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The World According to JART |
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The JART was designed to be my perfect slope toy. Knowing what I liked and didn't like about everything I'd built and flown to that point, the final JART design was the culmination of a year's worth of mental engineering and dozens of design drafts. She's a true labor of love.
But there is also
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JARTs have been built
or are being built in:
• Australia
• Sweden
• England
• Ireland
• Scotland
• Spain
• Norway
• New Zealand
• South Africa
• Israel
• Italy
• Denmark
• Portugal
• Slovenia
• Colombia
• Germany
• Singapore
• France
• New Caledonia
• Japan
• Venezuela
• Brazil
• Chile
• Namibia
• Canada
• Holland
• Mexico
• Switzerland
• South Korea
• Argentina
• Turkey
• Croatia
• Greece
• Malaysia
• Czech Republic
• Finland
• Burundi
• Barstow
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a kind of JART philosophy. For some it's the pointy nose (PNF), for some it's the hot-rod aesthetic, for some it's the speed and intensity of the flying, for some it's the elite pleasure of owning and flying a rare bird, for some it's the DIY and experimental vibe, for some it's the open-source mentality, for some it's being part of an international movement, and for some it's all of the above. Count me among the latter. In the design parameters listed on the plans page you'll see some of the thought processes behind the creation of the JART, but it is the fact that I am able to share the design that makes the whole thing flat out cool for me.
The basic 3-view design file for the JART is free to anyone who asks (See the "Plans" page for details). When I first began making these plans available I never envisioned what is now an almost 700-strong population of JARTists around the world. This was just my cool toy and I thought a few others might like to give it a try. And until now it's been almost exclusively a DIY, scratch-build phenomena, with only a few short kits making it to the light of day. But after various pressures and a shift in circumstance I find that it's time to start offering a kit that is easy for the modeler to get in the air. The JART-LT is a new version of the JART, one that satisfies my performance expectations while allowing any pilot a quick entrée to the world of JART. She's a little lighter than most versions (35oz - 1kg), and this makes her a good candidate for inland slopes and light to medium air sloping. Don't be fooled, though – crank up that aileron throw and you'll have a very nimble plane that maintains all of the excellent handling characteristics of a heavier version without sacrificing any of the fun-factor. In other words, she has full JARTification.
The JART was designed to be versatile and the JART-LT is certainly that – watch this little video to see the prototype of this kit doing point rolls, inverted passes, and an outside loop in 15mph air.
I should make it clear that I will continue to encourage scratch-built JARTs by maintaining the Building page. Nothing is changing in regard to my commitment to those who love creating their own flying machines. Really, it's all about supporting the community and having fun. Some call it a sport, some call it a hobby, some call it a nerdy waste of time, but whatever it's called I love slope sailplanes and I'll be designing, building and flying them as long as I have breath and a thumb!
And let's not forget, experimentation is important to JARTiness. A JART can be built out of almost anything (someone recently built a SPAD version). And you needn't stick to the 3-view – push it, pull it, stretch it, shrink it, heck, do whatever you want with it. BUT...a JART is a JART and that is the 3-view as published. If your hack is JART-inspired, name it something different but use JART in there somewhere. So far, I've heard of a JART V, a JART VXL, a CorroJART, a JART EPP, a JAARTvark and I'm sure there are others already. I plan to build a JART 2M or a JART DS someday. Everyone has a unique combination of flying style, home slope, and building skills so there are an infinite number of possible designs. I hope the JART inspires you to put pen to paper and draw up your own ultimate sloper – or whatever else your little heart desires.
It's been requested that I say a word about why a JART is called a JART. Who knows? Make up your own story and send it to me. They say, when faced with a choice between the truth and the legend - print the legend.
Cheers & Good Flyin'!
Reed
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©2006 C. Reed Sherman
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