Ahh - did get it and didn't install it. Thanks everybody!

So. Here is my other spreader assembly. Its primarily for my stroped fixed bridle kites. I really wanted to try it out with my Stars at JIBE this year, but didn't get a chance.

Excellent thread. A good one stop shop for questions and answers regarding various set ups and questions

Hah! I've never seen the extra doohicky for the spreader bar. I just clip the little 'biner to the hook and then hook the trapeze in.

Quote:

has anybody tried flying a NS3 (or any Star for that matter) without the center line at all?

Works fine on handles with and without the Z bridle but no center line. And the other way I've tried it that was really good - use Z bridles and run power lines and brake lines to the ends of the bar (yep, both of 'em with trapeze in usual spot) Hook a safety leash to the brake strap between the two brake lines.

So if you pull the release on the trapeze loop, the safety leash pulls the brakes and all is good. Or if you want to back it down or reverse launch, just pull the brake strap.

In the end I thought the 3 line bar was simpler and just as effective so I stuck with it. But you may have seen this vid with the above bar description. (also tried Turbo Bar a couple of times but the NS2 didn't like being steered by brakes alone)

Alright my fellow NASA fans, I just attached my little clip-in strap that came with my Born bar as so beautifully shown in Jason's photo and replaced the release hardware to the back end of my center line that I had removed earlier today. For good measure I added knots to the outside thick lines coming off the bar ends about three inches below the terminal knots and attached my outside lines to those shorter positions effectively building some slack back in my center line. Sean, I totally see what you mean about clipping in the center line carabiner ABOVE the spreader hook so nothing gets in the way of hooking in the chickenloop - totally makes sense.

I'm back in the saddle!

I've always loved that video John!!
One things for sure, they are such a versatile kite. Not complicating things Steve, but that other spreader is my Auto Quick Release. You'd attach your third line as normal. Then put your chicken loop in the snatch block and snap it shut. The two lower rings then gets hooked to my buggy's teather strap under my seat. So, in the event I have an obe, I'm lifted up out of the seat about 4" and the teather draws tight, pulling the snap shackle open releasing the snatch block. Once you are hooked in though, you are in. No unhooking on the fly. Unless you manually reach down and pop the shackle. The swivel should also give a little bit more range of motion with my bar too. Wish I would have got to use it at JIBE for those big power slides...
Glad you got your third line back together Steve!

Here's how I did mine... I initially had it inside the hook like you Jason, but with the little cross member in my hook (bought second hand and NOT of PL manufacture) it had a tendency to get in the way, so I got frustrated with it and moved it to the side. This has worked fairly well, however a little in the way at times.



However seeing and hearing you talking about clipping it ABOVE the hook, I may try it again in this way. ...BUT... I'm afraid the little cross bar might still get in the way. I'm going to try your way and see if that makes a difference for me.

That little cross bar had really been a pain at times as there have been instances that really weird stuff has happened. Once the carabinieri got clipped onto that bar and then somehow, the chicken look clipped itself onto the carabiner and was stuck there... it was weird... I used to clip the carabiner TO that little bar and then it REALLY got in the way!... Do you guys think it would effect the integrity of the hook if if cut that little cross bar out?

Thanks guys!

I bet it would work fine being cut off. You might even be able to tape the opening closed from bar to cross piece to close the void if that's what causes the problem. My set up is identical Jason's first picture which is in accordance to instructions.

Loving this thread guys!

I'll see what happens with jut clipping it OVER the loop first before taking the angle grinder to it :o

Spencer. IMHO I'd think you'd be fine removing that little cross bar. You won't be putting huge demands on the bar like kite boarding or anything (unless you are feelin' gangsta again). I'd remove it nice a smooth, and polish it up very well with a Dremmel. Again, IMHO.

Yeah, I'm fully equipped to clean it up... I'll give it a try without cutting it first and see what happens.

Yea, I'm deffo wanting to keep my feet on the ground so I won't be gettin' gangsta for ... well forever

For the record, when i first got my Stars, I had to call our resident Holgate (Sean), to figure out how that little dang piece attached! Lol the instructions were not that clear, and I can't read German. Lol

It took me a minute to sort stuff out. I have to figure out a way to get the longstar so I can keep my title as the resident Holgate.

That's what google translator is for! LOL

Well gentleman, I just fished the Star instruction pages that came with the kites out of the garbage (literately) and what did I find? Pictorial directions for attaching the "O-Ring fur Trapez". Who'd ah thunk it?

I had two of these little o-rings (the second coming with the 3.2m - yipee!) and late last night I put one in the center of my PL standard spreaderbar just as in Jason's original photo and the second just to the left of the center mechanism of my PL prodigy spreader. I was delighted to see this morning that I had independently set up my prodigy spreaderbar exactly as Spencer showed in his photo. You guys are rubbing off on me, and that's a good thing!

About that prodigy spreaderbar - I love it's design, but it was expensive, and the way my quiver is evolving I'm just not getting any use of it. I like flying kites off of handles with a strop, but at least for me, the kites I want to expand into seem to be more DP, Single Skin, Stars, etc, all of which get flown off of bars. I still have my 4m Hornet and 4.5m Uniq. I'm hopeful for enough wind one of these months to put the Hornet up in the air for buggying, but I'm in the same boat as everybody else with our Summer being more breezy than windy. IMHO the Uniq is an inferior buggy engine to other kites in my quiver and I don't anticipate using it again for that purpose.

Long Star AND Ultra Star Sean!

True dat

err, uh... Steve.. get rid of that Prodigy bar dude... If you aren't going to be using FB stuff that often, it's better not to strop in, especially in inland wind with a pulley style bar (eps. as opposed to a auto QR set up)... If you REALLY want to use the strop, you can do so with your hook spreader too and save yourself having to change out the spreader bar... I'm not a fan of that spreader anyway.

I may have the chance to try out the change in location of the little linky doo dad today... with the cr@p summer wind I'm out of the habit of checking the forecast... just looked out the window, checked WindAlert and BANG... I know what I'm doing on lunch!!!!

@ John Holgate - In some email back and forth with Steffen these past days he mentioned that you are shortly getting a complete line of Long Stars to compare with the NS3s. Awesome!

I'm sure you are going to be doing all sorts of great comparisons. We look forward to your impressions! I'm thinking of filling in the middle gap of my Star quiver with the 7m Long Star. Since the NS3 line also has a 7m in its line I suspect you could do a nice direct head to head. I'd be most interested to learn about which has a harder pull, how do they sit in the wind window for buggying, upwind performance, wind range, etc. Enquirering minds want to know! :D

I tried out the reconfigured doo dad at lunch and it was better, I DO think I'll benefit from cutting off that cross member.

Stoked! I just got over (dare I say it in this esteemed crowd?) eBay a bar-only adjustable width control bar for covering the different NS3s in my quiver.



As you can see from the picture the adjustment is pretty simple, just move the outer lines in or out knotting them beyond 4 different holes on each side. The bar I got adjusts outer line width from 45-60 cm by 5 cm increments. I believe the standard Born three line bar is 50 cm. Though not shown there was a second photo showing a nice smooth tapered metal hole in the bar center. It looks to be of good quality.

Here is what I'm thinking: 45cm width for my 2.5m, 50cm for my 3.2 and 4.0m, 55cm for a 5.5 and 7.0m (I don't have those), and 60cm for my 8.5m or larger Stars.

I don't have it yet of course. I'll post pictures and flight impressions in a couple of weeks.
:wee:

Looks good Steve.

Spencer, if you wiggle your doodad more than twice, your playing with it.

My thoughts exactly. Spencer, that piece of, err, equipment has a Velcro closure and should require no, err, adjustment. :moon:

Oh, and Spencer, you might want to check with the Mrs before cutting off any members. :o

Hey now,... you guys don't need to be crackin' jokes about my bar like that... have I told you that my bar is a longer than a PL Standard ???

The hook is bigger too...

Oh jeez... I see this going south... oh my

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have I told you that my bar is a little longer than a PL Standard

All the more reason to check with the Mrs before doing something drastic. Who knows, she may still have occasional use for it. :tumble:

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he mentioned that you are shortly getting a complete line of Long Stars to compare with the NS3s.

I've only got the 3.2m in the NS3, (the twin brother of yours :D) the rest of mine are NS2's - having said that, the two models are extremely similar in performance with the NS3 just feeling a little more refined...

Plenty of reviews and comparo's to come.

Most excellent John! We wait with baited breath. Excellent to know my little 3.2 has an older brother on the other side of the world.

Quote: Originally posted by Windstruck

Quote: have I told you that my bar is a little longer than a PL Standard All the more reason to check with the Mrs before doing something drastic. Who knows, she may still have occasional use for it. :tumble:

Only youtube version of this clip I could find... forgive the quality

Gotta love Mel Brooks! Good comeback.