I have been making a side project of obtaining and flying kites that had a great reputation but different approaches.

The Cquad is definately a different kite ! It is from almost 2 decades ago and like Peter Lynn Himself, It was revolutionary ! Even the way it looks in it's big circular neon bag you know it's a different animal. 1st off it is a single skin kite that uses spars. One in a big C shape on the leading edge and 5 struts. Looking at it laying flat in a perfect semi circle on the ground you wonder how it will ever fly. :smug:

Put a little wind under it and it pops in to this perfect shape that all of a sudden makes sense ! On the 1st launch it rocketed to the edge and overshot. I was told this kite needs constant brake input and it sure does !

Flying static is was very different but not exactly impressive. A bit like an NPW. It was when I took it for a ride that the thing began to shine. Folks have described it as an NPW on steroids but to me it was more like the NPW PERFECTED :wee: I guess because of the somewhat stiff , springy profile you can really play with the Angle Of Attack with this thing. Completely different than any fixed bridle I have ever flown . Naturally it likes to be flown different as well.

I was on the ATB but see how this is a true buggy engine. The way it flew you would dive it and take advantage of the rush of power to get moving. The kite would rocket to the edge and just sort of sit there powerless for a second like it's saying , what now ? I little bit of break changes the AOA and it drops back similar to pulling in the bar on a depower at the edge. Nice power that you can place nice and low on the edge. A little more brake and you are holding on to a Ferrari :shocked2: All the while with the kite set very low so it's all pull. A very sweet and different feel :roll:

I can see just how and why this kite is still holding it's own in buggy races

We had nice clean winds topping around 20mph. Just perfect ! When the wind dropped so did the kites abilaty to do it's thing at the edge. Producing power by sining the kite wasn't exactly it's nature and it lost out when the 5m foils still could make it home. I am not sure this would be the best kite for junk winds ? Not so much because you can't spill the power but because crashing is a big No No ! Relaunch is iffy with the usual result being a bridle twisted around a spar. Spars can be broken but are still available through P.L..

If this kite came out today it would get a lot of attention.

IT DESERVES A LOT Of RESPECT for it's radical design and awsome flying characteristics !!!! The most fun I have had flying in a long time !

At this rate I may be looking for an 6.3 soon ???

http://www.prokites.com/cquad.htm

i enjoyed helping you fold the kite back into the bag ... brought back memories.

Too bad the wind dropped ! We have to get you out on that sweet beast soon !!!
We just need a 3rd person to help us put it back in the bag again :wink2:

Heres a page that I made up for the C-Quads that explains how I got them back in the bag. They can be a beast but if you follow the diagrams then it really is very easy. Just be careful when folding the kite so that you don't put excessive stress on the leading edge.

http://www.awindofchange.com/lessons/lesson-cquad.html

Hope that helps ya out.

NOW THAT is some handy info !

My Cquad didn't come with a manual. Any links to useful info on this kite will be much appreciated !
Thanks !

Quote:

Originally posted by awindofchange Heres a page that I made up for the C-Quads that explains how I got them back in the bag. They can be a beast but if you follow the diagrams then it really is very easy. Just be careful when folding the kite so that you don't put excessive stress on the leading edge. http://www.awindofchange.com/lessons/lesson-cquad.html Hope that helps ya out.

The C-Quads didn't really come with any manual's at all. There use to be some serious information on the Peter Lynn site about bridle tuning and such - one could warp their mind trying to figure out all the stuff he had on there about the bridle's and the tuning you could do. I purchased a used 10.5 meter C-Quad that had the bridles all screwed up and spent about 2 months tuning the thing until it flew awesome. With that thing you could buggy in 2-3 mph winds on the grass. Had to have plenty of throw on the handles to get it to turn and Popeye type forearms helped too.

If you have ever flown a Revolution then you know how to fly a C-Quad. They fly pretty much the same. The C-Quad responds incredibly to brake input and is sensitive to handle position. You can shoot it out to the edge of the window, apply brake and still get the kite to power up. You can even get the C-Quad to power up forward when flying it backwards into the window.

There was one time when PL was contemplating re-introducing the C-Quad but with a sectional leading edge so that it could be packed down smaller. I don't think it was ever done - which is a shame. Such an awesome power monster of a kite!