34 replies to this topic

[Jonernie]

Jon

I will also be there on Sunday and fly a lime/blue rev. there will be a few missing as its the basingstoke kite festival this weekend but will still be good.

Keith

Hey Keith that's brilliant! I will look out for you!


I should be easy to spot - guy with Rev - obvious beginner scratching head - flying erratically ;-) 8 year old son flying stunt kite and laughing at me!

I might try sneaking up about 5 today to set it up so i don't look a complete buffoon on Sunday as I know it's going to be busy ( - been watching videos on the procedure ) - hoping some of my power kite experience will carry through - but I suspect this is a totally different game altogether!

My wife called to say it's arrived at home so I've asked her to bring it to my office this afternoon just so I can unbox and check it out :-)

I think I'm a little obsessed!!

[--Pete]

I think I'm a little obsessed!!

Hah! Welcome to the Dark-side.

[Jonernie]

Hah! Welcome to the Dark-side.

It's great to be here Pete! I'll report on my first go later :-)

[mbro]

Jon, You made a great choice, I've got one and love it
Welcome!!!!!
Michael

[stroke survivor]

Kent, Correct me if I am wrong, but it seems to me the newer SLE REVs no longer have SLE printed on the sail.

John - I just flew my full vent SLE today, it no longer has any SLE markings on it!! Bought it last summer at Lincoln City!!

[TerryB]

Jon,
Thought I would introduce myself to you and all the other members.
Bought a 1.5 SLE three weeks ago and been out every second I can, up here in Aberdeensire UK.
Wow that machine has taught me some lessons.
I can say after the 30 plus hours I have had flying so far that a good wind and the large frame works well and gives you the feel for the kites turns and capabillities.
At the thrid time out I could not get it off the ground long enough so went for the supplied smaller rods and wow what a difference!
Taught me some more new lessons.
Now hovering just upright of course, can land and recover from the inevitable.
I would agree line management and staking along with preparation is well worth it.
I am now going to look into the use of handle tails for low wind adjustement.

All I can say is i'm hooked and thanks to all the help and info from this site it has made the initial learning curve a little less steep.

Take Care
Terry

[SkyPuppet]

Hello and welcome Jonernie and TerryB

Congrats on the SLE!
I have a vented SLE, I'm flying it with 1/4" leading edges. My axels look better when performed with my vented SLE compared to my full-sail B Series!! Its a fantastic kite

[Jay Nunes]

1.5!!! Perfect First Kite...
go Beat the Crap out of it and when you get that out of your system invest in a B series for sure..
Loved my SLE's for years.....

[Jonernie]

Lift off!!

Managed to sneak up to the downs this afternoon for an hour for the inaugural flight!

It was far too windy and gusty! Iphone said 18 mph! Despite this I was desparate to have a go - you know what it's like!

So I staked the handles - and set up the kite - that was an achievement in itself (I watched the video beforehand and some vids online)

I was so delighted at this achievement - anyone watching would think I could fly!

Anyway - take off - straight up and slowly lower - actually landed! Woohoo

Take off two

agghhhh - spin out of control but managed to land then flip over (as I learned in a video) and take off again - Kite's got a mind of its own!!

However the combination of my lack of skill and the wind meant that was it!

I quit while I was ahead - blimey I have a lot to learn! You guys make this look way to easy!!!!

Now I know why you all have so many kites!!

But I have learned the art of set up and packing up!

Gotta start somewhere I guess - it was an incredibly exhilirating and terrifying 2 minutes!!


Back to Dunstable Downs tomorrow it is then - wind looking tamer! Will look to the experts for guidance :-)

Can't wait!

Cheers, Jon :-)

[mbro]

Jon, we've all been there bro keep at it you'll get it, and once you do there is no looking back
Michael

[--Pete]

If you can set up and pack up, you can fly anytime there's wind. Who could ask for more?

If your kite seemed to change behavior between the first launch and the second, check your lines for length. You might have stretched one line more than the others in the first gusty flight. Find a place where you can stretch them out and compare the lengths. They should all be the same, within a quarter inch or so (6mm). (You can judge whether you have the same tension on the lines as you compare them by checking to see if the have the same 'sag' as you compare the lengths.) If one or more is longer than the others, you need to do something about it.

I have heard the the proper pre-stretch is 1/2 the rated line strength. So, if you have 90# lines, you need to pull each line at 45# (about 20 kilos) for ten or twenty seconds. Then compare the line lengths. They should all be (nearly) the same length. If they are not, you need to re-tie the loop at the end of the different line(s).

[Kitelife]

Hi Jon, glad you found a buzz with Rev flying... And as others have said, the SLE will serve you just fine.

One item though, as I don't see it mentioned anywhere else in this topic...

The B-Series comes with adjustable leaders (extensions) on the top of the handles, which allow you to adjust the default pitch of the kite (forward/reverse).

The SLE does not, but we're talking about $1.00 worth of string so it's a breeze to make some yourself.

Here are some topics which will be VERY useful:

http://www.revkites....he-same-length/
http://www.revkites....-your-thoughts/
http://www.revkites....-handle-tuning/

And as Madquad mentioned earlier, learnkites.com is a solid resource with 16 tutorials on a variety of subjects.

Some require a Kitelife subscription to download, but the others (free) will give you a taste of whether or not they'll work for you.

Fly on, have fun, tell us all about it!

[Jonernie]

Thanks to everybody in the forum for their great advice and words of wisdom! :-)

And a big big thank you to the guys at Dunstable Downstoday for your guidance including Keith for the very kind loan of his Vented Rev for a couple of hours!

The winds today would have been a bit too much for my unvented SLE

I had an amazing time and the guys advanced my learning by many weeks I should think. Definitely the best advice - to find other Rev fliers to learn from :-)

I'm now confident enough to go flying my Rev and safely set up, take off and land correctly and try some of the basics without going into a spin!

Absolutely brilliant time!!! Can't wait to go again!

Thanks again guys

Jon :-)

[JasonOsteo]

We were very impressed (and a little envious) of your quick progress. A set of 120' lines and a little more practice and you can join in the line tangling/team crashing with us.

[Jonernie]

We were very impressed (and a little envious) of your quick progress. A set of 120' lines and a little more practice and you can join in the line tangling/team crashing with us.

Thank you Jason - that's very kind of you! I had an absolutely amazing time and I attribute my rapid early  progress to my 4 fantastic tutors! Without you guys I guarantee I'd have spent the afternoon spinning out of control!

I'm going to order those 120' lines and a vented Rev (fathers day) this week and maybe one day after some  considerable practice I can possibly join you guys!!

Thanks again and see you next week!!

Jon :-)