PKD Buster (fixed bridal)

I spent many happy years flying stunt kites, and now I have to spend time on the beach with young family, it seemed it was time to dust one off and fly again. Needless to say, the kite had decayed in the years of storage, and it was clear a new kite was in order. I'd seen foil kites being flown on the beach, and so, despite how expensive it seemed, two years ago I got a Symphony 1.4 as a birthday present. I can thoroughly recommend it, but when holiday loomed last year, I felt a new challenge was needed.

I was interested in learning to fly four string kites, and at first thought I might use the two anchor points at the back of the Symphony 1.4 to make a conversion (the 1.4 is so small it does not come in a four string version). My argument was that I'm not interested in traction, simply flying kites. Common sense prevailed, however, and started looking at small traction kites. Small, because I didn't want some lumbering giant, but something whose speed rather than pull made it interesting to fly. I finally settled on a Buster 1.4, partly because the adjustable bridle looked as though it would allow me to gain speed at the expense of traction. On-shore at Woolacombe had already given me sound advice on the phone, so a visit provided me with the kite, a stake and some good advice on flying, at the cost of about 75 pounds.

A lot has been said about this kite already in reviews here and elsewhere, so I will concentrate in the adjustable bridle. Before doing so I feel I must comment is on what one reviewer called the "happy shopper" bag. For me kiting is a solo operation, and I don't like having to remember where you've left things. So this small bag is a real boon; having laid out the strings, you unpack the sail, and stuff the bag into a pocket. I also have to make sure that none of the bridle lines have caught on the bridle knots...

Now to the bridle itself. There are four rows of lines attached to the sail, each row running parallel to the leading edge. The rearmost lines are attached to the brake lines. On each side of kite the front two rows are bundled together, and attached to one end of a piece of knotted string. The other end of each piece of knotted string is attached to the next-to-the-back row of lines. The flying lines are attached to the piece of knotted string, and so it acts like a classical kite bridle. There are five equally spaced knots down the bridle, which I will number from the leading edge backwards one to five. The kite comes with two knots pushed through the larkshead of the flying lines, despite the fact that the instructions give the impression that only one knot at a time should be pushed through.

My understanding of the theory is that if you use the lower numbered knots the kite has a low angle of attack, and so will not develop as much lift, but will also generate less drag (in the aerodynamic sense), and so should move faster. Of course whether the kite will fly or not in light wind is a competition between the drag (meaning it won't fly) and the lift (meaning it will). Drag turns out to be the more powerful, so if you have light winds it should fly if you lower the angle of attack. Now comes the bit I'm really hazy about. With a low angle of attack, the kite will fly faster, but turn more slowly. I guess that it must be because you use the difference in lift/drag between the two sides of the kite to turn it, and if the lift/drag forces are low (as they are with small angle of attack) then the turning force is lower.

So much for the theory. What happens in practice? Using the lower numbered knots certainly makes the kite fly in lighter winds, and reduces the pull. The first time I tried the lower numbered knots I thought (due to the lack of pull) that the kite was falling out of the sky, but then realised it was staying up there, and apparently flying faster (though this is hard to assess objectively). Less traction, more speed - exactly what I wanted. I'm not convinced there's any effect on the turning circle by changing knots, but practically its irrelevant anyway, as by using the brakes you can turn the kite around its own center anyway even with knots one and two (simultaneously) through the flying line's larksheads. The kite is (as others have reported) completely unflyable on knot five.

This year I wanted something new to try on holiday, and so bought some 30 metre lines. Then I discovered what the much-maligned adjusters on the brake lines are for. With the longer lines, the brakes had less effect, apparently because the brake lines needed shortening. I could use the adjusters to experiment with the brake-line length and get it right. I guess I have two options now. Either shorten the brake lines by the appropriate amount, or tie a knot in the lines on the handle, so the beads hold the brakes at a shorter length. The latter is clearly preferable if yo want to use the same line set with different kites.

So, in summary, I think both the brake-line adjusters, and the adjustable bridles are great innovations. I suspect in a year or so I'll be looking to a new kite. Something bigger would be nice, but I'm not willing to sacrifice speed. Were any manufacturer to offer adjustable bridles they'd be high on my list, as I know I can trim it for speed and not be left with some lumbering giant designed purely for traction.

By : timn