Airparamo GRAZhopper Owner's Manual - page 4
GRAZhopper Version 8.0 Owners Manual
Updated January 2013
©2006-2013, Airparamo LLC www.airparamo.com www.grazhopper.com
Page 4 of 12
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Operation of the GRAZhopper can be single person or tandem. The conversion is
simple and quick.
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Fully FAA legal under Part 103 for single person operations.
NOTE:
For tandem operation, special FAA recognized instructor certification is required.
Contact Airparamo LLC for details on this.
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Strong design. The design of the GRAZhopper is basically a triangulated truss, where
the cables act in unison with the rigid frame to form a strong, stable, lightweight
structure. Additionally, all tubing on the GRAZhopper is round, which is the strongest
and most efficient shape for uneven loading. The GRAZhopper has been thoroughly and
rigorously field and flight tested with heavy single and tandem operations. It has
withstood hard landings and severe crashes with usually no or minimal damage,
protecting the pilot and occupants.
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Stable. The low center of gravity, wide wheel base, and the placement of the mass of
the motor ahead of the rear wheels minimizes rollovers and turtling (where the trike tips
backwards onto the prop).
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Protection for pilot and passenger. The
main frame wraps around the pilot and
passenger to protect the occupant(s) in the
event of a crash or roll over. The main roll
bar assembly is made of super-strong, thick
walled, military grade 4130 Chrome Alloy
tubing.
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Light-weight. The GRAZhopper weighs
only 32 lbs 6 ozs, without harnesses.
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Quickly folds up for transport or storage in
less than 5 minutes with no tools.
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Quickly disassembles into an even smaller
footprint for easy shipping. The trike can
easily ship world wide in a 1’ x 1’ x 5’ box.
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A universal motor mounting system accepts just about any PPG motor frame
available and connects or disconnects the motor to the trike frame in under a minute.
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A unique rear wheel alignment system makes it easy to keep the rear wheels
tracking straight. This adjustment can be done in the field in 5 minutes or less with
simple hand tools.
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Designed so that motor thrust angle points slightly upward on takeoff and then
slightly downwards in flight. This helps with inflations and take-offs since the motor does
not disturb the layout of the wing on the initial motor run up. Additionally, the slight
upward thrust line helps to minimize dust and debris from getting airborne and
consequently getting sucked into the prop or disturbing bystanders.
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Designed and built for years of trouble free operation. The most stressed areas are
reinforced with saddles, spacers, or inserts to absorb and distribute forces and keep the
adjoining pieces moving freely as designed. As such, the GRAZhopper is capable of
absorbing repeated hard impacts with grace and ease.
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Aircraft grade materials used throughout: 6061-T6 Aluminum, 4130 Chrome Alloy,
and AN hardware are examples of the quality materials used. These are the same
materials and hardware used in certified aircraft. All AN hardware on the GRAZhopper is
sized, fitted, and fastened using certified aircraft standards. Any other hardware on the
GRAZhopper is aircraft or marine grade or is of the highest quality available.
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Designed and built using sound, tested, proven aircraft construction principles and
standards. Every connection is mechanically fastened (bolt/nuts or rivets). It is one of
the strongest methods of joining aluminum and steel parts together (welding aluminum
and some steels often significantly reduces the temper, and thus its strength). The use
of bolts and nuts to fasten pieces together is the standard in the aircraft industry.
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Cables are aircraft grade, coated with a UV resistant PVC.
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All machined parts are finished with a tough powder coat or are anodized.