This page is about my DJ Aerotech Chrysalis. This is the third example of this kit I have built. I have to say that this is the one airplane with the highest fun-to-cost ratio I have ever had.
The Chrysalis is a sport/beginner Hand-Launch Glider with simple all-wood construction. My Chrysalis was built from the wood in the kit (except I used a different piece for the tail, because I built the conventional tail option), and it weighs 12 oz. This is not particularly light for an HLG, but it has a lot of wing area, and carries the weight reasonably well. If you choose really light wood, and do a few other tricks, it is possible to build a Chrysalis at around 8 oz, but it won't be quite as rugged.
The idea of Hand Launch Glider is that you simply throw the airplane to get it into the air. You then try to find a thermal to keep you up. Because HLGs are small and light, they can work very weak lift, so most days are at least somewhat flyable. A good HLG throw will get you about 70 feet up, and from there you might have up to a minute to find a thermal. Here is a sequence of pictures from several launches, showing my throw (which isn't actually that great, technically).
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When my arm gets tired, I sometimes bungee launch the Chrysalis (Americans usually call this Hi-Start - to most Americans, a bungee doesn't have any line - it is all rubber). As you can see, this gets the airplane much higher than throwing it.
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Having launched the Chrysalis one way or the other, I'm always on the lookout for a thermal. Here's what I do when I find one.
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But don't look away when you're that high, or when you look back, your Chrysalis might have metamorphosed into this...
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Finally, at the end of a perfect HLG flight, we have...
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the catch.