RobB

OK, saw these & the pictures on FB... wow, I'm jealous ! Quite a cast of characters you've accumulated at this camp site. So, is this going to be your mailing address for the rest of the summer ?

Low light probably caused the shutter to be open longer, causing a little blur. The second & third shots are pretty good, considering. Nice... going swimming & Reving at the same time. All while KAPing after sunset. There's a lot going on there, a lot of fun, it looks like ! Party on...

The guys over on the GWTW forum would probably know. There is a lot of old timey knowledge over there.

Now that's a great camping spot ! Love the pictures...

Pretty incredible. I can't imagine being out on the open ocean on boats that small ! I guess I really am getting old...

I sure would like to see a video of him flying one. His videos have convinced me to buy more than one Skyburner !

The Warbling Bowtie Bird ?

I think whenever my wife can't think of a gift idea for me, she calls Lam. He always has good ideas ! I hope they decide on something with four lines this year !

Nope, these kites are wall - art if I even wear them out. I don't think that will happen, though. They're well made, and the Fearless doesn't show much wear after 5 years of flying it. Both were birthday presents from my family, so they have considerable sentimental value, as well. But, I am happy to let others fly them that I meet on the beach...

Well, apples & oranges, I guess. If you look into the Prism forum, around 2007-2008, you will find a lot of information about the Zephyr, and discussions about the bottom end. Probably the biggest difference in opinion here is that we're not comparing the same kind of wind. 1 mph at the beach is different than 1 mph inland. Is the Skyburner a better kite ? Of course it is. Prism builds kites for the masses, and Skyburner custom builds kites here in the states for a few dozen people a year. I would certainly choose a Skyburner over a Prism any day. But... the stated Prism wind range is technically accurate. Just because it's more difficult doesn't mean it can't be done.

Round & round... as I have said, I have flown my Zephyr in those low winds. I know other people who can, too. This was a constant topic of debate when the Z first came out, too. I was actually questioning the lower wind range at the time, but after I followed the advice of more experienced fliers (remove the weight, the upper spreader, adjust the knots towards the nose, and fly on 50' lines (which were included with the original Z)) I was able to fly mine in SUL winds. It took effort, but all light wind flying does. No, the kite is not an SUL by any stretch, but it isn't claimed to be. You are not going to be able to just stand there & get the Z to fly in 1 mph winds. It is a light standard or UL (pretty much the same thing) that is robust enough to survive beginner or intermediate abuse. Unlike a true SUL kite. the Zephyr is easily trickable, and can also be flown in double digit winds without exploding.

Well, the Fearless is radical like the Gemini, can't help but to trick it when you fly it. It's really a trick to fly kites like that straight. I don't know if the Benson ULs fly in as little winds as Lam's kites, but Bensons are a good choice, too.

Well, if you're looking for an SUL duallie that tricks, I'd recommend the Sea Devil SUL. If you want a more radical SUL, the Fearless SUL is a good choice. I have a number of SUL duallies, and I'll never let these two go...

I have tried to fly my full sail with race rods in winds like that... didn't really work out too well. I guess I just like to stand in one place when flying Revs... I am trying to decide if a 1.5 SUL or Zen would be the better choice, because I do like to fly in light wind.

I wouldn't have even thought about getting out one of my quad line kites in this kind of wind. I love flying in light wind, and wish I had a quad that could.

Bill... without moving, the kite would've just barely flown. There are parts in the video that I remained still, and you can see the kite is flying, although pretty slowly. Most of the movement is to get the kite to fly faster, or recover from the stalls while tricking.

It's been a l-o-n-g time since we've seen decent SUL wind, so I couldn't resist the opportunity the other day. It was really hot, and the wind was less than 1 mph, but it was solid. I really would've been better off flying the ProDancer SUL, but I wanted to do some trick flying... Being that it's been months since I've flown a duallie in good wind, I was a little rusty, but in this wind the biggest trick is just getting the kite off the ground. The Sea Devil (Angel) SUL is the lightest flying trick kite I have, so up it went ! The video is a little long, I didn't cut much, as I only had 1/2 hour to fly in total. If you have 10 minutes, full screen it & hit the HD button. Thanks for watching...

If you're looking to do both, the Widow Maker and the Sea Devil would be my choice. The only Bensons I have are Geminis, and they are about as precise as a grenade.

I'm glad you like your new Freestylist, Bob. Just imagine what you'd think of the Widow Maker... As far as the Zephyr, I don't know what's wrong with yours, I've flown 2 different Zephyrs (original production run) and they DO fly in the low winds as advertised. I've never flown the second generation Zephyr (like yours) and maybe things have changed with the kite, and they just kept the original promo material. One thing about Prism kites in general, they do have a heavy feel that you have to get used to. All of them except for the 4d, that is. It doesn't mean that they can't fly, they just have a different feel that requires getting used to. I wouldn't expect tricks out of the Zephyr in winds under 3mph, but I would expect that it can be flown. It's too bad you didn't get the 'Orca' color combo Zephyr, I'd offer to buy it from you.

Patience is a good thing, especially with kites... sometimes you have to wait weeks just for good wind to fly in. I hope it can be figured out over the phone, sending it back is kind of deflating. You bought a quality kite that should last you for 10 years or more, and once you have it in proper flying order for a while, this will all be forgotten. I 'lost' my Solus for over a year while different people tinkered with it, but it was worth the wait in hindsight. The kite exceeds my expectations in every way. Not everything off the shelf is junk, but it's just not the same as a quality, high end kite.

My advice would be to not adjust the bridle. Verify the bridle measurements with Jon T. Make sure that the bridle isn't wrapped under the spreaders when you assemble it. As I mentioned in my other post, my Solus came through with a mis-tied bridle, the measurements were off by more than an inch from the right side to the left side. When it didn't fly right, I couldn't figure it out until I sat down with a ruler and measured it out. That was disappointing, but actually led to the development of the Solus Comp. Bridles must be a tough thing to get right, I also have a Quantum Pro SUL that has never flown because the bridle is mis-tied. I was so frustrated with that kite that I have yet to give it the time to figure it out.

Scott, you're coming back with some spectacular shots !

Something's wrong... see my post at the 'other place'... I'm sure you'll get this straightened out, sorry to hear you had a bumpy start.

The Quantum Pro is probably the top of my list when you talk about precision flying. It is the kite that I measure all the other ones against. The ProDancer is very precise, but it has a narrow wind range, like 0.5 to 5 MPH wind. I would give an honorable mention to the Prism Prophecy, a big kite that knows how to put on a show...

I've seen a few Speedbags for sale, both on other forums (GWTW) and eBay. And yeah... isn't that Widow Maker an incredible thing to hold in your hands ? Totally worth the price of admission, and just wait until you see how it flies !