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Broken race rod!


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Well i have had some wicked wind lately, need a vent... thats another story...

Went out flying in the storm today. 7 - 15mph steady with stronger gusts. I had a stronger leading edge, but RR's in the verticles. Winds picked up and tried to land but the wind wipped and i got turned around and landed hard on the spar. It kinda... exploded! I put another one in and kept flying. No damge to sail but i did fly the edges and land more often.

I did manage some clockwork with success today. I think i was pulling the wrong hand and that sure explains it dropping so fast before :-) .

My slides are much better with a stiffer l.e.

My reverse flight has gotten better too and i think i have discovered how to guide it using one edge and let the rest kinda follow.

I still get the bowtie effect sometimes. If i fly reverse one side likes to flip under. It only goes reverse very slowly. And reverse launch will usuall cause it also. Is it possible my bungies need tightning? I have tried more or less brake at the handles and it doesn't seem to matter much. Any help is apreciated

Jim

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If it's a new kite and you flew it in 15mph, I'd bet those bungles do need tightening. And yes, you could use a full Vent for sure! Can't say it'll solve the the reversing/ bowtie effect, but it might help: Tighten bungies on the tips (trailing edges). Tight enough so that the sail lays flat, that's all. It should take a little bit of effort to put the endcaps on. But not a Herculean effort. If you see creases form next to the verticals, that's a bit too tight. Hope that helps! (Ps don't tighten bungies if the sail is damp.)

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A JB Vented with 4 wrap and 3 wrap LE is stated to go to 40 mph! But that's more XTRA territory.

When the race rods go it is just as you said, kind of an explosion. I've done 3!

If your out in higher winds, what I do is start as far into the wind side of park as I can and walk with the kite. Once I reach the end, I practice low hovers to gain back that ground. I fly inland so USUALLY the ground wind isn't too bad.

Sent via Tapatalk for iPhone.

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Always error on the side of caution if you can by using strong enough rods in the sail for wind conditions!! It's not that hard to swap out rods if you need to, but always (as a beginner) go to the strong side if you are in doubt!! But this come with a warning - don't put a strong frame in an already overpowered kite and risk stretching out your sail beyond some simple tightening of bungees!! Yes, it's an addiction, but don't ruin sails to the point of no return, when you realize that what you really need is another kite for the conditions!! If anything, I'm almost always trying to make a kite too vented work in too low a wind!! Part of it is my fear of too much pull, sometimes too lazy to change, or just a bad decision to start!! Just start on the safe side first, then as you get on a while, it'll be easier to choose the right setup!!

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Well i ordered the full vent today at 4:00 flew in perfect winds at 5:00. Probably wont get any high winds for the rest of the year. :-)

I think that should be it for kite purchases for now. But i should be able to fly in most anything now :-)

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And a spare in case someone else wants to try!

I always keep an old 1.5 SLE in the bag, just for that occasion. Those things are tanks, and I can't even tell you how hard, I have slammed that thing into the ground (did I mention tank). My very first flight (complete rev newbie), was with that SLE standard sail, in 20+ winds. Talk about slamming the ground. I'm sure the only thing that saved it, was the fact that I was on a sand dune, so it wasn't exactly like slamming hard pack, but still, it's a tough nut to crack.

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  • 3 weeks later...
I think that should be it for kite purchases for now.

If I had a dollar for every time I heard that.....

Sent via Tapatalk for iPhone.

I've been saying that for 14 years.

( A couple years I didn't buy a kite, I finally had revs to cover a wide range of wind)

Take simple care of your kites, they will last a long time.

Keep a sacrificial Rev around for those days you wished you left the new one in the bag :)

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Yikes ! "Sacrificial Rev" ! Wayne isn't going to like the sound of that ! :ani_wallbash:

But you are right, and the old SLE is perfect for that (as well as for the Newbie, that happens by, and wants to learn) :ani_victory:

\

I deserved to be flogged for that.

It was way too late when I posted that, and should have spent the time to clarify.

I have my first Rev 1.5 SLE (13 yrs old) that has been designated to training and stress testing.

(First timers, etc.) It's the one I'm willing to let anyone give it a try.

Hence, sacrificial... It's been through so much, yet it has survived the worst, but never been terminal.

Part of the screening has been the issue. Nothing that weaving thread through hasn't kept it flying.

The skins is a little scruffy, but not one tear or whole after many hundreds of hours.

The smiles that kite has brought are priceless. Both mine and the soon to be a victim of wallet shrinkage syndrome.

Can I get off my knees now?

Mark

,

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Hey Mark............No flogging for you, and no kneeling necessary. :ani_victory:(I was really just messing with Wayne. Where the heck is he, anyway?)

I agree with everything you said, and that's exactly the purpose, that my old SLE serves me, today ! You may have seen my mention of the word "tank", in a previous post (about 4 back). Well, I just call em like I see em. That SLE is definately the 4x4, or tank, of the Revs. Again, I have slammed that SLE into the ground, so hard, so many times, it's hard to believe that it still flys, but as you said, it's never been terminal, and the kite remains in A-1 condition. And now, as you also suggested, I take very good care of my newer kites, and I expect that they too, will last me a long, long, time..............cheers mate......... :big_beer:

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Oh, I'm here, just thinking about what to say!! :ani_whistling: Maybe "sacrificial" is the wrong word to use!! "Trainer" is more acceptable, as you use it for breaking in those new to the "Darkside"! I haven't got an extra std sail SLE for that, but I do lend out my f/v SLE at times!! But don't ask to use my "B"s, they're all I got and they're all mine!! :ani_weightlift:

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