Tested in 17knot average winds, 39 degrees F, 2 hr session.:

its a cool kite. i'll compare it to the Psycho3 13m and the Pulse1 13m.

its a TRUE to size 12m. Faster turning than both P3 and P1 kites, and less bar pressure as expected. less power/grunt although it is possible to work power back in... but that gets annoying. very different feel to the kite, more in-direct than previous FS kites. easy relaunch and no pre-inflation necessary.

FLS was used to land the kite once... now the kite pulls to the right... IE the FLS stretched the Left Main Line so now i have to balance the lines again... FDS does not do that.

jumps are a bit different than the Psycho3 13m or the Pulse1 13m. it seems to have more direct POP, but lacks a little float. the timing is different , its more immediate and less anticipation is needed before a jump.. just redirect and you're up. with the faster steering you can send it quicker for the faster pop-feeling and sometimes gain more height than anticipated.... but sometimes come down harder if the float is not there.

we really enjoyed the kite.... felt comfortable in the 20 mph gusts without touching the Trimmer. great depower and very stable. upwind is a bit better than the Pulse1. its a good kite to learn with and progress through afew seasons. the Psycho3 would be recommended for a more advanced rider and more aggressive style.

johns

Good review. Good thing I kept all of my P3s.

yeah i realllly am NOT a fan of the FLS system....
great review though, thanks PZ

Gonna test my 8m back to back with my hybrid blow up kite in the next couple of weeks and i'll give a full report on the differences between the two

Good review.

FLS = fifth line?
FDS = full depower?

Nevermind, FDS is with a fifth. FLS is front line

How exactly does FLS work?

FLS explained:

there are 4 lines on the kite (2 main and 2 steering)

the FLS dumps the entire kite onto one main line which front stalls that side of the kite and slacks the rest of the kite. this is how the main line stretches.

a good "upgrade" or mod to this FLS safety is adding another ring on the other Main Line so the safety can be "swapped " from one main to the other to equalize stretch and 'rotate' the line that is in safety mode.


the Pulse2 12m is a great kite... i do not mean to down play its performance or say it is "better" or "worse" than other kites... its just different. It does what it was designed to do and does it very well. especially loops. we think the more advanced riders and agressive riders will enjoy pushing the limits of the psycho or speed series more in the long run.

I figured that's what it meant with front line... just never saw that on a kite with an actual bridal before.

How much power is the kite with FLS?

Thanks for the info.

rest pull is more than FDS.... not sure on actual numbers... but it can still pull a bit.

much improved over Speed2 or original FS Blue-Rotor-leash... but we still regard the FDS as the premier safety.

I love FDS, it kills the power in kite immidiately and the pull is next to nothing. I remember back on psycho II the kite would still pull you before it flops to the ground.

I dont understand why Flysurfer did not make FDS stock.

I really like it on my pulse and psycho3. it kills the kite. safer for everyone. no strech on main lines.

and the kite wont spin around while falling. ready to relaunch immediately.

the only disadvantage to FDS (5th line) is the wrap around when you loop the kite, but you can still be safe with 1 or 2 wrap. may be a swivel here would be nice.

a little thing with the 5th line I dont understand is why Flysurfer made the attachment knot close to the bar while all other lines are close to the kite. When you want to untie your lines, the 5th line remain with the kite and not the bar ????

So the extra $100 for FDS is worth for these kites that sell above 1K$ anyway.

50% of the market prefer the FDS , 50% prefer the FLS.... at least with flysurferf you get a choice of safety....

Buzz... you can move the ELC metal attachment upwards to the kite like the rest of the ELCs.... just tie a knot in the "weak link line" big enough to stop the bar travel then the ELC is at the same level as the rest.

i've done this on my own personal FDS systems

thanks John

a good idea, I'll do it.

50% FLS must be the younger ones doing kiteloops

Hey john, wondering if i should go for a pulse2 12m and 8m combo, or if a pulse2 6 and 12 combo would be better? Which combo do you reckon would have the smoothest crossover?-Dom

hey Dom.

12m and 8m. i'm getting the 14m pulse2 soon to accompany the 10m... guess the secret is out.

the 12 to 6 is too much of a jump... remember you want the kite in the middle of its windrange most of the time... a kite on the "edge" of its windrange is not much fun to fly.

you must have uber-high-winds you want to fly in... we still use the 10m Pulse2 in 30+knots without even touching the trimmer.... the jumps are soooo sweet and the depower is incredible.

PS help me fix my PHP gallery please?

Yeah i'm back to flysurfer now they've beaten the new SLEs in my opinion, can't wait for this psycho4!!
pm'd you RE gallery...