At Ozone we are very proud of the quality of our products and it’s something that we feel passionate about. This page explains why we chose some of the materials we use and how our wings are put together.

We started to develop our first wing on a clean sheet of paper. Choice of materials was one of the first problems to solve. Issues such as ageing, stability, ease of handling and cost etc had to be taken into account. In the end we chose the materials that we knew would do their particular jobs best. End of story.

Upper Surface

We have chosen to use Gelvenor for the upper surface of our gliders. We consider this silicone coated sail cloth to be the most resistant to ageing on the market. Dav and the design team spend a lot of time perfecting our wings to make them as wrinkle free as possible. Wrinkle free means a well designed glider with quality production.

Bottom Surface and Ribs

The loads on the lower surface of a glider are high so we use Porcher-Marine sailcloth which is the most stable cloth we know of. We also use Porcher-Marine cloth for the rib construction as it is important that these remain stable so as not to deform and affect the handling of your glider over time.

Lines

We are great believers in using the right product for the job. On the lower lines we make use of Edeilrid High Modulus Aramid for its stretch resistance, high thermal tolerance and acknowledged durability. For the upper cascades we have chosen Liros line. This specially heat treated dyneema in a finely woven sheath gives a line that is hard wearing allowing us to use a smaller diameter line for the same strength, meaning less drag, less weight and more performance.

Line Attachments

Our line attachments are sewn deep into the reinforcement area of the ribs, this makes them stronger, the Mojo is tested to 12G at 155kg. It also means that the load is spread over a larger area of material which will reduce any stretching and ageing of the cloth. This is a new feature that we have added to all our latest gliders.

Colour Scheme Accuracy

Take a look at the colour scheme of an Ozone glider and you will see the panels match up with millimetre precision, this indicates the accuracy and quality with which our wings are put together. This leads to wrinkle free gliders with consistent handling, performance and looks.

Our Manufacturing Facility

OK you can’t see this vital piece in our quality system, unless of course you get on a plane. We are very proud of the fact that all our paragliders and kites are manufactured in our very own high quality facility. Airconditioning not only keeps our workers cool but maintains the stability of our cloth during manufacture. The production is designed so every wing is fully inflated during final inspection. This allows us to maintain the highest levels of quality control all thanks to Dr Dave and his team

Risers

Our risers are manufactured using Guth &Wolf, zero stretch polyester webbing from Germany (25mm/2000daN, 20mm1600daN). Risers take a lot of wear and tear; we have reinforced the hook in point with two layers of webbing and a protective sheath of heavy-duty nylon cloth for maximum abrasion resistance. The risers are colour coded for ease of use and all of our gliders are equipped with split “A” lines for easy use of Big Ears.

Pulleys

Austri Alpine pulleys are the best in the world. We use pulleys with a cast alloy body and a brass roller that ensures a long working life. Oh and they’re shiny and rather sexy.

Maillons

The French company Maillon Rapide have been in the business of producing the best quality shackles, links and clips for many years. There are many look-a-likes but only one original; look for the stamped name and the breaking strength. Lines are kept neatly in place on the maillon using a rubber o-ring.

Mylar Tape

The leading and trailing edges are finished with Mylar tape to protect your glider and to stop any stretching so holding the shape of the glider. The accuracy of our colour schemes should reassure you that we are not hiding any panel inaccuracies behind the tape. Just rememeber 1mm error on a cell in a glider with 50 cells leads to an overall error of 5cm, this can make a marked difference to a gliders handling, performance and safety!

The Ozone Butt Hole

When we were the first to introduce this feature on our gliders there was quite a lot of sniggering, but now look at all the copycats out there. This velcroed opening in the wingtip of our gliders makes it easier to fish out all those stones, leaves, dirt, mobile phones etc that seem to collect in your glider. Getting rid of the dirt reduces abrasion of the cloth meaning your glider will last longer.

These materials and design elements combine to create a glider that if looked after will give you hundreds of hours of trouble free flying. However it is important to have your glider checked on a regular basis, for more information an glider inspections click here. If you need information on repairing the material of your glider then click here