DTill

Any machine that works is acceptable. The brothers seem to be reliable cheap machines. All the old Pfaff's are the Bentley's of machines, but finding someone to service them is impossible. The cheap Singers at Joann's have a horrible/ jumpy pedal feel. At this point I prefer to sew gear and not kites. Building gear bags, rope bags for my white water boats and fixing all my friends worn out float tubes, and curtains for campers. The machine I want my friend uses to makes leather purses and wallets. https://www.sailrite.com/Sailrite-Ultrafeed-LSZ-1-BASIC-Walking-Foot-Sewing-Machine

Looks great Riff. Haven't been on here in a while. Quad forum seems dead.

The rods are definitely not stock. It should have caps that the rods fit into, not nocks. You obviously don't have another kite to check it against? The bridle is probably a homemade one, not necessarily bad but easy enough to replace with one of TK's from this website. Get Tk's leaders and bridles from here and can get caps and rods from Kites and fun things. They usually have blem rods for cheap. Not that you can't fly with that setup, but learning to fly quads is hard enough to not be sure your setup correctly.

Kite is sold, sorry.

Dang, I didn't even send that. Your on it.

Send something to me I'll fly the thread off of it. I don't need a frame. You have my address.

Cheer up man, we're all bummed that all the festivals are cancelled. I feel the same. Most of the places where I fly locally are locked up. I try to make the most of it flying at the sports complexes when theyre not busy, but they've started soccer and softball back up so it's kinda a bust now. I'm glad I got to go to the South Padre Island Festival before all the shutdowns. I met up with my parents "that are winter Texans" for SPI and introduced them to Team kitelife. I'm glad they got to see how great the kite community is and why this is a thing we all love. I took the trip for granted at the time, but now I'm glad I got the chance to introduce more people to kites. In this time of isolation, I enjoy the virtual festivals and the positively they convey. I think many people need to connect. All of your builds and posts are an inspiration and positive motivation for all of the people on this forum. You've created your own virtual festival in the kite making thread. Your the man! A little video from last weekend , flying under my super sled. 106571100_743926473078517_1050382748096352119_n (1).mp4

Check on some fishing rod building websites. https://www.mudhole.com/supplies-rod-building

Last I checked the sled was on sale for 49$. I might have to get another. I'll be in Lincoln City the next 2 weekends, I'll try to get a pic of it with some laundry. 106571100_743926473078517_1050382748096352119_n.mp4

If i don't win this I'll probably convert one myself, or send one to Riff to convert.

I'm really interested in this one, I have a set of 150# x 85' lines that came with my power blast 2-4, they would be perfect for this kite.

With the bicycle or traveling bicycle, you need to have top hand in "archers stance' as a reflex not as a thought. The traveling bicycle is a dance, a combination of arms and legs to keep the kite powered up thru out the cycle. I akin it the breast stroke, just keeping the kite above the water level. Reverse spins with just enough brake to keep it level. As your upper trailing wing passes through the top of the window, scoop just enough wind to bump the wing over the level. Scoop, release , repeat. Your paddling the kite on the threshold of rising or falling.The move is much more like a white water kayak stroke than anything in bicycling. To do them slow you need steady wind and brake the top hand through the rotation. Or you can jam through, flying the leading edge forward with sharp brake inputs which never ends up looking good. Longer lines help,my traveling on 120's is way better than on 30's.

Great post. I've thoroughly enjoyed all of your build threads. Your creativity is inspiring, everyone has been building kites for 100`s of years and you create a new diamond's technique. Thanks for keeping the forum alive and creative!

The 300# line is for flying a bunch of laundry. I have 3 12' spikey balls and the Super Sled. The 170# would be fine. The 300# has a lot of wind resistance and sags quite a bit flying just the kite.