Edel LIVE vs. Wings of Change TAIFUN
a comparative review by Greg Hamerton
July 2002

Edel LIVE

INTRODUCTION : The Edel Factory in South Korea has been producing paragliders since 1986. Under the presidency of Mr Suh, Edel grew to hold the greatest market share of any paragliding manufacturer, with a claimed production of 700 gliders produced per month. But Edel lost their dominance after suffering delivery problems. Mr Suh left, and the management went through many changes until a new dedicated team had stabilised. Edel is working hard to produce a full line-up of gliders to regain their reputation and market share.

They called upon productive designer Michael Nesler to create a new DHV1-2 wing. Although their is some guidance on the Edel advertising brochure on how to pronounce the name (laiv), I was unsure whether this was 'live' as in 'not dead' or if it was like the wire you shouldn't touch with a screwdriver when fixing the electricity - LIVE! (said out loud with a wild expression). I flew the wing above the winter Karoo plains in Barrydale, South Africa to test her in the bumpy winter thermals. Later I had the pleasure of hours of smoother mountain flying closer to the coast. Before I tell you about the flying, let's take a moment to consider how the Live is built.

CONSTRUCTION : The bag is a basic affair, with a huge volume when extended using the 7cm zipped gusset. With all my flying kit stowed inside, the top volume was still loose, though it sits comfortably enough when tightened up on the straps. But there is no waist-belt to distribute the weight, and the outer pockets are low on the back, so your spine will feel the strain if your Live flies you into moon country.

The soft, 24mm riser webbing has simple finishing, and the set contains a non-functional connector between A and B (a redundant element from the Promise). The 2:1 linear speedbar system offers a limited 9cm riser travel before the line back-stitching stops on the single pulley. Edel assured me that the thick line would be replaced with a thinner line for easier travel without the risk of frayed stitching. However, this was not 'perfect finishing and the highest quality in every respect' as their website claims.

The brake handles were a bit too small to comfortably slip my gloved hands through.

Edel have used a light crinkly 42g/m2 fabric (PG3347K) on both the lower and upper surfaces, which has a 300hour life expectancy, and has 'a 1 year guarantee only when the canopy has been managed properly' (says Edel). Most of the internal ribs have been cut away to reduce weight, and there is only a 7cm radius half-moon of mylar distributing the load into each cell from the attachment points, which makes me think that you really shouldn't drop this glider on its nose.

The cells show the traditional continuous V-bracing that runs upwards from each attachment point, with every second cell hung. The centre of the wing is reinforced slightly with a narrow piece of rib material spanning the A, B, C and D hangpoints. One bifurcation in the lines keeps the 3A/4B/3C/3D web of pastel shades neat.

Apart from the four winglet cells, three cells per side feature a closed leading edge. It seems a token adherence to a modern trend, and without any tapering on the cells beside, it loses its aesthetic appeal.

LAUNCHING : the Live fills neatly, coming up without overshooting, but it lags a bit at 40 degrees, preferring to fall back or yaw from that position unless it has some momentum.

HANDLING : In peachy smooth soaring conditions, I found the turn response to be quick, and brakes to be comfortable - light pressure to quarter brake, then moderate, then heavy. Pitch was limited - the glider never really dived ahead. Although the Live doesn't give the 'hook' that helps with the bigger aerobatic turns, there is a bit of roll instability from overhead to 45 degrees either side. A sharp turn can lead to several (reducing) oscillations if not actively piloted, similar to the Ozone Octane and to a lesser degree, the Gin Oasis.

In the bumpy winter thermals, I found turns to be steady circles with a moderate radius. There is very little retained energy in turns, which is a good thing for reassuring a nervous pilot, but it means it's hard to whip the Live around in tight cores. Really cranked in, the wing does not remain flat, so it loses height. I found that I always had to thermal with a fair amount of outside brake engaged to keep the turn optimised.

But because the Live is not reactive, it retains its stability well in rough air, and is calm to fly even while providing feedback. The wing does not dive forwards of the pilot much, which will be reassuring for novices.

SAFETY : Big ears are easy to engage using the split A's, and they reinflate spontaneously and calmly. With a big section of the wing tucked I did not find any tendency to stall. The B-line stall is the nicest I've ever experienced - moderate B pressure, so gentle an entry the glider hardly drops back at all, the exit likewise - there is no need to catch any dive out from even the most rapid exit, the Live controls the small pitch admirably. It is possible to re-enter the stall on exit with the brakes engaged, but it is not overly sensitive to this abuse and is docile in parachutal stall.

Stall point is just above your hips (as with many of the modern intermediates) but here the pressure is immense. Full frontal deflations recover without a fuss or any great pitches.

On asymmetric collapses, the Live really earns its colours. Anything less than 50% won't really turn the glider off course, and if you are diverted, you'll swing back on track during the quick but mild reinflation. Really big collapses turned me 90 degrees, using a short dive to build up speed and fill the wing quickly without the shock reinflation some of the other DHV1/2's display. The roll energy takes a while to dissipate though.

Spiral entry is easy, just weight-shift and quarter brake on the inside, and after only 360degrees you'll be in the dive.

On deep brake you can spin the wing in a turn - it's not idiot-proof, but shows fair resistance to losing the inside, and it recovers quickly if you release your panic-grip on the brake.

PERFORMANCE : I found the glide angle to be good, matched with the Taifun M (another modern DHV1/2) at a slightly lower trimspeed. When on full speedbar, the glide performance was similar to the Taifun, but the Taifun could go faster. Trim speed on the Live on a cold day was 35km/h, with top speed hovering around 42km/h for a pilot in the middle of the weight range.

This low maximum is mainly due to the short riser travel - you're not going to become a rocket with only 9cm of change. (Adjusted for the cold, low altitude and the ballast I could have carried, the speeds would be 37 km/h trim and a 45km/h max). But similar to the Gin Oasis, the speedbar feels wonderfully solid, with no worry about imminent deflations gnawing in your belly. Since the foot bar pressure is moderate even when a pilot uses 100% speed system, Edel decided to use a 2:1 pulley system rather than the common 3:1 system which can feel too light for some pilots and needs a step-ladder speedbar. I used the 'bar extensively during the thermic flying, and never felt the need to gear down due to turbulence. Sung Heon, Jeong of Edel defended the short travel by saying 'almost no DHV 1-2 pilot ever uses the speed bar. In most situations, maximum speed is not that important for a DHV 1-2 glider.' There you have it, Edel's sentiment on racing out of trouble.

SUMMARY : I think I've come to understand the word 'live' - it's not the kind of 'live' that means an unexploded bomb, it is 'live' as in 'having a bit of life'. It can be turned simply, and the wing is thoroughly well-behaved in the air, helping with easy inflations and limited pitch-and-rotation. There's enough roll activity there to be playful, and simple responses to piloting to make it a safe DHV1/2. The manufacturing is a bit rudimentary for my taste, and the top speed is limited, so the Edel Live will have to compete with the other brands on the good glide angle and the price. The Live is a beginner's intermediate, best suited for pilots in the 50-200 flights range.

Fast forward to the comparison summary with the TAIFUN, or read on for the full review.

Wings of Change TAIFUN

INTRODUCTION : My introduction to Markus Grundhammer was on the video 'Blue Angels' - he was the first pilot to be throwing real wingovers in an era when acro was limited to 'wobbling around a bit' before landing. Since then he has become something of an acro legend (self-styled The Acrominator), in the same league as Mike Kung and the brothers Rodriguez.

Wings of Change had been the Edel distributor in Austria for some time, and Markus decided to apply his years of flying experience to launch his own brand. The Tsunami DHV2/3 was released last year as well as a Chinhook Tandem. The TAIFUN was a combined design effort by Markus and Michael Nesler. The wings are manufactured in Sri-Lanka.

CONSTRUCTION : The Taifun features the half-closed cells similar to those on the Independence gliders, where the leading edge is brought down in a V that parallels the partial V-ribs inside the cells. Apart from that, the cells are very similar to the Edel Live - large crossports, no internal reinforcing apart from simple ovals of stiff fabric to distribute the force from each line attachment point. The trailing edge has narrow tape sewn over it. The fabric (NCV 9017 E77) is a water-repellent 42g material with a 3 year guarantee. Markus claims it was chosen for 'better stability and performance'.

Colour-coded standard 2cm risers carry 3A / 4B / 3C / 3D. The B's are kept 2cm behind A's throughout the long 17cm speedbar range (C's float halfway to D's), which should increase stability at the expense of performance, possibly a good thing for this class where the ambition to race can often outstrip the ability to deal with head-over-heels blow-outs.

LAUNCHING : Perfect. If you lean back hard without using the A's on a flat launch site, the wing will rise smoothly to 80 degrees, where it slows noticeably without having a hard-point problem. With a little touch on the A risers, the launch is even simpler. If the launch slope is steep, be sure to pull up gently, and bear down on the brakes as the wing surges slightly forwards. All round, I couldn't fault the launch at all.

HANDLING : When my wife flew the wing (coming off a Swing Arcus) she was delighted by the delicate brake pressure and responsiveness. I gave the Taifun to an experienced acro pilot who immediately took it out for some SATs and loops. 'Beginners who want to know if they'll be able to grow into doing acro on this wing needn't worry. It's very responsive for a DHV1-2, and lovely to fly,' he said.

We were blessed with a great thermic day in mid-winter - 3m/s cores to 2000m, and the gentlest of tailwinds. I climbed up the sheer cliff of Groot Kanonkop, searched through a bumpy inversion, and was boosted up to heaven. I had lots of time to analyse the Taifun during the lazy 35km xc flight which ensued. The green winter pastures and sloping vineyards drifted by under a pale haze. An eagle joined me, out-thermalled me, glided on.

I found the Taifun to have sporty handling without being overly energetic - it has ever-so-slightly delayed reactions and never goes wild in extreme situations. The thermalling turns can be tight without losing height, or easy circles with a light touch on one brake. Feedback within the thermals is high while still being reassuring. You will get rocked around a bit in average thermic turbulence, but the wing is a safe introduction to active piloting, and if it tucks the reaction is small.

SAFETY : A colder winter's day. A powerful lift band hovered in front of Sir Lowry's Pass as the winter westerly ramped over the scenic Hottentots Holland Mountains. Fresh clouds gulped up paragliders like hungry fish. It was play-time - scoot out to where the lift ended, fall out of the sky, come back to the ridge low and boost up again. The SIV schedule awaited the Taifun.

Big ears are simple to induce with the split A's, and reinflate slowly if released. The Taifun is well-behaved even during steep descents, without significant stall tendency. It recovers from parachutal stall well and does not re-enter the stall easily if the brakes are inadvertently applied, a sign that it should be safe to land even in the roughest pit where the Sink Monster dwells.

Unfortunately the B-risers are very short, because they are connected to the C-risers on a slider system. This set-up makes B-riser stalls very awkward - I had to run my fingers up the lines to get a proper B stall, anything less and the riser could not be pulled deeply enough, causing the wing to pull out of the stall. However, the Taifun is well-behaved when it does stall, recovering smoothly and without hesitation.

Although stall point is above the seatboard, brake pressure goes from light to very heavy, so you'll feel it. The negative spin is rapid and fairly balanced, making it fun for helicopters (Markus Grndhammer's trademark acro move). Helicopters? I hear you say. I don't want the glider to do anything like that! Markus knows that too, and so you'll find that you need to force it into a high pressure turn to get it to slip, and if you really don't know what you're doing and wind it up, the recovery is simple even after several rotations.

Full frontal collapses rustle out without particular haste, and so the pitch forward is average. Big asymmetric collapses seemed to turn 135 degrees on average, with a healthy swing to reinflate, but nothing scary.

What I found remarkable was that asymmetric collapses on half speedbar actually seemed to have a calmer reaction, turning less than 90 degrees and reinflating on their own even with the bar held on. This makes it quite a nice glider to cruise on xc flights on half-bar, which is usually the best position for speed-to-fly and comfort at any rate.

Markus added: "Special to note is that countersteering a collapse is DHV 1 as well as stable spiral. The most common problem we saw last year - pilots have a collapse and go into a spiral. The DHV1 score shows that the Taifun is very safe in this regard."

PERFORMANCE : The Taifun has an excellent glide for its class, I was a shave off my friend who flies a year 2000 competition glider, and I held steady alongside with a healthy 37km/h trim. I'd be happy to say it glides at over 8:1, and does so with a hands-in-the-pockets kind of stability.

However, full speedbar requires the utmost care. Yes, you will 'blow out' in bumpy air if you 'hold the pedal to the metal'. The leading edge begins to buckle from above in turbulence at max speed, which was at 47km/h for me (being in the middle of the weight range).

SUMMARY : The Taifun has delicate but calm handling, with the ability to tighten up and hold on when you need to. It requires a pilot of moderate ability but will be reasonably tolerant of low-airtime blunders. Due to the top notch performance and acro ability, you are unlikely to outgrow this wing in your first three years of flying.

CONCLUSION on TAIFUN vs. LIVE :

The tips end in the identical measurement, but the Taifun has a slightly higher aspect ratio, greater wingspan, and longer lines. Construction-wise there is little to choose from (both are fairly basic) although I prefer the cleaner-looking leading edge of the Taifun, its standard-sized brake toggles, the narrower risers and extended speedbar range. The fabric also seems more durable on the Taifun even though it is the same grammage - it has the waxy feel of the Gelvinor brand, rather than the crinkly appearance of Edel's fabric. The colour scheme on the Live is prettier when flown alongside the oddly-striped underbelly of the Taifun, but no one ever won a prize for looking good at cloudbase.

They have the same good glide at trim, probably because Michael Nesler had a hand in designing both wings. Of the two, the Live is slightly more stable with regards to recovery from asymmetric collapses, and it pitches less. The Taifun, however, has benefited from Markus Grundhammer's extensive experience as a test pilot - it feels complete. It has the better launch, more versatile range and efficiency in thermalling turns and improved agility - it is suited for a more adventurous pilot, and it gets my outright winner's vote for putting a smile on your dial. I am a little in love with the Taifun, after it carried me all the way to the coast at Gordon's Bay, a dreamy xc flight I've been wanting to achieve for years.

TECHSPECS : Many thanks to Jan Minnaar of Cloudbase Paragliding for the wings.

For more information visit www.edel-paragliders.com or www.wings-of-change.at

* Note : Multiply by the correction factor to scale the results to a standardised condition of 1000m altitude, 15 deg.C air and a pilot at the maximum certified weight limit (assumed roughly 3% increase in speed per 500m, 2% increase per 5 deg. C and 2% increase per 5kg extra weight). Humidity, air pressure and turbulence could cause further variations from the standard. I use a fifteen-second average to provide 'highest sustainable speed'.