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Strange situation with lines - Any explanations?

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Indulang
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Strange situation with lines - Any explanations?

Postby Indulang » Wed Nov 23, 2022 5:50 pm

First launch..
Today my friend rigged his slingshot machine 8m with the sentry bar and launched it and then kited for 30min. Wind was 20-24kts

Second launch..
When he was taking rest, I wanted to try it.. He helped me launch it without any problems. I noticed right away the kite is pulling too much to the right. I’m fact on my tacks going to the left, sometimes the board speed would keep going down as the kite is slowly moving to the right. So I assumed the left steering line is longer than the right. Everything felt awkward but I could still do some 3-4m jumps. I attempted a backroll transition (originally going left transitioning to right) with nose grab and dropped the kite (naturally it dropped to the right).

The crash…
It was a relatively mild and slow crash. But the kite deflated as apparently my friend didn’t close the slingshot deflate value properly. So I pumped again read to launch

Third launch..
I checked all the connections to make sure it was connected at the same knot on both sides..

He was assisting my launch and as soon as he released the kite, and I slightly pulled the right side of the bar(exactly as I did 100s of launches before), but the kite rocketed through the power zone and lofted me and threw me (maybe 5-6m) downwind. Luckily no broken bones or cuts but very sore leg and waist tip of pelvis bone on which I landed

Fourth launch..
My friend was convinced I did something wrong on launch so he wanted to try himself. I told him something is clearly wrong with the kite or bar and advised him against launching it again 😂. He tried to do a very careful launch sitting on the sand while I assisted with the kite. As soon as I released the kite, it still rocketed through the power zone and smashed on the right side and he got dragged in the sand lol

We went back and checked the bar and as expected the left steering line was 7-8inches longer than the right one

Here is the strange mystery….

The first two launches were perfectly normal. What happened so suddenly during the relatively mild crash that the next two launches went haywire??

Wind was steady with no major gusts during both the failed launches

Our best guess is the left steering line was already longer in the morning but somehow it became even longer after the crash. Seems unreal but we don’t have any other sane explanation for what happened

Obviously we didn’t check the line lengths in the morning before the disaster so we have no way of knowing. The kite and bar are relatively new. About 30-40 sessions

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Re: Strange situation with lines - Any explanations?

Postby Sun » Wed Nov 23, 2022 6:07 pm

Check under the bar floats, sound like a knot slipped. Very very unlikely that the line itself is that different.

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edt
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Re: Strange situation with lines - Any explanations?

Postby edt » Wed Nov 23, 2022 7:04 pm

a death loop can stretch lines. It's possible that the entire time you used the kite it wasn't that stretched, but your friend ignored your advice. so maybe the lines were ok right here "What happened so suddenly during the relatively mild crash that the next two launches went haywire" and maybe the lines were stretched right here "it still rocketed through the power zone and smashed on the right side and he got dragged in the sand"

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Re: Strange situation with lines - Any explanations?

Postby Toby » Wed Nov 23, 2022 7:08 pm

yes, with a crash or a powerful loop when crashing a line can stretch.
But, did you check the lines? are they all ok quality wise? Sounds like something got stretched more than it should...

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Re: Strange situation with lines - Any explanations?

Postby Peter_Frank » Wed Nov 23, 2022 8:51 pm

As others have said, a crash can stretch lines un-evenly...

Which is the most likely here.

Having said that, two other things:

Some gets used to a little right/left difference (many in fact as I HATE it so notice immediately when borrowing another kite) so it might very well be "off" from the start.

Apart from that, equal line lengths is NOT the same as a balanced kite.
It is just the way it is, some kites need a bit of difference in the rear lines, to fly straight - it is my experience with almost all brands, and just how it is.
So dont use a line length alignment as a fact, often it is not so.

8) Peter
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Re: Strange situation with lines - Any explanations?

Postby Herman » Wed Nov 23, 2022 9:06 pm

If a kite suddenly deflates after launch the cause may be a bridle hooking up on a bung and pulling it out.

Bridles can also hook up on strut inflation pipes etc. If you are aware of asymmetry it is sensible to land the kite as soon as possible to avoid damage.

Also if there is asymmetry the bar ends up canted over and this makes sheeting in and out significantly stickier which can result in control issues. Get over the temptation to try and save a session with a quick fix. Checking lines is not difficult.

If you have asymmetry anticipate having to use the leaders.

In the past I have tried to shake tangles out and even flown over to the other tack to change the slack side etc …..experience has made me change that policy to land and check thoroughly. All imho etc

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Re: Strange situation with lines - Any explanations?

Postby knotwindy » Wed Nov 23, 2022 9:19 pm

Still 7-8 inches (18-20cm) seems like a LOT for one side to stretch that quickly?!? Something else is going on

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edt
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Re: Strange situation with lines - Any explanations?

Postby edt » Wed Nov 23, 2022 9:53 pm

it could be 7-8 inches. depends on how hard that crash was.
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Eltreato
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Re: Strange situation with lines - Any explanations?

Postby Eltreato » Wed Nov 23, 2022 10:01 pm

That seems like an unreasonable amount of line stretch. I would also check under the floats or the click bar mechanism if there is one, but I have little experience with them.

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Re: Strange situation with lines - Any explanations?

Postby Herman » Wed Nov 23, 2022 10:01 pm

Is there a chance that something failed or slipped in the bar trim mechanism, if it has some sort of fancy rear line trim. Similar notion to slipping on the floater knots.

If the kite was swamped by a wave as it deflated after the crash this can put a lot of strain on the lines but you usually know all about it because you are at the other end of the pull. I would be giving it a thorough inspection and at least a body weight proof test.
Last edited by Herman on Wed Nov 23, 2022 11:00 pm, edited 1 time in total.


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