Bruce Goldsmith Design LYNX User manual

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Version 1.75 July 2018Version 1.75 July 2018

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1. Welcome 3
2. Introduction 4
3. Preparation 6
   4.Pre-ightInspection    7
   5.FlightCharacteristics    8
   6.RecoveryTechniques    15
   7.StorageandServicing    18
   8.TechnicalData     20
9. Service booklet 30
   10.ClosingWords     34
11. Appendix: EN line measurements 35
Contents
Contents

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LYNX Owner’s Manual
PARAGLIDER EN / LTF C
Welcome to Bruce Goldsmith Design
BGDisaworldleaderinthedesignandproductionofparagliders.FormanyyearsBruceGoldsmithandhisteam
havebeendevelopingproductswithworld-beatingperformanceforpilotswhowantthebest.Weapplyour
competitiveknowledgetodesigntopqualityproductsthatcombinethehighestperformancewiththesafehandling
ourcustomersvalueandrespect.BGDpilotsappreciateourqualityandreliability.BGD´sworld-classstatusisbased
ontheskillsandexpertisewehavedevelopedincombiningaerodynamicdesignwithclothandmaterialstechnology.
AllBGDproductsaredevelopedandmadewiththesameskillandattentiontogooddesignthataresynonymous
withtheultimateperformanceandprecisionrequiredbyparagliders.
Congratulations on your purchase of the BGD LYNX
TheLYNXisdesignedtoahighstandardofsafetyandstability,butitwillonlyretainitscharacteristicsifitisproperly
lookedafter.Pleasereadthismanualcarefullyfromthersttothelastchaptertoensureyougetthebestoutofyour
LYNX.
Thismanualhasbeenpreparedtogiveyouinformationandadviceaboutyourparaglider.Ifyoueverneedany
replacementpartsorfurtherinformation,pleasedonothesitatetocontactyournearestBGDdealerorcontactBGD
directly.
1 Introduction
1. Welcome

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TheLYNXisanEN-Clightweight,highperformanceparaglidersuitableforskilledpilots.Itoffersahighlevelof
passivesafetycombinedwithhighspeedandgreatclimbingperformance.Itisagreatchoiceforcross-countryying,
anditslowweightandsmallpacksizemakeitperfectforvol-bivouacadventuresandhike-and-ycompetitions.This
gliderisnotintendedtobeusedforaerobaticmanoeuvres.
Thisparaglidermustnot:
1. Beownoutsidethecertiedweightrange
2. Haveitstrimspeedadjustedbychangingthelengthofrisersorlines
3. Beowninrainorsnow
4. Betowedwithatow-linetensioninexcessof200kg
Itisyourdealer´sresponsibilitytotestytheparagliderbeforeyoureceiveit.Thetestightrecordofthisisin
Section9ofthismanual.Pleasebesurethatthishasbeencompletedbyyourdealer.
Failure to test y a new paraglider may invalidate any warranty.
InordertoenjoyfullbenetsoftheBGDwarranty,youarerequiredtocompletethewarrantyformonthewebsite.
ForfurtherinformationabouttheBGDwarranty,pleaserefertothecorrespondingpageonourwebsite.
Anymodication,e.g.changeoflinelengthsorchangestothespeedsystem,causesalossofairworthinessand
certication.WerecommendthatyoucontactyourdealerorBGDdirectlybeforeperforminganykindofchange.
2. Introduction
2. Introduction

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Connecting the speedbar
Althoughitcanbeownwithoutusingthespeedbar,beforeyingyourwing forthersttimeitisagoodideato
attachthespeedbarandadjustthelength.Followtheinstructionsinyourharnessmanualtoensurecorrectrouting
ofthespeedbarlines.ConnecttheBrummelhooksonthespeedbartothoseontherisers’speedsystem,ensuringthe
linesrunfreelyandarenotcaughtaroundanything(reservehandle,risersorlines).
Toadjustthespeedbarlength,sitinyourharnessandaskanassistanttoholdtherisersupintotheirin-ightposition.
Thespeedbarlengthshouldbeadjusted,bymovingtheknots,sothatthebarsitsjustbeneathyourharnessseat.
Youshouldbeabletohookyourheelsintothebar,andtoattainfullbarextension(thetwopulleystouching).Once
youhaveinitiallysetthebarupinthiswayontheground,atestightincalmaircanbeusedtone-tunethelength,
ensuringitisevenonbothsides.
2. Introduction

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3. Preparation
1. Selectasuitabletakeoffareadeterminedbywindandterrain,clearofanyobstaclesthatmaycatchinthe
linesordamagethecanopy.
2. Ifyourparagliderhasbeencorrectlypacked,youshouldtakeittothetopofthetakeoffarea,andallowthe
rolledcanopytounrollitselfdownthehill(ifonaslope).Thisshouldleavetheparagliderwiththebottom
surfacefacingupwards,theopeningsatthedownwindendofthetakeoffarea,andtheharnessatthetrailing
edgeattheupwindside.
3. Unrollthecanopytoeachsidesothattheleadingedgeopeningsformasemicircularshape,withthetrailing
edgedrawntogetherasthecentreofthearch.Theharnessshouldbedrawnawayfromthecanopyuntilthe
suspensionlinesarejusttight.
3. Preparation

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4. Pre-ight Inspection
TheLYNXisdesignedtobeassimpleaspossibletoinspectandmaintainbutathoroughpre-ightprocedureis
mandatoryonallaircraft.Thefollowingpre-ightinspectionprocedureshouldbecarriedoutbeforeeachight.
1. Whilstopeningouttheparagliderchecktheoutsideofthecanopyforanytearswhereyourparaglidermay
havebeencaughtonasharpobjectorevenhavebeendamagedwhilstinitsbag.
2. Checkthatthelinesarenottwistedorknotted.Dividethesuspensionlinesintosixgroups,eachgroup
comingfromoneriser.Bystartingfromtheharnessandrunningtowardsthecanopyremoveanytanglesor
twistsinthelines.Partiallyinatingthecanopyinthewindwillhelptosortoutthelines.
3. Itisparticularlyimportantthatthebrakesareclearandfreetomove.Checktheknotwhichattachesthe
brakehandlestothebrakelines.Severalknotsshouldbeusedhereorthelooseendsmaygetentangledin
thebrakepulleys.Bothbrakesshouldbethesamelengthandthiscanbecheckedbyaskinganassistantto
holdtheupperendofthebrakelinestogetherwhilstthepilotholdsthebrakehandles.Thebrakelinesshould
bejustslackwiththewinginatedwhenthebrakesarenotapplied.Aftercheckingthebrakelineslaythem
ontheground.
4. Alwayscheckthebucklesandattachmentsontheharness.Ensurethetwomainattachmentmaillons/
karabinersfromtheharnesstothemainrisers,andthesixshackleswhichattachtheriserstothelines,are
tightlydoneup.
5. Beforethepilotattacheshimselftotheharnessheshouldbewearingagoodcrashhelmet.Putontheharness
ensuringallthebucklesaresecureandproperlyadjustedforcomfort.
Yourparagliderisnowreadyforight.
4.Pre-ightInspection

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5. Flight Characteristics
ThismanualisnotintendedasaninstructionbookonhowtoytheLYNX.Youshouldbeaqualiedpilotorunder
suitablesupervision,butthefollowingcommentsdescribehowtogetthebestfromyourLYNX.
Weight range
EachsizeoftheLYNXiscertiedforacertainweightrange.Theweightreferstothe‘overalltake-offweight’.This
meanstheweightofthepilot,theglider,theharnessandallotherequipmentcarriedwithyouinight.
WerecommendtheLYNXisowninthemiddleoftheweightrange.
IfyouytheLYNXinthelowerhalfoftheweightrange,theturningagilitydecreasesandthegliderwillbemore
damped.Instrongturbulencethewingtendstodeformandtocollapseslightlymorethanwithahigherwingloading.
IfyoumainlyyinweakconditionsyoushouldconsideryingtheLYNXtowardsthelowerendoftheweightrange.
IfyouytheLYNXintheupperhalfoftheweightrange,theagilityandthestabilityinturbulencewillincrease.Also
thespeedwillincreaseslightly.Theself-dampingwilldecreaseinturns,aswellasaftercollapses,soifyouyin
bumpyconditionsandyouwantadynamicightcharacteristicyoushouldgoforthetopoftheweightrange.
Active Piloting
EventhoughtheLYNXisdesignedasaneasyglider,‘activepiloting’isatoolthatwillhelpyouywithgreatersafety
andenjoyment.Activepilotingisyinginempathywithyourparaglider.Thismeansnotonlyguidingtheglider
throughtheairbutalsobeingawareoffeedbackfromthewing,especiallyinthermalsandturbulence.Iftheairis
smooththefeedbackcanbeminimalbutinturbulencefeedbackiscontinuousandneedstobeconstantlyassessed
bythepilot.Suchreactionsbecomeinstinctiveingoodpilots.
5.FlightCharacteristics

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Inordertogetthebestperformancefromthewing,thepilotshouldtrytocontrolitthoughsmallbrakeinputsand
weight-shift,ratherthanconstantlybeingpresentonthebrakes.Asmallmovementearlyismoreefcientthana
bigbrakemovementlatertocontrolthewing.Themoreyoulettheglideryattrimspeed,thebetterperformance
youwillgetoutofit.Theobjectiveofactivepilotingistogettheglidertoysmoothlythroughtheairwithastable
positionabovethehead,andcontrolledangleofincidence.TheLYNXishighlyresistanttocollapsewithoutanypilot
actionatall,butlearninghowtoyactivelywillincreasethissafetymarginevenfurther.
Harness
TheLYNXistestedwitha‘GH’(withoutdiagonalbracing)typeharness.TheGHcategoryincludesweightshift
harnessesaswellasABSstyle(semistable)harnesses.
Approved harness dimensions
ThisgliderhasbeentestedwithaharnessthatcomplieswiththeENstandardharnessdimensions.Theseare:
Seatboardwidth:42cm.Thehorizontaldistancebetweentheattachmentpointsoftheparagliderrisers(measured
fromthecentrelineofthekarabiners)mustbe:
 <50kg =38cm
 50-80kg =42cm
 >80kg =46cm
Take-off
TheLYNXiseasytoinateinlightorstrongerwindsandwillquicklyriseoverheadtotheyingposition.Thebest
inationtechniqueistoholdoneA-riserineachhand.Itwilllauncheasilyusingeithertheforwardlaunchtechnique
(bestforlightwinds)orreverselaunch(bestforstrongerwinds).
5.FlightCharacteristics

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Forward Launch
TakeanA-riserineachhand.TheA-risersaremarkedwithredclothtomakethemeasiertond.Standwithallthe
Alinestautbehindyou,thentakeoneortwostepsback(donotwalkallthewaybacktothecanopy)andbegin
yourlaunchrunpullinggentlyandsmoothlyontheA-risers.Assoonasthecanopystartstoriseoffthegroundstop
pullingsohardontheA-risersbutpullalltherisersevenlythroughtheharness.Maintaininggentlepressureonthe
A-risersalwayshelpsinverycalmconditions.Haveyourhandsreadytoslowupthecanopywiththebrakesifitstarts
to accelerate past you.
Reverse Launch
Inwindsover10km/hitisrecommendedtodoareverselaunchandinatethecanopyusingtheA-risers,whilst
facingit
TheLYNXhaslittletendencytoovershootbutreleasingpressureontheA-riserswhenthecanopyisatabout45°will
helptoavoidovershooting.ThestrongerthewindandthegreaterthepressureontheA-risers,themorequicklythe
canopywillrise.
Turning
TheLYNXdoesnotrequireastrong-handedapproachtomanoeuvring.Forafastturnsmoothlyapplythebrakeon
thesidetowhichtheturnisintended.Thespeedwithwhichthebrakeisappliedisveryimportant.Ifabrakeisapplied
fairlyquicklythecanopywilldoafasterbankingturn,butcaremustbetakennottobanktooseverely.Toattainamore
efcientturnatminimumsink,applysomebraketotheoutsidewingtoslowtheturnandpreventexcessivebanking.
TheLYNXiesverywelllikethis,butcaremustbetakennottoover-applythebrakesasaspincouldresult,even
thoughtheLYNXhasaverylowspintendency.TheLYNXwillturnfarmoreefcientlyifthepilotweight-shiftsintothe
turnintheharness.Rememberthatviolentbrakeapplicationisdangerousandshouldalwaysbeavoided.
5.FlightCharacteristics