Guzzi rider Posted April 7, 2013 Report Share Posted April 7, 2013 Hi folks. First post from a first time Rev user. Only flown it twice so far as its been too cold (sub zero and snowing on my days off work) but now on a weeks holiday so should get some air time :-) . My rev is an SLE full sail red and black plus a set of ul rods. First flight was a disaster, just could not keep it in the air. Second time out was much better, yep you guessed it, verticals were the wrong side of the sail. RTFM. LOL. Already gleaned a lot of info from this forum and hope to contribute in the future. All the best. Steve. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mbro Posted April 7, 2013 Report Share Posted April 7, 2013 Hi Steve,and SLE is a great first kite,hope you get some good air time on it this week. Have a good one Michael Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robtulloch Posted April 7, 2013 Report Share Posted April 7, 2013 Welcom Steve. Plenty of good info here. Glad to here you got that sorted :-) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pond44 Posted April 8, 2013 Report Share Posted April 8, 2013 Welcome Steve, just like I found out, great forum for finding the right way to do things. And a nice bunch of blokes. Fly happy, John. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
portlandflyer Posted April 8, 2013 Report Share Posted April 8, 2013 Ever got a question, just ask!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
beach Posted April 8, 2013 Report Share Posted April 8, 2013 Welcome to the "Family"...... Ben Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stone in Shoe Bob Posted April 8, 2013 Report Share Posted April 8, 2013 Hi,welcome to the Forum and welcome to The Darkside. One piece of advice, don't struggle on alone try and find other Rev fliers, an afternoon with a good mentor will make the learning curve a much easier journey, save you weeks of learning from trial and error. I don't know if you've figured this out yet, but us Rev fliers are a gregarious bunch and we tend to gather in clusters, I don't know of any in Kent but The Decorators gather on Black Heath, there are a few fliers around Clacton in Essex, and there is another large group (including but not exclusively, The Flying Squad), that fly on Dunstable Downs in Bedfordshire. I am one of the Dunstable fliers but I'm having to a break from flying at the moment so sorry I can't offer to help myself, but I'm sure someone will soon come forward and offer some F2F help. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andelscott Posted April 9, 2013 Report Share Posted April 9, 2013 If you don't get to meet up with others, see if you can get along to a kite festival sometime - the Portsmouth kite festival over August Bank Holiday weekend has traditionally had quite a gathering of Rev flyers. These are great opportunities to talk all things kite and pick up a load of ideas. When you're ready - basics covered: flying with controlled speed, hover at any point of the clock face - they can also introduce you to the fun of team flying. BTW: a set of 120 foot lines is a worthwhile investment... Above all else, *have fun*! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oapbillf Posted April 9, 2013 Report Share Posted April 9, 2013 Hi Steve, All that Stone in Shoe Bob states is very good advice ! without him as my mentor and others on Dunstable Downs I would be way behind the learning curve ! Blackheath, Sunday 10.30 onwards and the same at Dunstable Downs will usually catch Revs in action but with the up and coming festivals some fliers will be away, see the calender link. http://www.kitecalendar.co.uk/ We have a new Rev flier on the Downs, Mark, not a member yet but I keep nagging him, and after only a couple of weekends his skill set has improved with a few tips from the rest of us! Bill http://www.kitecalendar.co.uk/ 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guzzi rider Posted April 9, 2013 Author Report Share Posted April 9, 2013 Thanks for the welcome and advise so far. Meeting with other users might prove difficult as I work three from four weekends :-(. Did manage a couple of hours yesterday at the local park, wind very variable from pulling me across the field to nothing at all. Lots of take off and landing practice LOL. Need more practice. Most fun I've had with a kite since I bought a five metre pkd buster power kite. Looking forward to working my way through the tutorials. Thanks again folks, I'll keep you updated as I progress. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
portlandflyer Posted April 9, 2013 Report Share Posted April 9, 2013 Like others have said - if you get the chance to meet up with some experienced Rev fliers - it will really accelerate your learning! I understand the difficulty, but if you somehow can shake loose, go for it!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KiteLife Posted April 11, 2013 Report Share Posted April 11, 2013 Welcome Steve! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guzzi rider Posted April 11, 2013 Author Report Share Posted April 11, 2013 Welcome Steve! Wow!! A message from the gods ! ;-) Thanks John, I've Lost count of the number of times I've watched your videos and feel I have learnt a lot from them. To all others who have both welcomed me and offered advice I thank you and assure you I will take it on board, particularly about flying with others. I WILL seek out Rev flyers locally and learn from them. Already worked out I need a vented to slow things down a bit when the wind's up, why isn't there a Rev with a zip out panel for higher winds ? Lol ;-) Raining again today so no flying, back to the videos :-(. Thanks again all. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robtulloch Posted April 11, 2013 Report Share Posted April 11, 2013 It's coming up to winter hear in Oz. Don't let the rain put you off. Put a hat on under a raincoat hood to keep the rain off your face. I have a saying for wet weather flying, "put extra layers on and stop when your skin feels wet." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
REVflyer Posted April 11, 2013 Report Share Posted April 11, 2013 you could make you own vent covers (affixed w/velcro buttons) but you are adding some more weight and affecting the lower end of the wind range. Dave Ashworth has a home-built with 3 vents on each wing and covers for each, you open or close according to the variable conditions. While the rest of us fiddle around with switching-out frames and different sail/venting configurations,... Dave just keeps right on flying! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stone in Shoe Bob Posted April 11, 2013 Report Share Posted April 11, 2013 Wow!! A message from the gods ! ;-) . . . . . Thanks Already worked out I need a vented to slow things down a bit. . . . . Reading this I'm wondering if you are missing a trick here. When I bought my first Rev the official line was you fly with all four lines the same length. However most experienced fliers flew, and still do, with "break applied". This is done by tying extra knots in the break line leaders on the handles. If you buy a B series they come with pre tied leaders on the handles, but the SLE just had plain leaders, that was a while back, the SLE may now come with pre tied leaders but if it doesn't you need to investigate there are threads on the forum, I'll find the if you need them. Flying with "Break Applied" by default kills excess drive and makes the hover much more achievable. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stone in Shoe Bob Posted April 11, 2013 Report Share Posted April 11, 2013 Try this link, http://www.revkites.com/forum/topic/4409-my-leaders-your-thoughts/ I thought there was another that goes into "why" but I can't find it sorry. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
portlandflyer Posted April 11, 2013 Report Share Posted April 11, 2013 To the best of my knowledge, SLEs still come with a short (equal to bottom) top leader!! The "B" series has long top leaders, but even those are usually replaced with longer ones! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KiteLife Posted April 11, 2013 Report Share Posted April 11, 2013 Also, if you're a KiteLife subscriber, this tutorial is pretty thorough on the subject. https://kitelife.com/forum/files/file/684-rev-tutorial-tuning-theory-i-hd-1280x720/ Equally important is Sail Loading... http://kitelife.com/forum/files/file/702-rev-tutorial-sail-loading-hd-1280x720/ Have fun! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
makatakam Posted April 14, 2013 Report Share Posted April 14, 2013 hi, and welcome to the "darkside" -- have lots of fun first, then worry about how you did it. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guzzi rider Posted April 30, 2013 Author Report Share Posted April 30, 2013 Sorry for not being around lately guys and gals, but the sudden and unexpected death of my stepdad has meant I've not been flying at all. It's amazing how much paperwork , stress and general family discord has been generated. I thank you for all the hints and tips you've supplied and have been checking out the links you have given me. Things are slowly returning to normal so hope to get out flying soon as I need to de-stress and I can't think of a better (chemical free) way of de-stressing than kite flying. Thanks again . . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stone in Shoe Bob Posted April 30, 2013 Report Share Posted April 30, 2013 Sorry to hear of your loss, I know how sometimes life can get in the way, I've had a bit of the brown stuff in my life lately and had to take a bit of a sebatical. Thanks for getting back to us though, some of us were talking about you on Dunstable Downs Sunday and were wondering why you had gone quiet, Rev flying is not for everyone and that's fine, but it can be a bit frustrating when newbies just disappear without a trace. Welcome back and enjoy the journey. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oapbillf Posted May 9, 2013 Report Share Posted May 9, 2013 We have a new Rev flier on the Downs, Mark, not a member yet but I keep nagging him, and after only a couple of weekendshis skill set has improved with a few tips from the rest of us! I just noticed that Mark is a member known as " marki " but has not posted yet ! Welcome to the Forum and welcome to the Darkside ! Who,s the lucky one to live on the doorstep of Dunstable Downs, it makes us green with envy! Bill Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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