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I have a 2013 FreeRide bar that I use with my 2013 12m Razor. (Excellent kite BTW). I’ve used it 3 times so far. I’m losing all the skin on my fingers when using the bar. I have kited for over 6 years and use other manufacturers’ bars without having this problem. Is there some sort of new neoprene or glue that is being used on the 2013 OR bar that is hard on the skin of your hands? It’s really odd. I have almost no fingerprints at this point. It’s only occurring where my hands/fingers contact the bar.

Anyone else experiencing something like this?

Na, I probably had one of the first bars out, and probably have 30 sessions or so on it and had no problems. I didn't like it at first glance, mainly because of the hard plastic ends, but it's been really comfy with the hand contours, and the depower line appears to be wearing much better than the previous models.

I like the ultra amount of depower on it. The below bar depower takes getting used to. I prefer above bar, but they were out when I bought. The super long throw makes up for it. The bar ends are kind of junk because they don't have enough of a lip to hold your lines down around the ends when you wrap up your lines. Everything on the bar is either good or "liveable", but the grip (either neoprene or glue) is stripping my skin faster than it grows back. That sucks. I'll have to buy full-fingered gloves to keep using the bar at this point. I normally use half-fingered gloves to handle line issues on the water. Shifting to full fingered will be a bit of a drag, but doable. Don't think that I can develop callouses enough to withstand the wear. Already have dumbbell callouses from exercises. But they don't cover my fingertips.

The Razor12m is a major winner. Love the kite so far. If you can arrange for a test ride, go for it. My biggest single impression of it so far is "smooth". Super comfortable high end. I still haven't tried the other settings for the line hookups other than factory out-of-the-bag. Wind's going through a bit of a slump right now.

Maybe ask you beautician for advice next time you are having your manicure.

Couldn't be the finger ridges, could it? I haven't used a bar with them yet but I'm not sure I like the idea none of the Ozone boys complain though...

Tennis racquet grip tape - wrap tightly and finish the ends with waterproof electrical tape.

Windrider wrote:The Razor12m is a major winner. Love the kite so far. If you can arrange for a test ride, go for it. My biggest single impression of it so far is "smooth". Super comfortable high end. I still haven't tried the other settings for the line hookups other than factory out-of-the-bag. Wind's going through a bit of a slump right now.

Drop sales@oceanrodeo.com an email with a photo of your bar so we can be sure we know exactly what model of bar you're using and get back to you... so far, no other reports of this happening to other riders so I am optimistic we can sort something out for you!

Glad you're stoked on the Razor 12 though! We are incredibly stoked with the performance of the Razor line up this year!

Thanks ORSales for chiming in. I'll send a photo.

And thanks schnauzerfan for the idea of tennis tape as a last resort. Is it waterproof enough to withstand the rigors of seawater kiting?

Kamikuza: Could be the finger ridges.,.. The bars I've been using for the past 5 years didn't have the finger ridges.... maybe my fingertips are grabbing on the peaks of the ridges instead of the valleys? I'll try focus on "fingers-between-the-ridges" hand placement next time.... if the friggin' wind comes back...

... and my manicurist says she thinks I have beautiful hands.