Bmwbob Posted January 24, 2013 Report Share Posted January 24, 2013 I just bought my first Rev (1.5 SLE package) last weekend at the Treasure Island festival. Haven't had a chance to fly it yet. Went totally nuts, joined AKA and subscribed to Kitelife. (Hi, John!). Thanks to Ben and the others who stayed with me until I worked through the difference in handling. I come from a bit of power kiting using mainly larger foils. On those, the load is on the front lines, so I used 200 lb and up on the front. For the rear (steering) lines, I never used more than about 90 or so (IIRC) lines. I see that the Rev uses the same lines,front and rear. Is it that this design has a higher loading on the rear than a flexible foil does, or is there some other reason? I ask for economy's sake. I tend to buy bulk lines, sleeve and pre-stretch them myself. Saves a bunch of bucks. I can save even more by using lighter rear lines unless there is a sound reason not to. So, whatcha think? Bob 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
portlandflyer Posted January 24, 2013 Report Share Posted January 24, 2013 For economy"s sake and all, don't need to use lighter rear lines!! Not sure all the tech stuff, but most of the time 90# lines will see you through just about anything!! Most of us fly on 120' lines, some the factory 80', and most of us have some sort of "shorty" set too! Just make sure the bulk spool will make at least 2 sets of 120's ( 1000' )! The 900' spools won't work, not long enough! Only reason to get one is if you plan out what sets you're going to make ahead of time and base it on that length!! Takes a bit over 480' to make a set of 120's, so there is pretty much 1/2 the spool gone on 1000'! There isn't that big a savings using any other weight, IMHO!! I do have sets of 50# lines for light wind, but unless everybody else is using them, they don't mix well with the heavier sets! I was just thinking about it some more and wondered about how different weight lines could react in twists!! Don't think I'd be mixing up different weights as they might not be as compatible!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
awindofchange Posted January 24, 2013 Report Share Posted January 24, 2013 The load is more equal on all four lines than it is with a power kite. With power kites, you do 90% of all control and power with the top (leading edge) lines. Because of this you can usually go much lighter on the rears. With the Rev, all steering and control is done with the bottom (trailing edge) lines. Totally different than the normal power kite. I recommend going 90# on all four lines for nearly all conditions. For indoor flying, you can switch out to 50# lines and if you are going to be flying in 20+ winds, you may want to move up to 150# lines (depending on if you have a standard, mid vent, full vent etc...). Normally a good quality spectra 90# line is all you ever need. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
West Australian Posted January 25, 2013 Report Share Posted January 25, 2013 Hey BMWBob. The guys above are right. For one thing I dont try to fly my Power foil inverted, but my revs I do. The rear lines on a rev often are the leading lines. Welcome to the Forum too. WA Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
portlandflyer Posted January 25, 2013 Report Share Posted January 25, 2013 I even use 90# on my indoor!!! 10' of line makes the weight difference pretty small! I like the extra strength the 90# gives and I've flown the same set for nearly 2 years!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
makatakam Posted January 26, 2013 Report Share Posted January 26, 2013 Hi, beamerbob, and welcome to the dark side. It's not so much a matter of strength as diameter. You will on occasion put 10 or more twists in them by doing spins, unequal diameter lines will begin binding up sooner. This also means staying with the same manufacturer for uppers and lowers, as diameter will vary among them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bmwbob Posted January 27, 2013 Author Report Share Posted January 27, 2013 Hi, beamerbob, and welcome to the dark side. It's not so much a matter of strength as diameter. You will on occasion put 10 or more twists in them by doing spins, unequal diameter lines will begin binding up sooner. This also means staying with the same manufacturer for uppers and lowers, as diameter will vary among them. OK. Thanks to all for the input. I am an incurable "fiddler" and will very likely mess around with things unless there is a clear reason not to. That, and I also have a set of 80/200 lines still new. I'm going to post my Prism Stylus and Sky Tiger foils on Craig's List as soon as I can get around to opening them up to confirm their size. Bob 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kitefantex Posted January 28, 2013 Report Share Posted January 28, 2013 Also Bob if you mix the lines up. You don't want light line on the top of one side and then other on the bottom. And you will want to switch your lines around from time to time.To equalize the line strech Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
awindofchange Posted January 28, 2013 Report Share Posted January 28, 2013 You may want to look at www.kitebookie.com to list your kites up for sale as well. It may be better than craigslist because it is direct to other kiters and it is free. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bmwbob Posted January 28, 2013 Author Report Share Posted January 28, 2013 You may want to look at www.kitebookie.com to list your kites up for sale as well. It may be better than craigslist because it is direct to other kiters and it is free. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bmwbob Posted January 28, 2013 Author Report Share Posted January 28, 2013 I just took a peek at that site. Looks good. Thanks! Bob Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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