Determine which Control Bar to buy for short rider

[jadog]

Ok guys, I've decided I would like to replace my existing control bar with something more comfortable. I've been using a Slingshot Rally bar for the last several years which came with my kites. The clamcleat trim is below the bar which can sometimes be difficult for me to adjust. I much prefer the above bar clamcleat configuration as I have grown to love on my Flysurfer Peak kites. I've looked the market over with the different bars available and the problem is this. I'm short at 5" 5' (165cm) and have always had difficulty with being maxed out with the reach of the control bar when fully sheeted out. Reaching the swivel to untwist the center lines is impossible. Having the bar about 6-8 inches closer would be ideal.

So I explored a few options and would like some advice. I just purchased a rope slider for my harness, so it would be nice if it could adapt easily to that. I found the below options which would allow use with a rope slider and offer a smaller chicken loop which could bring the bar closer:

Slingshot Slingshot Sentinel with Talon


North 2018 Trust Bar with smaller CL options including stainless slider. I believe Duotone is the new name?



Other options could be to buy an Ozone bar and rig with antal ring as shown below.


Or build my own?


I saw that some even use a witchard although I'm uncertain how the safety would work.


I want simple. I tried a Cabrinha bar from several years ago and it was a mess. Again, I'm looking for something that can adapt to a rope slider for a short arm rider. Happy to hear thoughts or suggestions from everyone.

[iriejohn]

Use your existing SS bar but convert it to SS Sentinel (there's a conversion kit) above the bar then you can set the bar throw to the length you want.

[Exal]

Demo the click bar from north/duotone if you can. That thing is great for people with shorter arms but needs more maintenance than the trust bar. Basically a good wash with freshwater after a session and 2 times a year 10 minute cleaning of the click mechanism. Had mine camping for a week and it survived not beeing washed with freshwater without malfunction.

[iriejohn]

Demo the click bar from north/duotone if you can. That thing is great for people with shorter arms but needs more maintenance than the trust bar. Basically a good wash with freshwater after a session and 2 times a year 10 minute cleaning of the click mechanism. Had mine camping for a week and it survived not beeing washed with freshwater without malfunction.

Wow, your Clickbar survived for a week without being washed with fresh water?

[HALF]

I used my click bar for around 10 months without washing it even once(I don't even detach it from the kite, just roll it inside and pack it in the bag for the next time), last week i opened it to check the internals - it was so clean i was amazed, in total less than 20 grains of sand inside it, didn't clean anything just closed it back and I will check it again in couple of months.

[dylan*]

Few things:

1. You should never be riding fully sheeted out, so if this is an actual problem you have, you need to adjust something else, whether it's riding a smaller kite, tuning your kite better, or fixing your posture.

2. You will not be able to untwist your swivel above the cleat unless you are extremely lanky, this is a totally normal thing to not be able to do. If you have a swivel that doesn't work, you can either unhook and twist the chicken loop, or get any bar that has a swivel at the chicken loop, like one of the pictures you posted

[jadog]

Thanks for the advice. I wasn’t aware that you could purchase a kit to convert my existing bars to the slingshot Sentinel. Would this conversion work on other brands of bars too? The Duotone clickbar looks to be pretty sweet but very expensive and I’ve read it has some quality issues with the lines.

[tomtom]

Definitely - build your own. Its not so hard.

[Da Yoda]

Thanks for the advice. I wasn’t aware that you could purchase a kit to convert my existing bars to the slingshot Sentinel. Would this conversion work on other brands of bars too? The Duotone clickbar looks to be pretty sweet but very expensive and I’ve read it has some quality issues with the lines.

Slingshot has a replacement kit for worn out Sentinel bars, but I'm not aware of any "conversion kit" that includes ALL of the necessary parts to convert a Guardian bar.

However all is not lost. If you want to truly convert your Guardian bar to a Sentinel bar it will require getting the Sentinel replacement kit and the Surefire Clutch line splitter. You can reuse the Guardian swivel, but the Clutch is much lighter and mirrors the Sentinel bar exactly.
Note: It's also likely that you'll need to readjust the flying lines, so those will need to be inspected.

Regarding working on other brands... are you asking if Slingshot's Sentinel system can be adapted to other brands with a BTB depower system? I believe Slingshot and Naish are the only ones on the market that still offer BTB depower systems. Mostly everyone now has gone to a ATB depower system that's encased within a PU tube. Slingshot, Duotone, and Naish are some of the "big" brands still incorporating expose rope ATB depower systems.

Another bar to consider would be Ocean Rodeo's Shift bar which is similar in concept to the Duotone Clickbar.
https://oceanrodeo.com/product/shift/

[iriejohn]

Thanks for the advice. I wasn’t aware that you could purchase a kit to convert my existing bars to the slingshot Sentinel. Would this conversion work on other brands of bars too? The Duotone clickbar looks to be pretty sweet but very expensive and I’ve read it has some quality issues with the lines.

Slingshot has a replacement kit for worn out Sentinel bars, but I'm not aware of any "conversion kit" that includes ALL of the necessary parts to convert a Guardian bar.

It used to be called the Slingshot "Sentinel Upgrade Kit", there's a video about it on YouTube.



I think it might now be called this:

https://www.slingshotsports.com/Sentine ... nt_2/quote]