Blade 10.5, light wind kite???

[macca]

Any one tried the big blade 10.5 on the water, is it a light wind kite? thinking of those nice summer days just cruzing, light, simple, good pack down, but will it get you going early?? Blade men??

Cheers

[Arcsrule]

I haven't, BUT... my friend has one. Infact he has the 10, 8, and 6 or whatever those exact sizes are. He went from tubes to arcs to Guerilla arcs and now blade 3's. still uses arc's primarily. he's says that with blade 10 he can go in 3 with his big plywood board downwind but to go up wind and jump he needs 7. But he may be loco (4viento)

[Ozone Kites AUS]

Any one tried the big blade 10.5 on the water, is it a light wind kite? thinking of those nice summer days just cruzing, light, simple, good pack down, but will it get you going early?? Blade men??

Cheers

They are a really good light wind kite, especially if you just want to cruise, aroung on a biggish board, and have a kite that you can also use on land and snow.
Equivalent to a 16M inflato, approx, although lots of inflatos would make better water only use kites, IMO.
As far as foils go, the Blade 3's are one of the very best ever made, and they certainly continue the Blade lineage of excellent power, lift, stability and build quality.

[loco4viento]

Hey Arcsrule,

I'll take the bait.

So far I still have limited experience with the 10.5 but I can say I am super impressed with the way this thing flies. So impressed I still wonder if I was hallucinating the times I rode it. I'm up to about 4 or 5 sessions on the water with it.

The kite flies in about 2 knots of wind, but to get a downwinder on my wide plywood board I've needed about 5-6 knots of wind and 40m lines (2-line, brake bridles removed entirely). I have made it upwind in 6-7 knots on smooth water with the same setup...but I'd like to do this a few more times to really assure myself that I'm not imagining something, or perhaps there were upper level winds well in excess of what I was measuring. In about 9 knots this thing is parked and well powered. In 11 knots on 30m lines this thing was so powered I was needing to control my board speed. These numbers shouldn't really be trusted at this point (they could be a bit better OR worse) as I am still getting some experience with this kite in light conditions. But you can trust that this thing flies very well in winds so light that many of our other favorite excellent kites just don't fly well. It is very stable and hugs the edge of the window so that getting upwind is easy.

For the lightest of light winds I think this kite has some real potential (I hate to tell a whole group such a thing as my experience is so limited it shouldn't be relied upon just yet). It's a different beast than an LEI or arc, and to me that's part of the fun. I like the variety of experiences that this sport offers and there's something special to me about flying a very simple 2 line open celled foil on a cheap plywood board in absolute crap winds. It's certainly not for everybody, but I think this will be something for me (and a few other buddies) to really enjoy.

John

[macca]

Thanks for the input.
Steve, would it not get going any earlier than my 16.5 GXR? shoulkd i be looking at a big Flysurfer, Titan or Physcho?
Cheers.

[sq225917]

macca if you just want to get out and cruise in super ,light wind then the 18.5 titan is the way to go, there still isnt anything that comes out of the water sooner. but if you fancy hanging on to it in more wind and going very floaty then i'd wait round for the psycho2, sven should have them in stock in the next 2-3 weeks and i'm sure the uk forums will be covered in reviews with them as he's got the first batch pre-sold already.

i was no great fan of the handling of the psychos in bigger sizes, but the performance couldn't be argued with. i'll probably be adding one to my own quiver for the super lightwind days.

[just do it]

The new Psycho2 is the way to go.
The 17m should do and it will turn fast, be very stable and relaunch superbly well. It has also more pop than the old Psychos due to the faster turning speed but the Hangtime will remain as good as we know it from the first Psycho. The Psycho2 will be much more userfriendly allround.
Check out the Flysurfer Video with the new Psycho2 there is a jump with a 18m Proto which is probably one of the highest and floatiest jumps I have ever seen and there wasn't much wind either.
Wait for the Psycho2 it will be worth it.

[macca]

Cheers Guys, might have to think about a remortgage

[offshore?]

get one second hand the titans came on the market soon enough after people tride them and di not like- more money than sense

[macca]

Thats a remortgae for a 2nd hand one, they seem to hold there value alot more than LEI.