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Last post about this request was in 2011 more than 10 years ago. Where is the best place to fly dual line stunt kites in Brisbane, preferably close to Carindale? -
From the album: Flying Wings Silver Fox 2.3 UL
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From the album: Flying Wings Silver Fox 2.3 UL
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From the album: Flying Wings Silver Fox 2.3 UL
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From the album: Flying Wings Silver Fox 2.3 UL
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From the album: Flying Wings Silver Fox 2.3 UL
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From the album: Flying Wings Silver Fox 2.3 UL
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34 downloads
The original Flexifoil Stranger kite manual with kite specifications and setup guide. -
just thinking how many 2 line kite flyers there are in Victoria. I know of me, @igeighty, @mezzararty
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I recently took my 9 year old twin daughters to Kitty Hawk on the coast of North Carolina, where we decided to pick up some kites at Kitty Hawk Kites to fly at Jockey's Ridge next door. Jockey's Ridge is an expanse of massive sand dunes that, once you are upon them, make you feel somewhat like you are in the Sahara. This is the area where the Wright brothers tested gliders before moving on to powered flight. Introductory hang gliding classes are taught on the dunes. I gave the kids each $50 to buy kites, trying to encourage them to get parafoils or soft kites, as I'm tired of seeing kite spars break or get lost. While I had no luck convincing them, I started looking at what's available as I noodled around the store. I noticed but didn't buy the first day, the 2 and 4 line stunt foil kites hanging from the ceiling above and my interest was peaked. The second day we returned, and I decided that it was time to buy "daddy's kite." I bought the Prism Snapshot 1.9, because it seemed like a good introductory kite at a reasonable price. Also, I live in the middle of the state where we don't get much wind, and the salesperson indicated that the larger surface area would handle lower winds better. I was excited to go out immediately and try it on the ridge. I think the winds that evening were around 25 knots or so. This turned out not the best environment to try my first stunt foil. I weigh 170 lbs, and it dragged me all over the dunes! I even found myself unexpectedly tossed onto my back on the face of a dune once as the kite raced to the zenith in the middle of the power zone. While the power was admittedly a little scary in those winds, it was a total blast!!! The next day the winds were very light, giving my girls a chance to try it out. Within 20-30 minutes, they were doing unbelievably well, with very few crashes, and doing many loops and death defying swoops toward the ground. As other reviewers have mentioned regarding the Snapshot kites, the construction seems very good, and while it sounds aweful and still makes me wince when it hits the ground, it survives just fine. As also noted, there are only vents on the leading edge, so any sand that finds its way inside is not so easy to dump out if it's fine grain. It does fly right out of the bag, and I think the trick to getting it to fit back in nicely is to learn where to crease and fold it. Since it's purely fabric (except for the winder), it stuffs in just fine. We never really had any issues with tangling of the lines or bridles. Winding the strings back onto the provided winder provides easy setup the next time with no tangles or major twists. We've only flown this kite on large expanses of sand at this point. Speaking of that, we didn't really appreciate how much room is required to fly it given our experience levels and how much we were dragged around. Standing under the kite as a pilot, you don't have an impression of just how long the lines are at 100ft, but looking at pictures taken from the side, it's quite a distance away from the pilot. So, inland, we have had a bit of trouble finding a large enough grassy field away from trees, power lines, etc. If you've never flown a power kite before and try this out in high winds as I did, you really need to be away from people, power lines, trees/buildings etc. It is a two line kite with no safety to depower it, so it can really pull you around and get you into trouble if you aren't careful. On the whole, this kite was a great buy. My kids were able to pick up the stunt flying very quickly and were thrilled to fly it. They decided to spend more time on the ridge flying the kite than at the beach by the ocean. It has also sparked a touch of obsession in me now, as I find myself watching the trees outside my office judging the wind to see if I can take it out for a spin! By : ceng
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disclaimer : I am not an experienced kite-flyer, so this review is not going to be coming from a very scholarly perspective but if you are a fellow newb, then maybe this can help you pick out your first kite... this was mine! I have been interested in kiting for some months now, and while shopping at Cabela's last week, I noticed that they had started selling Prism kites, and furthermore, that they had the Snapshot 1.9 for 30 bucks off, so I grabbed one. (only the purple one... guess no one likes that color) Setup: After reading the beginners guide on this site, I headed out to the nearest park that had big grassy fields, determined to apply all that I had learned. The kite is ridiculously easy to set up: two lark's head knots and you're done. (the velcro bridle/tail holder is ingenious) I unwound the lines from the winder, which struck me as kind of flimsy, but very functional. Ready to fly! Launching: This kite is pretty easy to launch, even in lighter winds. The first few times up I started by holding the bridle, walking backwards, and letting string out as the wind pulled the kite up. A few strong gusts of wind and a pair of burned hands later, I decided I was better off launching in the normal way, so I tried that. I had to run backwards a bit until the kite was 10+ meters up, but once there it was smooth sailing. Note that the windspeed that day was only 13mph with gusts to 20mph and not terribly consistent, can't help but thinking it would climb a bit quicker with more consistent wind. Flying: The kite has very predictable flying characteristics once you get used to it's quirks, overall a very pleasant kite to fly. If the wind is lacking, the kite will luff easily at the sides of the window, but the good news is you can usually pop it back into shape by yanking on the lines and running to the side. After a bit of practice I was able to keep it flying even after being folded completely in half. If the windspeed picks up a good bit, the kite will sometimes overfly you, but this is also simple to address by either walking backwards or turning the kite into a dive to bring it around. Much to my surprise, this thing has a decent amount of pull: while it wasn't even close to dragging me around (I weigh in at 235), I found myself using my arms to hold the kite back a lot more than I thought I would. Lots of fun. Manouverability: Despite being large and floppy (no frame) the kite turns extremely well, even in light winds. I was taken aback by how quickly you could execute s-turns and spins with this kite; it was almost as fast as a smaller (0.75M^2) framed kite I had borrowed previously, but considerably more stable when ending a fast turn. After a half hour of practicing I had the kite running back and forth in the window with little difficulty. Landing and packing: The kite was easy to bring down, I just walked towards it slowly and it settled easily. Getting it folded up to fit in the bag it came with required a minor miracle of spatial engineering, but I eventually got it in. The winder proved handy for storing the lines, although one of mine got tangled in a bush, but that is my own fault for not paying attention to it while I was trying to fit the kite in the bag. Construction: The kite is very sturdy, having been smacked into the ground a few times while I got used to steering it, as well as taking a dip in a pond and assaulting an unlucky duck who was in the pond when the kite crashed in it. The kite survived both the water and the angry duck with no ill effects, other than needed a quick rinse with a hose to get the moss off. Even after repeated collisions with a hard grassy field and one incident with some variety of thorny bush, the kite showed no visible wear. Gripes: In all fairness, they should have made the storage bag a bit bigger as it is troubling to make the kite fit in it; but maybe I'm just doing it wrong. The tail, while looking nice, doesn't really add anything in terms of stability, and is prone to getting tangled up in the bridle. While this didn't cause problems, it was extremely annoying to have to untangle the tail after the kite was landed. Value/ final comments: At sixty bucks American, this is a lot of kite for not much money. (if you don't mind flying a very feminine-looking purple kite anyhow) I found myself having tremendous fun with the kite, and it stood up to my inexperience (read: abuse) with aplomb. Can't wait for another sunny day to go fly it! By : jockeys
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If your like me, you will have watched people fly these strange looking kites and wondered what its all about. You've then gone onto the inter-web and found something that looks like a power kite but costs an arm and a leg (and some gold teeth). So, as like most people you turn to trusty e-bay for a bargin. Well the genral rule is, keep clear of e-bay bargns, but then you spot the Radsails 145 for £20. You think its not a very big kite but then again it is only £20 and Radsails is a propper kite company. What do you do? Do you ask people if it's any good? Do you checkout the Radsails web page? Do you go to a kite shop and ask about the £20 kite in the window? Well, here is what I did. Buy it. This was my first power kite, yes, it's a power kite, yes it only cost £20, yes it is good value for money. When I took this kite out for the first time I found it very easy to set up. It only has 2 lines so its prety stright forward to attach them. You can launch it by yourself but a willing assistant is recomended. As for me, I just lay it on the grass, gave a tug on the lines and up it went, easy as that. Ok, ok, your right, its only a small 2 line kite so if your looking for lift / traction then errrr nope, your not going to get much from this, but you will learn the flying skills you need with this kite. Thats right, for the beginer this really is a good kite. Face it, you dont want to part with £150 hard earned to have three or four full speed dives straignt into the ground, whack, but a £20 kite hmmmm sounds like a better idea. Trust me, as a beginer, you will crash your kite into the ground a lot. Once you can keep it in the air for more than 15 seconds you realise that this little kite is rather responsive, zipping accross the sky at a good pace. The controls are nice and easy and the kite reacts well to your input. Being quite small it does require a bit of a breeze to keep it in the air but not as much as you think, about 5 mpg min should do, as for the max wind, 20 mph would be a good top end, this will result in the lines stretching but in the end we all have to live with that anyway. Right, I have gone on for long enough, so here is my conclusion. This is a great little kite, but, it is a little kite. If, like me your looking to learn how to fly, crash and even destroy a kite, buy this one, its a bargin for £20 and it takes a beating. If you want real power or something that will reverse launch look for something a bit bigger with 4 lines. My Radsails 145 has pride of place in the boot of my car, ready to fly where ever I go. By : stevenqneuk
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Fun, fun, fun. This kite was my first 2 line parafoil kite. Flying it for the first time on the South Carolina island of Hilton Head with a wind of about 15 mph and 100 ft of dual line and straps provided with the kite it inflated quickly and was swiftly at the top of the wind window. It did not take long for me to get the feel for it's responsive 108" of sail area. The pull was not overwhelming but was very substantial in the wind speed. I was impressed with the construction and the strength of the kite as well as it's quick response to my commands. In no time I was cutting low across the wind window sliding down the beach. That evening the wind was still at 15mph and I took it out to the beach and attached two chemical glow sticks at the line connection points. In no time I had an audience of evening beachwalkers gathering around, "that looks really wild from far away!" was the prevailing comment. The kite also comes with a nice storage sack with mesh panels to shed sand and aid in drying. It's constructed with connection points on top for stacking another kite for even more fun. Currently Prism has a line of P-Series kites available in four sizes from 66" to 132" and two color schemes. If you are in the market for an affordable, very well constructed kite the Prism P's are a great way to start. By : MuchMuch
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My first review so here goes...... I initially bought this kite in the hope that it might be a trainer for me for later quad line foils. Having seen people flying foils at the local site I was aware of the power that foils could produce and was fully intent on staying at ground level until I was confident enough to make the switch. Having ordered the kite from my local supplier it arrived with handles, a detailed instruction leaflet and a nice instructional video outlining how to set up and tricks that could be performed. The lines were supplied separately were 15m climax low friction which I though seemed short but were fine in the end Having flown dual line stunters for about 7 years I was a little surprised when I assembled the kite as it looked almost 2D, however having flown a rev 1 a few years before my worries were soon put to rest. I watched the instruction video with detail and read the instruction leaflet with care so I though I was ready for my first flight when I went to the local site. Everything was assembled as instructions dictated and was impressed at how eager the kite seemed in wanting to get airborne so not wanting to be one to disappoint I pulled the handles and the thing shot into the air and sat there nicely. Landing was a similar success when the bottom lines were applied it shot down quickly and landed back on the ground. Turning was where things differed a lot. Being stuck in my dual line mindset, when I relaunched it I pulled on the left handle hoping it to turn right only to find it coming spiralling to earth. A quick check of the instruction leaflet soon sorted this out and instead of pulling the handle a turn in the wrist was all that was needed. Getting it to move around in the wind requires the pilot to apply tension on the pair of lines perpendicular to the direction of flight i.e. forward flight requires tension on the top lines, sideways flight (not turning) reqires the handle to be gently applied tension This is where this kite differs than other quad liners in that every edge can be a leading edge in that it is as happy to fly forwards as it is backwards and will fly sideways without hesitation. Couple this to the sharpness of the controls and you have a very fun piece of kit. One word of warning though do not take it out in gusty winds, although it might be within the wind range of the kite I have suffered a couple of broken spars as the sail thrashes back and forth in mid-flight after being battered by gusts. I have had mine now for 5 years and despite lots of use it is still in an excellent condition and worth every penny spent on it. As a trainer for quad line foil, as I initially purchased it for, forget it. Get a small foil or get someone to teach you. If you thrive off adrenaline when kite flying you probably won't enjoy this kite however if you want to take a little step back from getting airborne once in a while you won't be disappointed. By : prometheus_uss
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The Addiction listed as durable enough for the beginner or novice flyer and performs for the master flyer as well. It was designed for winds of 4 to 20 mph, I think the 4 mph might be just a tad lean. But, the kite does perform well at winds from about 6 mph on up. I haven't tried it in winds over about 11mph yet. In light winds like the 4 mph mentioned the kite will fly, but gets kind of skittish and will tumble out of the sky if you hit a lull. In proper winds though, the kite is a blast. Construction is solid and very well made, with solid carbon fiber frame components and great graphics. Weight is a mere 6.4 oz / 182 grams. The kite goes together easily and can be flying on the included 80 lb test Spectra lines and straps in minutes. One thing I really like is that Premier thought to include wrist straps with the finger loops too. Very cool idea, and other companies should follow this idea. A plastic figure 8 winder is also included as well as a real nice kite bag, with a mesh pouch on top for the winder and straps, and a nice polybag for the kite. Regarding construction....on the stand offs that connect the trailing edge to the lower spreader there are little rubber end caps that fit over the spar and into the fitting on the spreader. Mine were NOT glued on very well and they were constantly coming off the little spar, either staying inside the fitting or falling off completely. A small point, but if you lose one unless you have a great kite store nearby like mine (Kitesville in Indian Rocks Beach, FL), you can't easily replace them. My suggestion is to check them out when you first get this kite and use a better glue to reglue them on securely. Flying: I'm still on a learning curve with tricks, but it is said that this kite will do all of them and my guess is that it would. It is extremely responsive, turns on a tip, precise in flying patterns and can do some neat slack line stuff. It'll fly to directly overhead and if you let the lines slack the kite will drift backward nicely and quite straight too. At the edges of the envelope the kite is great and tip stands and stabs at the edge are easy. Directly into the power window you can tip stab it too and it's easy to land on both tips for relaunches. Under good winds it generates enough noise that folks take notice, both of the lines singing in the wind as the kite powers by, and on straight vertical dives you can get a nice noisy buzz off the trailing edges too. Overall: a great little stunt kite with lots of speed, precision, and excellent construction. I had an older gentleman watching me a day or so ago flying it. He remarked that he'd barely managed single line kites, let alone a dual line stunter. Well, I proved he could fly it by putting the control lines in his hands and launching it for him, within minutes he was very much at ease flying it -- making lazy S's in the sky. So it's a kite that will please the beginner, and the intermediate or advanced flier. By : harpman
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I've had my Wind Dance 3 several weeks now, and have flown it in low winds, and decent breezy days. I bought one of the 'close-out' models, and the Seattle Airgear folks are off into retirement soon. The 'close-out' I bought was supposed to have some puckered stitching, but I couldn't find it. First impressions were some concerns about the bridle...lots of lines in a crossed configuration. After reading all the hoopla on the website about tangled bridle lines and what to do (including sending it back to have it untangled!) my first thoughts were that tangles would be inevitable. So far, I have managed to do it when the canopy collapsed at the window edge and the kite spiraled to the ground in a balled up mess. But, sorting it all out was easy. Upon receiving the kite I did all that was asked...read the entire 37 page 'manual', re-read the website (which is a rambling, non-cohesive diatribe on the merits of this kite and the lack of merit in today's kite world according to the owner). I checked the bridle settings and familiarized myself with the entire kite. Off to flying........... Day one was a day with low winds, 4-7 mph with occasional lulls. I started with the kite at factory bridle settings and found that the kite would fly, albeit not at the level of forgiveness of my HQ Symphony 1.8, at the edges of the envelope it would fold up like a cheap suit and tumble to the ground requiring me to make the 'walk of shame'. I adjusted the bridle a bit, and the kite responded a bit better. In subsequent days I found the kite seems to like the stiffer winds better, as I do. I still don't think it flies as broad an envelope as my HQ does. I can routinely get the Symphony to hold itself at the window edge nicely without falling from the sky. The Wind Dance 3 needs to constantly be flown, no resting at the edge or it will collapse. Even today, in winds of 8-12 mph if I wasn't 'pulling' as Seattle Airgear suggests, the kite will collapse and tumble. I even had the kite at the top of the window, where most kites will park nicely until a line pull changes it, and the Wind Dance 3 inverted itself, collapsed and made its way to terra firma. This is frustrating at times, but then the website says this is a kite that has to be flown at all times, I read that as saying constant input to the control lines or you'll be walking out to re-launch it. When it does fly well, it pulls nicely, it is very fast and those absurd loops and edge turns on the website videos are all very easy to do. I've done loops until dizzy and the kite still controls with many linewraps. It's simply a different flying kite in that it requires the constant line pulls and controlling...no edge pauses or slack line stuff or it'll do the fold-up-cheap-suit routine. I think the kite likes near constant wind, if there's any gust and lulls you'll be very busy keeping it aloft. Best bet is to get the kite, read the manual a time or two, fly it in different winds, definitely make the bridle changes to see which setting flies best because one setting on this kite does NOT fit all winds, then re-read the manual again and keep flying. I'm certain this kite has much more potential than I've seen from it, and I'm not about to merely dismiss it. When it has flown well, it's been a blast, when it hasn't, it's been a pain in the arse. But I'm on a learning curve with it, and I think there's more to learn. Construction quality seems first rate. Nicely sewn, nice fabric and colors. The bridle lines seem a bit light, and I've read of others breaking lines but I haven't had the luxury of real high winds yet with this kite (and honestly, I can't wait to see what it'll do in higher winds, say the 12-18 mph range or more). Meanwhile, I'll put in a bunch more time with it and see what I can learn. One thing I did do was to take the B-line bundles where they pass through the larkshead connector knot and color them because with the bridle adjustments it makes it easier to grab the entire colored bundle of B-lines and pull then to and fro as one adjusts the bridle length. There's quite a bunch of lines coming together there, it helps believe me. A bit of colored magic marker to define those adjustable lines makes a difference. Launching: easy on a beach where a bit of beach sand to anchor the trailing edge and a light pull on the control lines lifts the leading edge just enough to begin to inflate the cells does it. A quick pull and the kite rockets straight up. On grass, I find that laying it out on its back with the leading edge away and just enough tension on the lines to pull the wing tips in and then the leading edge up just a wee bit will get you launched with a quick pull. The other launch methods in the manual I haven't mastered yet. I did manage one great launch into a nifty stall just feet off the ground. Bottom line: do I like the kite? Yes! I'll reach for it often and continue to do the Wind Dance as I actively fly this kite with near constant control line input. And there'll probably still be days when I fail to respond to the kites feedback and it'll collapse on me. But I'll bet those will get to be fewer and fewer as I progress. Sense the kite, respond to feedback on the lines, rely less upon what you see the kite doing and more on feel and I'm sure the enjoyment will come. By : harpman- 3 comments
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- seattle airgear
- wind dance 3
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I'm writing this as a rediscovered kite flyer... I never imagined the prograss made since I flew my last 'bat' kite when I was about 12. My 4 year old, who bugged me endlessly over the winter to fly kites, got me to look at what was out there and I was floored... I started with a dual line stunt kite and then got a Revolution 1.5 SLE. Unfortunately, winds here in Chicago started out being VERY crummy and I have had all of about 10 mins of not very good time flying the Rev. While this wasn't happening, I started reading about traction kites and called my favorite kite guru, Kent over at A Wind Of Change, to get some advice. The Ozone line of kites was recommended and since I had no experience at all, I asked Kent to make a recommendation on which one. Since what drew me back into kites was the feeling of power, that's all I really wanted. No desire to buggy, surf, ski or jump... I just wanted something that pulled on me. Kent recommended the LD Stunt and that's what went for. I was told that Ozone had an impecable product and I have to say that when I pulled everything out of the bag, I was not dissapointed. I think we all know what the LD Stunt comes with: Kite Lines Handles Stuff Sack. I received it on a Friday and after spending yet another entire weekend, looking at limp flags, I finally got the chance to fly in on my lunch hour on Monday. My first impression on setting it up was again, quality... The line set, while a fairly hideous color combination, was sturdy, easy to unwind and even easier to layout. The ends are sewn and have number tabs, making them easy to connect to the right part of the bridal and handles. My only criticism on the ends are that the loops may be a little small and the number tags sewn into the ends will probably end up getting accidentally ripped off since they are too close to the loops. Winds for my first traction kite experience were in the 10-12 mph range and steady. After staking the handles, connecting the lines and standing the kite up, it sat there, pulling at the line and wanting to fly... I unstaked the handles, picked them up and pulled my thumbs back. Holy crap, the LD shot up and just flew. Within a few mins, I was able to control the basics and was thrilled at this incredibly cool piece of equipment doing what I told it to do. One thing I did notice right off the bat was that the brake lines seemed to be a bit long as I had a lot of trouble flying it in reverse. Other than that, this was the first piece of advertisement that I found to be true. The Ozone site said that I would fall in love with the kite immediately and it would leave me with a big grin on my face... yup... The next time I took it out, I put a knot in the brake line lead on the handles about an inch from the end and tied the brake lines in there. The winds were 15-20 with a few gusts of a little more. As soon as I launched, I was getting pulled all over the field. It was marvelous! This was almost exactly the amount of power that I wanted and was as much as I could handle, for now. Most of the time I had to lean against the power to keep from going face down in goose poop. By the end of my lunch hour with this kite, I had a good grasp of control and could do almost everything I wanted to. It wasn't pretty, but it was a start. I also noiced that I had gathered a small group of people who were trying to figure out what I was flying as well as being entertained by the idiot getting pulled all over the field... Over all, I am completely and totally happy with the LD Stunt. Great power in good winds, incredibly fun to fly and above all, for someone with relatively NO experience, it was incredibly easy to learn to fly. I highly recommend this kite for beginners and to anyone looking for a thrill. In fact, I just bought 2 more Ozones... a 3m Riot and an IMP (for my wife) My only dissapointment is that I pissed away 30 years, not flying.... By : cbabbman
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As a follow on to my review of the excellent Radsail 145 Tom (my seven year old) and I have also been flying the HQ Bebop. This kite is a delta configuration stunt kite, its cheap and its for beginners. But it does not show it. The kite is well made of ripstop nylon and fibre glass poles. The delta span is 69cm height and 145cm wide, far from huge but plentiful for a youngster Tom and a beginner me. It is well stitched and quite neat, not perfect but excellent value for the money paid (bought with the Radsail for less than £40.00 all in). It comes ready to fly with Q-Fusion (what is that) lines 20 meters long and with 50lb breaking strain. This kite really is great, straight out of the bag it flies in 2.5-5Bft (hey thats what it says on the bag). Agile, fast, spinny and really quite forgiving. We enjoy this kite a lot it is great for where we are with tricks and stunts, launches easily from the ground and can be controlled back down sometimes, I am sure that a better flier would find more fault but at this time it is what we know and love. Having a beginner and a youngster use it this kite has been smashed into the floor gently and often with some great vigour, we have yet to break any of the poles and we have really tried hard too. Indestructable!, no, no kite is but it is close enough for us at this time. Would we recommend this kite, heck YES. Pull it out pop it up and set grim factor to 11. No expert but great learner. Thanks to the guys at Fleetwood kite shop, you really didn't let us down. Cheers. Phil & Tom By : PhilG
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This I realize is not your typical "racekite" but it does assist the avid kiter in understanding what a four line kite does while it is in the air. I bought this kite about ten years ago and have since moved aroudn and indeed back to foil kites - I wasn't looking for the funky aerobatic thing all the time. But, as stated above, I do think it is worth it to take this type of kite out once in a while to hone some skills in four line kiting. The kit was very basic but included a video tape (probably a DVD nowadays) which was very helpful (setting up, starting, flying, tips). The kite consists of the fabric (looks like a large W) and five spars, four of them are identical, which makes replacement graphite spars less costly. I damaged one end of a spar on the leading edge (3 spars joined together) and easily swapped it with a vertical spar (2 single spars) which poses no requirements to an undamaged end of the spar. Neat feature, but I was kinda proud I thought of that. In comparison to anything like a Buster or other handle driven four line traction kite, this looks and behaves much like a piece of paper in the air. You will definitely NOT get lift out of this kite, and you will immediately notice when you shouldn't pull the brakes. If you do, this kite will do one (or several) of the following: (a) it will flip up one wing and crash ( it will flip over completely and crash or © you will end up spending most of your time with the kite on the ground. It is very important to keep the top ends of the handles toward you always, this takes some initial getting used to but will help keep the kite up and in motion. Once in the air, the kite is like a post it pad. As long as there is at least a low 3bft wind going, this kite is easily placed anywhere on the sky and can be kept in any location within the power zone. Pull top end of handles - forward flight. Push top end (or tap the bottom) - stop and back up (much rather down). Tap one handle down - turn in that direction. Now these movements can be combined any which way. The most entertaining move being a straight start to the top - a 180 - a spectacular dive - and stop a foot off the ground - a 180 - landing. done. applause. It's really easy. The kite can also be shifted to the side by pulling an entire handle. This is needed to stabilize the kite when going slowly from left to right in a sweep, in order to keep the kite from touching ground. Also can be used to hover over water and do a funky touch on the surface. -- SUMMARY -- This kite can be stacked (I've seen a train of about 8 of these) and then you can use this kite for traction. Otherwise, keep to the technical aspects with a Rev I and then go rip around with your big foils! By : jensh
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This is an initial review based on the first flying day... (about 20 mins at lunch) additional information will be posted once I have more experience with the kite. So first impressions..... This kite is promoted as being different than other kites (especially stunt deltas). The company has a rather huge and very complex and difficult to navigate website that makes much of this. If you can get past the 'attitude' the product seems to be well researched, designed and manufactured. The hard part is extracting the details from the rest of the 'content'. Anyways I ordered one of their "seconds" that are sold at considerable discount. The product sold this way has a 30 day guarantee instead of a one year one, but the flaws are presented as being non-performance effecting. In my case the kite had a couple barely visible stains on the underside (flyer's side) of the canopy. At a distance of more than 2 feet they aren't even visible. Service was good buying direct from the company, which is the only way they sell. My order was shipped the same day as it was placed. I had it in my hands (across the border to Canada AND across the continent) in less than a week. Not bad considering the time it spent with Customs. I spent the evening it arrived reading the detailed and comprehensive manual and checking the kite out. Making sure the bridles were not tangled and were adjusted to the recommended first flight angle of attack. The fabric is top notch (Porcher Marine Skytex) and the stitching is heavy duty and nice and neat. The bag while small and matched to the kite colour is quite long, the full 22.4" of the kite's chord. It lacks any place to put lines or handles/winders etc. Not surprising since lines must be purchased or made for those who don't already have suitable lines from other stunt kites. Luckily Seattle Airgear sells spectra line making materials at VERY reasonable prices or you can get them already made for again very reasonable prices. Ok so enough about the "background". How does it fly? Short answer.... Very well. Its fast, precise and very manoeuverable. Ok longer answer.... It does take a little bit different technique from many stunt kites (deltas or foils) to get the most of out it but its not a radical departure if you're a smooth flyer. Its more like flying a power kite in the sense that there should always be some tension on the (power) lines. It maintains shape and inflation better than my Radsail 145 especially during fast/tight turns. Its easy to generate plenty of apparent wind and to "pump" the kite, again similar to a "power kite" to help it fly in lighter conditions or to sustain it through a lull. However once it collapses its harder to get it to re-inflate before it hits the ground. That shouldn't be a problem unless you're really pushing the limits though and considering the fairly high aspect ratio of about 4.4 its much more tolerant than I thought it might be. Compared to an HQ Symphony 2.2 I've flown some which is fairly similar in size and aspect ratio I think its more forgiving. Its definitely faster and quicker turing, but pulls much less. The main departure with this kite compared to other designs fo foils is the fact that there is relatively little "force" generated by the kite considering its size. I would say this is an indicator of the fact that it has relatively little drag and more lift while flying. So the main forces felt are more generated lift related than drag related unlike many other kites. So in summary is this kite worth it at 3-4 times the cost of a Radsail 145? I think so. I'm already considering a second one for my girlfriend to fly with me. No, its not really a "power" kite, but is is a fast, fun, flying machine. Consider it something to have in the bag to enjoy stunting when you're not using the big ones, or to introduce others to the sport of kiting. If you want more pull and less play then consider the Symphony 2.2 for just slightly more money. By : Rapt
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Introduction. I am a realative Newbie at Kiting, and whilst on holiday in South Wales I started to notice the Parafoils gracing the beaches of Pembrokeshire, and after flying a few small kites decided to venture into the world of two line Parafoil!, I found a shop in Saundersfoot and made some enquiries into Kites and explained My situation, the shop owner was very helpful and helped Me to decide on the Sigma Spirit 1.5, He demonstrated the Larks Head knot and gave me some safety information, and explained how to set up and start flying. When I unpacked the Kite I was surprised to find that for My £35 that I had bought a very well made Kite, the Material was crisp and looked very hard waring actually ripstop Nylon, a ram air inflated parafoil, all the stitching was very neat and tidy, On getting the sigma spirit into the air I found it was more stable than the two line Wild Thang Delta Stunter I had previously flown although manouvering around the wind window did take a short while to master, in the optimum wind speed 10-20mph it flew extremely well I found any higher up to 25mph it became rather twitchy and harder to control. Value for Money, Ace, I thought that although it was a big step from a £9.99p Delta Stunt Kite, it was worth the extra spend, very little time to set up, far more controllable and enjoyable to fly than anything I had previously flown, relativley easy to master, You can put on a real good show with this Kite although You can't do the more complex stuff that a four line Kite can, You will learn alot from this before making the break onto four lines. I love this Kite and wherever My hobbie takes Me next I will always keep it, Why? because its fun and it will always remind Me why I have a passion for Kiting, a good VFM product that will last a life time with the proper care and attention. By : Grinderboy
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I am new to kiting, but I wanted to throw a review out here for others to see. I tried to do research before I bought this kite, but I wasn't able to find anything! I couldn't believe it. The short version is, I am glad I bought this kite. Cost: $220 w/shipping Control: 4-line (no trimming, but able to reverse off the ground!) The construction quality seems quite descent. I don't want to say it's excellent, since I haven't seen anything else. Having flown it twice, my impression is that the fabric and lines seem durable and of good quality. I bought this kite as a beginner-intermediate trainer. I eventually want to get on the water with an inflatable, but I wanted to try the sport out before I heavily invest in it. I also didn't want to buy too small of a trainer as I feared I would get bored with it too quickly. This kite generates some descent pull even in mild winds. I recently flew it in about 5 mph winds. While in the power zone, this kite generated enough pull for me to scud slightly. I weight 175lbs. That seems impressive to me, but my experience is limited. The New Tech Eclipse handled wind lulls quite well. Not once did the wing collapse to the point where it fell out of the sky. Instead, it would just slowly drift down while keeping a small amount on tension in the lines. I also did not have any trouble using the brake lines to reverse launch this kite off of the ground after the kite has come to a rest with the leading edge down. For ~$220 US, I am very happy with this kite. By : mtford
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Actually this is no foilkite - but I guess some of you might be interested in some infos about the Elliot Mirage XL. I shot my Mirage XL for 100 Euros at ebay, a fantastic price. Well, I thought a big power delta will be fun and I have to say this kite is awesome. Package: A 180cm nylon quiver, black. All you think of on seeing this is 'what will this look built up?'. Kite: Ok, no five minutes after getting hold of my little darling I was starting assembling the kite in the livingroom - after a few minutes I worried if there will be enough space. The wingspan of the Mirage XL is 310 cm, the height around 130cm, so this is very impressing in a normal living room. The spars are 10 mm CFK so you can make a good guess what this kite is built for. The wings have two stiffeners and one GFK standoff each. The sail is made of several panels, the sewing is accurate and of a very good quality. However the standoff fittings needed to be fixed with some glue after losing two of them while flying. The bridle is made of a quite thick material which stretched during this summer making a resetting of the bridle necessary. I attached a pair of 35m, 130 kg Cyclone Extreme, which I think of being enough for only powerkiting. Starting and Flying: This is a heavy kite, more of a bomber than a lightweight precision tool. The 900 grams of kite really need a bit of a breeze, so flying under 2 BF is not possible. Starting needs as expected a bit of a tug and concentration, but as soon as the current is on it will 'talk' to you! The whooshing sound is really very impressive. This is a fast kite, as anyone can guess from the stretched shape. It is not only fast, with the speed there comes the power! This cannot be compared with a foilkite, the power delivery is more of a merciless kind. Loops generate more power and you think twice flying a loop with such a fast powerkite. This kite is a jealous one, it demands your total commitment to flying it, because of the speed - or maybe I am just too slow for it 😉 . It flies as on rails, however it overturns a bit because of the weight. Oh - does anyone expect me to talk about some tricksy line fiddling stuff? Not with this one, try to axle it and 900 gramms of kite just fall out of the sky. You may do that with an S-Kite, but the Mirage XL is too stretched. Conclusion : No foilkite flies like this one. Flying the Mirage XL is such a great experience. Speed, power, total commitment. I love my ram-airs, but this one is special, the fun flying it is incredible. I would not buggy with it, maybe an experienced buggier would try, but I think it is just too fast to buggy it. Fly it in higher winds, get dragged over the area, you can even get some small air with it - the merciless power the Mirage XL delivers will give you a big grin on the face. ... maybe a mystique from Elliot could top this experience. By : StZ
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