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What qualities in kite translate to pull when turning/working the kite?

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omg
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What qualities in kite translate to pull when turning/working the kite?

Postby omg » Sat May 26, 2018 6:48 am

I want my strapless light wind kite to generate pull while I turn the kite, but which kind of kites do this?
I know a strutless Storm Voyager 12m genereates a lot of pull when working the kite, and then again Cloud 13,5 did not do this at all. Is it just that the more c-kite it is, the more pull it generates? Does the wingtip shapes play a part here?

I want as much upwind pull and agressiveness as possible with a quickest turning kite as possible, and I have been thinking about Enduro V2, Core Nexus and also Storm Voyager, although the last one has its limits in mid winds already.

Thanks!

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Re: What qualities in kite translate to pull when turning/working the kite?

Postby Strekke » Sat May 26, 2018 9:34 am

The way the kite turns plays a role: pivotal turning kites turn almost on the spot around their wingtip, without generating power. Kites that turn in a wider arc generate pull when turning. There are probably a bunch of other factors at play too though.

Enduro v2 could work for that. But if you're only going strapless, maybe go more wave-oriented, and give the Naish Slash a go. Generates pull through the turn, and trucks upwind just fine. Don't expect any miracles from any kite for "light wind" though.

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Re: What qualities in kite translate to pull when turning/working the kite?

Postby edt » Sat May 26, 2018 4:54 pm

omg wrote:
Sat May 26, 2018 6:48 am
Is it just that the more c-kite it is, the more pull it generates? Does the wingtip shapes play a part here?
Yes. The single most important factor in having a kite that generates pull in a turn is those wingtips, how C-shaped they are. I think if you don't have a C-shaped wingtip then the air spills out the side, and that's why flat tip kites are able to pivot in the air on a turn instead of yanking you. I don't thing the actual shape of the wingtip (triangle square or whatever) matters as much as just how much fabric is in the wingtip. Nothing scientific here, just what I've seen. There is a price to pay though for a kite that pulls when you turn. You have all this fabric in the wingtip that doesn't generate lift so what do you think happens? That's right it has a lot of weight and that means the harder a kite pulls in turns the slower it will be in the air because of all that extra fabric that is doing nothing but pulling you when you turn.

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Re: What qualities in kite translate to pull when turning/working the kite?

Postby Peter_Frank » Sat May 26, 2018 6:19 pm

Edt is right.

More "C" shaped kites generate more power when turned and looped, in general.

The cost is, they go lousy upwind, has more drag and weight, compared to more "flat" kites.

If we look away from above - there is another VERY important parameter, namely how fast/powerful it flies.

Grunty kite (deep profiles) will in general have good power at low speeds, but usually not generate much power when "worked".

Whereas faster (flying not turning) kites, higher AR, will be able to REALLY give you a kick in the ass when going fast or worked correctly.

The most extreme example of this is a race foil kite.

It turns really bad and slow, and can pivot turn too without any power.
BUT, if worked up and down the right way, or looped at a wider arc, or simply going FAST, they will generate a HUGE amount of power, so much you wont believe it !!!

The same goes for LEIs.

If they got a faster profile, no matter if C shaped or more flat, they will generate more power when flown faster, compared to grunty profiles that dont accelerate nor extend their power in the same way.

Grunty kites are easy to ride, and pulls when going slow.
Faster kites require more finesse and technique, but can give you insane powerspikes which I assume is what you ask for in this thread.

But there is a price, not the same grunt.

The upside is, they got a WAY bigger windrange than the grunty kites - and unfortunately you can not have both, it is either or or something in between :naughty:

8) Peter

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Re: What qualities in kite translate to pull when turning/working the kite?

Postby Faxie » Sat May 26, 2018 7:41 pm

Air doesn't 'spill', there's just a lower aoa on the tips of flatter kites when turning.

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Re: What qualities in kite translate to pull when turning/working the kite?

Postby SaltWaterDog » Sat May 26, 2018 8:50 pm

Don't know about Voyager but I'm sure either Enduro or Nexus will do well for you.


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