Power Kite Forum

What’s the Best General Kite? And where is the best place to buy it?

Bryan_Jarvis - 10-6-2008 at 06:43 PM

What’s the Best General Kite? And where is the best place to buy it? I want a good kite. I currently have the P3 and i'm very comfortable with it. I want to go bigger and maybe start jumping. I looked on e-bay and other internet sites but I’m not sure where or what to buy? Everything looks BIG and expensive online. What are the Price ranges? Thanks for all your help. I weight 185 pounds.

Bladerunner - 10-6-2008 at 06:49 PM

Anyone on the good trader list of course !

You have to give more info.
Where will you fly ( inland or beach )
What do you want to progress in to ? It's not all about jumping ! Trust us on that !
How much do you weigh ?
What is the average wind speed in your spot ?
Are there other folks around to help you out ?
Can you get lessons ?

Bryan_Jarvis - 10-6-2008 at 06:55 PM

#1. At the Beach
#2. Not sure ...Start with Jumping and maybe go to the Water.
#3 . I weigh 185 pounds
#4. wind changes a lot at the beach,, 8-25 miles per hour
#5. Other folks around?????????I have one person to help me launch
#6. No lessons.......

If you need any other information please let me know, Thanks for all your help!

DAKITEZ - 10-6-2008 at 10:13 PM

If you are by the beach there has to be other kiters around.
what state are you in ?

BeamerBob - 11-6-2008 at 03:18 AM

I frequently go to the Atlantic beaches and I'm the only one there with any kite at all much less a 4-line fixed bridle.

Bryan, posters here will discourage you from pursuing jumping as your initial goal with power kiting. The problem is that kites suitable for jumping are big enough to catch the inexperienced off guard and hurt you. A guy called me up about a kite I had for sale that was very capable of jumping. He oversold me on his experience and abilities. I flew the kite in front of him and told him a short list of things not to do for months until he had some solid experience in with it. That was on a Saturday morning back in March. I called him the next Monday to see how his flying went and he said he was still in the hospital with rods and screws in his calf. He had completely broken both bones in his calf. He was supposed to get the rods and hardware out of his leg this past week. He was military so this probably messed up his career as well. Don't take these things lightly and don't go too fast. You could hurt yourself or others around you or worse.

http://www.powerkiteforum.com/viewthread.php?tid=5587&pa...

The kites are fun without jumping. That can come later. I didn't jump on purpose for 9-10 months.

tridude - 11-6-2008 at 05:28 AM

There are a few 2.5 meter Profoils left at kiteinovations.com. Another option would be a 3 or 4m Beamer III thru coastalwindsports.com. Owner is currently on vacation but should be back this weekend or early next week. No more than 3 or 4 meters to start out with but dont be fooled, when powered up they can lift you and will catch you out. Kite killers, knee pads, and helmet for safety gear. Good luck.................

Look at these less lifty/beginner foils:

Beamer III 3 or 4m
Profoil 3.5 or 2.5
Ozone Samurai 3 or 4m
Pansh Legend 3 or 4m

Do not purchase (intermediate to advance skills required for these):

Flexifoil Blades/Bullets
Crossfire I or II
Pansh Ace
Ozone Riot/Haka

BeamerBob - 11-6-2008 at 06:12 AM

Tridude, you are a piece of work with your sig. :lol: I laughed out loud when I looked at your "rides" section. But who are these big fellas named Will, Russ, and Todd down below Sarah? :o Are these in order of favorites for you? And twin woodies? That's quite a trick I must say.

Sorry for the hijack, I digress now. :saint:

tridude - 11-6-2008 at 07:10 AM

Todd, Russ K , and Will Allison are three of the best longboard shapers out there...............back to the thread............:D

f0rgiv3n - 11-6-2008 at 08:03 AM

I would be one of the newbies that took the advice and bought a beamer 3m III. 110% satisfied and 110% glad i went this route, I've had a BLAST and i haven't broken any bones :) what more can you ask for? :yes: I've flown it for about 6 months and I am now moving on to the next stage in my kiting life, but i would recommend the Beamer 3, they are awesome! :) Another good thing about this kite is it's wind range, i've flown it in low winds just to get to know the kite up to where i've flown it in 35mph winds as well.... :wow: both it flies quite well and stable, only been superman'd by surprise once (limped for a week).

Bladerunner - 11-6-2008 at 09:05 AM

Yup,

There are other choices but the Beamer 3 package comes complete and I have NEVER heard of an unhappy owner. This is why you almost never see them up for re-sale !

Dlish can probably get you a good price and he's a great guy if you have to buy online ? Buy with confidence from the good trader list !

Bryan_Jarvis - 12-6-2008 at 07:51 AM

Thanks, to everyone for your Help, Beamer 3 package a 3 m...........Wouldn't go any larger than that? 4m? 5m? Beamer 3? What is the cost for this kite in the 3m 4m range?

tridude - 12-6-2008 at 08:01 AM

prices from coastalwindsports.com................as with all HQ wings, thats ready to fly (backpack, lines, handles, kite killers, and ground stake). Setup up instructions and DVD came with my Beamer II 3.6 if I remember correctly. Age.........oh well. No larger than the 4m to start. Youll have a 13 foot wing zipping thru the sky producing ALOT of power. Dont be fooled by a 3 or 4m. Worst spanking to date was on a 2m Mac Para Bego! Damn near knocked me out and I was wear a lid!

$237.49 3.0 sq. m / Red-Black-White
$245.49 4.0 sq. m / Yellow-Black-White

kiteNH - 12-6-2008 at 08:04 AM

The size really depends on the winds you'll be flying in. I'm not familiar with the "P3" but I think you'd be awfully surprised at the amount of power from a Beamer 3m. You wouldn't want to be flying that kite static in winds gusting to 25 mph. If you're wind range is 8-25mph then I'd probably stick with the 3m. Power kites are dangerous and its always best to be cautious and work your way up. Also, you can fly a kite that is a bit small for the wind and still get great practice and have a good time, but if you're kite is too large then you can't fly at all. Starting out I'd got small and work your way up.

Check your u2u as well.

Bladerunner - 12-6-2008 at 08:43 AM

With the B3 you will be able to take it out in larger and larger winds as you get better. You will NEED another larger kite once you are experienced but generally everyone ends up holding on the the B3 and using it a lot as their high wind kite + a good safe kite to introduce friends to the sport.

It has all the power you need to get dragged around + figure out the correct motions for jumping.

furbowski - 13-6-2008 at 04:41 AM

What do you mean exactly by 8-25 mph?

do you mean its blowing 8 gusting to 25 whenever you go?

likely not... you maybe mean that's the wind range you've flown at that beach, and if you're "very comfortable" you probably know the difference between onshore and offshore winds.

If that's the case, you're very ready for the B3, I'd say.

The B4 would be a bigger jump in performance, but you could likely handle it at 185 lbs, and should have enough respect for the wind to be pretty picky about the first few winds you fly it in.

The most difficult bit would be transitioning from 2 to 4 lines, and the beamers are very reliably RTF from all I've heard, which is a big help in that regard.

I've never flown nor seen one, but the collective wisdom on this forum has convinced me to buy my nieces (11 and 13, currently on a radsail 1.4 and a HQ symphony 1.8) the B2 when they're ready for it -- going to be at least three years at the rate they are growing...

The B5 would immediately make you want to get the B3, I'd say... But you'd likely survive if you're smart about your winds and I've got you figured right....

cheers,

furbo

furbowski - 13-6-2008 at 04:42 AM

If you try to jump right away, at least get the best medical insurance you can and make sure it covers power kite flying, as you will be using it soon!

BeamerBob - 13-6-2008 at 04:51 AM

Quote:
Originally posted by furbowski

I've never flown nor seen one, but the collective wisdom on this forum has convinced me to buy my nieces (11 and 13, currently on a radsail 1.4 and a HQ symphony 1.8) the B2 when they're ready for it -- going to be at least three years at the rate they are growing...

The B5 would immediately make you want to get the B3, I'd say... But you'd likely survive if you're smart about your winds and I've got you figured right....

cheers,

furbo


Go ahead and get them the Beamer! My 8 year old (75 lbs) flies mine with ease up to about 10 mph winds. A 2m BIII would be a no brainer for the girls unless they are just tiny little things. My 13 year old son has flown everything I have flown and even though I've frequently said "no way you can fly this kite", he has proven me wrong every time. My rule is that he must be able to hold or regain his ground or he has to land it. Always wears kite killers except with the profoil.

WELDNGOD - 13-6-2008 at 06:21 AM

I bought my buddy a pansh legend 3.0 for x-mas . A couple of weeks ago, we went kiting and fishing, wind was 10-15 gusts to30+. He watched me fly my Rage 4.7 with no probs. ( I weigh 185 and the aoa kit was in high wind setting) He decided that since I could handle my kite he was gonna fly his ( John weighs around 300 lbs), needless to say I saw him fly through the air about 20ft and smash on the beach with a couple of barrel rolls. He was done for the day. lesson is 3.0 kite has more a$$ than you think The winds effect on pull isn't linear, meaning 20mph doesn't pull twice as hard as 10mph it is more like four times or maybe more. A beginner needs 1.5 to 3.0 , no more. err on the side of caution :thumbup:, or you might be payin dues:thumbdown:

furbowski - 13-6-2008 at 06:56 AM

@ bb: gotcha...

the only time I've been able to have a good fly with them was last Xmas in 25-30 mph onshore winds... they could just about handle the 1.4 on their own and the 1.8 was too much! They crashed a lot (with my dad holding on) until they got it (how to fly a two line), then just had fun keeping it up at the the zenith! They live in victoria bc and then i had to go back to hk. I'm going back there in summer with all my kite kit for two months, i daresay i'll rethink that...

@weldngod...

my neices sail and so they know wind, but i'm going verify that most carefully for myself before i give them anything bigger! In the same Xmas session I snapped a line on my 2.7 (2m) on my first hard dip into the wind, my sting 1.7 then had me scudding hard and fast sitting down on wet grass, and I didn't have the balls to get out anything bigger! 30+ gusting from 10-15 on a legend 3 sounds scary for me! 300lb guy 20ft superman with barrel rolls sounds like a missed video opportunity! (your buddy has flown again, so he's ok? hope so...)

I'll be more careful in my recommendations in the forum, somebody with zero wind knowledge is at huge risk!

having said that, somebody who has done some hard sailing and knows wind well and can select good winds to fly can go for something a bit bigger, but it's very hard to tell who has that kind of knowledge on the forum!

@Bryan_Jarvis: I hope you're reading this carefully!

cheers,

furbo

Bryan_Jarvis - 13-6-2008 at 09:51 AM

Great info everyone…I definitely don’t have the experience necessary to go big from what I’m reading…..I will be posting some other questions on terminology you guys use….. thanks for all the answers……. Powerkiteforum.com is Awesome!

Bladerunner - 13-6-2008 at 10:00 AM

www.kitesurfingschool.org is a GREAT site and should also help with all the wacky terms !

furbowski - 13-6-2008 at 10:03 AM

I may not have figured you right, but at least you are smart!

do some research... blade runner's link above was very good for me when i was just getting started!

cheers,

furbo

WELDNGOD - 13-6-2008 at 01:46 PM

Yeah I was busy flying my rage 4.7 when " big john" went superman so got no vid. But he gained a little respect for the wind and only bruised his ego (little guy flyin a bigger kite than the one that slammed his butt) All I can say is the AAA kit from flexi rocks!