ive just been reading "scoops guide for newbies" regarding aspect ratio's ! the kite i am flying at the moment is 4000mm x 1000mm ! would this be classed as a high ratio kite or low ratio ?

Hey Mogsie! Welcome to PKF . What kind of kite is it? Who's the manufacturer?

dont know mate ! i baught it realy cheap of ebay just to learn the basics with ! it wasnt advertised with a brand name and didnt have a name on the kite or any of the packaging ! in hindsight i relise that i just rushed into buying a kite without knowing anything about any good kite brands or what to look for ! and therefore ended up purchasing a cheap basic kite ! tho i will be upgrading to a better quality kite soon ! now ime getting a bit of knowledge ! ive asked for a bit of advice in the kites and accesories forum ! been looking at the PKD range but dont really know yet ! dont want to rush into a decision !

cool Do you have any pics of it?

a good rule of thumb is, if its long and thin then its high aspectm. if its short and fat then its low aspect.

the easiest way to tell is Carl's explanation - long and thin = high aspect.

Mathematically, A/R = span squared divided by the area (technically its span/chord but most kites are elliptical so the chord length is not uniform). So in your case you have a flat A/R of 4.0 which is on the high side, but your projected A/R could be much lower depending upon the bridle design and kite design and the projected A/R is the more important but if you are talking about a ram air foil than if it has a high flat A/R it normally has a fairly high projected A/R too.

Mogsie when looking for your next kite think about what do you want the kite kor such as buggy or board as this can make a difference to what kite you will find works best for you.

yes i will try puttin some pics of it on here ! it is a ram air i believe ! it has a full bridle system and is nearly as flat in the air as it is on the ground ! it doesnt arc or bow very much !

this is a picture of the cheap kite from ebay ! as i was saying it is 4m x 1m and seems to hold its size in the air !

i meant to write unbranded kite !!

also i will excuse you for laughing at my kite !!!:D:D:D

here are a couple of pics of the home modified land board i have been using with the kite also !

How many cells does it have? You say it looks pretty flat in the air, my guess would be that it doesn't have alot- say for a kite that size 14-16, which I think gives a lower projected AR. That would make it more stable. More cells + wide span and narrow chord= Pull, speed, and good for buggy. Not so hot for static flying, gusty winds, or new pilots. :roll:Just my 2 cents. Oh yeah, welcome to the forum!

Hey, if it fly's and works, it's a kite! No laughing at all. That being said, as you upgrade in quality of production you will also upgrade on power, control, durability and stability. But if your flying now and having fun thats all that matters!! :singing:

I still have my "just bought a cheap kite off eBay" and wasn't as lucky as you. Mine was a bit of a dog but only because they sent me enough line to make like 100 meter linesets! Of course I did and of course it was the spongiest thing you could imagine flying. Put a proper set of 20m dyneema lines on it and it was a new kite. It's very forgiving and the one I use to let people give it a whirl. Mine came from an eBayer based out of Australia and came with some paperwork that said "SportAir" in a few places. Nothing wrong with it at all, just not something I'd go racing with.

it has 20 cells ! the lines that where supplied with the kite were like something yoor grandmother would knit a jumper with ! and they kept snapping so i upgraded to flexifoil dyneema 40m 500lb control lines and flexifoil 40m 300lb hydroline for the brake lines ! feels a lot more responsive !! also baught a pair of flexifoil handles ! and yes ive been having lots of fun ! pulls me on the board ok !!

Right on! The fun factor is all that really matters. One of my most interesting kites was only like $70.