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Wills Wing Alpha 180 Owner's Service Manual

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Alpha 180 and 210
Owner / Service Manual
June 2015

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Summary of Contents for Wills Wing Alpha 180

  • Page 1 Alpha 180 and 210 Owner / Service Manual June 2015...
  • Page 3 Alpha 180 and 210 Copyright © 2015 by Sport Kites, Inc. dba Wills Wing, Inc. All rights reserved. No part of this manual may be reproduced in any form without the express written permission of Sport Kites, Inc., dba Wills Wing, Inc.

  • Page 5: Table Of Contents

    Contents Introduction ......................1 Disclaimer And Warning ...................2 Technical Information And Placarded Operating Limitations .........3 A Note About Platform Towing .................5 A Note About High Duty Cycle Operations ............6 A Note About Parts Replacement ..............6 Alpha Breakdown Procedure For Shipping And Reassembly Procedure ....6 Launching And Flying The Alpha ..............15 Using Wing Tufts ....................15 Trimming Your Glider In Pitch ................18...

  • Page 7: Introduction

    We encourage you to read this manual thoroughly for information on the proper use and maintenance of your Wills Wing glider. If at any time you have questions about your glider, or about any aspect of hang gliding that your Wills Wing dealer cannot answer, please feel free to give us a call.

  • Page 8: Disclaimer And Warning

    Federal government. As a result, we do not have a reliable way to keep track of contact information for the owners of Wills Wing hang gliders. It is your responsibility to check with us periodically for safety and airworthiness advisories and information related to your glider. The easiest way to do this is to check our web site at http://www.willswing.com Wills Wing hang gliding...

  • Page 9: Technical Information And Placarded Operating Limitations

    The required test speed for the Alpha was 27 m.p.h.. 4. For the Alpha 180 and 210, pitch tests at speeds of 20 m.p.h., 32 m.p.h. and 44 m.p.h. which show the glider to have a positive pitching moment coefficient over a range of angles of attack from trim angle to 20 degrees below zero lift angle at 20 m.p.h., and from trim angle to 10 degrees...
  • Page 10 34 mph for the Alpha 210 and approximately 37 mph for the Alpha 180. The placarded speed never to exceed for the Alpha is 44 mph, and the maneuver- ing / rough air speed is 38 mph. The Alpha can be flown in steady state high speed flight with the pilot full forward over the bar in a normal prone position without exceeding the VNE speed, however maneuvering flight may result in speeds in excess of Vne.

  • Page 11: A Note About Platform Towing

    Do not fly in such conditions unless you realize and wish to per- sonally assume the associated risks. Wills Wing is well aware that pilots have, and continue to per- form maneuvers and fly in conditions which are outside the recommended operating limitations stated herein.

  • Page 12: A Note About High Duty Cycle Operations

    Alpha Breakdown Procedure For Shipping And Reassembly Procedure The Alpha 180 and 210 can be broken down to approximately 12.5 feet and 13.5 feet respectively by removal of the rear leading edges. The rear leading edge is pinned at its forward end with a clevis pin which secures it to the front leading edge spar.
  • Page 13 4. Lay the mylar pockets flat so as to avoid creasing the mylar when you fold over the rear portio of the sail. Replace the sail ties loosely, zip up the bag, and carefully fold the rear of the sail over against the front.
  • Page 14 7. Lay out the battens and check each batten for symmetry against the corresponding batten from the other wing. Wills Wing convention is that black tipped battens go in the right wing and white tipped battens in the left, except for the straight #1 plug-on battens which may both have the same color tips.
  • Page 15 8. Install the three longest cambered top surface battens on each side in the sail. Order of insertion is longest to shortest, from the root out. Do not install the securing strings on the rear at this time. 9. Spread the wings all the way and check all cables for any twisted thimbles or tangled cables. 10.
  • Page 16 13. Insert the straight #1 battens through the loop of 505 cord and between the top and bottom sail surface at the tip, and plug the forked batten tip onto the stud on the back side of the lead- ing edge tube. Secure the batten with a double loop of the 505 cord. The tension on the #1 batten cord should be firm, but not so tight that is slackens the sail mount webbing at the leading edge sail mount endcap.
  • Page 17 16. Conduct a complete preflight of the glider, according to the following procedure, checking all assemblies which have not already been checked. Every bolt, nut, pin, safety ring, and fastener of any kind should be checked during every pre-flight. A full pre-flight inspection should precede every flight you make, not just the first flight of the day.
  • Page 18 While pushing up on the leading edge between the nose and the crossbar junction, step on the bottom side wire with about 75 lbs. of force. This is a rough field test of the structural security of the side wire loop, the control bar, the kingpost, and the crossbar, and will likely reveal a major structural defect that could cause an in-flight failure in normal operation.
  • Page 19 From the rear keel Check the nut on the top of the kingpost base bracket which secures the bracket to the keel. Check the condition of the sweep wires in the vicinity of the kingpost base bracket. Check the kingpost top for proper attachment and routing of the bridles and condition of the top rear wire and bridle pigtail wire.
  • Page 20 Under the glider, at the control bar Sight down the downtubes, making sure that they are straight. Check the cables at the control bar corners, making sure that all six cables are properly secured and that there are no kinks or twisted thimbles. Check for proper installation of all bolts, nuts, pins and safety rings at the control bar corners.

  • Page 21: Launching And Flying The Alpha

    Using Wing Tufts Your Wills Wing glider has been equipped from the factory with short yarn tufts on the top surface of each wing. The shadow of these tufts will be visible through the sail. The tufts are useful for indicat- ing the local reversal of the airflow which is associated with the onset of the stall in that portion of the wing.
  • Page 22 MCA is influenced most heavily by the tension in the sail; how much “billow” the glider has. However, in your Wills Wing glider, as in most hang gliders, MCA and VMS evolved towards a common value during the design and development of the glider.
  • Page 23 fly the glider in smooth air, early in the morning or late in the afternoon. When you are well away from the terrain, and well clear of other aircraft, look up at the wing tufts while you very gradually reduce the speed of the glider. Note the speed at which the first tuft first begins to wiggle just prior to blowing spanwise toward the tip.

  • Page 24: Trimming Your Glider In Pitch

    Trimming Your Glider In Pitch The fore and aft location along the keel of your hang point is commonly (if mistakenly) referred to as your "CG location." The location of this hang point will, all other things being equal, determine at what angle of attack and airspeed your glider will naturally tend to fly (or trim), and therefore how much bar pressure there is to pull in from trim to a given faster speed, or how much pressure there is to push out from trim to a given slower speed.

  • Page 25: Speeds To Fly And Using Your Airspeed Indicator

    Falcon at the proper speeds for optimum safety and performance. Note: The Wills Wing Hall ASI is color coded for VNE and Va speeds of 53 mph and 46 mph respec- tively. The Alpha has lower VNE and Va speeds of 44 mph and 38 mph respectively. Therefore, for...

  • Page 26: Landing The Alpha

    The design of the Hall type airspeed indicator involves using a ram air versus static pressure differential to raise a disc in a tapered tube against the force of the weight of the disc. Because of this, the ASI has the following operating limitations: a.
  • Page 27 with a proper landing. If you develop good habits and the skills to fly precise approaches now, it will make your transition to higher performance gliders easier later on. Once established on a straight final approach, with wings level and flying directly into the wind, you should fly the glider down to where the basetube is between three and six feet off the ground.
  • Page 28 Once established on a wings level short final, into the wind, body semi-upright and with both hands on the downtubes, your final concern is the timing and execution of the landing flare. The goal is to arrive on the ground, on your feet, under control with the glider settling on your shoulders. If the wind is 15 mph or more, you will not really execute a flare at all;...
  • Page 29 Pilots who have trouble with the flare, and with the glider nosing over during landing, usually do so because of one of the following problems: a. Harness leg straps too long / hanging too low below the glider, and / or hands too low on the con- trol bar.

  • Page 30: Alpha Breakdown

    Alpha Breakdown Breakdown of the glider is the reverse of assembly. The outer 3 cambered battens on the Alpha can be removed with the crossbar tensioned but it's best to release the crossbar tension before removing the long inboard battens. Always remove the battens gently so as to avoid undue wear on the batten pockets or stress on the battens which may change their shape.

  • Page 31: Alpha Stability Systems

    Measure the distance from the top surface of the keel directly under each thread to the thread. The minimum heights of the threads should be: Model Thread at #5 Batten Thread at #6 Batten Alpha 180 13.25” or 336 mm 6.25” or 158 mm Alpha 210 15.5” or 393 mm 6.375”...
  • Page 32 Final proper adjustment of the bridles is determined by sighting the shadow of the bridles on the sail in flight. With the glider in a 30 degree banked turn at Vms, shake the control bar sharply and observe the shadow of the bridles according to the following criteria: Tight No movement in the line, the line is straight and appears under tension.

  • Page 33: Maintenance Schedule

    Following any mishap that results in damage to the glider immediately have any damaged component repaired or replaced. We recommend that you have all such maintenance work done by your Wills Wing dealer. In addition, please follow the following maintenance schedule.

  • Page 34: Removing The Sail From The Airframe And Re-Installing

    Such cleaning agents are available at the supermarket or drug store, or you may order a cleaning solution from Wills Wing through your dealer. A note about cables and cable maintenance: The cables which support the glider’s airframe are critical components of the glider’s structure, and...
  • Page 35 Tape the sail plugs in position on the leading edges so that they do not become switched side to side inadvertently. 3. Unbolt the bottom side wires from the control bar. Remove the clevis pin which secures the control top elbows to the apex bracket. Unbolt the bottom rear flying wires from the rear keel. Re- assemble the hardware removed onto the bolts in the original order so that it doesn't get lost.

  • Page 36: Tuning

    CG adjustment has already been covered in the section of this manual on using your wing tufts. Wills Wing recom- mends that tuning other than CG adjustment be performed by your Wills Wing dealer.
  • Page 37 Battens Check the battens for symmetrical shape and batten string tension. Sail mount plugs - adjusting sail tension and rotational alignment The molded plastic sail mount plug fits directly into the rear leading edge. It is secured against rota- tion by a sliding wedge which is forced out against the inside of the tube as the Allen screw is tight- ened.

  • Page 38: Car Top Mounting And Transport

    If you loosen the screw too much, the wedge will fall off the end of the screw inside the leading edge, and you will have to dismount the sail to retrieve it. Start by loosening the screw ten turns, and then check to see if you can rotate it. If not, loosen it one turn at a time until it can be rotated.

  • Page 39: In Closing

    Ultimately your safety is your responsibil- ity. Know the limitations of your knowledge, skill and experience, and know the limitations of your aircraft. Fly within those limitations. Have fun. See you in the sky! Wills Wing, Inc. — 33 —...

  • Page 40: Hgma Compliance Verification

    HGMA COMPLIANCE VERIFICATION SPECIFICATION SHEET GLIDER MODEL Alpha 180 MANUFACTURED BY Wills Wing Inc. All dimensions in inches; weights in pounds. NOTE: These specifications are intended only as a guideline for determining whether a given glider is a certified model and whether it is in the certified configuration.
  • Page 41 HGMA COMPLIANCE VERIFICATION SPECIFICATION SHEET GLIDER MODEL Alpha 210 MANUFACTURED BY Wills Wing Inc. All dimensions in inches; weights in pounds. NOTE: These specifications are intended only as a guideline for determining whether a given glider is a certified model and whether it is in the certified configuration.

  • Page 42: Frame Plans

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  • Page 45: Assembly Diagrams

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This manual is also suitable for:

Alpha 210

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