flyboy15 - 2-3-2009 at 10:58 PM
Hey guys, I'm working with a friend to get his 2007 Best Bularoo 10m up and running. Its new out of the bag, and we have flown it three times now.
After numerous adjustments to the bridle knot settings and trim settings we cant seem to get the kite to stop fluttering when depowered. It also
wants to fold in on itself when generally depowered or moving quickly. So i have dubbed this a combination of depower flapping and high speed flutter
lol.
The rig:
-New 2007 Best Bularoo 10m SLE kite.
-New 2009 Best Bar
-New lines, various extensions required by the kite
-I don't have much experience with LEI's and SLE's, Im a foil guy. So forgive me if this is an easy fix
What seems to make the issue worse:
-low power trim settings
-attaching brake lines to the longest knot setting on the trailing bridle on the kite
-anytime you approach the depower position with the bar
-increased kite speed
What seems to make it better:
- the opposite of whats stated above and also including powering the kite up (pulling the bar)
When the kite flaps, it loses almost 75% of its speed and energy instantly. Im afraid the material is going to shred itself over time with all the
abuse. I'm at a loss for ideas at this point. maybe its underinflated, trimmed wrong, set up wrong etc. Idk HELP PLEASE!
tridude - 3-3-2009 at 06:02 AM
under inflated or a slow leak.................this happened to my Bull when I first got it. I was not inflating enough...bought an inline guage,
pumped to 8 psi +/- .5 psi (recommended in user manual), and never noticed it again.............
burritobandit - 3-3-2009 at 07:36 AM
Yeah, sounds like it's not pumped hard enough..
PHREERIDER - 3-3-2009 at 07:43 AM
sounds like you need a little more back line tension as well
def pump it up solid
carltb - 3-3-2009 at 08:25 AM
YOU ALSO NEED TO FLY THE KITE WITH THE BAR 1/3 IN. THIS IS THE SWEET SPOT. LETTING THE BAR OUT DEPOWERS THE KITE.AND POPPPING THE BAR GIVE YOU THE
POWER. THIS IS HOW SLE ARE DESIGNED TO FLY AND WHY THEY ARE SAFER FOR BEGGINNERS.
SO ID SAY ITS A COMBINATION OF UNDERINFLATION AND FLYING TECHNIQUE.
doublespeed360 - 3-3-2009 at 08:33 AM
TRY THE 3RD KNOT FROM THE LE. TO
burritobandit - 3-3-2009 at 10:23 AM
Carl brings up a good point. The kite will flutter if it's too depowered (too much slack on the backlines). Make sure you've got your trim straps
(depower/power straps) set correctly.
Also, I noticed you're using a 2009 bar with a 2007 kite. There's a good chance that the difference between the 09 bar and the 07 bar is not allowing
you to trim your Bularoo correctly. I know from my setup (08 bar with 07 kites) there's difference in the length of the chicken loop line between
the 07 bar and the 08 bar. If I wanted the original 07 setup (which would offer me a little more depower), I'd have to buy the 07 chicken loop line
and install it on my 08 bar. The difference is about 3 cm i think. The reason for the difference in length is that Best introduced the VP2 bridle on
their kites in 2008. This resulted in a slightly shorter chicken loop line which results in more depower in less throw on VP2-equipped kites.
A shorter chicken loop line will mean that the leading edge of the kite is being pulled closer to the bar, thus increasing slack on the backlines
which prevents the trailing edge of the kite from being properly tensioned and results in fluttering and decreased steering response. To remedy this,
you'd have to pull the *power* strap in to increase the distance from the bar to the kite so that there will be more tension on the back lines when
you pull in.
As doublespeed360 said, you could also try another knot on the trailing edge pigtails. Try the closest knot to the kite and see what if that helps.
Just use the trim straps to adjust the kite from there.
Another thing, what kinda winds are you flying this kite in? I know the Bularoos are supposed to have good low-end, but if you're flying it in winds
less than 15mph avg, that might be part of the problem.