RobB Posted August 14, 2006 Report Share Posted August 14, 2006 The weights in the tail cause the center of gravity of the kite to change, with the weight bias towards the tail, the kite stalls easier. I think it also helps to compensate out over steer. My Acrobatx came with the weights installed all ready, and I haven't messed with them because the kite flies great as it is. I have moved the weights around on other kites that I have, but I prefer them towards the tail, because it makes landing, side sliding and just stalling in general easier. I find experimenting with the tuning of a kite to be half the fun of flying. Take care... ~Rob. Thanks for the info... I was figuring that was what they are but still kinda unsure how to get them on the tail... does the piece on the bottom of the tail pop off? I went and did a bit more flying today and I just noticed my kite lines are off... i think i was so excited to fly I never noticed it before and I think this is part of the reason it seems over repsonsive (i'm sure that's not the right term) at time, so now I'm gonna look around and figure out how to fix these bad boys. Thanks everyone for all your help, I hate being a total noob but am enjoying the kiting a ton. Hey NUS... The weights in the Acrobatx are under the velcro spine release at the tail from what I remember. As far as weights causing oversteer, maybe I'm confused... I thought that oversteer in a kite was that awkward back and forth wobble when you've given too much steering input, kind of like a skidding car, when you steer too much to one side, then it gets worse when you steer to the other side... How much different are your lines ? I take the time to adjust them when they're more than an inch different. I'm sure the more skilled fliers are much more critical of line length... To adjust them, I just strech them straight out from a nail in the side of my house and even them up at the kite end. I adjust them with the handles attached, in case there's a slight difference in them, too. Your kite may seem 'over-responsive' if the bridle is off. I am still looking for a good guide on bridle adjustment, so I can't give good advice, because I am still experimenting. Maybe someone knows of a good guide for bridle adjustment ? Luckily, the Acrobatx has a simple bridle. ~Rob. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nus Posted August 14, 2006 Author Report Share Posted August 14, 2006 Hey NUS...The weights in the Acrobatx are under the velcro spine release at the tail from what I remember. As far as weights causing oversteer, maybe I'm confused... I thought that oversteer in a kite was that awkward back and forth wobble when you've given too much steering input, kind of like a skidding car, when you steer too much to one side, then it gets worse when you steer to the other side... How much different are your lines ? I take the time to adjust them when they're more than an inch different. I'm sure the more skilled fliers are much more critical of line length... To adjust them, I just strech them straight out from a nail in the side of my house and even them up at the kite end. I adjust them with the handles attached, in case there's a slight difference in them, too. Your kite may seem 'over-responsive' if the bridle is off. I am still looking for a good guide on bridle adjustment, so I can't give good advice, because I am still experimenting. Maybe someone knows of a good guide for bridle adjustment ? Luckily, the Acrobatx has a simple bridle. ~Rob. The lines where atleast 3 inches off.... I know I totally should've noticed right away i was just way to happy to fly, I think that i've fixed them... I untied the longer line at the sleeve and slid (is that a word?) it down abit and have retied it with two figure 8 knot which is how it came orginally. I saw another post about getting incorrect lines from FlyingWings... is this common? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Barresi Posted August 14, 2006 Report Share Posted August 14, 2006 Alas, it's common from anyone EXCEPT higher end manufacturers or kite stores... Also, there is a certain amount of stretch during the first 20 hours or so of flying. It's not uncommon for me to make an adjustment after flying on new lines for a while. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Kite Shoppe Posted August 14, 2006 Report Share Posted August 14, 2006 Exactly...it's not uncommon to have some stretch. Sad to say, most factory sets that come with kites, are 2" to 3" off right out of the bag. I've found Laser Pro Gold and Climax to have the least amount of variance. When I custom make a set, I always try to 'pull' out as much as possible. However, an adjustment and check on length (gear maintenance ) should be made after flying a couple times. When John says I need a set of so and so by so and so, I try to get it to him earlier, so he has a chance to fly on it before going into the comp field with it. Don't want any 'surprises' there! Theresa Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Backspin23 Posted August 14, 2006 Report Share Posted August 14, 2006 no no feel free to give john as many "surprises" as you can, Then the rest of us will stand a chance. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ant man Posted August 15, 2006 Report Share Posted August 15, 2006 i dont think there was ever a new lineset ive never had to adjust it used to baffle my mind how a good set of lines would go all diffrent lengths when resleeving ive cut as much as 6 inches off a line to make them even again Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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