So...I bought an HQ symphony 1.7m on amazon recently as my first kite, just to get a feel for kite control and the sport of power kiting. It arrived last Monday, and I went directly out to fly it. had a quick 30 minute session, and picked it up after one crash. (I was very proud of myself) :wink2:.

Anyways, I flew it for another 3 days, with minimal crashes, and in winds around 10 mph (definitely nothing over 15 mph). I had my friends fly it a bit (to get them hooked) so I would have kiting buddies in the future. They didn't pick it up as fast, and had a few crashes, but nothing extremely violent. (well, as far as my untrained eye can see).

On the third day of flying, I realized that a foil rib had popped open midflight, so I brought it down, very brokenhearted. :sniff:
Indeed, one of the ribs was ripped, and now I'm debating as to whether this was my fault, or if it's a faulty kite.
could anybody help me out here?
I thought power foils were a little more durable than this, but I could be wrong. how much does it take to rip one?

Give HQUSA a call. The # is on their website. Explain what happened...
I had a similar experience with a HQ kite, they stood by their product.

Well, I forgot to mention that I did. They're customer service is AWESOME.
They stated that even though popped ribs are not covered under warranty, they were willing to replace it.

I just want to make sure this wasn't my fault. I don't want someone else paying for my mistake!

they are great. you could have accidentally grabbed it wrong handling it, or it could have been faulty. They probably won't ask for the one back, but if you send it they may be able to evaluate it to assess what happened.

can't say it wasn't the kite but it could very easily been your fault also. When it comes to foils the worst thing you can do is pile drive them into the ground leading edge first (leading edge = where the vents are). When you crash them straight down on the vents the pressure in the kite has nowhere to go and it blows out the internals. The kite even yells at you when you do it, because it makes this awful boom noise. Any seasoned kiter will know that noise and know exactly what just happened without even seeing it.
Foils are very tough, but they can't with stand a direct kite nose down to the ground. They also do not like: trees, dogs, logs, other pilots helmets (note: screwyfits)

dude, you (your friend)popped that kite , those thing will pop in a LE crash.

got one for my daughter, a 2.2, put it on a bar, invited a friend out to start on his fly skills. its about 10-15mph, he catches on fast, so while i'm on the atb , he continues to fly. come in after about an hour. he's still rock 'n. i drop and watch give advice for upwind and downwind movement , then a LE slam, instantly pops kite. thing bagged out like a tumor. several ribs pulled/torn out. in flight there are tough but even an innocent le crash will cause a burst.

pilot error ...he did not realize it. he noticed it would not fly as fast after he got it back up. he drops it and low and behold ..shreds! the guy is shocked at the gutted kite.

The only time I have seen HQ back away from a warranty claim is when the customer clearly lied saying " the fabric Just failed", yet the returned kite had dirt and twigs inside and had clearly been augered in to the ground or bush.

At JIBE we will have pubic clinics and the Beamers and others (PL Hornets) will be slammed in to the ground all day with no failures, so I don't know how others do it. Tough kites!

I think (just from stuff on the forum here, never used one) that the Symphonies aren't as tough as the rest of the power kites.

it happened on my BeamerIV 1.4. several ribs... they were quick to rectify, just wanted the kite for inspection....

Symphony is a fun foil it isn't designed to be driven nor can you classify it as a trainer either. its like buying a sport kite.

clearly it sounds like its users fault. how many LE crashes can a kite take before the stitching comes out? the cell blowing out? the ribs tearing?
with two line foils they are under a lot of speed because they dont have the TE control (using brake)

most newer fliers see that its coming nose down towards the ground and they actually start to run backwards trying to recover. in reality its speeding up the kite more and making the crash harder.
best thing to do is to run forward and/or let go of one strap.

I had a symphony for 5-6 years before getting my beamer. I really put the miles on that kite. It took its share of slams while I learned and then I taught countless people to fly with it. Many ended up buying their own symphony or even went on to 4 line kites. I've never blown out a kite or even been around when one blew well except for a PL viper's encounter with Dakitez helmet. That got lines and kite! Dakitez was fine though somehow.

I watch my 1.2 sting crash nose down all the time. Kids and friends mush have done is right into the ground at least 50 times this weekend, if not more. Kite is holding up just fine! I think this is probably due to the massive air openings on the kite. Not sure what the symphony is like; but I would expect it to hold up for at least a couple good crashes.

Yeah, from doing a little research, I've decided that it's definitely my own dumb fault for letting friends fly it. nothing like an ominous BOOM crash, but some were close.
I've decided to not make HQ replace something that is my own fault. I couldn't fly a kite that was replaced because of my own stupiditiy. guess it's just my conscience....

so it's time to whip out the good old sewing machine and look for some tutorials on repairing foils ;-)

Thanks to all who answered!

good karma points to you! Most people would have taken the free kite and figured they "got over" on the kite company. Gotta give props to HQ for offering to replace it also. You know they probably figured it was pilot error, but were willing to replace it anyway.

KurlyQ welcome to the kiting community it seems you will be a good asset. Anyone who does the "right thing" is good to go in my book. Now for your next kite talk to Ripsessions he gives 50% discount for PKF (power kite forum) members.

Quote:

Originally posted by DAKITEZ good karma points to you! Most people would have taken the free kite and figured they "got over" on the kite company. Gotta give props to HQ for offering to replace it also. You know they probably figured it was pilot error, but were willing to replace it anyway. KurlyQ welcome to the kiting community it seems you will be a good asset. Anyone who does the "right thing" is good to go in my book. Now for your next kite talk to Ripsessions he gives 50% discount for PKF (power kite forum) members.

wtf, this aint Dino's Kite Liquidation World. he offers free shipping i dont. if you ask nicely he'll even offer some skirt service too.


welcome to the group.

Quote:

Originally posted by DAKITEZ Ripsessions gives 50% discount for PKF (power kite forum) members.

So I'll take a vapor 2.3, 2.7, 3.8, 5.4, 6.5, 9.4
ApeXX Buggy
Charly insider-Carbon helemt
4 cases of redbull
2 sets of line for each Vapor (we know how I treat line)
A Pink skirt
uhmmm what else?

Oh yea! I'll take the free shipping also! :P

does anyone have a picture of what this looks like? I'm worried my 12m frenzy might have the same issue, but it flies great so I'm not sure.

when flying the kite the outer skin will have a bulge where the internals are ripped.

As far as I can see, the kite still flys great, although it luffs a bit more on the edge of the wind window. It served it's purpose though. It got me hooked on a great sport, and now is actively getting friends addicted. Also, since it's already slightly roughed up, I don't feel so wary letting others use it!

Here's a picture of the ripped rib vs. a normal one
normal is on left, ripped is on right


(sorry about phone quality. I couldn't find a decent camera, but I think this does the job)

hope that helps in diagnosing your kite!

btw, thanks for a warm welcome. It's always nice to join a welcoming forum!