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EpicKites 4G

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Dimitri M
Very Frequent Poster
Posts: 4785
Joined: Sun Nov 03, 2002 1:00 am
Local Beach: I travel all over the world.
Favorite Beaches: So many to list....
Style: MY OWN STYLE :-)
Gear: SCREAMER 7/9/12/14 for Free Style. Not to forget the SCREAMER 10 LTD for my one go kite.
SURF 8 & 12 for the waves. RENEGADE 6.5 and 9 for all around kiting. And some times I use my son's JUNIOR PRO 4 when it blows 45+ for the waves.
Just try the EPICKITES and you will see for yourself.
Brand Affiliation: Owner of EPIC KITES
Location: OUTER BANKS (NC) USA. Owner of EPICKITES
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Re: EpicKites 4G

Postby Dimitri M » Sun Nov 03, 2013 2:21 pm

All I can say is that I am very proud to be Greek and to represent my beautiful country. Not to mention most of my prototype kites have the GREEK flag on them plus some of my T-shirts that I wear when kiting.
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Kiteboarding mag.jpg
UFC heavy weight world champion Minotauro Nogueira and Dimitri.jpg
UFC heavy weight world champion Minotauro Nogueira and Dimitri.jpg (57.94 KiB) Viewed 1968 times

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Flysurf77
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Posts: 171
Joined: Thu Nov 22, 2007 4:13 pm
Gear: EPIC KITEBOARDING
Brand Affiliation: IKO/PADI/EPIC/WAINMAN
Location: Playa del carmen, Mexico
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Re: EpicKites 4G

Postby Flysurf77 » Sun Nov 03, 2013 4:35 pm

Riding the EPIC Strutless¨Greek Edition¨ in the Outer Banks past summer!!
Waiting for the snow to come to Demo it this winter again and find out if this is going to be my new Snow Kite!
EPIC Strutless.JPG
:mosh:

EastCC
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Posts: 139
Joined: Tue Dec 18, 2012 10:11 am
Gear: Ocean Rodeo Roam
Brand Affiliation: Ocean Rodeo - Australia
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Re: EpicKites 4G

Postby EastCC » Tue Nov 05, 2013 10:33 am

Review from a West Aussie on the renegade:

Epic Renegade 4g 9m review

Rider: 78kg, advanced
Style: Freeriding, Surf, Freestyle
Weather: 18-25 knots
Build Quality: 9/10
Satisfaction: 9/10
Disclosure: Just another hoon at the beach who pays Full retail.
I did a demo on the 4g 9m Renegade last week, that Nigel from EastCoastKitesurfing was kind enough to organise for me.

The Bag: Big enough to carry & strap all your gear to if need be - good to note also that after you've rolled your kite up, you just fold it in half once and it fits nicely in the bag, should save a bit of wear & tear in the long run rather than being forced in & scrunched up..

The Bar: I used the old bar - have pictured the new one below that has a new Chicken Loop and an extra 15cm throw on it, which effectively increases your top end windrange.. to change from 55-45cm, just undo the Larks head on the outside (in picture) and put it on the inside

The Build: Its solid built with the scuff padding in all the right places, the 3 struts are very skinny but work a treat.

The Graphics: Very eye catching designs and colour schemes - one of the best looking kites on the market style wise.

Kite Option settings: Freeride & wave The conditions were 18-25 kots, waves one side, glass flat the other - the kite was set to 'freeride'. From launch on the beach you definately notice how stable the kite is and from a stand still just pull the bar in & up you go. The kite definitely has power on tap. The delivery is deceivingly smooth as power can be incrimental from fingertip pressure, allowing a little in aerial transitions or a lot aggressive fishpole style. The bar pressure is about medium and you always know where it is and also enough to pull yourself round out of a trick if required. Unhooking you'll need a little trim as usual for an allrounder. The steering is very smooth in characteristic (but not as in slow) with very balanced power all the way through, making high speed downloop carving turns at lot fun on the face or flatwater. If you want it to pivot turn - it'll do so without any sideways slide that sometimes washes out redirection in kites sometimes. When trimmed a little from max power, its cruises down the line nicely without losing any bar input - the wave setting it would have been more fun again... unfortunately the winter wind disappears as fast as it arrives and didnt get the chance.

Jumping ability - well heres a surprise where the game changes dramatically to say the least ! Go fast and slash that edge hard, redirecting and it will jump very high (remember it could lift me off the beach from just pulling the bar in) and its one of the easiest well behaved looping kites I've tried yet- keeping even powered and giving you that confidence to throw one anywhere, instead of the 'oh fark its stalled' just before the beating ! The float is average though will put you down soft enough if send it over the window with good timing.

Relaunch - before you can 'pronounce it' its waiting for you, great when those sets are thundering towards you :) You wouldnt believe how hard I tried to get it to Err crash at the back of the window (sorry ) I wish I had one while I was learning

Overall - a great allrounder for beginner to advanced if you just want to have fun without technical riding...

User avatar
Dimitri M
Very Frequent Poster
Posts: 4785
Joined: Sun Nov 03, 2002 1:00 am
Local Beach: I travel all over the world.
Favorite Beaches: So many to list....
Style: MY OWN STYLE :-)
Gear: SCREAMER 7/9/12/14 for Free Style. Not to forget the SCREAMER 10 LTD for my one go kite.
SURF 8 & 12 for the waves. RENEGADE 6.5 and 9 for all around kiting. And some times I use my son's JUNIOR PRO 4 when it blows 45+ for the waves.
Just try the EPICKITES and you will see for yourself.
Brand Affiliation: Owner of EPIC KITES
Location: OUTER BANKS (NC) USA. Owner of EPICKITES
Has thanked: 0
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Re: EpicKites 4G

Postby Dimitri M » Thu Nov 07, 2013 5:45 pm

This is the new video of the SCREAMER 10 LTD v4 (4G) kite. Enjoy the video and listen carefully to the testimonials. :thumb:

VIMEO:


YOUTUBE:
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GPV_0174-2 2.jpg
DSC_0005 3.jpg

KiteCulture
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Posts: 513
Joined: Wed Apr 29, 2009 5:56 pm
Gear: Epic Renegades, Screamer LTD
Brand Affiliation: EPIC kites www.epickites.com
Location: ontario
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Re: EpicKites 4G

Postby KiteCulture » Thu Nov 07, 2013 7:17 pm

this is literally the best kite I've ever flown. Great wind range, good low end, but not strong that it pulls you forward, perfect bar pressure, very stable, fast turner, forgiving, great realunch and is great for both water and snow. And some really impressive boosting! I find this kite to be a perfect blend of the Renegade qualities and the Screamer. It has a little less low end than the Renegades, but more than the Screamers. I think it sits a hair deeper in the window than the regular Screamers. Seriously… it's the perfect kite. I'd buy a whole quiver if Epic made a 7 and 13 meter in this design!

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windsuks
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Re: EpicKites 4G

Postby windsuks » Thu Nov 07, 2013 11:20 pm

Some French Epicness!

https://vimeo.com/78828877

User avatar
Dimitri M
Very Frequent Poster
Posts: 4785
Joined: Sun Nov 03, 2002 1:00 am
Local Beach: I travel all over the world.
Favorite Beaches: So many to list....
Style: MY OWN STYLE :-)
Gear: SCREAMER 7/9/12/14 for Free Style. Not to forget the SCREAMER 10 LTD for my one go kite.
SURF 8 & 12 for the waves. RENEGADE 6.5 and 9 for all around kiting. And some times I use my son's JUNIOR PRO 4 when it blows 45+ for the waves.
Just try the EPICKITES and you will see for yourself.
Brand Affiliation: Owner of EPIC KITES
Location: OUTER BANKS (NC) USA. Owner of EPICKITES
Has thanked: 0
Been thanked: 14 times
Contact:

Re: EpicKites 4G

Postby Dimitri M » Fri Nov 08, 2013 12:27 am

Whaooo these Frenchies are good. :thumb: :thumb: :thumb: Nice video.


KiteCulture
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Posts: 513
Joined: Wed Apr 29, 2009 5:56 pm
Gear: Epic Renegades, Screamer LTD
Brand Affiliation: EPIC kites www.epickites.com
Location: ontario
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Re: EpicKites 4G

Postby KiteCulture » Fri Nov 08, 2013 3:24 am

Wow, that's amazing. D, you should work with Nico on attack 5!

User avatar
Dimitri M
Very Frequent Poster
Posts: 4785
Joined: Sun Nov 03, 2002 1:00 am
Local Beach: I travel all over the world.
Favorite Beaches: So many to list....
Style: MY OWN STYLE :-)
Gear: SCREAMER 7/9/12/14 for Free Style. Not to forget the SCREAMER 10 LTD for my one go kite.
SURF 8 & 12 for the waves. RENEGADE 6.5 and 9 for all around kiting. And some times I use my son's JUNIOR PRO 4 when it blows 45+ for the waves.
Just try the EPICKITES and you will see for yourself.
Brand Affiliation: Owner of EPIC KITES
Location: OUTER BANKS (NC) USA. Owner of EPICKITES
Has thanked: 0
Been thanked: 14 times
Contact:

Re: EpicKites 4G

Postby Dimitri M » Sun Nov 10, 2013 5:53 pm

Hello guys,
Since the internet especially the kiteforums is the best place to interact with customers and ideas, what would you recommend as a BIG INFLATE/DEFLATE valve? We have been working on different types of these valves for 2 years now but always end up with problems after few months. It's not about saving money. If something works incredibly well and won't cause problems I will do it. I want to know which one is the best BIG INFLATE/DEFLATE valve you guys have tried and test for a long period of time.
As you can see most of my prototype kites have these type of BIG INFLATE/DEFLATE valves so I can test them for the long run and see the end results. But I need your help with some of your experiences. You can email me directly at: dimitri@epickites.com
Thank you.
Attachments
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Renegade 9 4G prototype valve.jpg

L0KI
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Re: EpicKites 4G

Postby L0KI » Sun Nov 10, 2013 10:21 pm

I've got a 4G Epic bar here and have had a chance to look it over and get it out on the water.

Some thoughts about it:


The ball end on the chicken loop is the cleanest configuration I have ever used.
The loop on my Ocean Rodeo has always been simple and foolproof and I have always liked it best ...until now.
The wire loop seen below on my Switch and North are said to be the best release system in the business but they sure are way more difficult to put together in deep water, this Epic ball and socket is a piece of cake.
The wire loops on the Slingshots have been known to break, so I worry about the wire loops on the others as well.
____________

The core piece of the chicken loop system is a single piece of plastic composite (probably Delrin).
The chicken loop core has two huge ports to eject sand/dirt (pic 521).
The CL does not have a bunch of metal or many moving parts, ...simple just like the Ocean Rodeo has always been.
__________________

The cuff is large round soft and comfortable in your hands.
________________

The depower rope is standard Amsteel Dyneema available at all marine supply and sailboat shops.
It loops simply around the front end of the CL (pic 526) and is knotted and kept under a neoprene boot just below the depower strap (pic 530) .
Easy to take on and off, took me five minutes to take all apart and put back together.
The pull/pull depower strap now has a metal buckle, don't think it needed one, but there it is.
I've used straps and a handful of Clamcleats and some Clamcleat systems are great and some are not, the ropes flop around and the velcro keepers don't work.
This strap system has worked well for me since 2010.
Used to like below the bar depower but have decided that it can be a bad idea when you are holding a 17M kite in too much wind.

_____________

The below the bar CL swivel mechanism uses a simple nylon washer between two plastic composite parts of the chicken loop core body.
Been using a system like this since 2010 on one of my bars and it works without fail with no rust or seizing issues from salt or sand/dirt.
Still have never seen an above bar swivel system that works, and they sure are expensive.
_______________________________

The single line safety release has a nice clean bungee cord than runs up the middle of the CL (which has a proper sized hole) and goes to the ball pictured (pic 531).
The ball slides off properly and the single line safety does what it was designed to do.
The thing I like about it is, that all of the parts of the system can be replaced with standard stuff from West Marine.
The replacement parts would not be exactly the same but can absolutely be used until a stock part arrives.
These simpler systems have always proven to work better for me and I appreciate having gear that I can fix, ...I can hardly do shite on my car or truck anymore!
______________________________

Epic is still providing an "oh shite" handle on one side (pic 532).
I prefer to have them on both sides, but many companies don't provide them at all anymore.
Would like to see plastic tubing covers over the steering line leaders, it helps keep the steering lines from wrapping on a bar end when getting tossed around in a crash.
__________________________

The bar length is super easy to change from 45cm to 55cm (pic 535).
I've done it on the water a couple times, not a good idea, but do-able.

________________________

WRONG WAY printed on the back of the bar is still a great idea, like when you need to grab the bar fast and relaunch before a wave beats your kite up.

___________________________

The bar ends are hard and I don't mind that, but many would like to see soft bar ends.
The bar end is epoxied onto the composite bar and a stainless screw is put in the bottom with epoxy.
You can see the epoxy filling the phillips head in pic 538.

_______________________________________

I like the donkey stick with the cloth cover, of the five bars I own, the ones with the cloth cover never kink, or come out by themselves.

_________________________

The bar covering EVA is more dense than past Epic and Blade bars.
Some folks with small hands might like a thinner bar near the center but this one feels normal to an average sized man.
The bar has finger ridges which feel good.
You can kite with this bar for five hours and not come away with blisters.
My Slingshot and Switch bars will beat your hands a bit.
I don't mind harder bar coverings because I'm a super manly man and my hands are tough like leather! :lol:

____________________________

Those are my thoughts on the new bar for now.
Hope some of the information is useful. :thumb:
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