777kites.com/gliders/paratow/

Another interesting offering from a paragliding company. A lot of good info on it on the website. Would have to be a bit more bulky to stow. They do say they use fewer lines and have vents to help deflate it so at least they have put some thought into stowing it. Would definitely be a lot more efficient and nicer to sail than a single skin.
Price worked out to be about $1700 aud for a 4.2m (excluding VAT) but then you've got shipping and import duties

interesting info their FAQ's

The P.T. is a Ram-air wing, which results in a slightly higher volume of material. However, even when fully deflated, the compact package ensures a comfortable downwind ride. Deflation time is minimized thanks to special nozzles integrated into the canopy, though it still takes slightly longer than with a single-skin wing. In our tests, we consistently managed to pack the wing during longer runs. For shorter, more technical runs, we keep the P.T. in our hands, holding it by the leading edge plastic reinforcement. That way, the P.T. is ready for the quick transformation to the upwind ride. This is where the P.T. truly excels, delivering outstanding performance that enhances the joy of riding both downwind and upwind.

dafish said..
Let the development games begin! Imagine what the next couple of years will look like.

Agreed! I'm going to sit on the sidelines for a few years and see where this all shakes out I think haha!

Well, I have been dreaming of this for years as the holy grail. I don't mind beta testing, better than watching! As much as I love kiting, I was getting a little bored at times foiling and we don't really have enough waves around here to get excited on a surfboard. I got my Dwing the other day and my board arrived on Sunday so now it's time to kook around until I feel comfortable on a bigger board. After riding a tiny pocket board for so long turning a big board will feel mighty strange.

The ParaTows were supposed to start shipping earlier this week, but according to Triple Seven they are waiting for missing parts and there's no new date. Will post again.

My 5.7m ParaTow arrived last night. I had a bit of a fly of it on the hill behind the beach.

Looks good so far. I'll wait until I use it on the water before commenting further.

Got a shipment tracking for my 4.2m a couple of days ago, so I guess they also have sent all PTs that came through their European factory.

Gorgo said..
My 5.7m ParaTow arrived last night. I had a bit of a fly of it on the hill behind the beach.
Looks good so far. I'll wait until I use it on the water before commenting further.

Please share anything on taking down and holding while going downwind.
Easy enough to get out of the way?
If so, I'll also consider a bigger size, if I'm going to like my 4.2 a lot.

Darripah said..
I can't wait to hear how the upwind compares to their claims of being better than single skin wing. If this gets anywhere near the angles of my Ozone Flux we have a winner!

Triple Seven have not spent too much time with their new parawing webpages, I think they meant single vs twin skin parawings/lowkites, not handwings.
Still, I have the Fluxes and can easily compare upwind angles once the wind is back.
But with my intended use of parawing, the difference between very good and even better upwind, is not of interest. Those wanting a freeride-only parawing may of course think differently.

Little wind after I received my 4.2 a week ago. Quality build. Tested a couple of times on the beach. Catches and fills quicker than expected, for a RAM-air, when tossed into the wind.

The manual (watch for updates on the product page 777kites.com/gliders/paratow/) was published shortly after my first try. At that time I, well, tried steering to steer. Only to find that the lower end of the canvas collapsed way too quickly, wing going down fast, apparently without any early warning.Along came the manual saying I had to bank the wing at the same time (or slightly before I'd say) as the yaw movement with the bar. That is, banking by moving the bar to the opposite side of where you want to turn the wing.
Tested again. Not intuitive, but gave better results. Maybe that's how most parawings have to be steered (?), but in this case the required banking movement felt huge. Anyway, now I'm only loosing controls at moments when the wind changes quite a bit.

I have discussed this with the very helpful guys at 777. I was also worried that the channels did not fill well as RAM-air kites do already when standing still, the underside looked too flat, at least below 9m/s. They said the wing would breath better once moving. I decided that the first session should be on snow, not foiling, to get acquainted with the wing more quickly.

Today 777 emailed customers about upcoming adjustments to improve auto-stability. And I picked up a snowboard at the cabin an had a go. Sadly, only half an hour with strong enough wind to really make the small (for snow) 4.2m go as wanted. But then the channels filled better (maybe good enough, forgot to check most of the time), and this wing turned out to be fast. Still not comfortable with the steering, but upwind is so far really promising.

The well fitted harness line is too short for me at 190cm. In fact, I don't think I'll ever be able to steer the PT well enough to be hooked in. The banking movement makes a mess if hooked in.

So I hope 777 will be able to mitigate steering/stability/directional problems.I'm by no means judging the product yet, just want to share a little with you guys buying more parawings any soon. For all I know, the ParaTow can be anything from genius with some tweaks, to a heavily adjusted or abandoned product.

Oh, grabbing and holding a pack at speed was a lot easier than I feared.

Just a little somewhat off topic rant, in the early days of kite surfing I was a team rider for a manufacturer.

I became a team rider, not because I was a fantastic rider and super analytical and sensitive to gear changes (which of course I was ).

I became a team rider because I was an every day user and I would send them emails asking about stuff that didn't work very well, or I didn't like. The designer would send me fixes and adjustments and I would make the changes and tell them what happened. I was amazed at how effective and clean and simple the designer's changes were.

Their factory test rider was a super hotshot who would only go out in 30 knots. Everything works when you have a hotshot in control and shedloads of wind. True testing happens in the lower and moderate extremes with competent people making the mistakes and dealing with the idiosyncrasies of the gear. I would have thought they would have a group of boofhead mates that would try stuff out and get into every dumb situation that could happen.

It continues to disappoint me that products still come to market without that in-depth testing.

Selling my:

5.7m $900
3m $850

The upwind ability and stability is insane. At least as good as my ozone flux for upwind ( this wing points really high). You sacrifice packability though

Youngbreezy said..

777kites.com/gliders/paratow/

Another interesting offering from a paragliding company. A lot of good info on it on the website. Would have to be a bit more bulky to stow. They do say they use fewer lines and have vents to help deflate it so at least they have put some thought into stowing it. Would definitely be a lot more efficient and nicer to sail than a single skin.
Price worked out to be about $1700 aud for a 4.2m (excluding VAT) but then you've got shipping and import duties

interesting info their FAQ's

The P.T. is a Ram-air wing, which results in a slightly higher volume of material. However, even when fully deflated, the compact package ensures a comfortable downwind ride. Deflation time is minimized thanks to special nozzles integrated into the canopy, though it still takes slightly longer than with a single-skin wing. In our tests, we consistently managed to pack the wing during longer runs. For shorter, more technical runs, we keep the P.T. in our hands, holding it by the leading edge plastic reinforcement. That way, the P.T. is ready for the quick transformation to the upwind ride. This is where the P.T. truly excels, delivering outstanding performance that enhances the joy of riding both downwind and upwind.

Now this looks like real innovation. PT could have easily been PL (Peter Lynn) which made very popular ram wings for kites back in the day

I have held back on my conclusion, plan to post tomorrow after sorting out some final things with 777.
Let's just say there's a reason you have not seen reviews, more useful videos, team riders or site updates the last two months.

olav said..
I have held back on my conclusion, plan to post tomorrow after sorting out some final things with 777.
Let's just say there's a reason you have not seen reviews, more useful videos, team riders or site updates the last two months.

Gotta hear what u have to say man. Please throw your review up.

Samkyo said..
Hello,

for double skin para wing look at race 2 of Defi wing flysurfer got a proto that smash all the wing
www.facebook.com/photo/?fbid=10171829922460089&set=pcb.10162945576818970

This seems like it is now very close to kite foiling. I can't imagine any race organisers would allow this type of parawing to race against inflatable wings. Then if everyone was using this kind of parawing why not just go to kite foiling? I'm sure this kind of race parawing would beat an inflatable wing as it's definitely a lot more aerodynamic. I can't imagine it would be a race kite though as the lomg lines can generate a lot more power and allow you to use a much larger kite. Twin skin race parawings could be a popular option on their own but I think it will just lead back to kite foiling in the end.

olav said..
I have held back on my conclusion, plan to post tomorrow after sorting out some final things with 777.
Let's just say there's a reason you have not seen reviews, more useful videos, team riders or site updates the last two months.

So what's the conclusion?

Had two more sessions with the PT 4.2m in strong 12-14m/s, some chats with other users, and some more answers from the guys at 777.
I'm almost sure. For most of us the PT should not be the first parawing. For most of us the PT is only for pretty stable conditions, even when you are progressing. Certainly not a good idea if none of the two conditions are met.

I actually had some nice riding now and then, once out foiling with a non-soaked PT. Also got 800m downwinding back to the shore. Could not get air out the PT before almost back, maybe I grabbed it in a wrong way now that I had the two covers mounted. No biggie, but not possible to do much other than follow the waves and wind, as I felt pretty sure I would not be able to hold on to the PT otherwise.

But most of the time, getting out and going is still a mess.
And I was no longer consistent in not having the PT water filled, when closing with two of three covers.
I have not yet adjusted for the flying. I'm getting a tiny bit better now and then, but it is far from what it would take.
I also think that the higher aspect is making flying tricky, in a little gusty wind. Just add a little water, and it is a lot worse.

I ordered the 777 Skin in 3 and 4m, delivery last part of July.
These are a little lower aspect, and much lighter than the PT. (the PT weight is not bad for what it is)
I just need these single-skins to hopefully progress, because of my wind and coastline conditions.
Will compare later and post back, but it's more than a month until I have strong wind for the PT.

I hear that the 777 guys are a bit divided in product preferences, not all got used to the ParaTow. They have now also ridden the Skin for a short period.
They say the Skin is a much easier to handle, compared to the PT.
If I understood correctly, the Skin design has priority for good upwind, not the absolutely biggest wind range.

If you bought the PT as a first parawing, feel stuck and need a workaround, I guess you also can ask like I did and get a significant extra discount for the Skins. (at least if you sent them a lot of feedback as I did)
The 777 guys have always been helpful and mostly very quick in answering, and if all goes well with the Skin I feel they have sort of tidied up after the ParaTow release mess.

Another way is to just wait for the fixed bar setup. (no news so far this week)
They say the fixed bar have been tested well and is makes learning quite easier. Not sure I will bother to switch lines and bar if I get the Skins first.
While you lose some direct feeling and maybe a little response with the servo bar, I agree that it gives you a huge range and much less fear of being totally overpowered.