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Choosing a foil kite

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Re: Choosing a foil kite

Postby Adventure Logs » Mon Aug 09, 2021 4:50 pm

mountain_lake wrote:
Mon Aug 09, 2021 10:15 am
At this point, I started understanding the person Kauper is and the threads in the German Oase forum. Because whenever someone complained about the kite, the bar, or something else. Kauper always blamed it on the user of his product. But with quite plausible explanations so it sounded like he is right. And there I understood, even though too late, whenever someone will have a problem with a product of Rainer Kauper, he will always blame the person using it and not his product. This basically means whenever someone will have a warranty case he will have a hard time with Kauper. And for myself, that means even if his products are cheaper than the rest, I don't want to make business with someone who makes me pay for the repair of a faulty product he sends me.

Maybe this story helps someone who is deciding on buying a Kauper product or not.

Cheers
mountain_lake

I've had similar experiences with Kauper's "ego". On my Pixto review on YT I even mentioned something along this line.


If the OP is going used, then Flysurfer all the way with the adjustable mixer. Flysurfer also relaunch better and you will be getting your kite wet frequently while you learn how to fly a foil. With your style I would suggest the Sonic3 but you mentioned unstable/gusty wind and for that reason I would suggest the Soul.

You won't get bored with the Soul. I've been riding foils for over a decade and still love mine. The more advanced you become, the more you can push them. There's many times/situations where I'll pull my Souls out over my Sonic3s too.

Best advice I can give it go ride them and see. Get your hands on what you can and see what works for you.

I haven't flown one yet but the Spirit looks interesting to me as well. Very similar build to the Soul but with slightly higher AR. Might be a good fit for you while still having good relaunch abilities(something the Ozone still is behind in).

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Re: Choosing a foil kite

Postby mede » Thu Jan 06, 2022 10:16 pm

Short review of the Kauper Falcon 11m with Kauper Bar

(Disclaimer: I have no affiliation with Kauper and paid full price for the gear. I kitesurf since 2001, until recently 95% strapless wave, 5% big air when conditions are right. Started foiling in 2020. Weight: 75kg wet).

Background why I got the Falcon 11m:
I started out foiling in Soma Bay last March (read: perfect learning conditions) with my Blade Trigger tube kites. Progressed fast on my 'good' stance (am surfing regular), doing flying jibes after 5 days, but struggled on my goofy side. Due to Covid situation, was not able to go to Sri Lanka, so decided to go to Lake Monteynard in the French Alps for some more foiling in July. The much gustier and weaker wind there (7-14 knts) made it much harder to progress with my foiling, and I got a bit frustrated :wink:
At this moment (and after having seen the performance of the double skin kites in these conditions), I decided to overcome my 20 year old reluctance :cool2: and get a foil kite as well.
The question was: which one?

I talked to a lot of folks on the beach, and did my online research. This narrowed the selection down to the Gin Spirit and the Kauper Falcon. To decide, I called up Rainer directly, who took over an hour to explain to me the details and characteristics of the Falcon, as well as his design philosophy that he applied during the development.
After that call, I was sold on the Falcon: For me (who had never flown a foil kite since the early days of the Peter Lynn Arcs), the tipping point in favor of the Falcon was Rainer's claim of the very direct, tube-like handling.
Obviously, I was really curious to see if this claim would hold up. Fortunately, I was able to go back to Monteynard for another long weekend in August.

Characteristics and performance

++ pros
To cut it short: I was blown out of the water by the amazing performance of the Falcon (pun intended :naughty: ).
  • The kite is VERY intuitive to fly, you know always exactly where it is in the window (so my worry to have to fly a 'spongy' foil kite was totally unfounded).At the same time, power development is gradual, which is great for foiling. When I had struggled with the goofy side before, I was all of a sudden able to get flying now, essentially due to the fact that I never had to worry about the kite, and could fully focus on the board and foil.
  • Low end during that weekend was about 8 knts, and I was able to go with my 1000cm Gong Curve foil (note that I'm still a beginner at foiling).
  • It's crazy how the kite hangs in the air in very little / gusty wind. I was able to keep the Falcon flying even when other foil kites were dropping (not to speak of tube kites).
  • I dropped the kite 2 times into the water during mistimed jibes, and restart was easy, even for me who was the first day ever on such a kite.
  • On the final day, the wind reached about 15 - 16 knts. Up to that wind speed, I did not have to touch the adjuster of the Kauper bar, as the throw is really long (and I'm using a shorts harness). The speed of the Falcon is good at higher wind, and it remains totally predictable
  • The bar is really clean and light, I like it a lot
-- Things to be aware of
  • The material of the Falcon is really light. This is intended, otherwise it would not fly as great. But be aware that you should not be careless in handling it on the ground. I actually messed up not properly instructing my daughter how to land a foil kite beforehand, and when I came back the last day when it was blowing 16 knts, she let the kite slither over the ground. This caused a small tear of about 3 cm in the fabric, which was easily fixed with spinnaker tape. Again, this was a mistake on my part, not a fault of the kite. But if you are the 'carefree' type with your stuff, the falcon might not be for you.
  • The teflon tube of the kauper bar shows some wear already. This is likely due to the fact that the hole of the bar is too small. It is my understanding that this has been improved in the newest iteration of the bar.
Final thoughts
Contrary to what certain other users apparently experienced (see the post above), my experience with Rainer and Yasmin (who is the responsible of sales) were really good. They were helpful and fast, and the Falcon is an amazing piece of gear. I plan to by a 7m as well.
Last edited by mede on Sat Jan 08, 2022 9:31 am, edited 2 times in total.

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Re: Choosing a foil kite

Postby Peter_Frank » Thu Jan 06, 2022 10:46 pm

I also bought the Kauper Falcon XT 11 m2.

Amazing kite, have had and tried so many foilkites, but this is by far the best ever for me, for light wind.

Using it when wind is 8 knots and below, where I needed something fun and agile, and I dont want a powerless single skin kite here.

Turns super easy because it is lighter than possibly ANY other dual skin kite - nice !

Smooth and powerful and intuitive :thumb:

8) Peter

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Re: Choosing a foil kite

Postby sonny2727 » Fri Jan 07, 2022 5:26 am

Great reviews..I have had the Falcon 13 for about 4-5 months and I'm totally happy with it..I have 11 kites including Soul, R1, S3, Peak etc but for low wind this is my favourite ..bar feedback is direct and hangs without any rider input, this is of course expected from such a light kite but the lower aspect ratio helps to avoid tip folding on really light stuff and if you gybe towards the kite. No issue with the zipper as this is what I'm used to in Ozone kites ..Looping is best in any twin skin foil as the kite keeps a consistent pressure and climbs easily. I don't know how this kite behaves in high wind and personally doesn't matter as this kite comes out only when it's 10kts and below.
So what are the things I'd like changed?
1. Like FS metal rings so any pigtail can be matched
2. Bag - option to get a proper bag ..I've bought a FS bag for 25$

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Re: Choosing a foil kite

Postby mede » Fri Jan 07, 2022 8:22 am

Peter_Frank wrote:
Thu Jan 06, 2022 10:46 pm
I also bought the Kauper Falcon XT 11 m2.

Amazing kite, have had and tried so many foilkites, but this is by far the best ever for me, for light wind.

Using it when wind is 8 knots and below, where I needed something fun and agile, and I dont want a powerless single skin kite here.

Turns super easy because it is lighter than possibly ANY other dual skin kite - nice !

Smooth and powerful and intuitive :thumb:

8) Peter
We definitely have the same taste in kites - since the good ol' takoon days :naughty:
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Re: Choosing a foil kite

Postby azoele » Fri Jan 07, 2022 10:44 am

I see the usual (high quality) suspects cited in the thread, but I don't seem to have seen any reference to Kitech.

So, let me bring the hungarians to the table :D

If you are looking for something easy, effective in light and ultralight winds, that will stay in the air no matter what (beside the Kauper Falcon with its crazy 25gr cloth), the Kitech FRS kites, in the UltraLight construction (27gr material), may be the ticket.

They are super simple to fly, increadibly forgiving – no tip collapse, and even if you run almost into them during a manouver, they try in any way to "reopen" and keep flying.
They stay in the air in ridiculous breezes (we tested on the beach, Peak 13m vs Kitech 15m Ultralight, and they stalled at the same time), and are easy to relaunch.

My 15m (I owned 2, actually) is 2160gr only. That is ridiculous lightness for a closed cell foil kite.
A riding buddy who used to fly Souls switched to Kitech Ultralight when he noticed his Soul 12m would stall and drop from the sky when my 15m would hang in there by itself. There is this much difference in floatability. He loved the 15m UL kitech immediately, and sold his Soul quiver.

They are also quite resistant, in my opinion. My first one was a (very well used...) demo, and it still flew like a champ, and was bought after other few months of use by a rider with lots of experience of foil kites (so I did not sell a "lemon" as he thoroughly inspected it). I always launch and land by myself, certainly not in the cleanest beaches (sigh...), they suffered zero punctures/holes/rips.

I got tired of them as I moved to faster kites (the Mavericks, from Kauper), and mostly because I am finding bar pressure too high for my hands (beware: my very much personal need, because my riding buddy told me bar pressure is certainly lower than on the Soul). But on 22m lines, the 15m can reliably get my heavy arse (110kg) up and foiling in 6 measured knots... although that's not very much fun riding...
Also, the 9m Ultralight was suprising in the waves, because it drifts almost like a Peak, and it collapses in air but still "blowing" in the direction of the wind , so as soon as you pull the bar and stop running against it it reopens and flies. Crazy. They are now making 4m versions (although not advertised on the website) to cater for foilers liking to be underpowered in higher winds.

Especially used, they are great bargains. :thumb:
Just make sure you get the Ultralight versions for maximum performance in light winds.

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Re: Choosing a foil kite

Postby azoele » Fri Jan 07, 2022 11:25 am

Also, not to pollute the forum, and not to appear a Kauper fanboy, but I feel like contributing my experience with him too.

My experience with Rainer Kauper is that he is extremely committed to producing very specifically characterized products, about which he is rather sincere, although he can be a bit "coarse" at times.

My problems with his materials were:
– my kites would "flex" midair during loops, which felt very bad, especially for "high performance kites". His answer was brusque: pump them hard. Did that (not without some fear, I confess), and now they do not flex anymore and fly amazing (and after months of misuse, still look brand new).
– the version 1 of the Mavericks is tough to relaunch. It's just the design. One has to learn, and at times success is impressive, others they can get downright scary in the proper conditions, but they are on average not as easy as other kites to get back in the air. When Reiner says "they have excellent relaunch capabilities", though, it is true... in the hands of someone very skilled. Once you learn, it works exactly as he says. I still do not like this behaviour of the kites, and I certainly would have liked him to be more clear on this, but I proved he didn't lie to me by learning their tricks and getting some honestly unexpected relaunches in very mild breezes, for instance. They do relaunch once you learn, but relaunch is their weak point, IHMO, and v.2 seems to have solved that.
– my Pintxo bar broke (ouch) its carbon tube in a very minor incident which actually left me and other riders very puzzled. Reiner checked the pictures I sent, apologised to me and had me send it to the repairer for service, and I got it back fixed for free (well, I paid freight on the way to the service), and updated with the new version of the carbon tube (with hourglass hole in the center). Now the lower frontlines have snapped (after not many hours) and I suspect it will be on me to pay to fix, because they are "consumables". That is the design of the bar, take it or leave it.

Not saying (absolutely!) the stories I read here are not true, or that they may not had been handled better by Reiner (they most probably might had been), but at least in my experience, I can't complain: when it was my error, he took the time to explain (long and patiently) on the phone, and when it was equipment problem, he apologized and fixed it for me.

Back to foil kites now :D

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Re: Choosing a foil kite

Postby nate76 » Sun Jan 09, 2022 12:29 am

I'll add one kite that I think is too often overlooked: The Little Cloud Pelican. I have higher-performance wings, but the Peli is still my favorite all-around kite.

It has a softer feel than other more aggressive kites like the Gin Spirit, but power delivery is really smooth and it holds power well in tight loops which makes it great for mountain use. They are great kites for someone who wants more lift/upwind performance than a single skin, but something that still feels very comfortable for mountain exploring and also works great for foilboarding.

The designer Tom is also a super nice guy and always happy to answer questions.


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