Dick Cheney (no, NOT the politician! :-) Custom Hang Glider and UltraLight Sails ----------------------------------------- Great Salt Lake Sails 368 W. 200N. Kaysville, Utah 84037 1 (801) 544-5526
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Blue Yachtcrylic is a soft, heavy material, very rich in color. It is similar in texture to a dry (untreated), lightweight, fine canvas. This material is designed from the start as UV protection for the expensive sails of sailing yachts in harbor.
Blue Yachtcrylic makes a great HG cover-bag, and takes very well to Scotch-Gard for water repellency. It can be torn, so you want the ends of the bag to be protected from abrasion by Cordura, and always, lift the glider by both strap handles. This bag probably will weigh more than the factory cover-bag, and it does not compress very well; this is no lightweight XC bag. It *IS* the most serious UV protection for your sailcloth that you can buy, short of buying a heavy plastic drainage pipe.
A blue Yachtcrylic cover bag usually can be made to order, but allow some extra cost for pricey materials and shipping. If you like the bag that you now have, just measure the length, widths, and carry-handle locations. Lay the bag out flat, and make a drawing to send with your order that shows your bag measurements, and where each measurement came from. Alternately, just mail the entire old cover-bag to GSLS for a pattern. They can send both bags back to you, or just the new one, your choice.
If your old bag is *not* satisfactory, then custom-measure for your glider bag, thusly:
Wrap a cloth measuring tape loosely around the largest part of the glider, when it is packed and ready to go into the bag. A cover-bag that is a bit too loose is better than one that is a bit too tight. Measure from the nose to this largest part of the glider, so they know where this measurement came from.
If you plan to store your ribs in the glider's cover bag, add your ribs (in their own bag) to the the folded glider near the wingtips end, and measure loosely around the glider and ribs, about one yard (1 meter) inward from the wingtips.
Be sure that the ribs are stowed where you will have them (when inside the bag), if you plan to store the ribs in the glider bag. Pass a strap under/around the packed glider, near the middle, and lift the glider, with ribs, about knee-high. Move the strap as necessary, to find the place where the glider balances exactly, fore-and-aft, in that loop of strap. Record this measurement, from the nose to the strap; this will be the location of the carrying handles.
Measure the entire length of the packed glider, and allow about one hand-span extra.
Send all the measurements to GSLS; your new cover-bag will come C.O.D. Each bag comes with a full-length zipper, carrying handles at the balance point, and red Cordura material at the ends, for abrasion resistance. Contact GSLS directly, for any additions or custom features that you would like to add.
Personal experience: I camped for over a decade on Point of the Mountain, Utah. My gliders were protected only by the cover-bags; they were seldom even under a tree. The South Side of the Point is 5100' MSL. Sunlight is intense there. Many days, I camped higher than that. My cover-bags were not replaced; even when I bought a newer glider, the same old cover-bag went on to protect this next glider. After all those years, the blue bags on my two gliders could be laid out flat, and *nobody* could tell which side was the top or the bottom of the bag. There was ZERO sun-fade. The deep blue Yachtcrylic material must be reflecting all the blue (and ultraviolet) wavelengths, which is the whole point of a good cover-bag.
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