Hey,

So I finally forked out for my first power kite. I've only flown 2 others before so basically don't have a clue, however, the break line tension on my kite seems extremely weak. They sag as you launch the kite into the air. You can bring it down by applying hard breaks but no chance of a reverse launch bringing it up on the breaks. I've tied a new knot where they meet the handles and moved the larks head knot up about 3 inches, and the power lines are as far out as they can go, but it's still very loose on the breaks.

I know the best advice would be, adjust them how suits you and the wind conditions best, but as I don't really know how it should feel I'd appreciate some more general advice.

Should I assume the mail order shop I bought it off know what they're doing and this kite likes loose breaks, or assume they didn't bother setting it up properly and insert some webbing or something between the handles and the powerline to tighten up the breaks?

On a lighter note, I just read how to power jump so that's tomorrow morning's entertainment sorted

cheers
George

Hey George, welcome to the forum and to the wonderful world of powerkiting!

I'm pretty new to this myself, so I'm sure some of the more seasoned members will add to what I say (or correct if steer you wrong) in short order. Since I fly an Ozone IMP Quattro I thought I may be able to help you out.

First off, the back lines should be slack when you are launching the kite- too much tension on the back lines would just stall out the wing. That is actually how you land the kite with the brakes. When you're flying if you turn the handles so they point straight towards the kite (effectively shortening the brake lines relative to the power/front lines) you will stall the airflow over the kite, and it will fold and sort of flap its way to the ground. You can see me doing this in the last 15 seconds or so of this video with my IMP Quattro 2.5m


If you can land this way your brake lines are probably pretty close to the right length. Another way to check it to stake the handles to the ground oriented the same way as above (brake lines away from the kite, front lines towards the kite) and the walk out the lines and sit the kite on the ground. It should fill 2/3 or so with air but stay glued to the ground (because you are stalling the wing by pulling those brake lines). You can see my IMP doing what I'm describing about 18 seconds into this video:


If your kite stays on the ground like that your lines are probably OK because if they were too long it would allow too much air into the foil and it would launch.

In both videos you may notice that when I'm buggying the rear (brake) lines are generally slack except when I use a little brake input to steer the kite.

When you were trying to reverse launch what was the wind like? You generally need more wind to reverse launch than to "forward" launch. Also, wind near the ground tends to be more turbulent than higher up, so if there isn't enough wind reverse launching can be a bit dicey.

If you're flying on factory Ozone handles like mine, I can tell you I have the rear lines connected to the middle knot and it works well on my kite.

Hope this helps a bit- either way have fun with the kite!

ok my $.02 here. You should be able to reverse launch it. With my friends *quattro* we added 2 or 3 knots on the breaks and I cant remember which ones we used. The main reason why Im posting the kite jumping is fun but with an imp quattro 3 just to make sure the biggest they make is a 3.5, It is not recommended to jump with anything less than a 5m kite. The more fabric over head the more gentle the landing. Anything under 5m is kinda like jumping with a shopping bag and hoping to parachute down to the ground. I would recommend a 5m flow but it has to be like 18 to 20 mph winds and that is way to high for you to learn to kite in. I'm sure others would recommend some good jumping kites. First learn to fly though before learning to jump. We don't like people getting injured. Pictures of the Knots on the handles would be nice. I think the quattros come with factory knots but like I said we added like 3 to my friends kite.

The Ozone Imp Quattro handles come with extra long leaders so you can add in some adjustment knots. I wish they would automatically put them in but they are left for the end user to tie in some adjustment knots and fine-tune the kite for the user's style.

Basically what I do is to add in knots on the bottom lines starting with the end knot and adding in knots about 1.5" apart. Tie in about 3 to 5 knots so you have plenty of adjustments. Then, starting with the closest knot to the handles, try to launch the kite. It should launch up, stall and then back down to the ground. Move the adjustments out one knot and try it again. Keep going until you get the kite to launch good without stalling. If necessary, you can add knots to the top lines and have even more adjustments. Moving the attachment point on the top lines closer to the handles will shorten the top lines but will lengthen the bottom lines. Moving the bottom lines closer to the handle will shorten the bottom lines while lengthening the top lines.

Once you get the general setting of the kite, fly it back and forth and the pull in on the brakes. You will then be able to fine tune the kite so that the brakes work how you like them to. I usually prefer that the kite flies with no brake drag at all with the bottom of the handles pointing towards the kite (how I normally fly my kites). When I pull the handles so they are perpendicular to the kite, the kite should stall nicely but still have minimal forward movement. When I roll the handles back past perpendicular, the kite should completely stall and start flying in reverse.

Remember that once you get this setting done, the lines will stretch out over time and you will have to re-adjust to compensate for the line stretch. Normally, the top lines are the only ones that stretch out. With the multiple knots on your leaders, you can adjust the lines in and out easily and quickly to see if the kite lines have stretched out - or if you need to adjust for different wind conditions. Just land, re-attach the larks head knot - then relaunch. Adjustments will only take a couple seconds to do and you don't have to walk to the kite.

Most power kites come this way. Some will have adjustment knots on the bridle end of the kite but I still prefer to add knots to my leaders because it makes it so much easier and faster to change.

Hope this helps. Let us know how you get along with the IMP, it is a great kite.

Thanks for the welcome and all the advice. I've tied the breaks onto a knot next to the handle and it's close enough. I can now reverse launch and the breaks are responsive. It's very useful to hear how a well set up kite should handle, and my kite is much more responsive now.
As for jumping... as I've flown about 5 times I was talking more about a 3 foot pull rather than this kind of thing:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QvUFsv64wZ4&feature=relat...

... that's for next year, and duly noted, a bigger kite

It's good to feel where the power builds and practice some skills for later though

Ok just make sure to watch the gusts a 3 foot jump can become a 30 footer really fast. I have had some experience with that. It did not feel good landing from 25 feet up with a 3.5m kite.

I would not suggest you try getting lifted until you can control your kite blind and my memory reflexes are set.
Practice flying the kite without looking at it. Feel where the kite is and what it is doing.
Jumping with a 3m kite is like inviting trouble ! YES a 3m kite will lift you ( in VERY strong winds ) But it will as easily drop you or toss you to the ground .
Don't try seriously jumping until you have the right kite and the skills to match !

Work on kite loops , down loops , flying blind and controling the speed of the kite with breaks. These are the skills that will take you into jumping safely!