Has anyone ever managed to build a kite using a tent pole instead of an inflateable Leading edge? would the weight be too great for the kite to fly properly?

If no-one's ever tried, I'd be glad of any opinion as to whether this actually will work..

just a thought

NPWfever made a home made arc.
He also made a kitewing from a tent.

I tried to make an arc....it failed, I may go back to it eventually, but I tried. If you are going to do it, get plans. However what you are looking to make is more like the paraskiflex

http://paraskiflex.homestead.com/

that looks like pretty much exactly what I want to make, I'll look into it, hopefully it will be depowerable, as i want to make a really big kite... (although i may start off by making a little 5m kite or somthing first)

Yeah, they are depowerable, ask around, aparently they have a zip on the back so you can zip it up to make it smaller, and unzip to make it bigger. Then they have some way to flatten them out or make them more of an arc shape. They have a MASSIVE wind range, when I first heard of them I hated the concept, but the more I learn, they seem like they would make amazing snowkites. If there was a pass the paraskiflex I would be all over it.

It dosent look like they're depowerable whilst actually flying tho, is it possible to change the angle of attack while they're in the air?

One other thing, does anyone have an explanation as to why the bar that they use seems to be attached to the rider off to one side, not directly in the middle like most bars...

I think some are fixed, and some are depowerable....not really sure though. And not sure why its attached off to the side, no reason that I see why you couldn't use a standard style bar though.

Paraskiflex look a bit like my Cquad ?
The Cquad is amazing in the way you can play with the AOA !
It is a pretty simple shape and may be worth looking at ?

The Paraskiflex is a very different animal. It can be flattened out by zipping up the leading edge. You can also tie the wingtips together. The lines are very short and a good portion of it is the bridle.

Depower is also controlled with the bar but not in the usual depower bar way. More like a sail. This is why the harness line is offset from center. You sheet in and out with your back hand.

The kite is also steered like no other. It's not push-pull steering. The bar is more like the handlebars of a bike or the steering wheel of a car. The bar must be flipped to the other direction to change the direction of the kites travel. Wierd.

Setup and packup is extremely fast.

We have a guy here that uses them on the snow and water. He rides surfboards strapless on the water. Respect.

Is it just me, or do thy seem a touch expensive?

Wow...I want to hear more...looks pretty interesting for sure.

I think we need a pass the PSF....

Here is a link to Paraskiflex.

http://www.paraskiflex.ca/

They are most popular in Quebec and like Conceptair don't seem to feel a need to push on to the world market too hard. It is amazing how Quebec can support these companies and still have a huge following for Best and Flysurfer as well. They have always been ahead of us there !