Fractured Axel

Jason · Tue Sep 18, 2007 10:12 pm

Recently gone from about 60ft (20m) down to 45ft (15m) and loving it.

matt · Wed Sep 19, 2007 8:58 am

Jason wrote:
Recently gone from about 60ft (20m) down to 45ft (15m) and loving it.

Do you find this poses any problems with multiple roll-ups? I love the directness of much shorter lines but wonder if it's limiting the tricks available to me. I supose I'l have to experiment... only reason I havn't is because my second set of lines is 40m long (used to fly my Phantom Elite) and my Gemini just feels too remote on them).

Thanks for the input everyone!

Bodyflight · Wed Sep 19, 2007 10:39 am

I've just learnt the insane and am working on rolling cascades and the insane l-r. I have been flying on shorter lines than I used to but only get a rotation or two before the world gets in the way!
Also with shorter lines, even though the wind window is the same shape, it's a lot smaller so makes me feel like my kite is always caged in the middle of the window and is wanting to get free.

Stan Doff · Wed Sep 19, 2007 6:15 pm

IMHO lines should be just long enough to reach from the straps to the kite. :lol:

O.k.,seriously, wanting short lines to set up quickly and fly on a crowded beach, I tried making temporary shorter lines out of a 85ft/26m set by pulling the line through the sleeving,rolling up the spare and taping it up,until I thought I had eliminated most of it's length.The Gem seemed very close on these lines and I initially estimated I was down to about 10m or less so was quite surprized to measure I still had around 50ft/15m.

By contrast,joining two 25m sets to make a 50m set was less dramatic.

StuartB · Wed Sep 19, 2007 9:54 pm

25m for tricks generally. Down to about 16m when space or time are limited. I also have a set of 5m lines in my bag that I have used on the rare occasions that I am able to fly indoors, but these are a bit silly outdoors apart from debugging bridles (1.5m leaders are also useful for basic 'will it fly?' bridle tests).

But now that I am flying a larger kite most of the time I am experimenting more with 33m and 37m lines and they are nicer, apart from the fact that it is difficult for my aging eyes to work out what the kite and lines are doing that far away!

Popeye · Wed Sep 19, 2007 10:16 pm

60'-80' on the DS

Jason · Thu Sep 20, 2007 5:00 am

matt wrote:
Do you find this poses any problems with multiple roll-ups? I love the directness of much shorter lines but wonder if it's limiting the tricks available to me.

I'm not really into multi rollups, usually 2 at most. For me, multi rollups fall into the "baecuase I can" category which IMHO isn't freestyle. Not for me anyway. I find the rolling cascade a bit harder but then if I can get a left and right one after the other then I'd be pushing my luck to go for another left anyway.

matt · Thu Sep 20, 2007 7:25 am

Jason wrote:
matt wrote:
For me, multi rollups fall into the "baecuase I can" category which IMHO isn't freestyle.

Sorry to be flippant but surely even an axel falls into the "because I can" catagory... whatever you do with a trick kite is freestyle if you do it cause it's fun, looks good and its an individual expresion (as much as a trick concieved by someone else ever can be individual)! :wink:

I think a muliti wrap into a belly landing and out into an unwrap to fade to combo looks prety cool (when it doesn't fail miserably :alright:

).

Miles F · Sun Sep 23, 2007 3:01 pm

I make up most my lines around 75ft with low wind sets of 60ft down to 40ft. Having recently bought some nice Shanti lines I decided to fly them at 85ft and really liked it. Main determining factor for me is space, take Portsmouth this year frankly even 25ft might have been a bit ambitious! No wind + no space = fairly shite flying :mad:

dubster · Mon Sep 24, 2007 12:31 pm

Wow I'm obviously desperately old skool, I run 50ft spectra lines, as I (almost) always have.
have a pair of 25ft dyneema's from way back, when 25' was the norm (late 90's) but they're pretty much useless for anything but axels.
Looks like I'll have to get me some 85ft Spectra's and see how I get on

Good question Matt !!

Infinitive · Mon Sep 24, 2007 1:10 pm

25ft! My leader lines are nearly 25ft!

RoyReed · Mon Sep 24, 2007 3:44 pm

Infinitive wrote:
25ft! My leader lines are nearly 25ft!

Why not just use 500lb line all the way, Al?

Keithgrif · Mon Sep 24, 2007 5:54 pm

my lines are "way too long for Margate's area" ft long!

I agree with Infinitive, Airheads usually work with 6m leaders, replacing them is cheaper than a new Protec lineset. And the way we fly we cause lots of line and bridle problems for each other.

Infinitive · Mon Sep 24, 2007 6:25 pm

RoyReed wrote:
Infinitive wrote:
25ft! My leader lines are nearly 25ft!

Why not just use 500lb line all the way, Al?

I'd use bridle line all the way if it didn't bind so easily!

matt · Thu Sep 27, 2007 5:02 pm

dubster wrote:
Good question Matt !!

Why thankyou!

How long are your lines?