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As for aspect ratios im fine with fast kites, iv been told a few kites would be too fast for me in the past and been just fine, I really want to stay away from anything that is beginner specific or the trainer kites. Iv just found that I am such a fast learner, stuff like that is typically a waste of money for me because I. Grow past them so fast. Id rather get something that will be used for a long time but may give a few extra headaches in the beginning. That's the way iv done it with a lot of my other hobbies and it works fine for me.

then theres only one kite for you and thats a blade iv 4m:wee::wee::wee:

Are th flow and method depower kites?

Also, I have nothing against prism but at this point I already have 4 kites by them, id like to branch out a little more and find something made by someone else. That is, unless a prism kite is the best option for me right now

The Flows and methods are not depower. I here you can buy a turbobar from ozone and put it on the flows and it makes them fly like a depower. I have never tried this. I have also been told you can buy a turbo bar and it turns almost any kite into a depower. I am unsure how true this is. Anyone know how true this is?

Ya id rather just stick to something that is made to be a depower kite from the start

So, depower kite, can be had for 500 ish used, 5m or larger, what would you look for?

a frenzy is good and can be found fairly cheap a 2006 or 07 usually sell for about 4 to 5 hundred and those are bigger ones. if you want 5m i think the frenzy has a 6m or maybe a 5 in there older models. you can check there stuff out on www.flyozone.com and go to snowkites and look for previous kites it brings up all there stuff thats from the past.

I might take some heat for this but 7-8m depower foil or a 10m arc.

A lot of people are telling me 5 is big, why are you suggesting a 7-8m depower?

First I would like to welcome u 5 is a very good size at 6'2" and a whopping 290
I can tell u that in winds ten and up u wont be flying very long without a harness or some type of traction vehicle it will also pull way harder than a tenor and fly different according to the kite u pick ozone's turbo bar is fantastic but it is in no way a depower bar it flies the kite with the brakes and just a little input from the front lines so u.have a better flying kite and u can easily hook in to a harness
I am just going to say.this but I agree with the above about an arc 12 or 13 older probably venom depower kites are not easily compared to fb and arcs dont compare directly with depower in a normal depower u can figure about halved for a general comp so a 7 or 8 dep is going to be like a 3 to 4.5 fb and a 10 arc will land about a 5 but they again don't fly the same the arcs are great and forgiving you can't go wrong with a frenzy if you can take a water lesson it will intro you to dep and you could easily go with an arc depending on your winds 16 is a good place to start
Nice and float a gentle giant and almost no pull with the bare out in light winds
For ref I was rolled after a good jump and when I sat up the kite was just hanging out waiting on me no pull at all and absolutely no imput from me
At first I hated them but as I learned and got them out in higher winds I have really come to love the arcs where are u so many u can demo something
Sorry for the wind but I felt I must also give two sense
Oh and arcs are ferry friendly on the wallet

^^ spam reported 2x ^^

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Originally posted by Trbo323 A lot of people are telling me 5 is big, why are you suggesting a 7-8m depower?

A 5m fb is on the big side, a 7-8m depower is a small depower.

I was looking for specifics and running into issues finding projected area. I think of projected area as useable energy producing area. Here is what I did find.

A 5m fixed bridle kite has a projected area of about 4.5m
A 7-8 depower foil should have a projected area close to 5m but I can't find a good reference
A 8-10m arc has a projected area of 5-6m

flying in conditions that are appropriate with your skill is very important.

If you are good at a fixed bridle kite then you could be ready for a depower. Think of a fb kite as a 3D kite. We live in 3D and are comfortable with it. A depower kite is 4D. It adds a big difference in what you can do with the kite and the conditions it can be used in but in a lot of ways it is that much more complex to fly. I admit there are ideas here that are arguable. This is why I recommend getting good with fb kites first though.

Yes depowers are less powerful then the FIxed bridals. Sorry for not clarifying that. They make small depowers, but the frenzys was only made in a 5m as far as I know. Any smaller and the foil would require much more wind just to get up in the sky and moving. My 14 requires about 10 mph wind to move while a 7m fixed can do it in the same wind. A 14m fixed bridal can get you moving in about 3-5 mph and keep you moving very easily.

so can a 7-8m depower be had used around $500?

Used, absolutely.

Ok, any specific kites I should look at?

Man, I just went to the for sale section, and the first thing I see is rdavis' 9.5M Flexi Sabre II for $450.00. That's a pretty sweet kite for the price, a little larger than you are looking for, but if you respect the wind, take it slow, feel your way around the window and where power comes on you could easily grow into it. On the other hand, if you take her out in 20+, hot launch and send her straight to the top... :wee:

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Originally posted by bobalooie57 On the other hand, if you take her out in 20+, hot launch and send her straight to the top... :wee:

That there is the challenge, even for an experience kiter. We can get away with that (and even preffer for clean lift off) on a delta and 2 line foil up to the 2 or 2.5m range. Do that with a traction rig and you better have a reserve chute to get you back down safely!:wee:
They just pull so much differently than what stunt kites do.

For the OP, I think I heard that some of the 3 and 4 line kites can be re-rigged to fly like a depower? Might be something to think about as a "bridge" rig. Maybe a Rush pro 350 or even a beamer 4-5m and rerig to depower once you get a handle on it? Do you have any 4line experience yet, that I am sure would be a huge benefit in flying a Depower rig as you already have that added dimension down.

I have been flying a Symphony1.7, we had 10-12mph winds last time out and it was a solid pull, but not enough to move me or pull me over. In contrast, I just whatched a video of a friend in FL, Hydra300, 10-15mph winds and it was bodydragging them thru the water NO PROBLEM. They were moving a good 5mph thru the water and the kite was high in the window, not down low in the real power zone...

Just giving you some further perspective, I hate to see anyone get hurt making this next step to power. I am in a similar boat and very glad I can attend SOBB sunday to get some hands-on with experienced people to keep me from becoming superman.

If your in WA/OR I woudl higly recommend getting out to Sunset beach one of the next two weekends for this event.

Larry

Someone mentioned rigging a fixed bridle kite to be a depower but nobody seems to know anything about it, not to mention as I said earlier id rather just get something that is meant to be a depower from the start instead of trying to make something into a depower that wasn't intended for it

You looking for specific kites.
Arcs: venom, venom II, vortex, synergy, scorpian, charger in the 8-10m range

Open cell Foils(no water): Montana, apex, access (can someone fill in the gaps on a stable depower?) 7-9m

Closed cell Foils(water): Neo, NeoII, Pulse, (again there are more that someone could fill in the gaps) 7-9m

You have some excellent info here. Let me weigh in...

Flying a FB kite on handles is the BEST way to learn how to fly a power kite. You learn the basics and, arguably, really learn HOW these four line kites work. Having the ability to turn just using brakes, stop, stall, reverse land, add power, reverse launch, etc... all very good skills.

On the other hand, I know a lot of guys that fly depowers and they don't even know that you can fly four line power kites on handles. The routine for these guys and the guys they teach to fly are to go out in moderate winds and start under powered in order to learn kite control and get some speed by learning how to bring it into the power zone effectively and work the kite to get enough power to move. Once they gain confidence and experience, they move them up to larger kites/stronger winds. In short, you can go directly to depowers if you want to though it is not ideal. (let the flaming begin)

I have a 5m Frenzy and a 7.5m Sabre II I plan on culling from my quiver. If my buddy I am teaching how to ride doesn't want them, they may be available.

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Originally posted by stetson05 You looking for specific kites. Arcs: venom, venom II, vortex, synergy, scorpian, charger in the 8-10m range Open cell Foils(no water): Montana, apex, access (can someone fill in the gaps on a stable depower?) 7-9m Closed cell Foils(water): Neo, NeoII, Pulse, (again there are more that someone could fill in the gaps) 7-9m

Sooooooo.....which of these are depower kites and which are not?

Well, since that was a response to your question about depower kites, it's worth assuming that all of them are. And yes, all of them are depower-kites.

o ok cool, thanks, iv just had a lot of people throwing names around and i know not all of them have been depower thats why i was asking. ill take a look around and see what i can find, anywhere specific i should look for buying a used one?

also, i realize what the closed cell foils are going to be like, but what is going to be the difference between the arcs and the open cell foils?

also does anyone have experience with the HQ apex 2 or 3? and are there any major differences between the two?

Anyone?

I've got the whole series of Apex 2 and love them. Myself and a pack of kids fly them static all summer and on skis all winter. I can't imagine how HQ could have improved how they fly. I did wear through lines on two of them where they go through a little ring on the edge of the kite. I replaced the rings with little pulleys , problem solved.
I've been jumping with the 10meter this summer. In smooth winds its too easy.
I've flow the 5meter in severe gusty 20-30+ mph wind , a wild ride for sure but doable.
If you are flying on a hard surface the 3.5 meter Apex is going to give you a huge range. In light wind you can work the kite to get more power out of it, and in strong or gusty wind you benefit from the smaller size and the ability to depower in the gusts. Have fun , spend some money.