Have an opportunity to pick up a RTF Naish ARX 19.5 for free to $100 from a friend of a friend who wants it gone.
Apparently he nearly killed himself with it years ago (first kite, seriously??) and stashed it in the closet. Only flown a few times, would like to see someone get some use of it. Bladder is supposed to be good, have to pump it up and see.

The question is, this thing is massive and reportedly has no depower ability! What the heck can I use it for, 1mph winds?
I only snowkite now but would love to get into some water riding next summer... But doubt this kite would be usable on many days, and I have no LEI experience at all. Should I just let the sleeping dog lie?

Also, it says 14.5 projected area on the bag. If this is actually a 14m that would be a lot more useful... How are these measured?

Nearly all kites have a "PA" smaller than their total area. Where an average 14m will have a PA of let's say 10-11m...that 19.5m is still an archaic, narrow depower range 19.5m even though the PA is lower. While still usable as a kite...there is a reason why a lot ppl say stay away from these old beast. General rule of thumb is >2005 models for safety reason. That being said....I've never flown an lei, let alone an old one.

Edit: By looking at your quiver I'd say "stay away"

Yep, my quiver is heavily biased towards safely handling strong and gusty prairie winds. There are days when it's even sketchy to go out and fly the 2.6m NPW! The only reason I've even considered this monster is that I know LEIs develop less power per unit area, and that it would be nice to have something to fly on "no wind days" and maybe try getting on the water. And such a behemoth would look spectacular in the air

I heard that these old C kites don't even have any way to flag them out in case of emergency, which scares me as our winds can gust 0-50 and blow up from dead air to gale in half an hour... that's why I fly NPWs

To LEI flyers, if this was a foil of equivalent power and wind range, how big would it be?

Stake it solidly to the ground and use it for sun shade , you will be happy you did! J K , but I have thought this is as good a use as any for old inflatables.

Not much call for these monster kites today. Smaller more efficient modern LEI's with one pump systems with improved safety have seen them end their days on eBay where they are sold off cheaply to the inexperienced.

The flag out system depends on the bar and line set. Use an equal length 4 line bar with an o-#@%$#!e handle and you'll be ok as long as you remember to use it.

These big old 'C' kites can be heavy and so not really the low wind kite you might think. You will need a good steady breeze to launch.

Most important, you'll need to learn how to correctly setup and launch/land an LEI. Having a friend to help is better and your friend or other half will need to learn how to do so too. If they launch or catch it wrong then it can end badly.

An old 19.5m LEI I'd say is probably the equivalent in foil size to an 8.5m Flexifoil Blade fully powered in good wind. Just a rough guess, but an LEI seems to develop it's power differently.

If you're coming from fixed bridle without any experience of depower then even this 19.m 'C' kite will feel like a dream compared to a Blade.

LEIs' best redeeming feature is that they hold their shape but this can be a double edged sword. The kite is always potentially 'LIVE'. That's why it's so important to know how to launch/land and secure it.

You'll need a leash.

Don't take up kiteboarding with this kite. I'd buy something up to date and more importantly pay for some tuition.

Free sounds like about right. You can feel good that you removed temptation from your friends hands.

I think it's greatest value is in the rip stop to sew up cool new things. It would make a sweet sun shade as is !

Using my old 16m Naish Aero II as my basis. These big old kites didn't fly super early because they were so heavy. Once they did fly the lack of range left no room for gusts. Fortunately I learned that on water ! Learning that on land is something I hope to avoid. I think the target market was extra large dudes on water back then with this kite size. 16m was too much for my skinny butt! Now I feel safe under a 19m Flysurfer. Kites improved !!!!!

I like the Blade reference. In that the power is full on. Maybe like the Blade II 10.5 though ??? Slow turning like that, I suspect?

Use it for a beach shelter.

Thanks for all of your insights. This thing just sounds like a safety hazard, especially since it was mentioned that it's too heavy for low wind! My 7m NPW will fly off of a fart so I figured this monster would also do so.

I'll still pick it up if he will let it go for $0-50 as my 7m could use its own bar and lines and the kite can be used as a windbreak or a roof for a cattle shelter or something. Could cut it up for a big NPW too, that could be my low wind monster.

Of course I will have to try and fly it though, probably with a fairly large crew to launch and land and hold it down!

I have a couple of old 2003 Naish X3's which I mess around with sometimes. The 2003 control bar is surprisingly advanced actually. Naish were one of the first to use the (now industry standard) push away release. The kite drops effectively when you pull it and loses all power.

The safety system is not really the problem. The wind range is very small about 12-16knots on water for my 14m - or about 10-13knots on snow. The kite does not handle gusts well and likes to launch you upwards! letting go the bar does not help if you crash overpowered. The only solution is to pull the chicken loop.

The main pain in the the ass is re-launch. you have to swim (or run) towards the kite to get it to roll on its back. then try and coax it onto a wing tip. usually it just falls back on its leading edge and you have to start again. You really do need a buddy to help launch these old girls.

I would not bother with it if I were you. Old kites are good for curiosity value to see what the sports pioneers had to cope with but they are not good for much else!