I can help with point 1 (since no one else is joining in) - one of the reasons for the steering lines to be shortened at the bar is so when the lines stretch you can take up the slack.

what the hell i take a stab at point 3 (not 100% sure about point 2 so i'll let the guru's enlighten us ) - you would shorten or lengthen the bar for the different sized kites you have, rule of thumb - the smaller the kite the smaller the bar length (as to minimise the amount of input into the kite when turning) and the bigger the kite the longer the bar (as to maximise the amount of input into the kite)

again i am not a professional, just a user.

cheers

Thanks boys (or girls) ... re 1 and the back stalling, is this where the kite goes right over your head and stalls?

Appreciate the feedback...

Drewm said..

1 - On a North kite, I wouldn't worry about them. The out-of-the-bag settings are generally spot on.

2 - YES. Every North kite can be flown on the 5th Element system. If you grab a 4-line North kite, right at the point where you attach your pump leash to pump up, you'll notice a little blue line going into a pocket. Pull this out, and attach your 5th line to that. It is not meant to be under tension, simply a safety device. So you can own one 5 line bar and ride every single kite in the North range (win, in my opinion).

3 - Shorter bar means you need to put more input into the bar to turn. Looping, wave riders who throw their kite around or on bigger kites, you'll want the longer setting. Park & ride, freestyle/new school tricks and anything like an 8m and under you'll want a short bar as even a slow 6m is f**king quick.

Suggestion - Start playing around with it and see what happens. And then stick with what works for you.

Enjoy :)

Drew

Cheers Drew, sounds good to me!

Yeah, I just need to man up and twiddle and see what happens...

SaltySinus said..

Drewm said..

1 - On a North kite, I wouldn't worry about them. The out-of-the-bag settings are generally spot on.

2 - YES. Every North kite can be flown on the 5th Element system. If you grab a 4-line North kite, right at the point where you attach your pump leash to pump up, you'll notice a little blue line going into a pocket. Pull this out, and attach your 5th line to that. It is not meant to be under tension, simply a safety device. So you can own one 5 line bar and ride every single kite in the North range (win, in my opinion).

3 - Shorter bar means you need to put more input into the bar to turn. Looping, wave riders who throw their kite around or on bigger kites, you'll want the longer setting. Park & ride, freestyle/new school tricks and anything like an 8m and under you'll want a short bar as even a slow 6m is f**king quick.

Suggestion - Start playing around with it and see what happens. And then stick with what works for you.

Enjoy :)

Drew

Cheers Drew, sounds good to me!

Yeah, I just need to man up and twiddle and see what happens...

You shouldn't need to play around with your bar...

Guess when you bowtie your 5 line rebel our wide you will have second thoughts as to why you bought it in the first place. Cheque is in the mail for that one. Just a matter of time for an unsuspecting learner on a rebel in marginal conditions or when its a hoofin....

SaltySinus said..

Frontliner said..

First time today out on a 5th line north dice

Pretty sick kite

Did my head In setting up, duno about the 5 line bars think I would prefer a 4 line setup

Oh, you're one of the lucky ones [who get to go out on the Dice]. How'd you find it? What were you comparing it to?

For what it's worth, I've gone from 4 to 5 line kites (I was a newbie on the 4 adn I guess I still am on the 5 line) and find that I still have more issues with the 5 line than I did with the 4, but maybe I"m just going out in more marginal weather, or trying new things...

My biggest observation/complaint is that the 5 lines (rebel and vegas) tend to just drop their nose when the wind drops and/or gusts causing the kite to go over my head. When they do this, they tend to spiral to the ground like stricken WW2 plane. In doing so, the kite often 'bowties' or the centre lines wrap over the back of the kite and you're in struggle street.

Probably user error, as opposed to kite error.

yeah man the dice is off its head!!!

bought the 12m dice last nite went out for a sesh just before on the 12 in bout 15knots down bonbeach way, such a stable kite so smooth! the things unreal! never had a brand brand NEW kite before! everything is just so fresh and new. iv been riding slingshot octance and cabrinha crossbow before this and it sh-its all over em. got such a good feel to flyin it hangin for some 20+ days!

i went with the 4line quad trust bar, pretty sick bar!! lots of depower! great feeling bar, just the QR i cant get my head round? it dosnt flag out,

for example on the slingshot when i pull the QR the kite flys out while pulling on one of the centre lines flagging it out.

on the dice using the quad trust bar when i pull the QR the bar and kite shoot out depowering it but it dosnt flag out????? it just sits there?

bit worried bout that? what should i do there?

Hi Guys, maybe this is the right forum to ask a newbie question:

I bought a North Trust Bar - 5th Element - 2014 Bar and tried it out yesterday for the first time.

I noticed that the 5th LINE (the red line) was slack (not under tension) below the Y - above the Y it was under tension. I have not noticed that with my old bar and just wanted to know:

1) Is that NORMAL?
2) If not how can I adjust it?

Thanks for any advice given,

Cheers,

T

Markie said..

Yes it's normal.

The 5th below the Y should never be under tension.

When you trim the kite (depower) it will get even more slack in it.

Cheers Mate !

Hey Guys,

I'll take a shot at this. I'm a newbie myself, but the questions asked are ones that I also found relevant. I fly a 2013 Dyno on a 5th Element Bar.

1.) It's possible to shorten one's lines by removing the caps at the side of the bar and pull through the steering lines to shorten these. Can I do this to give me more power, over and above trimming the kite to full power?

Yes, you should be able to do this, but you have to realize that at some point if the rear lines are too short relative to the front lines with the bridle, then your kite will have a reversed angle of attack and drop backwards. Just before that it will have reduced power in marginal conditions, because it will stall. Read up on planes and such stalling for a more thorough explanation. North probably have made the line lengths to give you absolutely maximum power with lowest risk of stalling without any special tuning.

2.) can I use my 5 line bar on a four line kite? If so, what do I do with the 5th line? Surely I don't leave it dangling?

The 5th line is your safety on the 5th Element bar, so you will have to attach it to one of the front bridles, so that when you pull the QR, the 5th line will mimick the 4 line QR behaviour.

3.) You can 'shorten the bar' revolving the steering line housings on the bar, why would I? Would I do this with my 12 or 10m kite to reduce accidental steering when doing new school tricks?

This question seems answered well enough above.

Cheers,

J