' sports glider is designed for weekend recreational pilots, XC enthusiasts and competition pilots alike. I’ve just spent a month flying it in Brazil alongside many other wings, and I’m sure no other glider has the Quarx 2's combination of responsive and direct handling, balanced level of feedback, advantageous performance and security. No one area has been over-stretched at the expense of another; the handling, safety and performance are in perfect balance. With the Quarx 2 you can make the most out of every thermal, and even in heavy turbulence it behaves impeccably. Contact Dixon's airPlay for a test flight.
Carlo Borsattino, Windtech and Wave's UK |
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