Fractured Axel

Hey all, im new to stunt kiting. I've been given,for nothing, a flexifoil pulsar (designed by carl robertshaw) without lines. I've been on ebay and purchased http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT&item=350185708601 to use with it.

Ive flown a cheap beach delta kite for a few hours last summer but i dont know the first thing about doing stunts so i merely flew it up and down and left and right.

What i'd like to know is
a)is my kite any good? and are the lines acceptable?
b)what is each trick called and how is it done? basic ones first please (links to online tutorial videos would be great)
c)should i buy the wrist strap things? or can i just hold onto the handles ive bought on ebay

Craig,
Welcome, you've come to the right place

The kite is perfectly acceptable as a starting point, especially at that price.

The lines are a bit beefy for your needs, 150lb rather than 150kg would have been better, but they'll do for now, it may just take a bit more wind to get the kite going. There are no handles on the line you've bought though, that's just the winder, so yes, get some straps.

As for tricks, check out the tricky wiki at the top of the page, also RoyReed's site for some animations to show how the kite moves. Finally try the video tutorials by Randy G, nice slow motion and captioning.

You don't say where you are but the best option is to get to a better flying day or festival where STACK is and someone there will give you some tips I'm sure.

Good luck and have fun.

could i hold the winders for now,its just that i want to fly it in the morning if the weather is fair.

Im in St Andrews,scotland by the way. Always seem to be people on the beach with stunt kites and kite boards.

craig855s wrote:

could i hold the winders for now,its just that i want to fly it in the morning if the weather is fair.

Im in St Andrews,scotland by the way. Always seem to be people on the beach with stunt kites and kite boards.

No, the lines aren't fixed to the winder. There maybe loops at the end of the lines you can hold them until the blood gets cut-off, best get some straps.

Like these:
http://www.fracturedaxel.co.uk/shop/ind ... oductId=17

Hello and welcome to FA,

Those lines will be fine to start you off.

I also would say don't hold the winders (presuming your lines came on two winders?) as you can't get the lines to be equal length. Having some of the line on the winder and holding it is not an option (alas that is what nearly all people new to kites do - I did too, it didn't tell me not to!), and to their dismay the kite will be uncontrollable and crash: the lines are not equal, or even keep changing length.

Watch some vids of great trick flying and you'll have a nice goal to set yourself And the Randy G tutorial vids as Keith says, are excellent.

Ok ive bought some straps. How do i go about connecting the line to the straps,and i take it i cant reel it in and let it out mid flight like u can with the cheap beach kits on hoop type winders..

[quote="craig855s"].
Read a review and watch some video here:
http://www.khite.org/khite/Kites/u100q/pulsar.htm

The loops at the ends of the lines are designed to be attached to things with a larkshead knot:
http://www.vimeo.com/1107200 from http://www.closeencounterskites.co.uk/tutorials.htm

and
http://www.expertvillage.com/video/3979 ... attach.htm

This will mean threading the whole strap through the loop.

In general the "larkshead" knot is the best for connection lines to straps, and to the kite itself.



In the case of connecting a larkshead to the strap ring, just pass the loop through the strap ring, pass the whole strap through that loop, and pull tight. Your straps might just have a cord and knot, in which case larkshead onto it like in the pic.

Take a long screwdriver with you. Before you fly, stab it firmly into the earth, put your straps (or the loops at the end of the lines) over the screwdriver. Then pull the winder and the lines should come off as you walk away. When they are off, hold each line taut and see if they are of equal length. If one is significantly (>0.5") different from the other, tie an overhand knot in the end loop of the longer one to make it shorter. If they are very different in length and can't be equalled with this method, curse the person who sold them to you.

Larkshead them onto the tow points (the bits on your kite's bridle), go back to your screwdriver and you're ready. Or should be

thats a huge help guys thanks, ill let you know how i get on, hopefully ill be able to fly it monday before work...

I started out with a Pulsar a few years back. I still have it because (a) it's pretty well-behaved and predictable, (b) it doesn't fall apart in stupidly high winds (bendy fibreglass spreaders let it dump a lot of wind), (c) replacement bits are cheap and (d) due to the above, it's the kite I'm prepared to let complete novices have a go on.

As has been said, the lines you got are a tad beefy, but no worse than the hawsers the kite was supplied with. They'll slow it down a bit (good thing in high wind).

The weak spot is the spine -- it's cheap 6mm pultruded, and doesn't survive a lot of newbie beach-darts. Get yourself some robust 6mm carbon tube (e.g. Exel Cruise or ask the FA shop guys to recommend something) and carry a spare spine with you. Also carry spare elastics or thin (say 3mm) bungee cord.

The frame seems designed to come apart (as opposed to break) when you have unintentional high-speed landings, so check it and reassemble when this happens. The stand-offs tend to fall out after a while, so put a wrap of high-viz tape on each one to make it easier to find if one comes adrift in a crash.

The bridle is set for high winds. In light winds, you need to adjust it by moving the tow-point upward a few mm. There are factory marks on the bridle to allow you to re-set it, or see here.

Tricks generally need very large inputs (compared to what you'll see on tutorial videos) and lots of slack. When you learn to get the kite on its back, you will find that it excels at multi-lazies.

Enjoy!

Dammit, I just left St Andrews last Autumn after four years there - it's a shame our paths didn't cross. I may be down a few times in the next couple of months, so I'll let you know if I do. Top of West Sands is a great place to fly - super-smooth winds! Good luck finding other trick kite fliers there, but I think they're in pretty short supply.

Toby

Well,went out and flew it today and the wife had a go after i had got proficient at keeping it in the air...She killed it almost straight away,ploughed straight into the grass at high speed breaking a piece,how do i go about fixing or replacing said piece...


This isnt my image but its just so i dont have to get my camera out.

Its the piece where the guys thumb is,where the 2 poles fit in.

thats called a center t..
you can find them in about any kiteshop and are cheap...
yours looks like a 6mm and thats standard...

Must be a weak-spot.I posted eons ago about a cheap pulsar I bought in a 'surf' shop.It had clearly been flown before and the centre-tee was missing....

Aeri wrote:

yours looks like a 6mm and thats standard...

Just to confirm, it is a bog-standard 6mm Exel (the Decathlon ones are an almost exact substitute).