Contact   Imprint   Advertising   Guidelines

A15 15m first impressions

For all foil kite riders
User avatar
Laughingman
Very Frequent Poster
Posts: 2979
Joined: Mon Mar 16, 2009 4:35 pm
Local Beach: Kettle Point, Mitchell's Bay, Rondeau Bay
Favorite Beaches: Kettle Point, Mitchell's Bay, Rondeau Bay, Long Bay, Cayo Guillermo, La Ventana
Gear: Ocean Rodeo Gen6 Flites 10m, 12m Gen2 Roams 6m and 8m, Cloud D 4.8, 6.2, 8.0, 10.4
Xeon Laluz, Mako Wide 150, Jellyfish Custom surf board quad fin 6', LF Impulse Foil and Kanaha Shapes 37" board
Engine Harness with slider
Location: Southwestern Ontario
Has thanked: 17 times
Been thanked: 17 times

Re: A15 15m first impressions

Postby Laughingman » Sun Sep 02, 2018 11:42 pm

foilholio wrote:
Sun Sep 02, 2018 3:47 pm
With kite siting at 12 fully depowered, trim fully pulled in, if B is not slack reach up and grab the front lines or leader or trimmer and pull it down to depower further. You should feel the kite depower more as in pull get less and also observe B go slack.
How much throw do you think is needed... 1:1?

foilholio
Very Frequent Poster
Posts: 3429
Joined: Sun Aug 23, 2015 3:20 am
Local Beach: Ventura Beach
Favorite Beaches: Tarifa
Style: Airstyle
Gear: Foils
Brand Affiliation: None
Has thanked: 227 times
Been thanked: 148 times

Re: A15 15m first impressions

Postby foilholio » Mon Sep 03, 2018 12:07 pm

At a guess 100cm total throw and trim. Depends how much backstall you want and tune. I would say 120cm max. I will measure my 18m when I get a chance.

User avatar
Laughingman
Very Frequent Poster
Posts: 2979
Joined: Mon Mar 16, 2009 4:35 pm
Local Beach: Kettle Point, Mitchell's Bay, Rondeau Bay
Favorite Beaches: Kettle Point, Mitchell's Bay, Rondeau Bay, Long Bay, Cayo Guillermo, La Ventana
Gear: Ocean Rodeo Gen6 Flites 10m, 12m Gen2 Roams 6m and 8m, Cloud D 4.8, 6.2, 8.0, 10.4
Xeon Laluz, Mako Wide 150, Jellyfish Custom surf board quad fin 6', LF Impulse Foil and Kanaha Shapes 37" board
Engine Harness with slider
Location: Southwestern Ontario
Has thanked: 17 times
Been thanked: 17 times

Re: A15 15m first impressions

Postby Laughingman » Wed Sep 19, 2018 12:49 pm

Ok so had my first flight of the A15... it certainly is different from LEI. I struggled to make power with it. I found the best way to do this was to downloop. Worked fine playing on my deserted beach I was having fun getting pulled around , when I went out into the water for my maiden voyage I quickly learned I that I knew nothing. I managed to get going in about 7-8 knots until I went to turn around.. I decided since it was so light I would downloop for the transition.... well I was very over powered through the loop and ended up crashing disastrously... eventually while trying to recover from my yard sale I dropped the kite and the waves pretty much ended that session. I was not ready for what followed, The kite was so full of water I couldn't even get it onto the beach... drainholes could be bigger... anyhow after a while of draining and detangling lines I now have a wet sandy sleeping bag.. suggestions on how to get this thing dried and cleaned out for my next attempt?

foilholio
Very Frequent Poster
Posts: 3429
Joined: Sun Aug 23, 2015 3:20 am
Local Beach: Ventura Beach
Favorite Beaches: Tarifa
Style: Airstyle
Gear: Foils
Brand Affiliation: None
Has thanked: 227 times
Been thanked: 148 times

Re: A15 15m first impressions

Postby foilholio » Thu Sep 20, 2018 3:48 am

Take it to a park for a fly. You are best trying to relaunch it to get the water out. I would always try to sort out the tangles and fly the kite before I end a session. You will dry and get the sand off quickest flying it.

Foils can be tough at times, I guess why most people haven't used them. You can get good to the point where you rarely drop them even in waves. That said I drop them all the time, but not nearly as much as a tube would doing the same things. Learning to relaunch very quick will save you hassles as well.

Yes the drain holes could be bigger, but you at least have some! unlike earlier Ozones.

If you shorten Z you will get more power like an LEI and a bit more nimble. My mod is more nimble still.

I measured the throw on my 18m I have 78cm, I think I have about 15cm backstall. I needed about 20cm more adjustment to get full range. So I would guess you need 80-85cm + backstall for total trim/throw. I think my mod reduces that to about 60-65cm+backstall.

User avatar
Laughingman
Very Frequent Poster
Posts: 2979
Joined: Mon Mar 16, 2009 4:35 pm
Local Beach: Kettle Point, Mitchell's Bay, Rondeau Bay
Favorite Beaches: Kettle Point, Mitchell's Bay, Rondeau Bay, Long Bay, Cayo Guillermo, La Ventana
Gear: Ocean Rodeo Gen6 Flites 10m, 12m Gen2 Roams 6m and 8m, Cloud D 4.8, 6.2, 8.0, 10.4
Xeon Laluz, Mako Wide 150, Jellyfish Custom surf board quad fin 6', LF Impulse Foil and Kanaha Shapes 37" board
Engine Harness with slider
Location: Southwestern Ontario
Has thanked: 17 times
Been thanked: 17 times

Re: A15 15m first impressions

Postby Laughingman » Thu Sep 20, 2018 3:07 pm

foilholio wrote:
Thu Sep 20, 2018 3:48 am
Take it to a park for a fly. You are best trying to relaunch it to get the water out. I would always try to sort out the tangles and fly the kite before I end a session. You will dry and get the sand off quickest flying it.
Learning to relaunch very quick will save you hassles as well.
If you shorten Z you will get more power like an LEI and a bit more nimble. My mod is more nimble still.
Haha I was trying to relaunch it... actually was trying to reverse launch it... I don't think this kite does that? I obviously have poor foil technique. I did manage to get a wing up, but at that point there was probably 20 or so liters of water in it and I was getting pushed pulled into the beach so that was that.

My mistake was not getting my lines out of the waves breaking on the beach that is what really tangled them. I got the water out and walked home, and then detangled the lines on my lawn. I hung the kite on my clothes line yesterday all day.. its pretty dry now inside and out but still lots of sand in there.. I was able to work some of it to the tips but the rest seems trapped. I will give it some more time this weekend.
I would like to learn about these mods you write about. But first I need to get my bar squared away. 50cm bar is way to small... I am thinking 70cm bar is what I will build but I did feel like I had it fully depowered at the end of my throw without having to pull trim.

Here are my thoughts...
... this kite generates power differently eg... when you loop a LEI, it creates more power for short period of time, so the distance it pulls you downwind is less. The foil kite moves slower within the window but the downwind pull is greater... there for the rider is actually pulled a greater distance, and if you resist it (edge against it) you will likely feel very powered. (not good on a surf foil) so I need to be able to ride directly downwind through the downloop. and then edge while the kite is leaving the power zone.

one things for sure it does fly in very light winds, and it is capable of creating plenty of power to foil in very light winds... i just need to learn how to use that power to my advantage.

blu
Medium Poster
Posts: 168
Joined: Sat Apr 13, 2013 2:32 am
Local Beach: Great Lakes
Favorite Beaches: Cayo Coco
Gear: Flysurfer Lift Sabfoil Gong
Brand Affiliation: None
Has thanked: 31 times
Been thanked: 4 times

Re: A15 15m first impressions

Postby blu » Thu Sep 20, 2018 3:56 pm

Laughingman wrote:
Thu Sep 20, 2018 3:07 pm
foilholio wrote:
Thu Sep 20, 2018 3:48 am
Take it to a park for a fly. You are best trying to relaunch it to get the water out. I would always try to sort out the tangles and fly the kite before I end a session. You will dry and get the sand off quickest flying it.
Learning to relaunch very quick will save you hassles as well.
If you shorten Z you will get more power like an LEI and a bit more nimble. My mod is more nimble still.
Haha I was trying to relaunch it... actually was trying to reverse launch it... I don't think this kite does that? I obviously have poor foil technique. I did manage to get a wing up, but at that point there was probably 20 or so liters of water in it and I was getting pushed pulled into the beach so that was that.

My mistake was not getting my lines out of the waves breaking on the beach that is what really tangled them. I got the water out and walked home, and then detangled the lines on my lawn. I hung the kite on my clothes line yesterday all day.. its pretty dry now inside and out but still lots of sand in there.. I was able to work some of it to the tips but the rest seems trapped. I will give it some more time this weekend.
I would like to learn about these mods you write about. But first I need to get my bar squared away. 50cm bar is way to small... I am thinking 70cm bar is what I will build but I did feel like I had it fully depowered at the end of my throw without having to pull trim.

Here are my thoughts...
... this kite generates power differently eg... when you loop a LEI, it creates more power for short period of time, so the distance it pulls you downwind is less. The foil kite moves slower within the window but the downwind pull is greater... there for the rider is actually pulled a greater distance, and if you resist it (edge against it) you will likely feel very powered. (not good on a surf foil) so I need to be able to ride directly downwind through the downloop. and then edge while the kite is leaving the power zone.

one things for sure it does fly in very light winds, and it is capable of creating plenty of power to foil in very light winds... i just need to learn how to use that power to my advantage.
I’m building the bar myself, where do you get bars from. Specially 70 cm one?

foilholio
Very Frequent Poster
Posts: 3429
Joined: Sun Aug 23, 2015 3:20 am
Local Beach: Ventura Beach
Favorite Beaches: Tarifa
Style: Airstyle
Gear: Foils
Brand Affiliation: None
Has thanked: 227 times
Been thanked: 148 times

Re: A15 15m first impressions

Postby foilholio » Thu Sep 20, 2018 6:29 pm

70cm bars are quite old, best looking second hand or ringing shops or begging on a local forum. Otherwise people are making their own bars out of carbon tube. 60 or 65cm would be fine. I think mine is 65cm on the 18m.

Laughingman wrote: Haha I was trying to relaunch it... actually was trying to reverse launch it... I don't think this kite does that?
Reverse launch is just about all you can do with a foil kite. You need to pull a lot of rear line in to make it work. If you have water you need to get it to rotate side ways so water can flow to one tip. You had the right thing going with one tip lifting. Relaunching with quite a bit of water inside is a bit of an advanced technique. Not many kiters even believe it can be done.
Laughingman wrote:I hung the kite on my clothes line yesterday all day
I would avoid this too much as sun exposure is what kills the fabric. If you put the kite in a loose heap maybe on a rack a bit inside it will dry. Like that you can move it about a bit once a day so it drys all over. Still best to just fly it 10-20mins.
Laughingman wrote: but still lots of sand in there.. I was able to work some of it to the tips but the rest seems trapped.
Flying will work the sand to the tips. Don't fuss about it.
Laughingman wrote: Here are my thoughts...
... this kite generates power differently eg... when you loop a LEI, it creates more power for short period of time, so the distance it pulls you downwind is less. The foil kite moves slower within the window but the downwind pull is greater... there for the rider is actually pulled a greater distance, and if you resist it (edge against it) you will likely feel very powered. (not good on a surf foil) so I need to be able to ride directly downwind through the downloop. and then edge while the kite is leaving the power zone.
Try move it more around the edge of the window over your head so it doesn't generate as much power.

User avatar
Laughingman
Very Frequent Poster
Posts: 2979
Joined: Mon Mar 16, 2009 4:35 pm
Local Beach: Kettle Point, Mitchell's Bay, Rondeau Bay
Favorite Beaches: Kettle Point, Mitchell's Bay, Rondeau Bay, Long Bay, Cayo Guillermo, La Ventana
Gear: Ocean Rodeo Gen6 Flites 10m, 12m Gen2 Roams 6m and 8m, Cloud D 4.8, 6.2, 8.0, 10.4
Xeon Laluz, Mako Wide 150, Jellyfish Custom surf board quad fin 6', LF Impulse Foil and Kanaha Shapes 37" board
Engine Harness with slider
Location: Southwestern Ontario
Has thanked: 17 times
Been thanked: 17 times

Re: A15 15m first impressions

Postby Laughingman » Thu Sep 20, 2018 9:39 pm

blu wrote:
Thu Sep 20, 2018 3:56 pm
I’m building the bar myself, where do you get bars from. Specially 70 cm one?
I have this bar at home from an old kite, I will use this bar and parts from switch mostly.

https://www.extremekiteshop.com/kites/f ... p-770.html

TomW
Very Frequent Poster
Posts: 3585
Joined: Wed Oct 05, 2005 6:43 pm
Kiting since: 2001
Local Beach: Vejbystrand, Lomma
Gear: TW Surfboards hydrofoil board 110
Gong Veloce M, 100cm carbon mast
Ozone Hyperlink V1 7m
Hyperlink V2 9m, 13m
Concept Air Wave 4,5m
Brand Affiliation: None
Location: Sweden
Has thanked: 53 times
Been thanked: 193 times

Re: A15 15m first impressions

Postby TomW » Sat Sep 22, 2018 10:49 am

Hej Laughingman,

I started using foil kites this year. First with a 9m Hyperlink, then bought a used Sonic 3 13m. I had flown Hyperlink 40+ sessions before the Sonic.
First 2 sessions on the Sonic I could barely start!
It's totally different technique to fly. You have to sheet in to start kite turn, then sheet out as kite flys into power Zone. You have to redirect much sooner due to turning delay. You can choke or stall the power very easily by pulling in bar, so you have to stop doing that.
Another thing that is hard to get your head around is as foil kite is static in air above you, it will have very little power or pull. It feels like it won't have power to get you going. But as soon as you drive kite into power Zone and move kite, it starts to generate more power than an lei will.

I've found that if there's more than a few liters of water in the kite, it's hard to start again. 20liters!!! No way.

I've heard a hair dryer on low heat into air intakes helps dry the kite.

foilholio
Very Frequent Poster
Posts: 3429
Joined: Sun Aug 23, 2015 3:20 am
Local Beach: Ventura Beach
Favorite Beaches: Tarifa
Style: Airstyle
Gear: Foils
Brand Affiliation: None
Has thanked: 227 times
Been thanked: 148 times

Re: A15 15m first impressions

Postby foilholio » Sat Sep 22, 2018 3:25 pm

20L is nothing young jedi. Be careful with a hairdryer you can damage the fabric easily. If you just loosely pile the kite or even better lay it out over some things it will dry quite quick inside a warmish house.


Return to “Foil Kites”

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: funalex and 136 guests