Malibu, a lovely 1m DLG that
launches high and has great handling. Due to the large wing area and big
flapperons the model thermals very easily. The well coordinated controls give
it nimble handling, and the model holds its own, even when compared with considerably
more expensive DLGs.
Model is supplied with a
strong and brightly coloured glass layup wing, which weighs approx 64 g. These
are good weights for an economic 1 meter discus launched glider, especially
considering the generous wing area of design.
The Malibu fuselage is a pod and boom design with the
front part made from 2.4GHz friendly glass, and the rear from spread carbon.
There is an large access hatch on the top giving access to the RC installation.
The aileron and elevator servos are installed in the pod to minimise nose
weight and yaw inertia. A rudderless RC set-up is suggested as the fin is not
cut for rudder, but this could easily be changed if full three axis control is
preferred, though this is often thought unnecessary for small models. Due to
the large canopy hatch and only three servos the RC installation is not quite
as cramped as most DLGs, making it suitable for an intermediate level modeller.
The Malibu wing is solid molded with a glass skin over a CNC cut foam core. The wing has a
nice surface finish for low drag. The ailerons are fabricated with a living
hinge. The only work required to finish the wings is installing the throwing
blade and control horns. The supplied throwing blade is of an innovative split
tang design, with the tangs being glued to the top and bottom surfaces of the
wing, which is much easier than on most DLGs, which require the tip to be
hollowed out. The throwing blade can be fitted to either tip, so the model is
suitable for left and right handed throwers.
The tailplane (horizontal
stabiliser) is mounted on a very nice mini articulated "V mount" on
the top of the boom, and the fin (vertical stabiliser) has a perfectly matching
hole molded into it, enabling easy mounting onto the end of the tailboom.
The model is supplied with a
accessory pack including the control horns, V mount, launch blade, elevator
pushrod, aileron pushrods, and wing mounting screws.