I finally had a chance to fly HQ Montana IV 7M yesterday. Well~ after flying Neo and now Montana IV, I started looking at HQ Powerkite differently. I think they did a good job on those two new kites.

Can anybody comment on Montana IV compare to III? I flew 1st and 2nd generation of Montana. Didn't like them that much at that time. Never flew III before.

I am just curious to see if Montana III is closer to 2nd or 4th generation and what improvement has been made since 3rd geneartion.

I'm sure someone with more knowledge than me will come along and clarify but I'll give you my 2 cents. I have the III but flew the 4 at the demo day at Jekyll Island. The III was a big leap in refinement, stability, and ease of use. I think the 4 is more of an evolutionary development rather than a revolutionary change. The IV is faster in the turns and went back to a simpler bridle as was on the II I think The current III model has 2 pulleys per side and the 4 goes back to 1 pulley per side. The 2 front lines come together about a third of the way from the kite and a single line comes into the handle. This should make the kite a little more efficient in the sky. There might be other notable issues but this is just my limited observation. I'll put my III on the market when the IV's are available in order for Wexler to have the current model. He got along great with the III on his landboard a few weeks ago at JIBE. I just love this shot of Wexler making things happen on his landboard. He is really into skateboarding and makes flying any kite look easy, so the two come together well with him.



Link to Jekyll Island Demo Day notes. Scroll down for the Montana IV

Brian,

I broke out the M4 9.5 while everyone else was drooling over the Neos. I found it nimble and powerful at the lower end of the wind range (hooked and unhooked). I then handed it off to Beamerbob and I want to say it was an airborne hand off????? (sorry age, cant remember) BB will confirm the low end as it was dragging him on some serious scuds when he wanted it too. The M3 is a sweet sail but Id say the M4 feels more solid, with better feedback through out the window. Again, 5 more kts of wind would have been nice but on the low end the M4 delivered. HQs new lineup is most impressive...never saw a tip tuck all day. For the folks new or getting into depower, the Apex 2 should not be overlooked. Big ups to the HQ designers/team.....................




pic of the M4 left and Apex 2 right....Beamer B and Dustin at the controls.......

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3095/2842827715_6cb1b033f4_b....

Yes tridude, you are right. We did do an in flight hand off. I'd forgotten about that. The kite was very stable and with the power turned down, tri just unhooked and I hooked in and was up and flying.

So, from 2 pulleys (Montana III) to 1 (Montana IV) per side? Interesting. I was busy having fun, didn't have a chance to look at bridle.

I would think 2 pulley gives you more depower? I didn't, however, noticed any problem of Montana IV depower limit. Very interesting...

On Angus' link, he is saying there is more depower with the IV.

Here is a pretty good pic I took that shows the bridle. If you go to page 2 on My pictures, you can go to hi res and see more detail. If you download the pic, you can zoom in on the bridle.

I didnt notice the pulley mixer set up either. Hell, I havent flown a kite with bridles or pulleys in a while unless you count the VPC on the Scorpion. I do recall Jan saying the bridle is shorter? Again, age...................

Well I did break out the vintage 4.9m Blade 2 at HQ day

since everyone seems very impressed with the new HQ lineup when are we all gonna man up and purchase some of their new line (me included)? I think an 11m Neo demo with Angus and Im in.................

Looks like it DOES have two pulleys each side

pic

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Originally posted by leebrianh Looks like it DOES have two pulleys each side pic

Yep, you beat me to it.

It has 2 pulleys per side, but as Bobby said, it is the same mixer as the II. The two pulleys provide for a compound action that not only changes AoA but camber as well. That being said, with other canopy refinements, the flying is more like the III than the II with even more low end stability and some added de-power.

Another big change is the bar set-up. It is much Cleaner and neater than the III's and is easier to adjust the de-power. the previous models (and still the Apex II) had two pull/pull straps for power and de-power, and when powered up, the de-power strap was hard to reach. The new bar has a single pull strap with a cam cleat. On the old bar (and the APex II), an easy fix was to put a leader from the de-power strap down to the bar or lower center line, making the strap easy to reach. But the newer setup is so un-cluttered. Even the local kiteboard instructor liked the bar.

The new bar is on the Neo, too.

The other share feature of the Neo and Montana IV is the front line rig. The front lines come to a single center line and form a "Y" about half way down to the bar, cutting drag and making for a neater rig, IMO.

Slightly off topic here, but how does the depower compare to a flysurfer or PL...or is it unfair to expect the same level of depower from an open celled foil as opposed to a closed cell foil?

That's a good question. I was thinking about same thing while I was flying. I wish there was a device we can measure depower level easily

I would say it's good enough but not as much as that of Pulse2. I have to confess, however, that I am still a big fan of Flysurfer :tumble:

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I would say it's good enough but not as much as that of Pulse2. I have to confess, however, that I am still a big fan of Flysurfer

Me too...I loved the Pulse I 7m I had...soo much depower. I had about 5min on a Psycho 4 10m (I think it was 10m). Just a couple of scuds on land in light winds (8-12mph). Whow, talk about a progressive kite...so far ahead of their time...I spoke to the owner and he explained all the features and it is truly an amazing kite. Can't believe how fast it turned in that light of wind.

...now if it was just a little cheaper....but not the Psycho 4...I'll take a Pulse2!

I thought the 7m Pulse depowered too much and I never got on with it. The P3s were more my style, more power on. I have to say for me the choice would be the 8m Neo. Stability better than the Pulse with the power/speed of the 8m P3. Lastly, shape shifting, camber changes, power up in a turn, c kite shape/performance, whatever FS calls it, the Neos do the same thing.

Hey Brian,,, you beat me to the punch with this question... I have decided to go with the Montana IV 9.5 It appears that it is worth the few more dollars for the newer model. It looks as if we have to wait for the first week in December for the delivery.

Ye, I've been doing some researches for you I think you are making the right choice of going with a newer model. I really liked Montana IV 7M.