9 replies to this topic

[Mitch]

I got my Zen with 50# 50' Shanti lines. I've been having better luck flying low wind (thanks, JB about your advice re sail loading ) but I think the Shanti line is wimpy and tangle prone. Catches on every blade of grass. Don't know if it's the type of line or the weight. I much prefer the LPG 90#, but is 90# too heavy for the Zen in light winds? What is John flying in that Zen dock play vid? He flies pretty short lines! I wonder if that would in fact be easier with a kite as big as the Zen. Snappier, if you will. Any advice?


Mitch

[REVflyer]

Nappy tangles and picking-up little bits of crap from the soil is why many of us go to (and stay with!) LPG 90#. The difference is weight increase & drag is worth the security of never tangling (unless a stroller rolls thru).

The only fifty pound worth it's salt is the LPG, personally I only use that if everyone else does and we're all on 120s. The rest of my flying lengths indoors or out, alone or mega-teaming are 90# LPGold/some LPComp except for a single of short handles having 150s for nuclear winds.

I've tried the Shanti several times, plus rolls & rolls of Berry Blue (I liked their 75# for a long time, which the other manufacturers never seemed to address). Nothing is as smooth as new set of laserpro gold, don't know if it's the coating, or the structure of construction, but I do know it's what the factory provides in ready to fly set-ups! Sometimes it's worth the best when compared against the rest!

[REVflyer]

AND fifty pound flying lines feel mushy, not snappy, that doesn't help a flailer like me!

[Kitelife]

On short lines, 50# doesn't feel so mushy... The Zen Play video is using 30'x50# LaserPro Gold.

More tension on the kite, less mush, but your response time is greatly reduced, gotta be "on it" with control and bicycle rotations.

[Watty]

The 50lb line is more prone to tangles than the 90lb. It seems that as the line weight increases, its tendency to tangle decreases. All my indoor line sets are 50lb, and all my outdoor line sets are 90lb. I think I would be able to fly indoors with 90lb just as well as I can with 50lb. The indoor lines I have now, I got when I first started flying indoors and didn't know any better.

I have heard that Scott Weider uses 30lb line indoors, so to him, it may be enough difference to be worth it.

[Mitch]

Thanks. Clearly I'm not alone in my impression of LPG. If the weight makes no diff, I see no reason to mess with the lighter lines, especially if I'm trying to fly shorter lines (maybe cut the difference and try 40 or 50 before I go to having to be "on it".) I can see why every gram might make a difference indoors, but 30# lines must be like gossamer! Are they subject to Brownian motion!? (Science joke about molecules making the line jiggle...)

Does anybody know if there is a way to recondition LPG? Can you wax them? I have a set that is looking a little rough and beginning to "sing" with fewer wraps.

[kwmf]

When I got my indoor I ordered 12' of 50# and very quickly switched to 90# LPG. I've weighed both those sets and the difference is less than 1 gram so I don't believe it will hold back the 153 grams of indoor rev in the air.

My Zen hasn't arrived yet, but I have 5, 8, 12, 20, 30, 50 and 80 foot sets all in 90# waiting for it when it gets here.

[REVflyer]

on short lines you can throw and catch the kite while personally remaining perfectly stationary, . . . why risk a tangled mess of lines gambling with 50# string? The best thing a rev does is the throw and catch in my opinion, folks are absolutely amazed and it's not that difficult of a technique to master. Not many other kite designs can do this crowd-pleaser!

The really short lengths aren't going to be much fun on the zen. If you put one wrap in the lines with a 9 foot high kite (on five foot strings) imagine where you arms would have to be positioned to keep it centered. That surge of unwinding will be just as problematic!

I practice on 65 feet and demo using only 50, so it's effortless and completely reliable. THe 50 and 80 foots sets in your bag will probably see the most usage

[kwmf]

Well technically speaking, my 5-12' lines are for indoor or street ... but I'm sure I'll try the Zen indoors on the 12' for fun

[Mitch]

You think 50' is short enough to feel the difference? I've tried on 80' but the word that comes to mind in "boggy" or perhaps "squishy". I know it's not the kite because when the wind is up a bit, the Zen is far more responsive. Not the B pro but showing it's promise. I don't know about 12 feet, but on lines like that I could fly in my own front yard! A dream come true:kid_content:.