PKD Buster

Introduction

But ye gods, this is a responsive kite. The handles are shorter that any other kite I have flown, but to me this is an advantage. The control that I have over it is instant.

I was flying it at Skypark, using my buggy, and the winds, although coming from the west from the sea, were unusually blustery. The gusts were between 12mph and 25 mph. A large range, and it gusted up in a second. The kite just took all this in its stride. It happily let me ride on a close reach, using the strength of the winds, it let me buggy round the mound in the middle of the field, and it let me turn at will. This combination of winds and a good high wind kite helped me improve my skills round the obstacles arranged around Skypark.

The kite also has some lift and quite a powerful pull in higher winds. I find this a stable kite to fly, once the wind is strong enough to pull me along, you can place it in the wind window, and it stays there. When the wind drops, you can instantly start swooping the kite, which, as I say is extremely responsive.

Buggy and Board

You could use this kite for the buggy or the board, for the beginner / intermediate. I mostly use it for my buggy, but my son has used it on his board. With the kite set up as per factory settings (see below Adjustable bridle) it does not give a great deal of lift, but there is some there, particularly if you set it up to give lift, so don't expect it to be a pussy cat. I would stress the importance of safety gear, at the very least a helmet should be worn even when static flying. My son and I have experienced the consequences of not doing this, resulting in concussion from being pulled by a small kite in blustery winds.

Adjustable bridle

This kite comes with an adjustable bridle. I have just kept to the factory settings, and the kite has performed well for me. It is now becoming more documented as to

how a kite responds regarding different bridle adjustments so, if you would like to know more about it, Flexifoil have written instructions on how to adjust the Blade IV.

http://flexifoil.com/downloads/instruction_manuals.php

Click on

Blade IV - Triple A Bridle System

The principles are the same for this kite. I have also attempted to explain it myself

In my review of the 5m Buster.

Build quality

To me the canopy of the kite is built well, which makes it such a fun kite. I like the bridle set up as well, but the lines are all one colour, white, which later become grey as you use it. Because of this the single colour of the lines the bridle can look confusing, so when you first unwrap it take a long careful look at the set up. It comes in a white stuff sack, not particularly cool, but practical, or at least it would be if it wasn't white.

Value for money

Definitely good value. For the £80 I paid for it new, I get a huge amount of fun out of iit.

Downside

It does not come with kite-killers, but I always fix them onto any kite that I am flying.

Unfortunately an emergency release of the handles one day resulted in the break-line fixing to one of the handles breaking. This is repairable, with a globule of resin and some tape to secure the fixing whilst it set.

Also these first busters have line stretching problems. For the kite to continue flying well, attention has to be paid to line length adjustment after a few good sessions.

Conclusion

Intermediate

Once the problems have been sorted out, I think this is an excellent kite for higher winds for the intermediate and for getting the feel of the location you are flying at. I sometimes use it as a warm up kite, as it's responsiveness allows me to land it quickly, or to fly it away from danger in an instant. I don't tend to fly if the winds are gusting up to 30mph, so in my view, this is the time to put it away.

Beginner

If you are new to flying this would be good starter kite to fly in lower winds, to get the feel of how four line kites respond to the controls. Once you gain confidence, you can take it out in higher winds, and it will start to pull you on a board or buggy

By : gammajonnysdad