Hey guys, just wondering what everyones top landboarding kites are? I'm looking for the ones that generate just as much lift as speed.

15m Synergy for me !

That looks like a very nice kite, I've got a Blade III 4.9m, but the winds where I am are always either too low or very gusty, I'm thinking I should go for a 6.6m/8.5m and stick to the low wind days. Also it doesnt help that there are no sandy beaches and very few open spaces where I am, and the open spaces that I do have are all either surrounded by trees or too bumpy... What would you suggest for these situations?

Rebble 5m

Sounds like you need an ARC, mate :P

You could buy a 13m or 16m Venom II or Scorpion complete for about the same price as an 8.5m Blade. And the first two are a MUCH better value, IMO... Unless your wind is constantly like 5 mph... But a 13m VII or Scorp can handle just about anything.

V2 13m

Anything that gives boost, and the use of bladerunner's kites.

12 and 15m charger synergy or other arcs!

My Eskimo is my favorite by far.

11m Neo

Quote:

Originally posted by Seanny Sounds like you need an ARC, mate :P You could buy a 13m or 16m Venom II or Scorpion complete for about the same price as an 8.5m Blade. And the first two are a MUCH better value, IMO... Unless your wind is constantly like 5 mph... But a 13m VII or Scorp can handle just about anything.

Where from mate? Im having the hardest time finding many websites that sell the Venom or Synergy as a complete set. Do you know any good websites? Im in the UK btw. Thanks

since the scorpion venom and synergy are older models, you'd have to find them second hand on fleabay or something. they are worth the wait to find something that works really well. what part of the UK are you from? I have some family that lives in Hull England and mayfield just outside of london

Oh, i didnt realise they were so old. Theres none on ebay, what other ARCs could you suggest there are openly available to buy?

I live in Kent, on the north coast.

My suggestion RELOCATE :Ange09:

Well, the Charger is the newest ARC to be released. But I'm quite sure that PL will be releasing a new lineup quite soon...

The way I see it, you can either but a Charger now, wait for the new lineup to come out and buy one of the new kites, or wait for the new lineup and buy a Charger then since the price will probably drop a little bit. Or, you can buy a complete older ARC. They come up on here in the For Sale section quite often. I've seen many Scorpion and Venom II completes sold on this forum in the 300 USD range.

You may want to hook up with some guys on Kitecrowd.com. PKF is a bit of an international forum, with most of it's members from the USA and Canada, but we have a large population of Aussies, Kiwis, Dutch, Britlish, you name it :D Kitecrowd is mostly UK based.

Montana 9.5 hands down

Quote:

Originally posted by flash Montana 9.5 hands down

That looks like a nice kite, never heard of it before, watched some youtube vids tho and read some reviews which are all great. I was looking at a Flysurfer Speed, but those are v expensive. Maybe I should go for this kite... Hmm. Theres too much choice!!

Montana's are nice kites, for sure. It all depends on what activities you want to do beyond boarding and where you fly. Honestly the best kite choice when you are starting out is what other people in your area are flying. What is buys you is a kite that works well in your area's conditions and there's a lot of ppl to help out if something goes wrong.

Love the arc's ( V2 13, Charger 15) but also love my Blade IV 6.5.

Quote:

is a kite that works well in your area's conditions

Really important...I've tried to fly my depowers in my small inland areas and with the all the holes, light wind, and small confines, I just couldn't make it work...that's when the Blade comes out!

Good advice guys, thanks. Yeah most of the half decent places where I live are on the small side, and completely surrounded by trees. There is a very big sandy beach about an hours drive from me though.

I dont know anyone else who power kites in my area and the nearest kite school is about an hour from me. So all my advice is just coming from the internet really.

The HQ Montana V 9.5m looks like a good choice though, and I've heard nothing but good things about it. Plus its not as dear as most others. £750 is the cheapest complete set I can find, and ebays even dearer atm.

Its going to be a couple of months before I can really afford it though, so im in no hurry to make a decision right now.

Am I heading down the right road? All advice welcome!

You are most definitely headed down the right road Unless you plan on hitting the water. In that case, you're headed as fast as you can down the WRONG road.

If you plan on staying dry, the Montana is a beautiful kite. If not, you'll need a closed cell foil like an ARC or Flysurfer, or an LEI. Open-cell foils are land-only, ARCs/FSers are everything, and LEIs can do land and water but are best suited for water only.

I also like the 15m Synergy, but I'm usually using the 19m

I definately plan to stay on dry land, at least until im 100% confident. Im pretty happy that the Montana is the way forward

The Synergy 12m/15m is without a doubt a brilliant kite, and maybe if a second hand complete one comes up in the mean time I'll go with that instead, Im sure id be more than happy with either. The Synergy would probably be a lot cheaper as well, which of course is more ideal. Cheers guys!

Quote:

Originally posted by arkay Montana's are nice kites, for sure. It all depends on what activities you want to do beyond boarding and where you fly. Honestly the best kite choice when you are starting out is what other people in your area are flying. What is buys you is a kite that works well in your area's conditions and there's a lot of ppl to help out if something goes wrong.

This from a man who flies Flexifoil and Twin Skins in a JoJo and Ozo' area !

lots of choices, but as others say, completely dependent on your wind quality.....and riding location (space)

I *really* like my foil for snowkiting where I have more open space, and usually the winds are more reliable. But, if you have gusty winds, less space to work with, and generally higher winds, definitely consider a Peter Lynn arc. My 2nd kite, V13, I bought especially with landboarding in mind (and to get a kite than can handle higher winds and *really* gusty winds for snowkiting). I've had it out snowkiting twice now, and it should be a really nice for the landboard.

Just keep in mind that the bottom end is not arcs strong suit, so make sure your area's common winds will sustain the kite you get. If it will, you'll be pleased with the upper end for sure.

Shows up late to thread...

I have been borrowing a friends Ozone Frenzy 9m a lot lately - Its just about the best kite I have ever flown. Surprised nobody has mentioned it so far. I have never flown a Manta but they are similar with more lift - if jumping is your thing and it is with most blade flyers.

The Montana has a reasonable rep but HQ control gear is pretty crappy imo. I would not make the mistake of convincing yourself that its what you want for the sake of saving some cash.

Arcs are great - i ride using my venom quite a lot. they are very good in gusty conditions. Not sure on the charger but the previous models i have tried (bomba, venom, synergy and phantom) are all slower and less responsive than an open cell. Great for entry level riding and cruising though.

I still love my fixed bridles even if i am slowly converting to the Frenzy (mostly cos its only one kite to carry for back country snow kite trips!) If you get a Blades either side of your 4.9m you will cover a massive wind range for less than the cost of a depower. Amazing, agressive, acrobatic, nuts kites that outperform anything if you can handle them!

Hope that didn't confuse you more. Stay lit.

PS kitecrowd is good for local UK info and has more flexi's and ozo's for sale but PKF is way more friendly and sociable. just don't mention inflatables...

Ok, so the way I see it, I have a few options:

HQ Montana 9.5m for £749, or the 12.5m for £839
PL Charger 12m for £957
PL Venom 2 13 - would have to find second hand
PL Synergy 12m for £840, or 15m for £914
Ozone Frenzy 2011 11m for £983

I think i've ruled out the venom because the majority of the wind here is fairly light - 10-15mph, the winds only really go higher than that when its stormy - which only brings gusts.

What would your vote be for? BTW I weigh around 11 stone (154 pounds).

Thanks soo much for all your advice - now help me spend my money!

Here's my two cents:

i wouldn't vote for the Synergy. It's odd that you don't list it as "have to find second hand" since they stopped making these halfway 2009. The price you list is the original price from two years ago, which is definitely way too much to pay for it nowadays. For 100 pounds more you listed the successor, the Charger, so get that one instead.

Ozone Frenzy's are very nice kites with piles of lift, but i didn't like the low hangtime. In my opinion the Ozone Manta is more fun. The lift on the Manta is less aggressive, but you stay upthere for a bit longer. Easier for grabs and rotation tricks. Then again, if handlepasses are your thing, get the Frenzy instead.

The Venom is the odd one out there, you can get a second hand Venom II (2005-2006?) for 200 pounds. It's very slow on the turns compared to everything else in the list. They still work nicely, but if you have the budget, buy something else.

Haven't flown the Montana, so can't help you with that one.

Hope it helps

Oh oops, I was just trying to find quick prices, and forgot how old that one was.

Ive been looking at some youtube vids of the Frenzy compared to the Manta and I see what you say about the hangtimes. They are both roughly the same price.

http://www.powerkiteshop.com/ozone-frenzy-fx-kite.htm

http://www.powerkiteshop.com/kites/ozonemanta.htm

I think i'd prefer the Manta as well. Cheers for your advice, it has helped a lot

ya, at those wind speeds, scratch the venom 13, and the 12 synergy and 12 charger.

Maybe a 15 synergy/charger flier can tell you if 10-15mph is fun on the 15 arc.

You could probably put a flysurfer 12m pulse2 on that list too. This 12 looks like it is still for sale, for $600USD. http://www.foilzone.com/phpbb3/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=14000
Pulse2 is more forgiving ride for gusty conditions, but at the expense of jumping. There should be a lot more coming on the market with the release of the new Flysurfer Unity kite.

If you choose Montana, I understand the Montana 12 is pretty powerful Dig into that a bit more cause the 12 might be a lot of kite for landboarding.

I have flown one older frenzy for a very brief time, so can't really tell you much about it. I've heard a lot of good things about them though.