midibot

End of an Era, indeed. Era has been defined as “a long and distinct period of history with a particular feature or characteristic.” Certainly applies to Ken in apparently ‘closing the book’ on sport kites. One of my first REAL stunt kites was the Air FX, which I acquired some 25 years ago. He’d already been building kites for quite a while before that. Still have that and a few others by him, and with good reason. Kinda sad, really, the thought that there will likely be no more dual liners from those hands. Things change. One will adjust to it. .

I have not tried spectra fishing line myself, but there are people here who have, or have discussed it. Using the search function on here I came up with this relatively recent thread which seems to advise against it, depending on the braid or weave (scroll down a bit in there): https://kitelife.com/forum/topic/10139-line-sets/#comment-79696 There are other comments by awindofchange and others in an older thread on another forum that may prove helpful: https://www.revkites.net/forum/topic/6166-spectra-fishing-line-vs-spectra-kite-line/ Let us know how your experiment works out if you proceed. It may be a useful addition to the knowledge base. .

I don't know how to say this, but here goes. The impression I get from seeing them online is that Hendga kites are quite low end. And that may be an understatement. The sole direct experience I have had with them is that of a quad of an acquaintance which exhibited substandard materials and construction compared with other kites, including others also made in Asia. Dare I say it: you get what you pay for (more or less). There may be other viewpoints on this, however. And if I am wrong, I am more than glad to revisit and/or revise my opinion. Hope that helps a little. . .

The Prism Guide to Kite Repair may be of assistance, depending on the nature of your repair: https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/0595/2906/8726/files/Guide-to-Kite-Repair.pdf?v=1636391279 If that doesn't help (or even if it does!) perhaps provide a little more detail on which part of the frame you are fixing, and, if possible, provide a pic or two and someone here may have more specific answers for you. And get that thing back into the air! .

Looks like the Flying Wings Jeager to me. I had two of them I got in the latter 1990s as well. The name always seemed to me to be a misspelling of the bird (or hunter), but that may have been intentional (?). Somewhere I have a copy of the original instruction sheet if that becomes relevant. .

Awesome old-tymey stunt kite. It looks like this one may even pre-date standoffs, which really does underline the age of the design. Early 1990s or so? Big time pull in a good wind, a real butt dragger! I have several, or would be all over this. 'Specially at this price. Thanks for posting this, it brings back memories. .

That is a good sign. You are pushing it. Timing develops. Happily, the Jammin' just uses 6mm or so pultruded, relatively cheap and plentiful. (I keep a stash on hand!). .

It’s funny how one takes some things for granted after awhile, and it becomes like riding a bike - you don’t even think of the mechanics after the initial stages (when you are probably thinking too much, if you are like me). So today when I went to fly after reading your post I decided to pay particular attention, and ‘watch’ myself do some snap stalls. Winds were a little on the strong side for some of the kites I had initially hoped to fly, so I pulled out the venerable Dodd Gross French Kiss. It likes a bit o wind. Thinking back, the turning point for me on the snap stall was practicing by taking it to the top of the window, and pointing the nose down, and flying down, to the snap stall. That snapper is a 180 degree change of direction, rather than the 90ish one does with some side to side stalls. An aggressive push with the right hand, to ‘take the wind out of the sail’ as someone described it, then pulling the same hand back somewhat and then pushing with both hands forward to settle the kite. Sometimes coupled with a bit of a walk forward, depending on the wind. One develops a feel on that. So the thought of ‘shaking the wind out of the sail’ is a mental image that helped me. Way back then (late 90s) I was flying a large big sailed kite in moderate winds when I learned it, so it was all kinda slo-mo, which I think also helped. That was an Aerie Air FX, a big 8-footer which was rock solid in precision manoeuvres. Still is It seemed easy on the French Kiss, but not sure I’d be starting on that if I had a choice. So yes, the kite matters, along with the wind. As one gains confidence, after starting the recovery fairly high for a while, you can try doing ever closer to the deck. Along the way, the 90 degree snapper came easier for me. Fun and games. Maybe a tip stab down the line…and...and...and... I agree with mebeatee -- a liberal dose of the 3 Ps is in order. And a lot of fun along the way. (Not sure this adds much other than a slightly different perspective, but there it is.) .

I think the two brass tail weights are intended to be at the bottom end of the spine, under the velcro bit. On some of my kites,(including my Jammin'), the friction of the tunnel at the velcro is enough to hold such weight(s) in place, but other kites have a 'stopper' such as a rubber O-ring, or a glued section of tubing where such friction may not be enough. A strip of electrical tape would do in a pinch. Experiment with trying it also with just one of the brass fittings, and none, to see what you like best for performance. Generally it affects the flippiness or fore-and-aft sensitivity, and thus ability to do certain tricks that require different capabilities that way. For instance, it makes doing Jacobs Ladders and Flapjacks easier to have the weights in, but at the cost of some stability perhaps. All quite kite, wind, and flyer dependent, and preferences may be subjective to the individual. Hth. .

My Sixth Sense STD at noon today - hope the pic works. This was a good day for it, with winds out of the south at the local soccer field, a good direction to maximise smoothness of the wind in that location. Variable, but around 12-14 kph (8mph-ish) and just about perrrfect for me. I was prepared for lower winds as well, with some ULs along in the bag (including the matching Sixth Sense UL). Delightful!

Very peaceful flight, mebeatee. Delightful. Great setting. Nice flying, too. What was the wind do you think? Lines? S'a big kite. (I had to look up ‘aleatora’ — found it means ‘random’ in Esperanto...? Interesting.) .

Wow! That was an exhilarating watch from the comfort of my couch. Well done. (I had to look up and refresh my memory about Nordic skates. I guess it might be a little trickier on my old hockey skates, eh? 😉 ) .

That's terrific. Do keep the group apprised on your adventures! .

Have to agree - $400 US dollars is an Outstanding budget. Higher end sport kite brand new, or maybe a couple of decent used ones. If the latter, maybe a Std and an SUL or UL to broaden enjoyable wind range. Think that moving up in size to a 7-8 footer will do wonders for performance and enjoyment. The smaller ones are quick little bombs, but larger kites -- ooo la-la. A fun mission for OP in any event! .

Price: may depend where you are, but a quick look for me here in Canada shows a sale price of $199 CDN at one vendor I found, for comparison. (You do refer to Canadian dollars in your post). Age: As long as it is a brand new kite, unflown and stored properly I would not be concerned about the design age if it goes back as far as you mention. While not everyone would agree, I think dual line sport kites have not changed THAT much in the intervening time. Many of my kites are as old or older and fly with the best, and newest, today. Again, just my experience. Have fun! .