Just wondering which kite loops a bit better I have the 2013 cat and find it tricky to dial the loop in? It seem to generate a lot of punch through the loop anyone else experience this. It's making me timid to go for the jumping kite loop??

Here's (hopefully) an easy way to break it down:

As an example & using the two kites you mention; if you can imagine looking at both kites from the side, you would notice the Cat has a more 'open' canopy than the C4. Then, if you can imagine looking directly up from your 'pilot' position holding the bar, you would 'see' more of the Cat canopy vs the C4 if both kites were directly above or even downwind of you.

Why is this? These 3 strut so called 'open C' kites are (basically put) full C kites with the wing tips chopped back. So, if you have 10m of sail cloth and (let's say) 3m of those 10 is 'missing' from the chopped wing tips of the Cat, then it has to be in the 'open' area you look at as you look up. Make sense?

Therefore, you will understand why these open C kites (Cat, RPM, Park etc etc) are described as having easier accessible lift (boost) and an easier glide back down with not so much steering input required (read hang time..) It's a good, way to create reactivity to input and also power through the turns whilst still retaining easily accessible lift - all put together in a user friendly package.. Look at their history to date; they sell! Yes there are differences in aspect ratio & a full C will be jumped using different timing/speed of redirect etc. but I feel this is a good way to explain the essential differences.

Accelerate the same 'open' canopy (Cat in this example) through a loop and it will generate more lift (as opposed to a more closed canopy) therefore giving you the feeling of "punch" you describe in your question.

In the extreme, you may have heard, or read here that a flatter kite (Edge for example, using the Ozone company again) has and will scare most people sh1tless if it is allowed to develop power through a full powered loop.

Hope this gives you a headache helps

Subculture said..

Here's (hopefully) an easy way to break it down:

As an example & using the two kites you mention; if you can imagine looking at both kites from the side, you would notice the Cat has a more 'open' canopy than the C4. Then, if you can imagine looking directly up from your 'pilot' position holding the bar, you would 'see' more of the Cat canopy vs the C4 if both kites were directly above or even downwind of you.

Why is this? These 3 strut so called 'open C' kites are (basically put) full C kites with the wing tips chopped back. So, if you have 10m of sail cloth and (let's say) 3m of those 10 is 'missing' from the chopped wing tips of the Cat, then it has to be in the 'open' area you look at as you look up. Make sense?

Therefore, you will understand why these open C kites (Cat, RPM, Park etc etc) are described as having easier accessible lift (boost) and an easier glide back down with not so much steering input required (read hang time..) It's a good, way to create reactivity to input and also power through the turns whilst still retaining easily accessible lift - all put together in a user friendly package.. Look at their history to date; they sell! Yes there are differences in aspect ratio & a full C will be jumped using different timing/speed of redirect etc. but I feel this is a good way to explain the essential differences.

Accelerate the same 'open' canopy (Cat in this example) through a loop and it will generate more lift (as opposed to a more closed canopy) therefore giving you the feeling of "punch" you describe in your question.

In the extreme, you may have heard, or read here that a flatter kite (Edge for example, using the Ozone company again) has and will scare most people sh1tless if it is allowed to develop power through a full powered loop.

Hope this gives you a headache helps

I have to call BS on this one. its more to do with the turning circle. a Cat has a tight circle and the C4 flies through a bigger arc. C kites loop harder than SLE's
A fuel loops much better than an RPM
C 4 better than a cat
Razor better than varial
GP better than TS and so on ..

Subculture said..

Charl dv said..

A fuel loops much better than an RPM
C 4 better than a cat
Razor better than varial
GP better than TS and so on ..

No Sh1t Sherlock! Did I say otherwise?

Read the OP's question again. I gave him an easy to understand explanation as to why he was feeling what he was, when going for the loop with his CATALYST.

Yeah the purpose of a kite loop is to be punchy, so the better looping kite is the one that delivers the better pull through the turn.
By your analogy the cat and edge have better pull through a loop than the C4 therefore they should be better looping kites. if that was the case people like hadlow and lenten would be out on flat kites looping not c's

to the OP Kiteloops are meant to have power and punch in them, if they didn't it wouldn't leave much reason to do a loop. whether on C4 or cat you'll get punch. If you are doing the loop coming straight off the water you'll have a bigger power surge, if you boost and wait until the apex before looping the power from the loop won't seem as powerful and feel easier to control. start learning them by jumping and looping on the way down for a landing, hand at end of bar and pull hard. harder you pull, tighter the turn, less speed, less power. start from there and gradually loop earlier each time you're comfortable with your current progress until you can loop before the apex.