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Modding switch bar for ozone kites, suggestions

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flybykite
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Modding switch bar for ozone kites, suggestions

Postby flybykite » Fri Mar 01, 2013 2:34 am

I've been flying my Edges with a switch bar however I know that the release flags to 2 front lines and Ozone flags on a re-ride one front line. Anyone know how ozone edges react to a 2 front line flag? Guess I could always pull it and check it out. However I had a look at it and found another thread on this topic viewtopic.php?f=1&t=2371549
and the guy suggests simply to attach the safety line to the oh shit handle ring but this ring, handle and slightly thicker rope wont pass through the cleat, bar, etc when flagged. I believe you need 1/2 kite span length minimum for it to work properly.
I like the switch bar with the 2 swivels, inspired north release and above the bar depower. All of which ozone doesnt have.
I suppose I would need to dump the Oh shit handle and ring?
Suggestions?
Heres the barImage

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Re: Modding switch bar for ozone kites, suggestions

Postby Kamikuza » Fri Mar 01, 2013 3:18 am

Oops... how much distance does the bar need to travel on the Ozone setup?

An easy but not cheap option is to simply replace the swivel with the Naish/Mutiny/Blade swivel and that should do the single line safety...

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Re: Modding switch bar for ozone kites, suggestions

Postby flybykite » Fri Mar 01, 2013 3:46 am

The Ozone throw is only 2-3 centimeters longer than switch. Never seen the Naish blade swivel.
Was considering adding a 5th line... Ugggh :-? but switch makes one for their bar.

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Re: Modding switch bar for ozone kites, suggestions

Postby edt » Fri Mar 01, 2013 4:45 am

flagging on 2 center lines requires the bridle to depower the kite. ozone kites have short bridles won't safely work. You need 1 full kite length wingtip to wingtip for safe flagging, a bit less than 10 meters of line. You could clip the safety to the oh shit when launching and landing and then switch it over to the 2 center lines and consider it more of a suicide leash setup than a real flagging once you get safely away from land and just remember to switch the leash to the oh shit whenever you think you might need to use the QR. Or buy another bar. It's nice to have more than one bar.

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Re: Modding switch bar for ozone kites, suggestions

Postby Kamikuza » Fri Mar 01, 2013 5:07 am

Looks like this but all three companies have their own name on it. This one has a center line but I'm sure I've seen others that use one of the front lines as a safety...

Image

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Re: Modding switch bar for ozone kites, suggestions

Postby mike dubs » Fri Mar 01, 2013 7:57 am

I have a switch bar and if you look it doesn't flag to both lines. It flags to one line if you grab and pull the red tab at the swivel.

The idea is that you pull the quick release it pulls the swivel in depowering a lot, then you pull the tab to totally flag on one line.

Have a look.

Mike

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Re: Modding switch bar for ozone kites, suggestions

Postby edt » Fri Mar 01, 2013 4:11 pm

mike dubs wrote:The idea is that you pull the quick release it pulls the swivel in depowering a lot, then you pull the tab to totally flag on one line.
You don't want to use the QR and then try to grab the "flag it/oh shit" strap because it will be so far away. Just leash to the "flag it" loop when launching and landing switch the leash to the below the bar when you are safely away from land.

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Re: Modding switch bar for ozone kites, suggestions

Postby Speedkillz » Fri Mar 01, 2013 6:53 pm

Agreed with the last post in that if you pop the release on the chicken loop, the kite maintains some power on both front lines. You pick up a little more depower than simply sheeting all the way out, but it does not flag out and flip over (like a cabrinha setup or similar). The kite ends up on the water with a little bit of pull, but nothing someone prepared for it should have trouble handling. Releasing the chicken loop and the bar puts the flag-it handle out far enough that you'll have to climb up the leash to reach it -- not a big deal if you aren't nuked out or in a really tight spot. So long as you are under control, lines are not wound up crazy and you have room, you can just reach up, grab the flag-it handle, and then release the bar and chicken loop. It seems that this is the tradeoff for having a simple bar with the front lines split close to the bar. Not ideal, especially in dire circumstances, but it does flag out well. Beginners would definitely need someone to show them the do's and don'ts of how to handle this, but then again, that is why we all keep coming back to the "take lessons" discussion. Aloha!

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Re: Modding switch bar for ozone kites, suggestions

Postby Kamikuza » Sat Mar 02, 2013 3:11 am

I think it's the Slingshot bar/swivel that uses a single front line safety... and the "Surefire" swivel is the same as the Naish/Blade/Mutiny units - about US$60 I think...

If you look at the start of this video - http://vimeo.com/5327617 - you'll see that the safety line goes up to the swivel and is (probably) just lark's headed onto the flying line... enough bulk to stop it slipping up but enough to pass down through the bar and QR. He talks briefly about the safety line at 4:55 or so, and you get a look at it then. At 8:03 he starts going into details with the system...

Other option - just make the safety line longer :D

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Re: Modding switch bar for ozone kites, suggestions

Postby toddalbinson » Sat Mar 02, 2013 5:03 am

The Switch bar is designed to only depower a switch kite enough to make it fall out of the sky slowly so if you have bailed on a trick you can save the kite before it hits the water. Than the flag it handle is close enough to you to pull if you are in serious shit. The problem with flagging the kite everytime the safety is deployed is that your lines will usually end up in a mess and the kite is way more difficult to relaunch if at all. I'm afraid you might have to do some customizations that cannot be done with the stock switch bar. The older North bars had a similar setup that fully flagged i believe. All kites flag different so you will just have to experiment. In my experience with making custom bars you only need 1/4 the length of the front line pulled to fully flag a kite. So find a swivel like the guy posted above that will allow your safety line to pull freely all the way up one front line. Than go out on a light wind day and pull the safety in until the kite depowers to the point your happy with. Take note of how long the line is and put a stopper ball on the line above the swivel. This way you wont flag the front line all the way to the kite and make a mess of you lines. I got a stopper ball for one of my bars off nsi. Good luck and happy customizing :D


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