It takes me longer to roll up my entire Rebel kite from tip to tip than it takes me to roll up half a kite from tips to middle. The secret is to bring the wingtips together and then start rolling toward the center.

Every other kite manufacturer that I am aware of puts the deflate valve in the middle of the kite to allow this.

Not really a big deal.. I do like my Rebel 12m.

CG

Don't really get your point...i've just reviewed a kite, which by the way overall i said i liked a lot, and with this kite i had a couple of security issues in one day that i haven't had using another kite for the two precedent years...
I'm quite sure Mr. Youri Zoon would not have had those problems, but i don't really get how this is supposed to help the remaining 99% of the kiting population.

Good for you that you don't have those problems, for us human being i can say that this kite has hinderburged more than my previous Wainman, and the problem is not the Hinderburgin in itself, which is no big deal in very light wind and can happen to anyone (except supermans like you which probably are able to blow form the water and create wind...), the problem is that this one has a 5th line that can wrap the wrong way and force you to swim back to shore, as i haven't seen any solution posted yet.
Not sure Pulling some meters of the the back lines will solve issue in the situation i have described (let alone pulling if there's some big wind...good luck), i guess it would only wrap it around another time in the wrong direction.
Again, there were probably only idiots in the north center which was selling the very same kites, according to them anyway solution in the case i've described is release swim back and flip it back on shore.
I guess you should give them some lessons...one of them is a former pro champion, i think you might have a business teaching him.

Just releasing bar and waiting didn't work, you're suggesting to pull a few good meters of ONE back and wait, am i correct? This might work, looking forward to try

Thats correct. Try to keep the tension off the 5th, even if you have to pop the QR. Keep pulling on ONE backline till the kite turns. The 5th then slides of the one side.

Another way that I have tried, and it worked, was to grab all the lines, except the 5th, and pull hard to lift the kite up. Hold it and let the wind push it back over.

If you find another better way I would appreciate you keep me updated

Cheers

Gut feeling makes lot of sense to release the safety on the chicken loop while keeping one back line with one hand. This way the kite should basically "flag" on the water on one side, and possibly flip back. Not sure about pulling back lines alone, picturing it while sitting on the sofa i'm imagining the kite could possibly do another flip around the 5th in the wrong direction.

Bottom line anyway...don't kite in light winds with a 5th line...honestly i'm amazed at how can they still sell the 5th line stuff as added security measure: i've never basically had any real problem in some 100+ sessions on 4 line kites and did have the worst problems in the first/second session on a 5th line!

I think you got the general idea of what I'm talking about.

I in turn, prefer the 5th line. Got into serious trouble with 4 line kites a couple of times, even after pulling the QR, but the safety of the 5th when you flag it, gives me much more security. I guess theres a trade off with everything.

I rather have a wrapped kite, with the possibility of getting it somehow unwrapped, but know for sure that I can totally flag ALL the power out of the kite if need be, then having 4 line with no wraps, but 80% depower only.

To each his own.

Maybe while you are weighing up the pros and cons of the safety aspects of the 5th line you could consider that the 5th enables you to fly a kite without bridles which would have to be the number one cause of deathlooping kites, bridle wrapped around wingtip causing safety to become innefective, bridle broken, bridle jammed with seaweed, jammed pulleys etc etc etc....So.......Deathloop versus Line tangle?

Something to ponder.

Deathloop on 4 line kites = 2 times, Deathloop on Rebel = 0 times. Same beaches, same conditions.

Anything can happen on any kite doesnt matter how many lines you have. Lines snap, bridles break, pulleys break or jam, lines hook around the edges of the kite...its just part of the sport

I enjoy the flying characteristics of the Rebel, bar feel, and the FULL depower it has.

If you fly with 5 lines as the Rebel does a 5th line wrap is going to happen at some point but this slightly irritating situation is more than worth it for the safest depower system on the market.

Next time it wraps, let go of the bar and pull the 5th line, keep pulling it. The kite will eventually unwrap itself but you'll end up with one the steering lines inside. You will be able to ride back and redo your lines. This method has NEVER failed me.

If I was riding waves I would not be riding a 5th line kite.

The method for clearing a wrapped 5th line that JamesVegas describes works, but personally I don't like to hold lines in my bare hands unless I absolutely must (I think it's an unnecessary risk). The method I have used instead is to simply unhook the bar from the harness hook, release the bar, and wait. This achieves the same thing that JamesVegas described (putting tension on the 5th line and letting the kite unwrap itself). After 30-40 seconds you can then simply retrieve the bar and relaunch the kite.

The trouble, of course, is that you might not have 30-40 seconds available. If you are in the impact zone in big waves, or if your kite is seconds away from drifting into something nasty such as sharp rocks, then you're pretty much screwed with a wrapped 5th line. This is one of the reasons why I prefer 4 lines over 5 lines: the ability of a 4-line kite to relaunch quickly no matter how much the kite tumbled when it fell or got worked in the waves.


That may be true in most cases, but in this case vannibombonato was comparing the Rebel with the Wainman, a 4-line kite that does not need bridles on the mid to small sizes (9m Wainmans and smaller...) On all Wainmans 9m in size and smaller, no bridle is needed - the four lines can connect straight to the leading edge. That is the setup I prefer - no bridle, no 5th line, direct and responsive steering.