I am about to get a harness but i need to know something first
i am getting the 2010 Dakine renegade harness the adjustable sliding bar kit and a 6 inch spreader bar i already have a 6 inch spreader bar pad
or the 10 inch pivot spreader bar

is the spreader bar going to be hitting me in the ribs when i fly?
alos how does the 2011 dakine renegade compare to the 2010
i liked the 2010 it was very comfortable and i liked the shape of the support in it
is the support the same or did they change it?

i have seen broken pivot bars before. they broke at the weld
has anyone had this problem

I don't kite with a waist harness so I can't say how it's gonna feel. I can say that even with a seat harness if the spreader bar is floating at all it will dig in a little around your lower ribs. A spreader pad works really well at resolving that tho.

I've broken 7 pivot spreaders. Only one failed without warning, the others I saw comming. Pre flight inspection is super important if you run that spreader bar IMO. The hinge is what always seemed to fail for me. Inspect the outer edges of the plate that the pivot is made of for cracks and deformity. It will usually deform before it cracks. Then small hairlines appear, then the pivot will start to pull away from the weld.

Bear in mind that I'm on skis and the loads that I'm putting on the spreader are different that if I were on a kiteboard or snowboard. I put a lot of sideload on them and I don't think they had my use in mind when they designed it.

As much as I like the pivot action, I forgo it now for more peace of mind.

Feyd I am surprised you don't use a Dynabar with the side loads you put on the spreader bar. I have a V3 and like it for riding toeside kitesurfing.

I've been using a seat harness for 30+ years (12 years kiting and before that windsurfing) and have never gotten bruised by the spreader bar. My wife has the pivoting hammerhead and IMO they are more bother than they are worth. Plus, most the people I know who have them broke the little rubber band and never bothered replacing them, which makes hooking / unhooking a PITA. I also -hate- waist harnesses with a vengeance. I first learned to windsurf with chest harness and then learned to kitesurf with a waist harness. In both cases I couldn't dump them fast enough and replace them with a seat harness. Just my opinion though, plenty of folk love those chest compression devices, errr I mean waist harness.

The Dynabar is pretty slick for sure but I'm on a prototype Peter Lynn spreader now AD. Swings side to side and the hook spins.

It's got a very "prototype" look to it. Not pretty but built to take a beating.

I've got a Dakine waist harness. Bought it just to give it a try, used it for about 20mins and had enough. I really like the support of the seat harness.

Theres only one snow kiter here that uses a waist harness. He's also the only guy on a board. I don't know if that's why.

i am going to be land boarding with it
I think it my be a Christmas present

I think I will just go with the 6 inch regular hammerhead spreader bar with the harness
I already have a seat harness i really like especially when buggying but with jumping its difficult if to do somethings if you are hanging from your waist

Here's what a Pivot spreader looks like when it's about to completely give up on you.

Fortunately I don't do much jumping. Having it fail over the ice, even at 10' would be pretty bad.

you would think that dakine would try to fix this issue

You would think. But then I don't know how many people have had it happen.

From a cost/benefit point of view it is probably just easier to replace them then redesign. Really, how much can it cost to produce these things?

By the time I'd gotten into the speed thing I was lucky if I could get a spreader to last more than a couple of months. Fortunately a good friend at Peter Lynn was able to set me up with my current spreader.

If you are planning on being powered up or jumping, you may want to wear a seat harness. You wont have to worry about it slipping up into your armpits

i already have a seat harness i just want to try a waist harness to see what i like more