It is finally in my hand, and it is a BIG A$$ KITE. Looks sweet , will take it to work and lay it out in the side lot ,maybe take some piccys. Really well made from what I could see in the quik look I had. The bridles are wierd, like some kind of hybrid fishing line or something. I mean like incredibly thin and smooth, kind of slick feelin too. This should reduce bridle drag quite a bit.
The back pack bag is really nice too,good cushy straps , and even has a waist strap. 2 pockets to put stuff in also.
I will post a flight review when i get to fly it. Maybe some pics tomorrow. WG

big kite :bigok: That thing will pull like a truck compared to your 4.7 rage :wee:

You will love the Reactor II. One of my favorite kites. The model for my logo here....though the artist was a little off with color.

Looking forward to pics etc too ...

yep...post the pics...love my reactor 8.3! Please get pics of the bridles...that was the one thing that I thought PL could have done better with the 1 series...

Congrats Weld, enjoy the new R2 :wee:

zoom zoom

You will enjoy that Kite. Don't be afraid to put it on short lines (15-18m) and take it out in stronger winds than you think normal. You will be supprised how good it performs.
Have Fun!!!!

Quote:

Originally posted by Krohn1999 You will enjoy that Kite. Don't be afraid to put it on short lines (15-18m) and take it out in stronger winds than you think normal. You will be supprised how good it performs. Have Fun!!!!

DITTO

You will be shocked at how this kite flies on 15m lines. Be sure and try it in higher winds !

That was my biggest lesson from NABX last year.

Any pictures yet? Glad everything worked out for you and hope you'll be happy with it.

Get a Strop!

Had my 8.6 out this weekend in 6-8 mph on-shore winds for 3+ mile runs. Easy 18-24 mph park-and rides. You will love it for sure.

LB, here is the bridle line

bigger than a silverado long bed.

really nice bag

Quote:

Originally posted by WELDNGOD LB, here is the bridle line

Don't you love that angel hair? Thin as corn silk.

Please let us know how you like the handling...

I have found that the 5.5 and 3.5 do not like to turn up from a low position unless you have the kite at speed... Unless you are going faster than the wind speed they will angle up but will only slide through the wind. I think with larger kite, it is easier to be going faster than the wind and this is not as noticeable... I had none of these issues with the 10.8 (have not flown any other sizes)

Some of you will say no problem... make a down turn.

Yes, this works but say you made a turn and are still accelerating and have to pass a slower buggier. You try to turn up to go over the slower kite and find a slide/stall happens instead. Not expected but maybe with more skill/experience with the RII you can avoid this.

Nice kite, goes upwind like crazy, not grabby fast - just fast... just a few quirks like any speedy kite. Either you get used to them or you find a different kite to fly.

Ron

Quote:

Originally posted by RonH Please let us know how you like the handling... I have found that the 5.5 and 3.5 do not like to turn up from a low position unless you have the kite at speed... Unless you are going faster than the wind speed they will angle up but will only slide through the wind. I think with larger kite, it is easier to be going faster than the wind and this is not as noticeable... I had none of these issues with the 10.8 (have not flown any other sizes) Some of you will say no problem... make a down turn. Yes, this works but say you made a turn and are still accelerating and have to pass a slower buggier. You try to turn up to go over the slower kite and find a slide/stall happens instead. Not expected but maybe with more skill/experience with the RII you can avoid this. Nice kite, goes upwind like crazy, not grabby fast - just fast... just a few quirks like any speedy kite. Either you get used to them or you find a different kite to fly. Ron

Sounds like you have the brakes to tight. This can happen quick on the Reactor II.
I use Ozone handles and had to put a knot in the upper line of the handles because the brake line (of the handles) was not long enough to give the brakes the room that they need.

or in other words, I have the feeling that the brake Bridal is about an inch to short so if you set it up on handles like every other kite you put a little to much pressure on the brakes.
The kite will fly great but things like what you said will happen. I noticed on my 8.6 that it didn't want to run forward above a certian speed, then I pulled the main lines in a tad and then she ran like I expected it to.
I hope you understand what I mean.
chris

So RII's don't like the brake tension like a lot of other speed kites? Interesting. Haven't had a go with mine yet, but I'll keep that in mind.

Quote:

Originally posted by heliboy50 So RII's don't like the brake tension like a lot of other speed kites? Interesting. Haven't had a go with mine yet, but I'll keep that in mind.

Sorry I guesss I didn't clarify enough. The Reactor does react well to "turbo braking" just like all other good kites.

What I ment is that it seems that the rear bridle is a tad to short is so that when you set it up on handles you need to pull the top lines in a little more (or let the bottom lines out further). Otherwise you are flying with a little too much brake pressure when you don't want it.

It could be that if you are using the RTF set that everything is perfect. I noticed that with Ozone Neoprene handles that the adjustment for the brakes was not enough so I had to pull in the top lines about 1 inch.

This is not a problem with the kite!!!

This is just a little help in getting it set up (or maybe the answer why it didn't want to "turn up").

A will trimmed Reactor will have a crease along the trailing edge, like a wing flap.

Krohn is right on. My R II's are much more fussy about this. In my 10.8m, I have so far shortened the main leaders by about 6". The tell-tale is the puckering of the lower skin in light winds and low speeds, as the kite chokes. You have to then point the handle bottoms right at the kite to loosen up the brakes, then it will suddenly accelerate like a stuck Toyota and want the brake tension back.

Quote:

Originally posted by Krohn1999 Sounds like you have the brakes to tight. This can happen quick on the Reactor II. I use Ozone handles and had to put a knot in the upper line of the handles because the brake line (of the handles) was not long enough to give the brakes the room that they need.

Will have to try taking out some brake...

From what I remember (it's been a while) I thought the brakes were fine but I will check it out.

Ron

Quote:

LB, here is the bridle line

Thanks WG!!

Love what they've done with the bridles...they look like my Yak bridles...very nice!!

let it loose, so the TE has only a slight curve to nil ... they were meant to go fast. 5m+ use the PL Long Handles.

when you fly you should be holding the handles under the Power Leader Line, and using more the center of the handle to turn, its faster and controls the Brake Tension better.

Sweet kite!

I love every PL kite I have ever flown but I have never tried a reactor. It looks really nice.

Its a buggy/speed oriented kite though yeah? Any good for jumping around on my landboard?

I was going to get a 7.7m Twister for light wind days but I may investigate the Reactor before i make any serious choices.

Quote:

Originally posted by lives2fly Its a buggy/speed oriented kite though yeah? Any good for jumping around on my landboard?

You kinda answered your own question,
The Reactor II is a High speed Low lift kite made for Buggy.
Of course you can jump with it, you can do this with every kite, but it is designed to have as little lift as possible. So If you are looking for somthing to jump with, a Twister would be the better choice.

OMFG!! WOW! Do I still have arms? This is a beasty kite. I absolutly love it!
I was out in 6-10 mph at times a little more . This will be the kite I learn to 2 wheel with , i could feel it picking up the one rear at times when I was edging really hard. It is pretty fast too. gotta go to chit chat and tell ya about the cops being called on us today. highly recommended:wee:

wow,there is barely any wind, look at the water . It's blowing onshore at 6mph

Yeah it's a great kite and has a wider wind range than you'd think for it's size. You will need harness and strops for going up wind, or you knuckles will soon be dragging on the ground. The 10.8 has it beat only in a very narrow low wind range, mainly due to it's slow turning.

Glad you're enjoying the kite WG. I love my Reactors and can't wait to get the II's...

Thanks for the review!!

Def helped me make my decision on the next addition to the quiver