Naish Torch 2019 bar compatibility

[mbernades]

Hello everyone,

I’ve juste bought a pair of new 2019 Naish Torch (9 and 12m) because my 2017 were getting old enough to be changed.

Does anyone know if 2017 bar is the same than 2019 ?

I tried the 2019 9m with 2017 bar yesterday in strong wind and needed to trim a lot. Don’t know if wind was to strong le back Lines to short.

Any feed-back ?

Have a good day.

Morgan

[BillyGoatGruff]

Does anyone know if 2017 bar is the same than 2019 ?

Yes, they are the same bar. The Torch bar changed from 2016 to 2017, the 2016 bar had a high "Y" split about 11m up the line, this pinches the kite inwards. The 2019 Torch should fly fine on the 2017 bar. I ended up selling my 2019 Torch's as they need loads of wind to come alive, I needed 20mph+ for the 11m to work for me (88kgs/134cm Shinn Monk). I think the high end on the 2019 is huge... bigger than most flatter kites out there. When powered up it's such an awesome kite and so much better unhooked than the Dash. Are you flying the 2019 on the standard setting? It has a high wind "king of the air" setting too, I always flew it on the standard setting.

You can adjust the outer line lengths at the bar ends, try that next time.

[mbernades]

Hello, thanks for your reply.

I had 2016 (9 and 12) and there were perfect. Then switch to 2017. Love the new low v bar and high end of the kite. But the low end was very poor. My 9 was equal to a 7 and the 12 to a 10. The 12 became my main kite at the same spot where with 2106 the 9 was my main kite.

I just received my 2019 (big offers for black friday, less than 1000 euros for both kites).

I tried the 9 yesterday on what seemed to be the ESP seeting. Wind was blowing up to 40 knots. Kite was OK. But needed to be trimmed a lot.

I will check in lighter wind if the kite backstall or not. But if you confirm that Line lenghts have not changed since 2017 that Will be great.

From what I felt 2019 seems to have more Power than 2017.

Have a Nice day.

[BillyGoatGruff]

Hi - Yes, it's well known that the 2016 Torch was brilliant and then the 2017 lost all low-end power and was not popular with Torch riders. Both 2017 & 2019 bars are the same, they're both 23m (could be 24m) lines. The 2019 is a good kite but does not have the low-end grunt of the 2015/2016 Torch's. The "esp" setting is the high wind setting, try on the standard setting, up the kite overhead and sheet in to check for back stall/flaring of the wing tips...

[mbernades]

Thanks for your answer.
The perfect kite would have been the 2016 with quad tex canopy.
Hope i Will enjoy this 2019.

[BillyGoatGruff]

Hope i Will enjoy this 2019

You will, it's a great kite. Go a size bigger with the 2019, if it's normal 11m weather, take the 12m. It boosts well, is amazing unhooked and slacks really well. Needs a little bit of adjusting to get a bit of tension in the 5th Line.

[surfkite25]

Were there any changes to the torch after 2019? I know inflation changed to one pump but don’t know if any other tweaks were made. I’ve only ridden 2019 so I can compare to other years.

[BillyGoatGruff]

Were there any changes to the torch after 2019?

In 2020 the Torch wingtips became squarer and the centre line of the kite slightly wider, this increased the low-end power. The 5th line remained the same and the bar the same. The more recent Torch's have squarer wingtips too, the 2019 is a very thin and angular kite, this I believe led it to have poor low-end power. I have not flown the 2021/22 but I think they have addressed the low-end power on these and they are good for Freetsyle in the lower winds (12 to 18mph).

[mbernades]

Hello,
Tried it today in lower wind.
Line lenght seems to be ok. The kite does not fall back when the bar is fully powered.
Big change from previous models. The kite close itself when bar is powered. Maybe it is due to the longer bridle in the esp mode (which I use).
It is not a problem, just surprising.