midibot

Following this with interest. I have a few older New Tech kites including some from the Dodd Gross design days but also more recent. I have not seen any new stuff from them for a while and did wonder... Keep us posted. .

Speedy recovery will include getting in a fly or two of some kind or another, for the spiritual side, as soon as you are able. As you know. All the best, .

I happen to have a Lam Hoac Dream Machine circa 1998 or so. But a quick google search indicates that Mr. Hoac may now have a 2020 version, which is neat. I suspect that you are referencing the 2020 version, but if the older kite I can pull mine out and have a boo at it for suggestions. However, in either case, Lam is your best resource as BT suggests. . .

I remember wondering the same thing - wanting to know more about the wind when I took up kiting. I felt I didn’t have a clue and of course measuring the wind seemed so important. I mean we are talking kites here! The driving force! I even got a Dwyer wind meter at one time, used it a few times, and now don’t even know where it is. These days I check a couple of hourly forecasts on my phone, look out the window at the trees in my back yard, and pack along a slew of kites (or perhaps just one) for the walk down the street to the soccer/flying field. The actual conditions at the field can vary from the forecast (it’s weather!) and even what it says right now can be off. As important, is that the wind at face level is usually, although not always, different than say at 30 feet or 85 feet elevation. (Please note that I fly inland so don’t have as often the joys of a constant steady ocean breeze. Although I have read of them.) In respect of wind direction: I have the benefit of a flag up on top of a six storey building that is perhaps 1/2 kilometere away from the field. But that is just an indicator, too, as it can differ by 90 degrees at ground level where my kite is set up. I used to set up a little pole with a streamer, but I don’t bother with that any more either… With time the senses on the hairs on the back of your neck will suffice to assess the wind. And getting there is half the fun.😉 .

The Kite package finally arrived here in Ontario, after a voyage of in excess of three weeks from the Pacific Northwest of the US, down to San Francisco international distribution for USPS, up to Vancouver, British Columbia and across the continent to the Toronto Ontario area. In these Covid times the mails, while perhaps a little slower, do once again, come through. Hooray for USPS and Canada Post. I was excited to try the kite but had to wait a couple of days for decent conditions and a window of opportunity. Finally we had a day this past week where winds were 15 to 25 kph and I grabbed the kite along with a couple of other similar kites to give it a go. The only spare set of quad lines I had to hand for the new kite was 100 feet of 150# that I use in upper wind for my revolution style kites - and I started with those. The Symphony 2.2.4 flew fine on those lines, although they are perhaps a little longer than I might prefer. I am not sure that those lines would be good for extended use in bigger winds as … man… does that kite pull in the middle of a wind window. I was leaning back big time! Will need to tweak the brake line length if continue with those lines, probably with another knot or two in the leader at the kite end. I also had out a smaller Flexifoil Sting, and that is a really sweet little kite which has been tuned properly with its shorter pre-configured lines. I will likely come up with a set of dedicated lines for the Symphony; something in the range of 80 to 90 feet...? Perhaps a little research to determine what a proper line strength might be. Some of my other power kites have heavier flying lines than the brake lines and I am thinking something like 200 pounds over 150. (Thoughts welcome on that.) I have been flying mainly in lower winds of late out of preference, and on this outing I was getting some adrenaline flowing with the pull in the bigger wind. That was a lot of fun! Thank you very much J B for this prize. I was particularly pleased to also have received a set of quad leader lines which I look forward to adding to a spare set of handles that I wanna get going for one of my Freilien quads. Hats off also to riffclown for coming up with the conversion process from two to four lines on the Symphony. Outstanding!

Nice. Looks somewhat relaxing, too... 😉

Love Benson kites. Have a number of the earlier ones as well (Reflex, BoT, Outer Space). Of the current offerings I am somewhat more enamoured of the Deep Space, and have it in both UL and STD. Good all round kite. I just looked at the Benson site, and what’s not to like about this description: “The Deep Space is an all-round freestyle kite that is precise, reliable and responsive, making it easy to fly and accessible to all. However, it's also capable of the most extreme tricks, behaving with a high degree of accuracy and predictability. The Deep Space excels at free-flowing flying, providing smooth transitions into, out of, and between tricks for advanced and extended combinations and seamless freestyle flying.” I just couldn’t resist copying and pasting that in as it describes the kite better than I can. The description is true to my experience as well. I also have a Superfly, which I picked up used btw. It is even trickier, and I need to spend more time on it, which I look forward to doing. Really must dig out the SuperNova again. It is a big, strong kite that fares better in winds stronger than I favour at the moment. (sidenote: I developed golfers/tennis elbow due to too much repetitive stuff and thus my preference for lighter winds. A little more peaceful, serene, too, somehow. Subjective, admittedly.) Hopefully you will get more opinions to help. Personal preference is so hard to describe. Try first if you can (I almost never have this luxury however). Added plus for you with Benson: the kites are made in the UK! .

Good outcome for you so far -- what can you pick from? That pic is foogly. How did that kite get out the door? Slipped through QC somehow... .

Level One Genesis. Nice kite, goes back a bit. Youtube promo of the versions I got from a google search:

Hmmm. While you wait, lets continue the detective work. Standoff length: on mine both sets (4 standoffs in all) are all ~11" from bottom of the sail to the end of the standoff, including the vinyl end cap at that end. Same? Based on your observations the sail sewing is not consistent on both sides. What are the lengths of the sail trailing edges on each side? The same? .

I have an orange UL version of the Badass, and like it a lot -- although tbh flying has been on the back burner with the pandemic and I feel like I am going on distant memory. It has a pretty good wind range, which suits my environment and air preference. Extremely well built. The full length single piece spars were not an insurmountable problem for me, fortunately. But when I bought it from the North American distributor I got extra leading edge and spreader spars, to simplify sourcing them. Naturally, I have not needed them, but glad to have the ‘umbrella’ You may have seen this comprehensive review of the standard, but in case not I attach the link. There are also some videos out there. https://v2.2.kiteclique.com/level-one-badass-standard-review/

I put my hands on my Hypnotist finally. It does not have the leech line. The sail is kept taut by a bungee which is hooked onto a nock on the end of the leading edge (wing tip), under a vinyl end cap. If I wanted to reduce flutter (and attendant noise) in the sail I would try retying -- tightening by shortening the knot in the end of the bungee cord. On mine the bungee is larksheaded to a cloth loop sewn into the sail. If the bungee is really far gone (the elastic might deteriorate over time) it can be replaced either with new, or perhaps by a hank of bridle line tied and looped on, permitting easier adjustment. There are instructions out there on how to tie such a tensioner. As far as wind range, I tend not to fly Standard wind kites in much more than about 20kmh, and find more pleasure in less. Just having my butt dragged otherwise, and wing chatter increases. Some kites do better in higher winds, or I switch to a vented. Or to a quad HTH .

Here are just some thoughts on these tubes. They are indeed stiff if one looks at the weight alone at 19 grams (although weight alone may not be the only factor). The current Skyshark 5PTs are about 15 grams, and the 7PTs are listed as 20g. A Nitro Strong is 17.5 grams. So -- insofar as a dual line kite, that would possibly be more aimed at a higher wind configuration and/or a biiig kite, no? My eight foot wingspan Benson SuperNova has 7PT lower spreaders, and that is very sturdy. For lighter winds I use 5PTs (with lighter meaning 10/12 kph (~6+ mph) and up on that kite, for me anyways). Many of my UL kites sport 3PTs. Some of my SULs use 2PTs. So: this prize consists of very special rods for very special projects. Someone is going to be very lucky. .

Here it is, a video showing a more modern go at the beloved Stranger. Not bad for a ~25 year old design, eh? From the blurb on the vid: "This episode of Back To The Old School covers Psycho's bigger and older brother: the Flexifoil Stranger designed by Andy Preston. Flown at the Zandmotor beach in light and moderate wind. Thanks to Chris Wojtas for providing his pristine Stranger. No mods, except for the temporary clip-on yoyo stoppers and i removed the trickline for this session. Enjoy!"

Eeek - did you mean to insert a smiley after the part I bolded? Lol. If you get this kite, umm ... hold off on the trick line at least 'till you have flown it awhile. The types of tricks modern kites do do not require, and indeed arguably are hindered by, trick lines. In fact, ppl have been known to remove such lines from the likes of our Stranger or its lil brother Psycho in aid of more modern flying styles (I am not one of them, but there are some great more recent videos of flying older kites that support this). .

I forget whether the Hypnotist has a leech line (and your post upon rereading implies not), but if it does it is a line which goes through the trailing edge and is then tied/wound to each wingtip. Adjusting this line is the fix. If there are vinyl end caps on the wingtips, pull it off the noisey side to see how at is set up, and take note before you unwind/untie. Tighten to lessen noise but not too much. May need to experiment incrementally. My Hypnotist is not immediately to hand or I would reach for it for more immediate thoughts. No doubt someone else will jump in to set us straight if there is better information. The old Field Cards Prism did for each kite were quite useful in this regard, but unsure if there was one for the Hypnotist offhand. HTH. .

Nice finds in that basement! I, too, have a Stranger from that era and yes, it, too, was still in the basement when I resurrected it a few years ago. Flies great if not exactly 'modern'. First one I got was Carrington ripstop, and later got an icarex version. Axels in a blink. Or before. Now that Most Excellent has quite the rep if memory serves. Never had one but from what I have read it is held in high esteem for its day. I say fly them, maybe on a day more towards the lower end of their wind range perhaps at first if you are concerned, but do fly them! (But I do get the preservation strategy if you prefer. The ITW Hydra might be a good option for a more modern trick kite at a good price if you are looking new. Mention that as you seem to have visited there. Or grab something used if you see it.) My 20-25 year old spectra lines held up quite well btw and don't think time alone will render them unusable, assuming they haven't been left out in the sun or something all that time, and assuming they are in reasonable condition flying-time wise. But new lines aren't a bad idea if you have the budget and, eventually, need for it. Particularly to have a range of lengths and/or strengths for various conditions. Do have fun at any rate and welcome back! .

Wow! I never win nuthin! Thank you very much. I remember reading the riffclown thread about this some time ago, and had the thought of converting a Symphony but never did get past the thought. Now, my lack of sewing skills is irrelevant, for this project anyways. Awesome is right. Cheers, Michael

Looks like you are in a Carolina. Part of me envies you but not the prospect of crowds that you mention. I haven't flown in about six weeks here in my neck of Southern Ontario near Toronto, but look forward to the day when I can do so. Heck we can't golf yet either around here but the day is coming. I hope. Kinda older, so that may influence my enthusiasm for it these days, even when restrictions are relaxed a bit. Weird times. .

Hi Joel. Welcome to the forum! Don't know the kite, but my first thought was to see what Jim Nicholls of New Zealand might say about it. So I see in a general search that there is both an Angel and an Angel Wing by Brasington (as well as others such as a Seraph Angel!) and my quick look at ITW refers to the Wing variant. Nicholls has video of the Angel and the comments there contain some points which may be relevant to your assesment if that is the kite you are interested in. (In case you missed it.) https://youtu.be/GUOGPFyD4Kc If Nicholls doesn't discuss the version you want, maybe drop him a line! He seems quite knowledgeable with wide experience. Hope this helps. It helped me as I enjoyed the slight detour Michael

PM sent. .

Update: a little search of this site produced a number of threads discussing the noise of early Widow versions, and whether and how to address it. Here is a thread discussing installation of a leech line on a kite which lacks it. The author of this makes specific reference in other threads to doing this on his Premier Widow as well, with success. Granted, it may be the pre-NG version, but it may prove a useful modification, not only for the sound, but possibly performance as well: Installing a Leech Line Step by Step Tutorial https://kitelife.com/forum/topic/3240-installing-a-leech-line-step-by-step-tutorial/?tab=comments#comment-21325 Hth .

I believe the NG version of the Widow has no leech line. Or at least mine doesn't. (My version sewn by Level One, which is a definite upgrade over the entry level Premier version, does have one. So the sound and flight performance may be tuned.) It may be that it was at least in part a deliberate move to keep the Premier kite in the more affordable range, but that is just a guess. Personally, I prefer quieter kites for most of the places I fly, where I don't want to be too obtrusive. Some kites are just made loud from the get-go, and my old NSR is one of them . No leech line. There may be a place for them, and there are people who like the noise. Chacun à son goût. To each their own! PS: somewhere there is (or was) a thread on one of the forums discussing a retroactive addition of a leech line. So there's that possibility. For clarification, the leech line is a line, usually spectra, threaded through the trailing edge seam of the kite sail. Some kites use other methods to reduce the flutter. .

Hi Seth; I had a WindDance (or two) back in the day and I remember that they were well built and flew nicely. Mine were yellow There is at least one copy of the manual floating around on the internet that I am aware of and, as you may be aware, it appears that the kite has been out of production for well nigh a couple of decades. In the circumstances, as you state you are an actual owner, I would not hesitate to provide you with a link to the site or send you a copy from it. In the form I have it the order of the pages are somewhat jumbled but readable and no doubt will be useful. Over 35 pages! I will PM you accordingly. .

Went for the UL version of the Badass. I find that I now prefer lower wind days in general, or the times I want to fly seem lower wind days, not sure which way the causality works in my case. Have just had it out a few times but absolutely enjoying it. So much so that I would also consider a STD. At the moment the standard portion of my kite bag is quite well represented, however, so no burning desire succumbed to. Yet. My impression is that the Reloaded is a somewhat quicker little machine that one might want more to fly on shorter lines and/or smaller spaces. See also the response to your 3/4 kite question. There are some cool youtube videos of both kites out there, which may help you decide what appeals more to you. Was also considering the Reloaded, but there was appeal to me of a slower, more methodical mode of flying that I can see unfolding in front of these old eyes. .