Probably not the most exciting subject but thanks for looking anyway. For the people who helped me out with the whole Kitewing or Kite dilema, thank you. I bought a Rage 55 and it works great, but now it's time to hit the water and I need a kite. I have so many questions but I have to start somewhere. I am 6'7"/180 lbs and I want to find the best kite to start with. I will mostly be using this kite for kitesurfing on an inland lake but also on Lake Michigan. The guys out on Lake Michigan had everything from a 9M to a 16M. I know that I will eventually have a number of kites for different wind conditions but it seems that there are alot of 12 to 15 mph days here. Is it a bad idea to start with a 16M or is that possible? I also see alot of Flexifoils, Pansh, and HQ in this forum but not many Flysurfer,Slingshot, or Cabrinha. I know that it's kinda up to personal opinion but could someone please give me an order from best to worst from the six that I named. I'm looking at the Flysurfer 2 cool, Slingshot Fuel, and the Cabrinha Omega. I'm I way off?

Hiya i'm out the door right now but the 2cool is not gonna work on water it's open cell!!
If you want flysurfer, go for the pulse2!!!! best kite i've ever flown

There are some really amazing hybrids out there now as well though

That's embarrassing. How did 2 cool get on my list. Pulse2 if I go with Flysurfer. Thanks.

What about the Cabrinha Omega or the Slingshot Fuel. Has anyone had luck with those?

Given your weight and the avg windspeeds you're mentioning, you're going to need a bigger sized kite and probably a longer/wider board (light wind board) if you want to get up and planing easily.

It is ok to start on a bigger kite, but always make sure you've got the right size for the wind speeds. Check the websites for the kites you're interested, look at the wind rage for each size and model and go from there.

You might want to go with a bow kite as they're far more beginner-friendly than C-kites. They relaunch easier, and have far more depower. Having a bigger depower range means you can get a bigger kite and tune it for slightly faster winds, essentially giving you a more usable wind range. Just to give you an example, I was out kiteboarding last Friday with my 9m Cabrinha Access (a c-kite). Winds were mid to high 20s which was great for my 9, but I saw guys out there that were my size with 12s, 14s, and even 16s. I was thinking "man those guys have to be riding overpowered" because I felt like i was riding a little overpowered, but they were all on bow kites. Bow kites can pivot further out than my kite, letting them ride a little less powered than than their size would indicate. To set the depower, they usually move a stopper ball above the bar on their front lines.

Have you taken your intro kiteboarding lesson? You'll need to learn the necessary launching/landing/saftey/self rescue procedures. The lessons might be expensive (mine were $250), but they're *definitely* worth it. I'd recommend taking at LEAST the intro. I went kiteboarding this weekend in side-offshore winds and ended up using every bit of my intro lesson training, from assisted launch/land to self rescue to body dragging upwind so I could get my board after a fall. After you're done with your lessons, your instructor could help you with your first kite and board purchase.

As far as brands, you picked some pretty good ones. I've got a 9m Slingshot Fuel, and it's been great. It's a 2k4 and it's held up quite well. I flew it and my 9m Cabrinha Access and the Fuel felt like it had more pull. Both turned about the same, and the build quality on both brands is excellent. As far as Flexifoil, you can never go wrong with them. The current world champion kiteboarder rides Flexifoil. And lastly, Flysurfers are a bit pricey for me, but they're also great kites and don't require having to inflate by pumping . I'd also recommend Best, North, and GK. All of them make great kites.

One thing you should check into when buying a new kite is the control system (bar). To give you an example, here's Cabrinha's control system:

http://www.cabrinhakites.com/kites/videos/override-2-video.h...

Check out each brand's control systems on their websites. And if you've got a local kiteboard shop that has all the different brands, make sure you check each brand's control system out as well.

Oh, and for more kite reviews, check this place out:
http://www.racekites.com/reviews/reviews.asp

Quote:

Originally posted by Erock1 I also see alot of Flexifoils, Pansh, and HQ in this forum but not many Flysurfer,Slingshot, or Cabrinha. I know that it's kinda up to personal opinion but could someone please give me an order from best to worst from the six that I named. I'm looking at the Flysurfer 2 cool, Slingshot Fuel, and the Cabrinha Omega. I'm I way off?

The flexifoils, panshes and HQ kites are open cell foils. Better for land.

Flysurfer and Peter lynn make good closed cell kites for land and water combined .

I am in love with my Pulse and am amazed the Pulse 2 can be that much better :o. The Pulse is coming down in price and may be a good way to start ?

The Peter Lynn arc have an auto Zenith feature that helps beginners . The Scorpian has huge range.

Best Warro and Bularoo are also great bang for the buck.

Nothin' wrong with flying an open cell kite on the water. They fly great. I just got back from a session with my 10.5 meter Blade III. Waves were 2-3' and boosted a couple darn big floaty airs and 1 nice wave ride. Yesterday I rode with a Blade IV 4.9, waves were 3-5' and got a couple sweet wave rides.

Find a kite or set of kites that you love to fly and just fly them till your blue in the face. If you can fly them with no problems then getting on the water shouldn't be a problem either. I see tons of guys who fly LEI kites but never crash them. They could be flying a kite with a lot more performance for 1/2 the price if they went to open cell foils.

As with any kite don't go further offshore than you are willing to swim. Lines break, bladders deflate etc.

Scott

I'm essentially self taught and have definitely had my ups and downs with equipment. But, after trying a lot of different styles and brands of kite in similar conditions, I like Flysurfer and Peter Lynn. They are simple to set up and fly, well constructed, great flight characteristics, and stable. They are a little harder to find used than most brands but well worth the search.

jknight_706 is right that you don't find good flying kites up for sale as used. You see the kites that don't fly so well up for sale as used more often.

Scott

Lots of great info. and links. I've been reading alot, taking notes, and shopping all over the net. Hopefully, with all of this help I can find something within a week or two.