Welcome dbswales

[John Barresi]

Hello @dbswales,

Welcome to KiteLife®!

Although this is an automated message, it is written with heart - I love kites deeply, and I believe the KiteLife community represents this passion with a very friendly and helpful environment for everyone. Please feel free to browse around and get to know the others. If you have any questions please don't hesitate to ask.

Need to tweak settings?

Edit your profile here - View Member
Edit your settings - http://kitelife.com/forum/settings/

Other than that, here are a few handy links that you might have a use for...

Member Chat
Member Map
KL Shop

And while it's never an obligation, we always love hearing about our new members if you'd like to share some of your kite stories, videos, and/or background... Tell us a little about YOUR kite life!

[dbswales]

Hi and thanks for your welcome. 

Im a beginner but have been blown away with the quads and wanted to know whether the revolution reflex would be the best for someone who's never flown anything but bog standard stunt kites before. 

Ive watched the tutorials and although it looks quite difficult to get to grips with, I'd really love to get into it all.

Thanks in anticipation and all comments and advice gratefully received. 

[riffclown]

There's a few great topics on the Reflex in the Quad Heads section.. I'd suggest checking those out before purchasing anything..

Reflex is a great sail. Also a great teaching tool.  It is also a very forgiving kite and easy to learn on but then at that point you've only learned the Reflex. Despite Rev's steering everyone towards the Reflex as their "everything " kite it bears to know that the differences can impact flyers long term

If you start with any other  Rev 1.5 sail, you'll be able to adjust your flying either way, up and down the Rev Line to include the Reflex.. You'll also be able to better understand and appreciate the sail AND frame differences.  If you've ONLY flown the Reflex, you might be in for a surprise when you grab the handles on an SUL or 1.5. It is different.. You might just yank a normal 1.5 out of the air before you adjust and get the hang of it..

The cost factor applies here as well. There's a reason there's so many threads about Rev Alternatives. You have to scroll down the page if you look up quadline kite on Amazon. I bought a HQ Kites Mojo trying to avoid the investment of a Rev. I still fly the Mojo because its twitchiness makes me correct my flying before I go between the Foils and a Rev.

That being said, learning on one of the highest cost kites in the current production line is kind of like taking first driving lessons in a Corvette ZR6. Maybe not the best of ideas  Face it, replacement rods and parts for the Reflex aren't nearly as easy to locate as the standard 1.5 stuff. It takes a bit for anyone "even a natural" to get the hang of it and most of us have cracked a spar at some point haven't we?.

 

 

[SparkieRob]

With regards to the expensive kites, if I had to start revs again, I would've started on Pro's/Pheonix kites.

Do your research. Fly others kites if you can. The more info the better.


Sent from my iPhone using KiteLife mobile app

[dbswales]

Many thanks for that guys. I live not too far from a 7 mile stretch of sandy Atlantic storm beach so the wind conditions can vary enormously.  I fish there quite regularly so realise quite how strong and light it can be. I don't think I've ever been there when there's less than 5mph and when it's really going for it, you can't stand up! 

The reason why I mentioned the beach is that's where everyone flies. We have the mainstay of dual stunt kites, the kite buggies have always made a line for the area but I've never seen a rev here or indeed any other beach I've visited in my area. Being coastal where we live, we're lucky have loads of beaches and country parks within 20 mins drive in any direction and as I mentioned, never seen anyone with a Rev.  I know as I've read about it, there are clubs in the UK but nowhere near my location so even seeing one in live action so to speak, is so far a bit of a dream. 

I must be honest, the videos online are enough to want to get you moving and start but the info above that you kindly posted is very much appreciated so will continue to read and maybe save myself some money at the same time before making my mind up as to what to get!

Thanks again and hopefully catch up and speak to you soon.

[Wayne Dowler]

I would encourage you to hook up with some local fliers. Might be a bit of travel involved, but well worth it considering you can pick some brains for info. I believe there are still a few festivals left in the season. 

On another note, the Rev forum is up and running. There is a pretty decent group of Rev fliers from your area that use it a lot. More or less the same type setup there, but a few more local fliers. Might give it a try too.

 

[makatakam]

Hi, dbswales, and welcome to the forum. The saying goes "try before you buy". This applies to quad line kites as well. I'm guessing that you are way north in the UK. It may be worth hopping on a train and heading south for a two-day holiday. There's a bunch of experienced pilots who fly around Dunstable Downs near London. Contact them and join in the fun. They will love to get you started and will help you make an informed purchase when you are ready to buy. Perhaps one of them has a suitable used kite that would fill your requirements. Look at the member map on this forum, as well as theRevolution Kites forum and send some PM's. If you hang around here for a bit, one or more of them will probably pop in to say hi.