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RobB

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Everything posted by RobB

  1. RobB
    I usually wear gloves when launching and landing, but this happened during the couple hours in between. The kids were messing around with the anchor, and somehow [emoji13] the line started freespooling away... Someone had to catch it. Luckily, the spool had 500' on it, and the kite was only 100' up when it started rapid assent. ** edit... Mobile app is having trouble with pictures. I have to transport the picture to a PC to post. A cold one is making the burn feel better, though. OK, back on a 'real' computer... Stringburn... The Kite that burned me... Some Ghost Delta... And a large noisy kite came out too... Happy Kite Month ! Hoping to get in a lot more flying this month to make up for a quiet Winter ! Sent from my LG-K330 using KiteLife mobile app
  2. RobB
    We have 45*-55* temps for the next two days, but a good chance of rain for the both. Sunday looks like a wash, and temps back down around 40* & heavy rain. So, even though the temps were around 35* today, the sun was bright, winds around 15mph and fading. I got out the full-vent on my way home from work, and gave it a little air. I didn't forget how to fly, but as the sun set, the winds calmed down almost to the point that the full-vent was having a hard time staying in the air. That was OK, 40 minutes was enough of a taste... Kite flying is a life lesson in patience, and when the wind & weather is good, all the harsh sessions are forgotten & you just have to bask in the glory of 'the perfect day' !
  3. RobB
    Love that ice-sliding. That's something I've always wanted to try, but salt water doesn't freeze nice & smooth like that.
  4. RobB
    I realize I'm a Kite Nut when I take a kite bag out to the beach & have to take kites out of their sleeves to remember which one is which. I've started labeling the sleeves with a sharpie to save time...
  5. RobB
    The Grateful Dead is a perfect match for the video... Love it ! I'll see your snow video... I did that one last year, didn't get any snow footage yet this year... yet.
  6. RobB
    I haven't been out as much as I would like, only got one snow fly this year so far. The wind has been terrible so far in March here (much the same as yours). I might have flown a dozen times so far in 2017, but those nice days that you missed in February ? Sublime. I took the kids to the beach on one of those nice February days, temps in the 60's, but could've done with a little nicer wind. Offshore & 20mph wasn't the greatest, but it was still a great day @ the beach !
  7. RobB
    Single line kites really need tails. I've flown that kite without the tails, it's just not right. I like tails on 4 line kites, too...
  8. RobB
    I maintain that there is an issue with that style of center T that Prism has been using in their kites in the last 5 or so years. I've heard of a number of broken T's, even back when the Prism forum was active. I don't know if the T or just the spine broke in my E3, I never found the T. To put it in perspective, I have never had a Center T fail on any other kite, and I've broken plenty of kites. I would check with other pilots & kitemakers in Australia for a local source of parts, I'm sure you can fabricate something better than the ones that you've been breaking. I haven't seen a modern Quantum up close (mine is over 10 years old). It looks like Prism may have changed the whole Center T setup. I'd need to see more pictures. I think it was mentioned above, practice ground recoveries on 10-15 feet of line so you can see what's going on.
  9. RobB
    That doesn't look too pleasant. It does look like an average day on the Isle of Man this time of year, though. How close are you to there ? My father lives there, and although it doesn't get too cold, the winds in the winter are brutal.
  10. RobB
    I remember that Prism had issues with the center T on the E3, similar in design to what you're showing in your picture. It's really not a part that should be breaking. I would 're-engineer' the center T if it breaks again. That's what I did for my E3... after having the spine break unexpectedly in mid-air and all the sharp parts ripping up the sail, I decided to rebuild the kite so that wouldn't happen again. I basically replaced the E3 frame with a Quantum Pro frame, including the machined aluminum center T. I don't worry about breaking that ! The info on AOA can be found on page 27 of the Prism Field Guide... http://ferob.com/kites/1995_prism_guide.pdf
  11. RobB
    I rarely adjust the bridle on my kites. Each kite has it's own sweet spot, and once you find it, it covers the wind range for that kite. In my bag, most kites don't have a wind range greater than 5mph. It's either a 0-5mph kite, or a 5-10mph kite. I have never noticed much of a difference adjusting AOA, it is not some magic trick that will make one kite into two. You may have gotten the impression that adjusting the nose in will make the kite fly in light winds. If you're lucky, it might buy you a 1mph lower wind range. But don't even count on that. I leave the AOA somewhere close to mid-way, a little bias towards the nose, but that's just me. I don't like a hard pulling kite, and I feel that my turns are sharp enough, and my stalls are stally enough for me. BTW, if you read deep enough into Prism literature, you will find the statement that says to adjust the AOA towards the nose in the highest winds. I remember that, but forget which field card it was on... I'll have to look it up. **Edit... I looked it up, found it in the Prism Field Guide, click below. http://ferob.com/kites/1995_prism_guide.pdf
  12. RobB
    Something on that bridle adjustment for 'strong' wind. By adjusting to the 'strong wind' setting, you are actually increasing the pull on the lines. The next time the wind is blowing strong, try adjusting more towards the 'light wind' setting. I know this doesn't sound right, but it works for me. If anything, there will be less stress on the kite, which is a good thing. The Quantum is a very strong kite, you are very unlikely to find its breaking point, but having it adjusted for 'strong wind' in high winds is the best way to try...
  13. RobB
    Yes, the higher the wind, the faster you have to run towards the kite to get the slack required to pull off some tricks. I stop flying dual lines once the wind reaches double digits (mph) and switch over to flying four line kites. Also, flying on the edge of the wind window will allow you better slack in higher winds. The wind looked perfect in the video to try some tricks, though. The kite looked really nice with the tail, it looks like you got a Prism tail, as well. You've probably found that the Quantum pulls pretty hard. I've flown the Quantum in winds over 20mph, it's a good workout ! Nice going, I'm interested to hear of your progress. BTW... I think you have a smudge on your camera lens, just left of centre. At first, I thought you were flying through a low cloud...
  14. RobB
    Congratulations, ZP ! That should be a nice addition to your bag, be sure to check out the 'mods' for the kite, I think PAW did them, the kite turned into a trick monster !
  15. RobB
    Crazy thing, the Fearless & Sea Devil both excel at the snap-stall. I guess they really can't be considered 'modern' anymore, they're both 10 or more years old. I like to stall & hover dual lines to practise control, but I think it looks cool, too. Keep you eyes open, Prophecies change hands every once in a while. I let my first Proph go to a friend in trade for a Sea Devil, and regretted it the moment I sent the box. I was lucky enough to find one years later, same exact colors, complete with the special padded bag. And yes, you can flic-flac a Proph if you have long arms ! Good looking stake. Looks like you intend to use it in a grass field. Now... you're gonna need a holster for it. Or, the hammer loop in carpenter's pants will probably work.
  16. RobB
    Authority figures (?) typically have swelled heads regarding their positions. The two NYPD officers that I encountered were extremely pleasant, they had been watching me fly for a number of minutes before coming over. They talked with me a while before recommending that I pack it up. But... I did have an encounter with a local park worker who was less than pleasant. Similar to Ralph's story, I was flying in a corner of a parking lot, far away from anyone else, he came driving over and demanded that I leave, like yesterday. He was seriously worried that I would somehow damage one of the parking lot lights that I was bending my lines around (quad line fun). I wasn't much of a good ambasador in this case, set off by his bad attitude. Luckily, there weren't any new signs at the park after this encounter...
  17. RobB
    I was flying there one day, and a couple of NYPD officers came over after watching me fly for a while. I thought they were interested in the kite (which they were a little bit) but they pointed out the 'No Kites' sign. I never noticed it before (yeah, right...). I had actually noticed the Pro-Kite graffiti in the parking lot. Yes, flying can be a distraction to cars, on another occasion at another spot... a single line kite came down on the highway and was quickly smashed by heavy traffic. Luckily, nobody swerved to avoid the kite and the only casualty was the kite.
  18. RobB
    Full disclosure here. I didn't learn this from a video. I was driving home in traffic one day (New York traffic is rough) and I saw a guy flying right off the highway. Super random, I had to stop. Turned out to be a really advanced pilot, and he was flying a Sea Devil. I talked with him a little and watched him fly. I couldn't tell most of what he was doing, but I recognized the flic flacs. The motion was easy enough, fly down from the top of the window, throw slack to flare, and then a wrist pop to flip into a fade. Slack is key... keep walking forward while doing this. It really helps to see people doing these things in person, learning from a video is difficult. Unfortunately, I don't think I ever saw that guy again, I didn't think to take his name or contact at the time, so I never got to thank him. I didn't know that he had taught me how to flic flac until the next time I went out to fly. This was well over 10 years ago, I returned to the roadside flying spot a number of times, and flew by myself, hoping to run into him again, even though it is literally against the law to fly there...
  19. RobB
    Learning ground recoveries will save a lot of walking. But... learning ground recoveries does come at a price, usually broken parts. It's also kinda boring flopping the kite around on the ground. Learn the feel of the kite, the key to tricking is getting the kite barely flying, almost falling out of the air, but not quite. The stall is probably one of the most important things to learn before you can attempt a lot of tricks. Controlling the stall, holding the stall, and sliding the stall might seem like boring exercises, but you won't get very far tricking without those skills. I saw it mentioned earlier, the Lazy Susan. That was my first trick... fly all the way up, as high as the kite will go, and throw slack at the kite. The kite will flop over on its back, then you tug either the right or left line. The kite will rotate around 360* as it falls slowly. Once the rotation is complete, tension both lines evenly, and the kite should return to flying position and take off. Another one of my first tricks was the flick-flack. I think Dodd covers that in his videos. It was pretty easy to learn for me. I was very challenged learning the axel, it took absolutely months, mostly because I had never seen it in person, and it's hard to tell what the kite is actually doing in the videos, other than it looks cool. I spent close to a year trying to learn the 540 as well. But, that's just me, I'm kinda learning challenged. I was able to teach someone else how to 540 in about a half hour, but I think his brain was more in tune with the kite than mine. Best of luck, I hope you get a bunch of smooth wind and lots of time to fly. Exciting times... and I think your factory Prism lines will be fine for now, as long as they're even. At least within an inch, and it's nice if they're even closer.
  20. RobB
    You will realize the importance of a kite stake when you're out flying in higher winds. Land safely... then what ? If you don't have a stake to hold the kite in place, you're kinda stuck. I only go without a stake in winds under 5mph.
  21. RobB
    I am going to agree with the kite stake. Especially in stronger winds. I use a large (14") screwdriver, I had a 'real' kite stake once, but gave it away. I didn't really like the golf ball head that it had, and I'm used to the old screwdriver. The next time you order parts, just order a bunch and keep them on hand. Spreaders, leading edges, wingtips, endcaps. Think of those parts as 'wear items'. Like brakes on a car, you will replace them sooner or later. Get more kites, too. Nothing worse than being grounded when there's good wind. If you break in the field, switch to another kite and keep flying. Repairs in the field aren't as good as you can do at home. I think I have broken every part on a dual line kite except for the top spreader. I've lost those, but never broken. Good luck with the 'bug' !
  22. RobB
    The City is about 50 miles from where I live. I work there 2-3 days a week. Takes ~3 hours to get home. A city mile is definitely longer... Maybe not where you guys were going with that ?
  23. RobB
    Sounds like you need some 4 line kites, you can fly those while sitting if you want. I get it, as the years pass, I enjoy the cold less, especially the wet cold that we have here. Numerous injuries over the last 20+ years are great for telling when there's a change in the weather. I'm quickly closing in on 50, and the body just won't let me stay out there all day anymore. An hour or two is all it takes to get a fix, though. When I go out for a fly on snowy days, I wear my full snowboarding gear, and usually end up dropping layers. That's the key to enjoying the winter, having good gear. I think I've heard that somewhere here before... Paul ?
  24. RobB
    Modulus lines are good lines, but pricey. LPG or the yellow Shanti lines are basically the same thing, but not quite as expensive. I prefer LPG, but I do have some of those yellow lines, too.
  25. RobB
    What are you talking about ? You don't fly in the winter ??? You're missing out on wide open fields & great wind. I rarely fly in the summer, too crowded & too hot ! And the wind sucks in the summer for the most part, too...
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