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Re: Who else is pssed at buying wonky kites?

Posted: Mon Nov 19, 2012 9:16 am
by John-B
Had kites I've had to tweak a bit but all with bridles and I think they set them up 'tame' from the factory so I've done things like; adjust rear lines to fly on shorter depower or lengthen them to unhook better etc.

Never had a kite wonky though and my kites for the last two years have all been Airush Razors that are perfect out the bag and the 11/9/7 all fly on the exact same bar.

For a C kite to be wonky must be shoddy build as I could understand bridles/lines being a little out and maybe the aggregation of small defects can add up to slight steering issues, but with a C?

Re: Who else is pssed at buying wonky kites?

Posted: Mon Nov 19, 2012 11:51 am
by Peter_Frank
I honestly dont believe that so many of you havent had kites that would pull slightly to one side :roll:

But I believe that most will never haved noticed, or/nor care 8)

If the bar, when pulled, is just even 8-10mm to one side when the kite flies stable at 12, I find it "off" and dont like to ride like that...
I know I am very detail oriented (or pedantic ?) about that - so thats just me, true.

Most wont ever notice this, eventhough it is more normal than the opposite :naughty:

So I suspect the original poster are talking about much more "Wonk" ?

:D Peter

Re: Who else is pssed at buying wonky kites?

Posted: Mon Nov 19, 2012 12:00 pm
by sq225917
Over the years I've certainly had a wonky kite from a few of the brands I've owned. A couple came wonky, some went wonky. But only two of them were actually defective, ie a LE section rotated out of alignment or an incorrect panel.

It doesn't matter what kite you fly, if you significantly favour one tack for big jumps and loops then your kite will end up going to that side if you keep it for long enough.

I have noticed that these new double-stop canopy fabrics are holding up really well though, maybe it will be come a thing of the past.

Re: Who else is pssed at buying wonky kites?

Posted: Mon Nov 19, 2012 3:52 pm
by Vikb
Peter_Frank wrote:I honestly dont believe that so many of you havent had kites that would pull slightly to one side :roll:

But I believe that most will never haved noticed, or/nor care 8)
There is no man made product that's perfect. Everything has manufacturing variations in it. If they are below the point where most people notice or care than they aren't a problem.

If you want to control manufacturing tolerances more tightly you have to spend more $$$.

Re: Who else is pssed at buying wonky kites?

Posted: Mon Nov 19, 2012 4:55 pm
by sq225917
There's "good" and there's "good enough".

We shouldn't really accept 'good enough' we deserve better...

Re: Who else is pssed at buying wonky kites?

Posted: Mon Nov 19, 2012 8:02 pm
by JGTR
But I believe that most will never haved noticed, or/nor care
No we are all stupid :roll:

I've had loads of kites, Best, Wipika, North, Naish, GK and never had one pull to one side. It's very easy to tell if a kite is pulling to one side, it will be obvious when you fly it.

Re: Who else is pssed at buying wonky kites?

Posted: Mon Nov 19, 2012 8:57 pm
by Bille
sq225917 wrote:There's "good" and there's "good enough".

We shouldn't really accept 'good enough' we deserve better...
No Hang-glider OR Para-glider pilot would put up with a machine that
couldn't fly in a perfectly straight line ; we also want them to turn symmetrically
the same.

HOLD ON :
HG and PG pilots pay from $5K to 10k for their flying machines , a kite
used in the water is WAY cheaper, and i'd like to keep it that way. If i get
a kite that's real bad, i would just send it back to the guy i bought it from ;
otherwise i'll just tune it myself, it only takes a few minutes.

Bille

Re: Who else is pssed at buying wonky kites?

Posted: Mon Nov 19, 2012 9:40 pm
by Peter_Frank
Bille wrote:
sq225917 wrote:There's "good" and there's "good enough".

We shouldn't really accept 'good enough' we deserve better...
No Hang-glider OR Para-glider pilot would put up with a machine that
couldn't fly in a perfectly straight line ; we also want them to turn symmetrically
the same.

HOLD ON :
HG and PG pilots pay from $5K to 10k for their flying machines , a kite
used in the water is WAY cheaper, and i'd like to keep it that way. If i get
a kite that's real bad, i would just send it back to the guy i bought it from ;
otherwise i'll just tune it myself, it only takes a few minutes.

Bille
Exactly - well said Bille :thumb:


:D PF

Re: Who else is pssed at buying wonky kites?

Posted: Mon Nov 19, 2012 10:08 pm
by eree
Vikb wrote:There is no man made product that's perfect. Everything has manufacturing variations in it. If they are below the point where most people notice or care than they aren't a problem.

If you want to control manufacturing tolerances more tightly you have to spend more $$$.
well i think it is other way around.

kites are sold for so ridiculously high price today. so as i see it for kiteboarding company much easier and cheaper to replace the customers kite than "to waste" money and time on really thorough quality control, actual R&D and testing.
unjustified high prices corrupt.

but back to North. just from this years topics i recall 10m rebels bridle connection wearing holes in the LE, raceboards fins not in line and now "wonky" kites...
kites are really getting disposable goods, expensive but still disposable

Re: Who else is pssed at buying wonky kites?

Posted: Tue Nov 20, 2012 12:06 am
by Vikb
eree wrote: kites are really getting disposable goods, expensive but still disposable
Disposable goods are things that are so cheap you use them and throw them away after a few uses then buy them again when you need them.

I don't know anyone who does that with a kite that costs $1K+. If I get a tear or a leak I take the time to repair the damage and keep using the kite. I'm going to retire my core kites after 3 year round seasons. They are still going strong. I just want a change of pace.

I haven't bought a kite or board that didn't work great out of the bag/box. I also don't know anyone who can't get kites and boards from 25%-35% of retail if you can hold off until fall of each year and buy new gear that's being cleared out in advance of the next year's gear.

Anytime I have heard of a someone else having a legitimate factory defect problem the kiteboarding company has replaced the gear under warranty.

I don't see what there is to complain about.