Bravo BST 12 Kite Pump - not thought through...

[heinzbush]

Hi,

Since I'm getting lazy and it has like 40 degrees at our spot, I thought I try out a Battery Pump for me and my friends.

Bought the Bravo BST 12 Kite online since I figured it is the best choice and finally received it.

Looking at this thing at home, I have several issues:

- the plastic cover is SUPERTIGHT! This thing is like a condom. It wouldn't be an issue if you wouldn't have to remove the plastic cover all the time to charge the damn thing... what a pain in the ass... I am thinking about cutting it open at the bottom and just attaching it with tape a little bit further up... There is no reason why this thing needs to be so tight, how stupid is that! It took me like 10 minutes to get the cover around the pump for the first time...

- did I mention I have to remove the plastic cover to charge? couldn't they have just put a hole in it and cover it with something... like a piece of tissue with velcro to close it...

- since the hose has to go trough the hole and the plastic is super tight, of course it starts to rip after putting the hose through the first time!

- finally, the pump comes with "Kite Adapters", however they are so big, that you can not attach them to the hose


I donnu, I hear the pump works well, but clearly the people that designed it do certainly not kite! What a joke...

see pics attached...

[bobbi o]

You never did the research and bought the wrong one !

Its the Bravo BTP 12 you want. there's a lot of info on here about it. !

[14ToeSide]

Not if u have to Drag a Car battery down to the beach it's not a sub for the BST.

[bobbi o]

Not if u have to Drag a Car battery down to the beach it's not a sub for the BST.

The battery's not an issue and has been covered in previous threads.

[airsurfer]

The BTP version is awesome I have one that's going on 3 years been dragged all over the Caribbean and it runs great on an $10 house alarm battery 12v 5A. I just took it apart and to clean it and removed about a pound of sand from the housing (didn't affect it as the pump unit has a foam filter) cleaned up the connections and some corrosion on the motor housing and it runs like a champ. It pumps up an Edge 19 about 5 times on the small battery. I keep it in a waterproof backpack in case it rains while I'm out riding.

[robertovillate]

i've had the pump still works very well. one for over 6 years and use it all the time. I retired it for about a year or so while trying to figure out a better solution for the battery. I ended up retrofitting with a LiPo battery which turns out to be great...it is much lighter, smaller, easier to maintain a proper charge , and the battery has a better power curve than a normal lead acid battery. Now the pump only weighs a little more than a normal pump and takes up less space, so throwing it in my bag for a carry to the beach is no issue.

So now, for the last 18 months, I am back to using the Scoprega Bravo pump full time every session, sometimes inflating 3-4 kites/charge. You'd probably laugh if you saw my carry bag ...it looks like it has been run over by a bus.

I do not use the plastic "condom" anymore. I just try to be careful with getting a lot of sand on the pump (pretty east to avoid). Every once in a while I open the case up and clean it and clean any small amount of sand out of the innerds and lube some of the moving parts (easy)

I have had to do some small tweaks to make it work for me. I fly Core kites so I had t make a female-female ended hose (easy), I've had to Mcgyver a small plastic part (at of the on/off switch) to make it work (easy),

It usually takes less than an hour to charge it back to 12.6v after a day of kiting.

In general I am happy and surprised by how much use I have gotten out of it...I would guesstimate I've inflated at least 1000 kites with it over the years. It's pretty nice to just watch your kite inflating while just holding the kite in one hand, or even leaving it unattended if you anchor it.

Will defo get another one if this one craps out completely, or keep rebuilding this one. Parts are available, and there are only a few things that would ever need replacement.

A lot of things that we use need to be tweaked, and/or minimally maintained, to optimize it for yourself.

[NHKitesurfer]

Another LiPo fan here for my Bravo pump. I think I can pump around 25 kites between charges too

I took an old nylon ladies sock and put my pump in it, making a hole for the hose attachment to pass through. That sits in the bag which came with the pump and that bag sits in an old soft cooler with top zipper access. The pump never gets dirt/sand in it and should last a long time. And the extra storage using the two bag method means I can throw the charger in there too. All in all it's a lot smaller and lighter than going with the lead acid battery.

i've had the pump still works very well. one for over 6 years and use it all the time. I retired it for about a year or so while trying to figure out a better solution for the battery. I ended up retrofitting with a LiPo battery which turns out to be great...it is much lighter, smaller, easier to maintain a proper charge , and the battery has a better power curve than a normal lead acid battery. Now the pump only weighs a little more than a normal pump and takes up less space, so throwing it in my bag for a carry to the beach is no issue.

So now, for the last 18 months, I am back to using the Scoprega Bravo pump full time every session, sometimes inflating 3-4 kites/charge. You'd probably laugh if you saw my carry bag ...it looks like it has been run over by a bus.

I do not use the plastic "condom" anymore. I just try to be careful with getting a lot of sand on the pump (pretty east to avoid). Every once in a while I open the case up and clean it and clean any small amount of sand out of the innerds and lube some of the moving parts (easy)

I have had to do some small tweaks to make it work for me. I fly Core kites so I had t make a female-female ended hose (easy), I've had to Mcgyver a small plastic part (at of the on/off switch) to make it work (easy),

It usually takes less than an hour to charge it back to 12.6v after a day of kiting.

In general I am happy and surprised by how much use I have gotten out of it...I would guesstimate I've inflated at least 1000 kites with it over the years. It's pretty nice to just watch your kite inflating while just holding the kite in one hand, or even leaving it unattended if you anchor it.

Will defo get another one if this one craps out completely, or keep rebuilding this one. Parts are available, and there are only a few things that would ever need replacement.

A lot of things that we use need to be tweaked, and/or minimally maintained, to optimize it for yourself.

[Laughingman]

Which lipo are you guys using I am still using a 7amh SLA

[NHKitesurfer]

Which lipo are you guys using I am still using a 7amh SLA

Got mine from HobbyKing

37359 ZIPPY Traxxas 8400mAh 3S1P 30C Lipo Pack (Suits TRA2878)

[scoish]

Yes take that plastic clear bag that came with it and throw it away. It is useless.

Don't forget to add a small harness to hook onto your kite in case the hose pops off and your kite flies away. You can remove one from and old kite pump.

See my answer from the post :Question regarding Bravo kite pump(quick disconnect) to take care of the connections problem.

Once you take care of those things it won't take long for you to realize that a electric kite pump is a good investment.

One thing I have notice is that I am more likely to come in and change my kite size when the wind picks up so you can think of it as a safety tool also.