Hello,

Been looking over this forum the past few days and in general, I think I know what I want, but I would like some advice in case my initial thoughts are wrong.

I am 190 pounds and I am looking for a kite for the beach. I go to Cannon Beach in Oregon a couple of times a year and I thought it would be fun to have a kite that would be a little challenging and pull me a round a little bit, but nothing crazy. I just plan on standing on being relatively stationary, no carts or anything like that. I have had two line stunt kites when I was younger and was pretty good at them. My father and I would attach large streamers to the kites and one person would try and catch the streamers while being buzzed. I did this last year with my kids, but my cheap 30 year old kites shattered on first impact with my son.

So, I want two kites. One easy stunt kite that my young kids and I can play with and fly, and another kite for myself. I was about ready to order the Flexifoil Rage 2.5 with the prolong handles, but then I saw the Flexifoil Dyneema line that is suggested is not available on Amazon.

Never had or flew a kit like this, but looks like a decent kite that I can learn to fly reasonably well and safely while using some common sense? Is this a good first kite that I won't 'outgrow' and last a long time? Also, where can I get this kite line that is pre-cut and ready to go for a reasonable price? What would be a good second stunt kite that is of decent quality and something a 6 - 8 year old could try?

Or would I be better off with the Hornet or Beamer?

Or would I be better off with the Hornet or Beamer?

Hornet, Beamer & Rage are quite similar kites - all good quality, low aspect foils. You wouldn't be better or worse off with any of them. Ozone Flow, Octane, PKD Buster Soulfly and Zebra Z1 are also in the same category. You should be able to get any of them with lines and handles ready to fly. Not sure about the second kite....maybe a 1m version of one of the above?

Hi Wheathead. The Flexifoil Rage 2.5 was my first Power Kite, and I have since purchased the entire set from 1.8m - 4.7m. I think I was told that they make an even bigger kite in the Rage series, but it is not available to me on Amazon...

I am very happy with them all, and depending upon the wind speed, they each offer a nice challenge when flying static. Regardless of what you choose however, you may want to think twice about flying your new kite in anything more than say 10 kts. The pull that a Power Kite can generate will often catch a first time flyer off guard, and many - including me - end up on the ground with little cartoon birds flying circles around their noggins.

Incidentally, I see that the Flexi line sets will be available on June 30th - at least here in the USA - so that's not too bad of a wait.

Thanks for the quick feedback. I do see Amazon has updated their info on the Flexi line, that makes it easier. I added the Rage, handles and line to my cart, will probably check out tonight.

Any suggestions on a decent stunt kite that younger kids can also practice on?

As far as stunt kites, I can only speak about the Prism Hypnotist.

I primarily use this kite to teach first time, multi-line fliers how to control such a kite, and mine has been crashed many times with no damage. It seems to have some type of bungee cord, shock absorber system that protects the carbon rods from breakage, and I would have to say that it works... This kite is however, stated by many to be a 'heavy' kite, and I have found that it does not seem to want to fly very well in less than a sold 10-12 kts. I have flown it no problem up to 20 kts.

As a follow up to my post above, I meant to caution you on the wind speed for only your first or maybe second time out with the Rage. Once you are comfortable with when and how it pulls, you can safely take it out in more wind and still control it.

Welcome wheathead. Give this a read...


http://www.powerkiteforum.com/viewthread.php?tid=28759

Hi and welcome Wheat. I have my 5 year old flying the 2 line stunt kite HQ Symphony Pro 1.3m. It is perfect for him with not a lot of pull, very zippy, and extremely controllable. Comes complete with wrist handles, 25m lines, winder, and storage bag. The Symphony Pro is a bit more refined and tuned than the Symphony Beach line so HQ has told me. I enjoy flying it as well in addition to the 2.5m. We put a 75 foot Prism zebra tube tail on it and it looks awesome up in the sky. HQ makes some really nice wings and stands behind their products.

Both are available on Amazon. $50 for the HQ Symphony Pro and $35 for the Prism tube tail.

You came to the right place to learn about the Power Kiting sport. Lots of good people here who share their wealth of knowledge. A great community as well.

Happy Flying!

Wheathead...do you know Wheatus?




Apologies to the Gluten-free members..

Yeah we're all about fun here
Welcome
:bigok:

Is that a trick question?

Another vote for the Flexifoil Rages. Great kites - high quality, stable, and fun to fly static.

I just picked up a 2.2 Symphony from Angus that is a blast to fly. Be aware that the lines that come with the kite are crap, so you will want to replace them with higher quality Spectra or Dyneema lines if you break them. I wouldn't go less than 80 pounds for the lineset on the Symphony. It is a two liner, not a quad, but it is very crashable and durable, so you could potentially hand it to a stranger and they wouldn't be able to do much harm to it.