Discussion
Last time I flew was on Hunstanton beach,got lofted and landed about 10ft away from a metal spike sticking out of the sand,no idea why it was there.
Laying on the sand gasping for breath I remember seeing the wife pegging it down the beach,my wife doesn’t do running so it must of looked bad.
I ride MX and Enduro and these are far less scary than powerkites.
Laying on the sand gasping for breath I remember seeing the wife pegging it down the beach,my wife doesn’t do running so it must of looked bad.
I ride MX and Enduro and these are far less scary than powerkites.
Bill said:
and having different people on each line is going to go wrong immediately.I’m too stubborn to give up before I’ve become competent at this. Might need to buy new lines first as it’s properly tangled. Any suggestions on which ones?
1ians said:
Thanks! Didn’t start that way, only way we could make it work was by pulling the lines apart about ten foot. Prob got the thing tangled by the bridle trying to launch it the wrong way first try and went downhill from there.
I’m too stubborn to give up before I’ve become competent at this. Might need to buy new lines first as it’s properly tangled. Any suggestions on which ones?
No idea, sorry, I haven't bought anything in ages apart from the same model you have for a nephew.I’m too stubborn to give up before I’ve become competent at this. Might need to buy new lines first as it’s properly tangled. Any suggestions on which ones?
ETA this seems overkill: https://www.kiteworld.co.uk/acatalog/HQ-Dyneema-Ki... or Decathlon do a pair of 45kg lines for £8.99.
I'd settle down with a beer and the radio and untangle it...
Edited by Bill on Thursday 22 August 07:25
Based on my son's single line Knoop easyflyer, I bought a two line HQ multikite based on a recommendation in one of these threads (maybe not this one).
On both these kites the line gets twisted on itself really easily, almost like it's had a perm. It twists on itself until the twists then twist on themselves and it ends up with knots that take ages to get rid of. The two line kite wasn't too bad but the single line I had to cut out about a metre of line and then retie. Am I doing something wrong when reeling the kites back in? I don't see what else would be causing all this twisting.
Second question is I've only flown the multikite once, and only as it came set up, as a single line with only a limited amount of line able to come off the reel, as it seemed to be 'locked in' under the hooks and hoop. The reel has double lines, two hooks, and a metal hoop, and I have no idea how they are supposed to be set up:
Any ideas how I should set this up for a) single line, which I think involves joining the hoop onto the hooks somewhere near the kite end of the lines, and b) twin line, which I think involves joining the hooks onto the separate wrist straps? In this case would I have to take the whole line off the reel?
From the photo above, I can't see what the hoop and the hooks are joined onto, as it stands the lines seem to have three ends which I'm pretty sure can't be possible!
On both these kites the line gets twisted on itself really easily, almost like it's had a perm. It twists on itself until the twists then twist on themselves and it ends up with knots that take ages to get rid of. The two line kite wasn't too bad but the single line I had to cut out about a metre of line and then retie. Am I doing something wrong when reeling the kites back in? I don't see what else would be causing all this twisting.
Second question is I've only flown the multikite once, and only as it came set up, as a single line with only a limited amount of line able to come off the reel, as it seemed to be 'locked in' under the hooks and hoop. The reel has double lines, two hooks, and a metal hoop, and I have no idea how they are supposed to be set up:
Any ideas how I should set this up for a) single line, which I think involves joining the hoop onto the hooks somewhere near the kite end of the lines, and b) twin line, which I think involves joining the hooks onto the separate wrist straps? In this case would I have to take the whole line off the reel?
From the photo above, I can't see what the hoop and the hooks are joined onto, as it stands the lines seem to have three ends which I'm pretty sure can't be possible!
Edited by ScotHill on Monday 12th October 19:55
Edited by ScotHill on Monday 12th October 20:41
If you are winding the line on, it will twist. You need to keep tension in the line so it twists evenly. In theory if you then unwrap the lines in the same way they will untwist and you should be fine. This is the approach I’ve always used with 4 line kites and it works fine.
Tension is the key though.
Tension is the key though.
Just to add, with a power kite you should always have the entire length of line out. For a start it’s the only way to ensure it is even, secondly if the lines are too short it’ll be a nightmare to control.
Trust me, I’ve flown a kite with the handles mounted directly on the bridle before and it’s a bit twitchy
Those were the days!
Trust me, I’ve flown a kite with the handles mounted directly on the bridle before and it’s a bit twitchy
Those were the days!
Thanks for this, I've worked out that it's 25m twin lines which then hook onto a 60m single line, so I probably just need to unroll it to get it all free and hook it together how I need it.
So twisted line isn't a problem as long as it's taut or on the reel? The knots come when I'm packing it away and there is some loose line.
So twisted line isn't a problem as long as it's taut or on the reel? The knots come when I'm packing it away and there is some loose line.
Yeah, if you don’t keep tension in it as you put it away then the twists will knot up. You want it to lay flat on the reel even though it’s twisted.
25m is about normal for a power kite. You can fly 20m lines if it’s high wind, but it gets twitchier, or 30m lines on a low wind day, which gets sluggish. 25m is about right.
The legal height to fly kites in the UK is a maximum of 60m, so for a single line kite you’d use that on its own and then choose how much to let out.
25m is about normal for a power kite. You can fly 20m lines if it’s high wind, but it gets twitchier, or 30m lines on a low wind day, which gets sluggish. 25m is about right.
The legal height to fly kites in the UK is a maximum of 60m, so for a single line kite you’d use that on its own and then choose how much to let out.
Whatever happened to power kiting?They used to be all over the rugby pitches at Richmond Park, on boards and buggies too.
I still have a 3m one in the car boot. Once we attached 3 of them together, I left a small trench with my boots for hundreds of yards in the wet sand near Minehead trying to control the thing lol.
I still have a 3m one in the car boot. Once we attached 3 of them together, I left a small trench with my boots for hundreds of yards in the wet sand near Minehead trying to control the thing lol.
croyde said:
Whatever happened to power kiting?They used to be all over the rugby pitches at Richmond Park, on boards and buggies too.
I still have a 3m one in the car boot. Once we attached 3 of them together, I left a small trench with my boots for hundreds of yards in the wet sand near Minehead trying to control the thing lol.
We all got a bit older and had less time available, and we all got bored of fighting with councils to allow us to do things like that.I still have a 3m one in the car boot. Once we attached 3 of them together, I left a small trench with my boots for hundreds of yards in the wet sand near Minehead trying to control the thing lol.
The councils began classing boards and buggies as powered vehicles and therefore banned it from lots of public spaces. The beaches did the same.
I used to be hugely involved in the land kiting scene, particularly in the South. There are a few people who still do it but not many. Unfortunately I’m one of the ones who no longer has the time. Used to do it 7 days a week at one point.
Sold almost all of my kites. All I have left are a 3.5m Rage, my 8.5m Blade and my 16m Venom, oh and my trusty Rev
I think at one point I owned about 20 odd kites, including a whole stack of 9 original Flexi stackers!
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