Can anyone who has flown many kites, over a number of years, give a generalised description of the basic flying characteristics of a C-shape vs BOW/SLE vs Delta vs other hybrids and their suited rider/style.
I know the market is highly differentiated, and their is a 'continuum' of performance characteristics, but could anyone succinctly summarise the flying characteristics and where they think the future of kite development will go in the next 3 to 5 years
Having kited for the past 9 years C-shape / foils / SLE / very recently deltas, I'd like to hear other people thoughts on this.
Cheers eppo
PS Don't care about people mentioning brands, even recommending them, as long as they truly believe in what they are saying. In my opinion you can't have development without commercialisation, they go hand in hand. Technology isn't free!
Hey eppo,
To get a little more tachnical you might also want to read about the terms 'projected area', 'lift drag ratio', 'angle of attack', and 'aspect ratio', on the net. Think of these properties in relation to the angle different parts of the kites surface make relative to the wind direction (wind vector), and to the wind windows three dimentional surface, at different line angles and bar positions etc. And that as the above parameters and wind velocity (including apparent wind) change the power generated by the kite will vary exponentially - including across the kite itself!
There is heaps of information on aerodynamics and kites on the internet that makes for very interesting reading, especially when put together with your own experiances, and watching other kites. Great topic.
Have fun.
Cheers for the info guys on the characterisitics of the different kite styles out there.
Any chance we can move from the generalised technical differences to the the actual experience of using these kite types. Of course brand differences will come the surface obviously.
If you feel the urge give your two bobs worth on your actual flying experience relative to the different style of kites you have used.
once again i have no problems with brand naming...
I recently fly best Kahoonas V2's: This delta kite Compared to the SLE warroos, it turns faster, boosts bigger with floatier landings, and drifts and does not fall out of the sky when yours truly tries the ridiculous on waves (I'm not too great just yet in the surf). It has really superb bottom end allowing me to kite in lower winds in the surf compared to the SLE.
However it pulls like a truck, bar pressure is most note-able compared to the warroo, and in gusty winds and/or three quarters near it's top end, it gets quite 'twitchy', due to the fact it flies predominantly on its front lines. The two 'end' panels seem to 'crease' - hard to decribe as it is not jellyfishing, something else...? Two qualities I don't like in a kite at all, but the stability and bottom end was worth the sacrifice...
Is this the case with most 'delta style' kites? Or is there a hybrid now that minimises these intrinsic behaviours of this style of kite.
The kite really does grow on you though!
ummm great websites etc but is there anyone out there with their own opinions and views based on their own flying experience.
Let's get a closer to the bone here!!!!
