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I'm looking to expand my kite "collection" with another Rev and would appreciate a little advice/push in the right direction... my current collection is actually pretty shameful compared to many of you guys, I have only two 2-line delta and my Rev. I had more previously but they got stolen a number of years back and for one or other reason I never replaced them.
My first experience with a Rev was when I saw a guy flying a Rev on a beach Cornwall (UK) back in 2004. I never flew it, but I spent a good hour watching the guy and knew I had to have one. Shortly after getting back off holiday and having done some (very) brief research I bought myself my first Rev... a shockwave!
I was always pretty handy with the 2-line kites as I was pretty young when I was introduced to them so when I read the "for experienced users" in the description of the speed series my arrogance (at the time) assured me that this was the kite for me... despite having never flown a 4-line kite before! lol I might be wrong but as I remember at the time this forum wasn't here so there wasn't really a source for advice when I was researching, otherwise I'd have probably been steered away for the speed series. Either way, yeh, my first Rev kite was a shockwave and I'm totally glad that's what I went for
The first few sessions were a bit "hairy" but I soon got the hang of it... this was back in August 04, so I've now been flying my shockwave for almost 5 years. And although I know it would be against the advice generally given here, I would recommend the speed series (well, the shockwave at least) to any newcomer who (like I was at the time) is cocky enough to think they are experienced enough and think a superfast kite with a decent pull is what they're looking for! Back on track... I'd never considered buying another kite since I love flying my shockwave but (and I know this is going to sound a bit silly) the other day I had real trouble getting the kite back into its bag, and decided I should invest in a larger bag for it. In doing so I came across this forum and realised how these kites have really taken off (sorry couldn't resist
), so having read quite a few threads I've decided that although I'm perfectly happy with my current kite I'm not getting the full Rev experience. Also, while I feel I fly my kite well and am experienced in that respect, when it comes to the technicalities (using different rods/lines etc) I feel like a total beginner... and this is where I'm at now.Having read various threads here I now understand that I'm not necessarily looking to buy a kite per-se but more of a sail/frame kit. I think I'm also right in saying that the shockwave doesn't really fall into this category as it has as 96" span which is pretty unique and therefore no "interchangeable" parts? I also think I understand about the different frames/rods (more wraps for higher wind, less wraps for lower wind and more precision, right?). I do however, have to admit my total ignorance when it comes to lines. Having just measured, I see my current ones are 80ft, no idea on lb though. How important is line length?
I guess what I'm really looking for is something that's just different to what I already have. Perhaps a setup that is more precise than the shockwave, still "nippy" in lower wind conditions, and still has enough pull that I can feel it's there. I can fly the shockwave in low wind but am less keen on it because there's no pull, that said I'm not looking for something that's gona lift me off the ground if there's a sudden gust (however fun that may be
). I often find there's either not enough wind or too much to fly safely, so anything thing to fill those gaps would be good Am I being too specific here, or maybe not enough?If you think what I'm looking for requires me to buy two "kites" then that's fine too, but for the time being at least no more than that
I see the B-series frequently gets recommended and I'm half expecting that it'll be the B-series that'll be suggested as it appears to be a good all rounder, but is that really what I'm looking for? Also, I'm not sure whether vented, mid-vent, or none is what I'm looking for... from reading a number of topics here my instinct tells me to go for a mid vented B-series with a set of race rods... but I'm not 100% sure as I can't find any other posts asking for help moving from a speed series to a "standard".As I said, any help/guidance is appreciated!
Chris
