I was planning to write a review of the new kite today, but after the flying, I decided not to. As already mentioned, the winds were a tad on the strong side, actually at times above the kite’s … comfort range. So I’m afraid I’m jumping to conclusions if I write my review based on today’s experience only.
The kite definitely felt much better those few moments the wind dropped, so I need to go out there again once the winds are in a more appropriate range for this light (wind) kite. It looked really good in the air though!
But what I can say something about is the lines and the handles! So let’s take a closer look at the lines first.
The Line Set
They come nicely rolled up on a sturdy winder and everything is held in place by a useful bungee. All lines are sleeved and in pairs. Sleeving is colour coded (red and blue) so it’s easy to keep the front lines from the break lines. No twists appeared when unwinding the lines. The lines feel very smooth when you let them run through your hand seemingly able to handle a few twists. …and they did!
The lines were indeed smooth and I ended up with quite a few twists without compromising the steering. I must say I was really surprised about such a nice line set being included!
A couple of negatives though. One pair of lines was a couple of centimetres shorter than the other significantly noticeable when flying. No big deal and easy to remedy for an experienced pilot, but I can see frustration from the novice
Also the sleeving was too thin IMO. This allows the larks head knots to become really tight and troublesome to open. A sleeving with a slightly larger diameter would remedy this.
But as a line set included with a (very) reasonably priced kite, I’m impressed! Especially when it comes to smoothness and the ability to keep on flying with many twists in the lines.👍
The Handles
Then over to the handles. Like I noted in the unboxing blog post of yesterday, they do look good! They work great when flying too!
They lie nice in my hands with just the correct diameter of foam for my likings and pivoting well on my middle finger when just guiding the kite in light winds.
One thing that would improve the overall impression is to use a thicker (and stiffer) cord for the leaders. The really small diameter cord combined with the same small diameter of sleeving made the larks heads almost impossible to loosen for field adjusting. I will definitely replace the leaders with something more heavy duty!
But again… quite a good overall impression of the handles.
Now, just let’s wait for the winds to calm down a little!
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> Also the sleeving was too thin IMO. This allows the larks head knots to become really tight and troublesome to open. A sleeving with a slightly larger diameter would remedy this.
Interesting, my problem is typically the opposite, the sleeving starts to slide (kite or handle side) after say 1-2 years, so I have told myself that I should use a narrower sleeving (should help?). If it would be a problem undoing the lark’s heads from the (pigtails of) the bridle, I have seen a piece advice on KL on how to undo the lark’s heads when you use lark heads with no sleeving. Cut four small pieces of line (one for each line) to make small “handles” that are attached to the central part of the four lark’s heads. That is, the little/tiny extra line handle should go to the central part of the lark’s head that that you normally would have grabbed with your nails when undoing the lark’s head. I only have one line set that doesn’t use sleeving (on the kite side), but I have managed to untie the lark’s heads without this extra loop though – perhaps because a spectra/dyneema line is so slippery in itself? Hm.. the ideal sleeving should perhaps have high friction on the inside while the outside should be of low friction?
How long are the handles that you get with this kite? Myself I have practically exclusive been using Revolution “11 inch” handles just because they have been available. B.t.w. 11 inch means if measured along the curve of the handle, the distance between the holes for the joints of the ~1 cm metal loops is about a foot (12 inch). I’m considering to try to out the longer handles of my (I-really-ought-to-learn) Rev Indoor in really low wind on my 1.5 B-series to be able to maintain the height during normal hovers without moving backwards and still be able to put it close flat when the TE is from you. Using the same definition/way-of-measuring as for the 11inch handle, the Rev Indoor handle would be a 13inch handle. Actually, the snagless design makes them just so slightly longer than 13 inch it seems.
(The comparison between using an 11 inch handle on a 1.5 B-series and a 13 inch handle on a Rev indoor isn’t straight forward. The Rev Indoor haven’t got a bridle, but only a pigtail at each of the four nocks.)
There are a couple of “tricks” you can do to prevent the sleeving from sliding and making it easier to loosen that larks head knot.
A) If you place a tiny (overhand)knot at the end of the sleeving, it’s easier to pick the tiny noose at the end to loosen a tight larks head knot.
B) If you make a couple of overhand knots, or even better, figure of eight knots at the other end of the sleeving, this will prevent (or indeed minimize) the sleeving to slide.
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Your question about the length of the handles I must revert to. The handles are in my car and it’s too cold 😉 to go and get them right now! 🙂