Paramotor Review: 2007 Fly Products Power Gold 130

The Power Gold 130 is Fly Products flagship machine. This is, as one pilot put it, the Simonini unleashed. It is the most powerful unit I've yet flown, easily enough thrust for even heavy tandem operations both foot-launched and wheel launched. I've now flown it both ways although the unit being reviewed here was foot launched.

The tested unit had a Bing-fed Simonini Mini 2 swinging a 3-blade 51" carbon fiber prop. I'm 140 pounds, 5' 9" and flew it  under a Spice 22 wing. Other conditions were: 1100 foot elevation, 85 degrees, 4 mph breeze. 

It's 4.5 gallon tank was about half full of fuel so it probably weighed just over 80 pounds.

Starting (6): Starting was easy using a standard stance and hold on the frame's top cross piece although I had Mo Sheldon start me. The unit was equipped with both an electric start and pull start, a good thing since the battery didn't have enough juice to even engage the solenoid.

The machine has a wide enough base to resist tipping over on the ground.

Ground Handling & Kiting (5): Getting up, standing and walking around were comfortable and there was nothing to impede looking at the wing. Ground handling straps allow keeping it hiked up enough to prevent feeling pulled backwards. A forward lean of about 20° kept me upright without exertion.

Ingress is easy and traditional. A nice touch is that the underarm bars swivel outward so larger pilots can get in easier. The bars are not, however, made to support your weight on the ground, they can bend downward. Pilots are cautioned to avoid plopping all their weight in the machine when mounting it. That's easy to do and presented no difficulty.

Launch (5): The light-wind reverse launch was standard with no difficulties noted. I did not try a forward inflation but there is nothing to catch on so the lines should slide up easily. Running is very easy as it was well balanced. I don't remember my legs hitting the cage bottom but, if they did, it was not a factor in launching.

To make running easier, the dealer/instructor suggested pushing the seatboard back and up further than the natural position it assumed. That did make running even easier but it slid back down with just a bit of walking/bending. Do this just before launching although, even if you don't, it launches fine. 

Torque twist is controlled well enough although I didn't go to full power until high up. What twist there was probably offset thrust cause by the motor moving over towards my right shoulder.

Climbout (6): The impressive power propelled an outlandish climb rate. It was steep enough to concern me so I didn't stay on full power long enough to measure it. I would estimate about 600 fpm which would equate to about a 20°. At steep enough angles the wing starts to unload and I don't want to test the aerodynamics of that regime. Obviously this machine is overkill to the max for a 140 pound pilot but hey, you don't have to use all the power. And if I were at a 9000' density elevation it would be a welcome kick of the ground.

I was able to get into the seat easily with one hand pushing down on the back of the seatboard.

Flight (5): Flying the machine is very comfortable. The underarm bars come just below your arms then upwards a bit and are not in the way at all. The harness webbing slides up and down through a slit at their terminus which I believe was primarily done to improve launching. There is nothing to impede your view which would make it nice for photography.

The harness seemed sufficiently padded and quite comfortable. 

Weight Shift (6): The sliding web system works for weight shift and I actually got quite a bit, 6" or so. But it took a bit more effort than the pivoting bar systems, especially the geared ones, because you're sliding material through a nylon slit. It took some effort to "unstick" it then it would move easily. It was slightly easier to weight shift than the similar Fresh Breeze comfort bar system.

Torque (5): This is reasonably well handled, producing about 20° of twist at full power. 

The unit twists a lot on your back but the thrust line moves only a small amount. So it looks bad but, in practice, is not. Many motors with good weight shift have the same behavior because the weight shift allows the frame to twist.

Thrust (9): This was the most thrusty machine I've flown where I could go to full power without twisting. Given my 140 pound weight at the time of the test, that's good.

Judging from my climb rate this was probably about a 165 lb thrust machine at sea level.

Throttle response was rough below about 30% power, The owner knew about it and said that adjustments were necessary. I would squeeze in a little power and it would take a second to kick in then ramp up quickly.

Endurance (7): I wasn't able to measure it directly but the sheer size of its 4.5 gallon tank means that anyone willing to heft it fully fueled better have a big bladder. The large prop means it's probably pretty efficient, maybe 1.1 gph. That would mean over 4 hours of flying time on my wing.

Vibration (6): Better than average for a machine of this thrust class. It's about the same as smaller cc engine units. 

Sound (6): Fly has done a lot to improve the sound and it shows. It's not as quiet as the Fresh Breeze Simonini but is much improved from previous models. Even at climb power it's noise didn't seem objectionable. Just before flying this machine I heard the older Fly Simonini machine on a tandem unit and it was noticeably louder.

Safety (5): The two-hoop design and netting may almost keep a hand out of the prop but probably only to about 60% power. A large opening in the center presents a risk that for letting a hand through in the case of a surprise thrust increase during start. That area is probably there for access and to prevent a helmet hitting it while looking up at the wing but it does add risk.

There is a fair amount of structure to give way in an impact which will help protect the pilot. 

One nice feature is a low fuel warning light hat blinks as the tank depletes (due to fuel sloshing) and goes solid when it gets below a certain level. That may alert a pilot who loses track or if there's a fuel leak.

A hardish butt landing or fall may cause the prop to hit the tank but with the tips well beyond the tank's edge it may not be much of a problem. For one thing, it's less likely for the prop to flex far enough to hit it at all and another is that, if it does, the prop may shatter without breaching the tank.

The frame bottom front has no sharp edges to catch on while ground skimming.

Construction (6): It is very well built, built mostly of aluminum. The separate cage pieces employ the conventional velcro strap method of holding them together.

The front harness webbing that slides through the comfort bar has enough reinforcement that it should not be a wear problem. Also the slits have special material and shape that should minimize wear.

The bars slide out forward and these can come out during the launch run. It would be nice to have a way these could be locked in place to prevent that.

The netting is riveted to the hoop of all sections so if you bend one section, the rivets must be drilled out for that section and then riveted into the new section.

A very handy feature of the harness is that it comes with speedbar pulleys, two on each side. It also has nice, deep side pockets. 

Reparability (4): Damage resistance is average and it will probably take an aluminum welder to repair bent pieces or they must be ordered from the dealer/distributor. There is a fair amount of interconnection so a bent cage will take some effort to restore.

Transport (5): Partial disassembly is very convenient. Unstrap the top cage pieces and put in the car. 

Shipping will require a very large box since the bottom third of the cage is welded together..

Overall: For heavy pilots or those wanting lots of well-managed thrust this machine will be a pleasure to fly. It also doubles as a tandem unit and fits naturally onto the   Fly Products and several other carts. For more information visit www.Aerolight.com