|
 |
The MAC
MAGUS XC2 |
 |
The Magus XC2 is a high
performance glider designed for pilots who demand and
expect the most from their equipment. This high
performance serial class paraglider benefits from new
technologies inherited from the Magus 7The Magus XC2 has
an impressive glide ratio in trim and accelerated flight
aided by the RFE system which uses plastic strips on the
leading edge (ribs and upper panels). It features thin
risers; a sporty silhouette with an elliptical form; and
has an aspect ratio of 6.65. The Magus XC2 inflates
very easily and has pleasant ground handling
characteristics. Stability in the flight gives
confidence, and the fantastic handling will satisfy
every pilot. A glider which is absolutely confidence
inspiring and without stress during long flights and
thermaling, the Magus XC2 features improved maximum
speed with very high stability. The glider is
undemanding and resistant to collapse in rough air.
Glide performance has increased compared to its
predecessor specially in accelerated flight.
The top and bottom lines are thin
unsheathed Aramid competition lines. The split “A”
risers facilitate Big Ears. The positioning of the
outermost “A” line makes progressive closure easy.
Opening is smooth and predictable.
The flap system on
trailing edge in the centre of the canopy combined with
the bunching system on the wing tips give precise
handling with outstanding climbing performance. The
moderate brake pressure allows pleasant turns and
increases progressively toward the end of its travel to
offer safety reserves. The Magus XC2 is equipped as
standard with brake handles with a swivel and magnetic
clips. Velcro closures on the wingtips make access
easier to remove any sand, grass or small stones from
the glider.
With the performance benefits of
thin risers, reinforced leading edge, thin lines and a
high aspect ratio the XC2 should appeal to both
competent cross-country and serial class competition
pilots. The glide ratio combined with agility and sporty
handling makes the glider really lovely |
| Like all
new MAC PARA gliders the topsail is a
mixture of materials with different
coatings. The Magus XC2 is manufactured
using the paragliding industries well
established lightweight material with
excellent durability; Skytex 40, from
Porcher Sport (NCV). Because for any glider,
the part that always wears out first is the
leading edge, we use Skytex 45 with
evolution coating for this. For less
stressed parts of the sail we use Skytex 40
with E38A coating. For main ribs and
diagonal ribs we use Skytex 40 with E29A
“hard finish” coating. The different parts
of the design are assembled to keep the
cleanest canopy. The Magus XC2 is equipped
with a classic competition line system with
every third rib attached. Top lines and main
lines are made from Aramid/Kevlar lines with
UV coating of different diameters. The 4
point risers are are made from 12 mm
polyester/Kevlar prestretched webbing. The
brake handles have magnetic clips and a
swivel attached steering line.
|
|
Surface Top Leading Edge: |
Skytex 9092, Coating
E85A 45 g/m2 |
|
Surface Top Trailing Edge: |
Skytex 9017, Coating E38A 40 g/m2 |
|
Surface Bottom: |
Skytex 9017, Coating
E38A 40 g/m2 |
|
Main ribs: |
Skytex 9017, Coating
E29A 40 g/m2 |
|
Diagonal ribs: |
Skytex 9017, Coating
E29A 40 g/m2 |
|
Minor ribs: |
Skytex 9017, Coating
E38A 40 g/m2 |
|
Upper lines: |
Aramid/Kevlar 45,60,80,120 kg |
|
Main lines: |
Aramid/Kevlar 130
kg,190 kg, 230 kg |
|
 |
|
|
|
| |
Magus XC2
23 |
Magus XC2
25 |
Magus XC2
27 |
Magus XC2
28 |
Magus XC2
30 |
|
Zoom flat [%] |
92.5 |
96.5 |
100 |
102.7 |
105.5 |
|
Area flat [m2] |
23.27 |
25.33 |
27.2 |
28.69 |
30.27 |
|
Area projected [m2] |
20.56 |
22.38 |
24.03 |
25.35 |
26.75 |
|
Span flat [m] |
12.44 |
12.98 |
13.45 |
13.81 |
14.19 |
|
Aspect ratio flat |
6.65 |
6.65 |
6.65 |
6.65 |
6.65 |
|
Root cord [m] |
2.34 |
2.44 |
2.53 |
2.6 |
2.67 |
|
Cells |
77 |
77 |
77 |
77 |
77 |
|
Weight [kg] |
5.5 |
5.9 |
6.4 |
6.7 |
6.9 |
|
Weight range [kg]* |
70-87 |
83-100 |
90-110 |
100-120 |
115-135 |
|
Min. speed [km/h] |
23-25 |
23-25 |
23-25 |
23-25 |
23-25 |
|
Max. speed [km/h] |
37-39 |
37-39 |
37-39 |
37-39 |
37-39 |
|
Top speed (accelerator)[km/h] |
55-58 |
55-58 |
55-58 |
55-58 |
55-58 |
|
Glide ratio |
10.5 |
10.5 |
10.5 |
10.5 |
10.5 |
|
Min. Sink rate[m/s] |
1.05 |
1.05 |
1.05 |
1.05 |
1.05 |
|
Certificate |
EN-D |
EN-D |
EN-D |
- |
EN-D |
* pilot equipped = weight naked +
cca. 20 Kg
Cross country Magazine
Review -- Mac Para Magus XC2 EN D
Marcus King goes for some big days out
on the latest XC machine from MacPara
QUOTE: This wing just doesn’t want to come down.
MacPara’s Description
The Magus XC2 is a high-performance glider
designed for pilots who demand and expect the most
from their equipment. As a serial class glider it
benefits from new technologies inherited from the
Magus 7.
Background
Mac Para is a Czech company that has been around
since the early 1990s. Since then it has gradually
grown to become one of the major brands in our
sport. At the helm from the start has been manager
and designer, Peter Reček. Peter, who has been a
member of the national Czech paragliding team,
graduated in design engineering from Brno University
of Technology (VUT).
Over the last few years the company has enjoyed a
large amount of competition success with their Magus
range, with pilots such as Petra Slivova, Tomas
Brauner, Greg Blondeau, Yassen ‘Big Bird’ Savov and
the Valic brothers. Mac Para has also gained several
world records with the Valics, Greg Hamerton and
Petra.
The company is based in the northeast of the Czech
Republic in the town of Roznov pod Radhostem. The
town is close to flying sites on the Beskydy hills.
Production is split between the facility in Roznov
and Gin’s production plants in Korea.
Having enjoyed lots of success with the Magus range
the company introduced its serial sibling in the
form of the Magus XC back in 2007. The Magus XC2 is
the latest incarnation of their serial racer.
CONSTRUCTION
I’ve always had a liking for Mac Para wings,
with the colour design enhancing the their aspecty
look. The Magus XC2 doesn’t fail to deliver on this
– with an aspect ratio of 6.65 it looks sporty from
the moment you unfurl it.
The leading edge features a mix of Mylar and plastic
rods – their ‘RFE’ system – to keep the profile in
shape across the speed range. The rods used in the
RFE system aren’t as big as those found on some of
the latest wings on the market. The cells are all
open, with rectangular shaped openings. The canopy
is made from Porcher Skytex, with 45g/m2 cloth used
on the leading edge and 40g/m2 further back.
Perhaps surprisingly the wing isn’t a true
three-liner. Although there are only three risers on
each side, the C lines have split tabs in the centre
of the wing to give that section of the wing more
support. All the lines are unsheathed Aramid/Kevlar.
The A lines are red and the main brake lines orange;
all remaining lines are yellow, making it easy to
grab the important lines.
As with most MacPara wings the brake system uses
rings on the trailing edge to bunch the tips under
braking. The company has also used what they call a
‘reinforcement flap system’ in the centre of the
wing to stiffen that section of it.
The risers are very sleek with no unnecessary fuss.
The lines are held in place with rubber rings. The
brake handles are reasonably-padded material loops
that are attached to the C risers with magnets and
have a swivel to stop the brake lines twisting. The
speed system has a step-down ball which lets you
know when you have reached half bar.
Mac Para get top marks for their construction with
the wing finished to a high level, as you would
expect. The wing is available in four standard
colours and five sizes covering all-up weights from
70kg to 135kg.
LAUNCHING
Reading the test report for the wing I noticed
that it had gained a C grade for launching, saying
that it could overshoot. That, along with its
aspecty look, had me wondering if it would be a bit
of a handful on the ground.
However, I launched in various conditions from a
forward launch on a super stable day at St Hilaire,
to reverse launches in strong midday winds in the
southern Alps. On every occasion the wing behaved
impeccably. A gentle pull on the A riser brings it
smoothly overhead with only a small amount of
braking required to control it. I’m sure a
heavy-handed approach would see it pulling you off
your feet but with a little finesse I found it easy
to launch.
FLYING
Once in the air I found the wing felt very taut
and solid – it behaves as a single wing. Brake
pressure is reasonably stiff and ramps up if you
pull hard, giving plenty of warning as you near the
stall point, which is great when you are cranking
hard in a tight thermal. I found I got plenty of
information from the wing through the brakes. The
wing doesn’t have a nervous feel – it’s more that it
gives you very good information so you can fly it
actively.
With the bunching system on the brakes I felt the
Magus XC2 was very agile. It’s easy to control the
level of bank with the brakes alone – you only
really need weight-shift when you want to bank hard
or to cut into a particularly strong bit of lift,
and then only small body movements are needed.
In climbs, the information the wing passes to the
pilot through the harness and brakes is detailed
without being overpowering. It felt like I could
feel the nuances of the thermal around me. This was
especially true in lighter conditions, allowing me
to use the wing’s agility to make the most of any
lift.
It was soon obvious that one of the Magus XC2’s
strengths is its climbing ability. There was no
tendency for it to sit back, even in strong active
alpine conditions, although I found it was best to
let it fly fast with only enough pressure on the
outside brake to feel the wingtip.
A quick glance through the test report for the 27
size which I was flying shows very few D grades. In
fact it only receives three Ds, all for accelerated
asymmetrics (two at the minimum weight and a C and a
D at the max weight). I flew the wing on a couple of
occasions in very strong thermals mixed with a
stable air mass and windy conditions, and while the
level of information coming from the wing helped
catch most potential collapses, inevitably I got hit
a few times. On all occasions the wing behaved
predictably and was easy to get flying again with no
major drama.
On glide the bar is easy to use and there is a good
level of acceleration with minimal increase in sink,
as you would expect from this class of wing. It’s
hard to quantify performance but it’s obvious this
wing performs well. The sink rate feels impressive
and combined with good speed gives a good glide. I
was particularly impressed with the lack of pitching
on glide, the wing cutting through the air nicely.
Gliding with other gliders of this class and a few
older comp wings I never felt at a disadvantage,
leading me to conclude this wing is definitely up
there with the leaders.
CONCLUSION
Mac Para have produced a great serial racer that
is accessible for pilots moving up to this class.
Great handling and performance combined with
forgiving behaviour for the class create a serious
wing for those big sky missions, that will keep you
smiling. This wing just doesn’t want to come down.
Reviewer
Marcus King flew the Magus XC2 27 (90-110kg) at
an all-up weight of 105kg using the Sup’Air Shamane
harness.
WE LIKED MOST
Agile handling combined with great performance
in a forgiving wing
RECOMMENDED FOR
Pilots moving up to the serial class or pilots
wanting a partner for big days out
|
|
