Power Kite Forum

FB vs. Depower question

_____ - 14-11-2008 at 05:38 PM

I currently have a 5m Ace and am in the process of getting the 7m Pulse from Bloah.

Would it make sense for me to have both of those kites since the 7m depower would act like a 5m fixed bridal?

I was actually thinking about trying to trade my 5m for a 7m Ace to have a little more low wind engine and static kite.

dgkid78 - 14-11-2008 at 05:59 PM

ohhh M jealous. I would prob still keep it for them low low wind days. That pulse prob won't be useful till 12mph anyways like my Montana. At least the 7m FB can be used for that tiny wind range below the 12 mph:) I would keep it is all i am saying

Bladerunner - 14-11-2008 at 06:22 PM

I have only flown my 5m Ace 1 time since I got my 7m Pulse !

The ONLY reason I flew it was I was on a trip and it was small enough to take along.

I think you are right on with your idea!

I don't know what the top end is for a 7 or 8m Ace ? I can get a ride out of my Pulse in some pretty low winds by flying the heck out of it ? I'm sure the 7 would last you until you want the Pulse. I also know I was left on the sidelines too many times when my largest F.B. was only a 7 (bullet ). I just don't know if an 8m Ace is THAT great ( or much better than a 7 ) for a low wind machine :puzzled: Any bigger and I'm sure you would have a gap!

I am amazed at how low of wind I can fly my 13m P3 in ! I know it's probably a bit spendy for you right now but I'm finding the 2 are pretty much a 2 kite quiver ! Save up. When they come down in price you should leap! My 9m Blade doesn't get me going in much lower wind than the P3 and if it does, it's not usually all that fun.

I don't find static flying with the Pulse to be all that bad ! A bigger F.B. to practice jumps would be a nice match!

WELDNGOD - 14-11-2008 at 06:50 PM

Jason, dude! Keep em all bro'! . They are completely different kites , you will definitely want both. But you gotta promise "no buggy jumpin'!" w/ alloy frame.(fatigue life is shorter than steels) But not to worry, I doubt you would be alive by the time normal cruising and racing took its toll. But jumping is another story! sorry for the hijack folks.
I keep all my kites,I don't care if I got 150 of em' . Ain't nuthin' wrong w/ a BIG BAG!!:roll:

KiteProject - 14-11-2008 at 06:52 PM

How much do you weigh? It depends on your body weight. If you are a heavy guy than your FB might overlap some with your depower. You should get a very high top end with your 7m.

I have a Blade IV 4.9 and Pulse2 6m and for my body weight, I wouldn't dream of flying my 4.9 in winds that I fly my Pulse2 6m (much higher). My 6m flies in 8mph winds but doesn't have much power. It doesn't geneate much power till 12-13 mph. My 4.9 is put away in those kind of wind speeds; it's just too powerful in those winds for me.

FB are very good in smooth winds and they have a sweet spot for your body weight but you don't get the kind of wind range with them that you get with a depower. I have a handful of FBs but in unpredictable winds, I have to swap the sizes. My depowers have huge ranges and I can keep one kite up for longer periods of time than my FBs.

After some frustrating experiences with FBs, my preferences is now to fly my depowers as much as I can and make the most of my time at the beach. Trial and error with FBs wastes a lot of time. But they do have their own personalities and can be fun at times.

Find out what kind of wind range you are getting from your kites and get rid of the overlapping kites.

Quote:
Originally posted by _____
I currently have a 5m Ace and am in the process of getting the 7m Pulse from Bloah.

Would it make sense for me to have both of those kites since the 7m depower would act like a 5m fixed bridal?

I was actually thinking about trying to trade my 5m for a 7m Ace to have a little more low wind engine and static kite.

Bladerunner - 14-11-2008 at 07:02 PM

YES, keeping it is the best choice ! I get a feeling that cash is pretty tight for you though ?

I like my 5m Ace and I'm sure you like yours ? I tend to agree though that you have too much if not total overlap right now. Swapping up to a 7 wouldn't cost much and I see you getting more use out of it :puzzled:

If by static flying you mean jumping then a larger kite will be an advantage ?

Quote:
Originally posted by WELDNGOD
Jason, dude! Keep em all bro'! . I keep all my kites,I don't care if I got 150 of em' . Ain't nuthin' wrong w/ a BIG BAG!!:roll:

_____ - 14-11-2008 at 07:29 PM

Thanks for all the info guys. And Donny, no, no buggy jumping for me, just regular jumping :D haha.

Well I really only fly at the beach so nice smooth winds 99% of the time and Im 155lbs. I love my 5m Ace and am very comfy with it now. I start to worry though that a 5m may not be floaty enough as I start getting higher and higher with jumps and that the 5m may be too small for low wind in a bug or ATB or may be overlaping the 7m DP.

And yes BR money is a concern right now with the holidays coming up and the fact that Im getting that Pulse from Bloah. I dont have to swap them "right now" but I was just thinking about it this past weekend and figured I would ask haha.

Bladerunner - 15-11-2008 at 01:17 PM

I think I see exactly where you are coming from !

I applaud you for making such a $teep commitment to buying the Pulse! :thumbup: It may have your budget stressed right now but I promise you won't regret it !

Thinkng you will enjoy a bit more canopy for jumping and low wind power for riding only makes sense to me !

I have a feeling that once you get used to the Pulse you will be looking at another depower in a larger size very soon! Time is on your side! You just may want to sell the 5 later to help fund your 13m pulse or P3 :rolleyes:

kiteNH - 15-11-2008 at 01:24 PM

I think I'd say keep the 5m Ace. I'm betting it would be much more fun to fly than a 7m and that you'd get more use out of it. And I doubt you'd get all that much in resale for it since they are so cheap to begin with. At least wait until you've got some time with the Pulse. If the Ace doesn't come out of the trunk for 6 months then you'll have your answer.

Bladerunner - 15-11-2008 at 01:53 PM

From the day I revieved my 7m Pulse the choice of pulling the ace out of the bag and missing a good session on the 7 has never taken any thought !

By about 6 months in it had moved to the bottom of the back up bag to make room for the Kitesurfer XL, Cquad and Npw on top :wee:

I'm with you folks ! I doubt I'll ever sell my ace ( it's hardly worth the postage ) . I just know from my own experience that the ace won't see much air once the Pulse moves in !

The only kite I would fly in the same winds as my Pulse simply because it is such a joy is my C-quad ! Otherwise NOTHING beats depower in winds above 15mph to me !

bloah - 15-11-2008 at 02:03 PM

I found that if you fly pulse 7 unhooked, you can get a bit more out of it in lower winds. I would even say that it may have the same bottom wind range unhooked. Yet, it would fly way better as it is closed cell. I have tried 5 m ace from Baluk ones, and I owed ace 4 and ace 8 meters, and sorry, but they sucked! Maybe just because where I fly winds are super gusty and you need something like flysurfer or peter lynns.
Anyhow, try to get 8 meter ace, it has a really good bottom line, I snowkited with it from 5 knots (25 meter lines) to 20 knots on 3 meter lines (it was horrifying experience thought).

csa_deadon - 15-11-2008 at 04:02 PM

Dude, to sound like a broken record, "Keep'em both!!!"

FB and Depower have different flying characteristics. I fly both FB and Depower static. Get comfy flying both styles, and you will start to favor one over the other.

Myself personally I have found the depower to be a little more forgiving then the FB, but that is only a personal experience, yours might be different.

speleopower - 15-11-2008 at 08:02 PM

Fixed bridal will keep you honest. If the wind gets to strong for the kite you put it away. I see people with a depower flying kites that are way to large for the wind speed. They are relying on the depower to get them out of trouble.

If it's to windy for a 7m than it's just to windy for a 7m whether it's fixed or depower.

The more you ride the larger the wind range becomes for your fixed bridal kites.

Good luck-Scott

tridude - 15-11-2008 at 08:12 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by speleopower
Fixed bridal will keep you honest. If the wind gets to strong for the kite you put it away. I see people with a depower flying kites that are way to large for the wind speed. They are relying on the depower to get them out of trouble.

If it's to windy for a 7m than it's just to windy for a 7m whether it's fixed or depower.

The more you ride the larger the wind range becomes for your fixed bridal kites.

Good luck-Scott


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smart man with lots of experience...probably why he's still flying...............

speleopower - 16-11-2008 at 08:43 PM

Thanks for the compliment tri. I've been kitesurfing, ATB riding for almost 10 years non-stop and prior to that many years of regular stunt kite flying.

I'm for sure not a pro at either kitesurfing or ATBing but I can tell you I see lots of people with not much experience with kites to large for the conditions trusting that their depower will get them out of trouble.

The worst is when someone launches a depower fully depowered but fully powered up. They then pull in the bar for super powered up. Crazy if you ask me and not what "depower" is designed for.

Put up a kite that is sized for the gusts. You'll be slightly underpowered or just barely powered up in the background wind. But you'll be in good shape when the gusts hit.

I don't kitesurf as much as I used to. As I learn more about the dangers of hardcore kiteflying and see more and more people get trashed the less I go out in marginal conditions. It only takes a split second to get torn up.

To top it out when I was regular surfing yesterday someone was kitesurfing in nearly straight off shore winds. If something had gone wrong it would have been a long swim against the wind and they probably would have lost their kite!

Keep both kites and fly them in appropriate winds.

Scott