I am a fairly experienced (10yrs+) kiter living on Gran Canaria so a lot of sailing in high wind (30-50 knots) and waves. Until last year I have been flying Cabrinhas: Nomads since they came out and xbows before that. I have always been very pleased with these kites.

Last year I bought a full Wainman Hawaii quiver (5 - 6,25 - 9 and 12) as the Cabrinhas were getting very expensive. So far I have not been very pleased with these kites at all. I don't blame the kites as it is probably my old school style that doesn't fit the WH's but I have tried every single setup on the kites and I still cannot get the nice full depower feel the Nomads deliver. Especially when coming down the face for a bottom turn I like to be able to completely depower the kite before juicing it back up before hitting the lip. I sail exclusively strapped and hooked and on wave boards.

Anyway, my question is the following:

I have decided to buy a full new quiver and can get good discounts on North kites. Ideally I would like something similar to my 2010-11 Nomads and from posts on the forum it seems like I should be happy with the Fuse. Can anyone correct me if I am wrong on this so I don't end up with another 4 kites I don't like ?

My main wants are:
* Excellent depower. Summertime launching is in 40 knot winds on rocky beaches.
* Stable kite that does not reverse drastically if oversheeted
* Kite that will stay stable while fully depowered
* Fast kite once powered
* Light enough on the bar to steer one handed through turns

I know I will have to sacrifice some waterstart capability over the WH's but as long as the kite is not prone to getting wrapped in its own bridle if washed I am ok with that.

Aloha,

Ole

Ole-

I don't think you'd be disappointed by the Fuse, but you may want to consider Rebels instead. The Rebel will give you slightly more depower in a shorter bar stroke than the Fuse, and it sounds like that is something that interests you. Plus, if I'm dealing with 40+ on a rocky beach, there's nothing for me like a 5th line. On top of that, I think that the Rebel is slightly more reactive when depowered than the Fuse.

However, if you prefer four lines, it sounds to me like the Fuse will fit the bill just fine. Especially since the depower stroke is shorter for smaller kites than big kites, and it sounds like you'll be on small gear, so the slightly longer depower stroke of the Fuse shouldn't be a problem. And the Fuse is lighter on the bar (though the Rebel has a new "lighter" bar pressure setting for 2012 that should be plenty light for most people).

Ideally you should try to test both kites (and any others you can find) before you take the plunge, but if that's not possible, I'm sure you won't be disappointed by either of these kites for the type of riding you're describing.

Hope this helps, and feel free to hit me back with any followup questions.

-Dan

try rebel 6 2011 or 2012 give up other blanket,umbrellas , 4 lines kites sun pad etc
nearly 20 knots range,I have also 5 and 8 2012 but the 5 is only 25 26 onward ,the 8 is a mid size I use only 14 18 knots then I inflate 6 that goes around 18 to 35 37.
never tried 7
9 10 do not like
(75 kg)
ciao

Thanks for the input. Yes, I appreciate that in the air the Rebel is probably superior but a 5th line with the kite in the water with 2m waves simply would not do. The kite would probably be cut in two the first time it happened.

I guess I could consider a Rebel for the larger sizes as they would probably not be used for waves but the 5 and 7 most definitely cannot be 5-liners. Probably not the 9 (or should I consider 10?) either. That leaves the 12 as a possible Rebel but for simplicity and avoiding having to bring all the bars along always I would like to keep the quiver identical.

Any thoughts ?

been flying the Fuse for 2 years and it is a great kite.
floats well enough, great range(high end and low end), steers well depowered so you don't have to juice it to turn it so it won't pull you off the wave to redirect, light enough bar pressure for easy one hand steering, compared to the Rebel the only real difference i can feel if i fly them back to back is the depower throw on the Fuse is a bit longer so if you have really short arms it could be a problem but because the Fuse has a longer throw it also seems to have a slightly bigger sweet spot so you can pay less attention to the kite an more to the board and wave.
As for sizes i have noticed that all small kites are fast, all big kites are slow and the midsize kites are where things work best and every kite line has a different place where the mid size comfortable kite becomes a big slow kite. With the Fuses the jump seems to be from the 9 to the 10. In other words the 7,8,9 gap feels the same
the 10,12,14 feels about right
but the 9 feels fast and mid and the 10 feels like a big jump to grunty and big where the quiver switches to the bigger, slower sizes....not slow but comparatively a big kite, if that made sense
or the 9 is faster and a lot more fun with giving up to much low end if you can fly it where as the 10 is more of a park and ride with the low end pull but turns slower.
the only down side to the kite is it starts the turn a bit slower than the Rebel(probably because of the bridles?) but catches up just fine but if you are into a lot of powered loops it is a bit of a learning curve with the timing.
not affiliated with North, i pay for my kites, rant over

Just noticed there only seems to be one bar length for all the kite sizes ! Is this really so ? Very strange compared to what I am used to especially on Cabs where an 11 bar is almost twice as big as a 5.

Horns on the bar ends allow you to adjust the effective length of the bar. Smaller setting is with the knots for the leaders on the outside of the horn (leader line to the inside) and vice versa. I have a couple of north bars set up one small and one large and have no complaints. The bar does feel bigger in your hands than a dedicated bar size (45cm vs 55cm), but the steering impulse is definitely reduced by changing the settings.

Chris

Noticed in another thread that the first pics of the Vegas 2013 are out. Does that mean that all models are due to be updated soon ? I would hate to order a whole quiver of kites only to see them sold as last year models the week after for 25% off.

When can I expect the North 2013 kites to be (officially) out ?

At least in the US we do not anticipate having any 2013 gear until at least September, at which point Vegas' and Rebels are usually released. Boards and other model kites are released over the following several months. 2013 Neos are not due to be released until at least January of 2013.

-Dan

What about Fuses, Dan?