lines the wrong way around-LE lines go to the middle of the bar

center lines connect to leading edge as kitecrazy says.lines connected to ends of control bar go to trailing edge.when pulling bar to your body you will power up the kite because you are pulling the trailing edge down to hold more air.pushing the bar will raise the trailing edge allowing air to pass.definately this is the way for inflatables,but i havnt had to much to do with foils but im sure the trainers i have seen are the same line set up.someone will correct me if im wrong

Hahahahaha!
You can get some really bad advice around here if you ask the right question.
Superlizard, your homemade bar sounds like pretty much the right set up. I have a Flexifoil Bullet on a bar, the front lines go to the bar, the rear lines are basically just a safety, connected to a wrist leash. If your kite doesn't fly well only on the front lines, I'm not sure what the problem is.
Try it on the bar, with no tension on the rear (brake) lines.
Crazzzzy and CapnKaos have described the setup for inflatable kites and foils with a depower bridle. Nice try fellas.
good luck!

Fair enough crazzzzzzy, infact it sounds like he's already set it up like a typical open celled foil and that didn't work well, so your set up might actually work. You can steer a foil with the brake lines alone. As said, safety first if you're gonna hook yourself up to the power lines. A 5m foil can be as powerful as a 12m C kite.
I can't really explain why it doesn't fly well on the front lines, maybe its just crap?

Man, these guy dont have much foil exp.

You can conventionally rig a 4 line foil with depower like a waterkite, they need complecated bridle like the FF Sable or the Ozone example.

The foils have brakes on the trailing edge, an these are used to slow the kite, it doesnt depower it just slows it down, now when a water kite depower it acctully changes the angle of attack to depower, which cant be done on your foils.

So baiscally for a bar setup what you should to is connect your front lines to the bar, the brake lines thru the bar to your safty leash, and attach the harness loop to the bar. perferible a harness leep with a quick relese.

in essence it should work fine, your doing the same with the handles, your only appling brake when you tilt your hands backwards with handles, most foils fly a lil better on handles, but it shouldnt be flying as bas as you say, try the handles again to make sure you havnt accedentley changes the bridle, Oh and with the brake lines on the bar make sure there is pleanty of slack in them, foils with a bar only use brake lines for relaunching and safty, they dont acctully have tention on the back lines when flying.

Thanks guys, i'll give it a go again...

quote:

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[i]Originally posted by superlizard

The kite i have is the "Feed the Rat" foil trainer kite (not inflatable). I bought it brand new from RPS in Melbourne, and paid 420 for it.

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lol
Are you insane superlizard ?
You paid $420 for a toy kite and you didn't get a bar ?
Oh my God.

Why didn't you put that cash towards a real kite ?
Or lessons maybe ?
(I can't believe I suggested paid lessons).

At least lessons would give you some rigging knowledge.
You would then know how to string your Freddy Flintstone bar that you've fashioned out of wood.
Wood or carbon fibre tube....
A bar is a bar.
It will work if rigged correctly.

A bar is really just a stick with lines attached.
That's what makes wavekiting so cool.
Riding waves just holding a stick.
No fat arse sail rig in-your-face.
It's freedom on a stick.

But back to your custom wooden bar...
The hole that you've drilled thru the centre could make your bar suspect ?
It depends on the size of the hole,
the diameter and type of wood,
and the power of the kite.
The bar might snap.
You may have made a dud.

But back to my second question...
Why didn't you get a real kite ?

A real kite would actually teach you something about kitesurfing.
A real kite would allow you to fully respect the power of a kitesurfing kite.
A toy kite teaches you how to fly a toy kite.
Pull left, kite goes left.
Pull right, kite goes right.

But back to the wooden bar again...
It intrigues me.
For instance,
If I was camping at some outback in-the-middle-of-nowhere secret NW wavekiting spot...
And I somehow lost my only bar,
But I had spare strings, ropes, fittings, etc.....
I would probably fashion a wooden bar myself, out of necessity.

The stick would need to be strong bushwood,
about 40cms long,
with knobs at each end for winders,
and conveniently have a knot(wood knot, not rope knot) in the middle that I can poke out to make a hole.
(No drills in the rough outback).

It's bush kitesurfing.
Termites could be a problem though ?

I hear you totally Superlizard, I get on my board or get a quick kite at lunch with a foil. 5 mins and up and going - 20 seconds and it is stuffed back into the car and off we go all red faced and sweaty back to work[}:)]
A 5m foil is about the same as a 10m - 12m inflatable for power.

I was building broomstick bars for prototypes until I got the bar length and pulley system worked out for the FTR kites. I've still got several stubby broom handles with holes in them I could have given you. I was also using Aluminium/steel broom sticks as well but they don't cut it for the 5m.They did fit very nicely with the bar ends though

I had a heap of bars manufactured but most of them are gone now for use in the school. I might be able to rustle something up for you though.

I've also got some external depower clips so you don't need to drill the hole in the bar.

Cheers

John

quote:

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[i]Originally posted by superlizard

Basically I'm very keen on getting into kite surfing, and planning to start lessons later this summer.

---

I'm guessing you think you want to kitesurf but you're not too sure ?
Am I right ?
Is it you don't want to spend the cash on gear and then find out kitesurfing is not for you ?
Or maybe you don't know what to buy in the first place ?
That's fairly common.
It's a confusing affair when you don't know anything.

So, you take the toy kite approach and dick around on a public beach with a dirt-surfer.
Or is it in the park ?
Wherever ?

But it's not in the water, that's my point.
And kitesurfing is a watersport.
What you need are real kites and boards that are designed for water.
What you need is commitment as well.

And commitment you can buy......
by purchasing paid lessons.
After which you will feel totally compelled to further pursue kiting....
Because you've just spent a heap of cash on kitesurfing but have nothing material to show for it.
You're at the crossroads.

But you'll have more kite-savvy than before,
and from that, there's no turning back.
Good luck.

Sounds like you've never flown a 5 metre "toy" kite waveslave.

I don't know why you think landkiting isn't a good first step to kiteboarding. I think what Superlizard has done is exactly what we should be encouraging, ie get a trainer foil, fly that to learn kite control, bigger foils quickly teach respect for the power of the wind. KiteATB requires pretty much the same skills as kitesurfing, but maybe bigger balls. Check this video- (14mb, but worth it to prove a point..
http://www.kitesurf.com.au/videos/03_kiteatb_sequence_512k.mov

Hey Slave

what about guys who don't swim or don't like the thought of being 5km out and having a long swim home or paranoid of Da .dum....Da.dum... and a shark fin up your coit. Getting wet isn't everybodies thing.

Maybe he's a snowboarder looking for a crossover that fits better.
Different strokes for different blokes. Take a look at the guys in the snow in Europe and you'll change your tune about the future of kiting necessarily being on the water. Those guys have got a whole new dimension added to their kiting ...height - 100's of metres of height in fact.

I personally like it both ways.... kiting that ison land and water.

Man if you saw our beach on a half decent day with 100+ kites and then take a look at the local boarding park with 4 or 5 guys you'd probably think twice too if you like your personal space!

Still we are mostly birds of a feather and go the Lizard man for having made a choice which is unconventional but in no way wrong.

You go fly a fixed bridle kite and see what it teaches you about timing your boosting. You can't just pull in th bar to pop as there is nothing to power up.. you also can't just let out the bar and take the power off either.
You need to learn to fly!!!!!!!!!!

Still I may be wrong and perhaps I had too many scotch's tonight