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Rev 2 and Low Wind


macbuzz

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Hi,

In 1996, I bought a Rev 2 kite in Houston.  I've enjoyed using it on and off since then.  I became reasonably competent at flying it (without getting too good either).

However, I found that the Rev 2 only really flew well in a strong wind (guessing Wind Force 4-6).  Otherwise it didn't seem to get enough lift.  I was using the original lines at this time.

Having had a look at the kites that Revolution now offer, they all seem much larger than the Rev 2.

Can any of you compare performance of a Rev 2 with, say a Rev 1.5 (especially at lower wind conditions)?  I don't live near the sea and have had too many frustrating times setting kites up just to have to wind them up almost immediately.

Additionally - how does the SUL Rev 1.5 fly at low winds?  I've a very low wind (wind force 1-4) two line kite that's so much fun to use.  It would be great to have a Rev that was also as good at low speeds.

Thanks in advance for your help...

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Howdy Macbuzz,

Welcome to the forum.

Here's my experience:

I live about 1000 miles from the sea and often have low winds. I have most all the revs except the huge ones.

There is a very, very big difference between the rev II and the rev 1.5 SUL. For flying in light winds you can't beat the SUL. The 1.5 will be slower but much more precise and much easier to keep up in the air!

Really, get yourself an SUL--you'll love it.

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Mike,

Exactly what department do you work for in Revolution?  :wink:

Seriously - thanks for your answer.

I live about 100kms from the sea but only about 20m above sea level - what else can you expect in the Netherlands!

Cheers...

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Hi,

I live inland in North Carolina and frequently have low winds.  I have a 1.5SUL, and it's really very enjoyable to fly in low winds.  I also have a 2-wrap frame for my Rev 1, but for some reason it doesn't seem to fly as well as the 1.5SUL.  Maybe because I'm better at flying the 1.5 than the I.

I also built a UL frame for my Rev II.  It consists of a 3-piece leading edge.  The middle of the leading edge is a 2-wrap middle from a Rev I (yes, the same one I use for the 2-wrap frame for my Rev I).  I extended the leading edge with two 48 mm Skysark P100 spars.  For downspars, I use Skyshark 2P's that are 61mm long.  Yes, the 2P's are much smaller in diameter than the normal Rev II downspars, but they work quite well.

The Rev II, being a smaller kite, will never (never say never) fly in low wind as well as a larger kite, but for my money, it flies pretty respectably in low wind.

I've had friends fly it and they don't think it has that great low wind performance, but when the wind is low, I sure can fly it!

If you have a Rev II, you could experiment with these lightweight spars to see if you get something similar.

Later, Doug

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Doug,

Thanks for your response.  No doubt some of the problem is that I'm simply not that skilled in flying the Rev II.  It always struck me as a nervous kite.  

I ended up flying it in higher and higher winds - all this to avoid all the hassle of spending a while sorting the kite out, only to discover that after 5 mins of trying to fly it, I would be better packing it all up again.

After one session in high winds, I'm sure that parts of the kite sail had become stretched.  Certainly one side of the kite was "looser" on the frame than the other.  I got it back to similar tightness by fiddling with the elastic.

If I may ask, what lines were you using on your Rev II lightweight version?  I also read somewhere on this forum that some people have good results by shortening the bottom lines slightly (distance depending on kite and handles?).  Would that also help "de-sensitise" the Rev II a bit?

I hope the above doesn't upset any Rev II fans, who really can fly the thing well and love its nervous nature...

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I fly all my Revs with shorter bottom lines, but the lines themselves aren't actually shorter--the attatchment line at the bottom of the handle is shorter.

A quick way to see if you like it is to tie a knot in the attachment lines in the bottom of both your handles and attatch the flying lines to the knot. Try a knot about an inch from the end.

The Rev II is a trickier kite to fly than the 1.5 series, especially for a beginner. Perhaps you can find someone who has a 1.5 to try, maybe at a festival.

I would enjoy working at Rev, but the daily 4000 mile round trip (6400 kms) commute would be hard. Especially with today's gas prices!  :D

Your english is excellent, are you a native of the Netherlands?

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Hey Mac-

I have a couple of linesets for light wind flying -- 100#x85' blueline and 75#x75' blueline.  I usually use the 100# when flying my Rev I with 2-wrap spars, but also have used it for Rev II with regular spars and winds around 10-12 mph.  For the light wind Rev II and Rev 1.5SUL, I use the 75#x75'.  I suspect that I could get by with even lighter lines, but am only interested in buying a lineset ONCE!  Would hate to misjudge the strength needed. :lol:

Let us know if you make some sort of light wind Rev II.

Doug

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Hi - a quick response to the last two postings on this topic...

Mike - I'm not quite sure what you mean when you refer to attachment lines.  I've simply got lines with sleeved and knotted end sections: these are attached to the kite and handles via clips.  

I think the easiest way to shorten lower lines is to add a couple of knots at the sleeved section(s).  I'll have a go at this the next time I fly the Rev II.

By the way - although I live in the Netherlands, I'm Scottish - hope that explains the ability at English.

CLT - I've been digging around on the web and found this link

http://www.kitesonline.com/kites/quad/revaccess.html

They seem to have UL spars for the Rev II.  I've emailed them to confirm that these spares are lighter than the original, standard spares from the Rev II (in 1996).

If I order the light spars, I'll probably try some 50# line.  They (kitesonline) have some on special offer - if it breaks, no real hassle.

I'll keep you (or the forum) posted on how well all this works...  Having said that, I may still go ahead and buy a 1.5 SUL!

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...I would enjoy working at Rev, but the daily 4000 mile round trip (6400 kms) commute would be hard. Especially with today's gas prices!  :D

Mike - off topic - my apologies...

Today's gas prices! Ahum - try the $ 7.24/ US gallon that we are paying the Netherlands!  That makes $ 2.80 seem free  :wink:

I'll keep my future postings on the topics of kites!

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I almost always fly my Rev 1.5s on 90# line. Even in 20+ mph winds. I occasionally use a 50# line in light winds.

If you have clips on your lines, you do have an old rev. They stopped using clips a long time ago. Everything is done with a larkshead knot now.

I'll take a photo of my handles to show you what I mean...

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Here's a photo of my handles. The large squares on the grid are one inch.

The ends of my lines are sleeved loops and I use a larks-head knot to attach them to handles.

If I want my flying lines the same length, I attach the lines to the last knot (farthest from the handles).

If I want the bottom lines shorter, I attach the top lines to the last knot, and the bottom lines to a knot a futher back from the end.

Just in case, I googled larks-head knot and got this:

http://www.racekites.com/howto/larkshead.asp

post-2-1170972210_thumb.jpg

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Mike,

Thanks for your last two posts...

I've got several kites that use the larks head method for attaching lines.  Putting this on my Rev II handles will be no problem (I've made quite a few two liners myself - so this won't be difficult).

From your replies, can I assume that you have the same connecting method on your kite bridles as well?  Additionally, is the material you use just typical bridle material?

Thanks...

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  • 1 month later...

Mike,

A late reply...

I've just been out for the first time in a decent wind with my new Rev 1.5 SLE and also my 10 yr old Rev II.

The 1.5 is just great - it's slow controllable, flies steadily and gives be that bit extra time than the Rev II.  Great fun and managed some nice reverse flying!  I didn't try stopping too many dives just above the ground with the 1.5:not at € 250 for the kite alone and on a maiden flight.

When the wind really picked up, I took the Rev II out the bag.  I'd forgotten how fast it was.  I really struggled to keep it under control to start with.  I then pulled the bottom lines back about 1.5" (as you suggested/demonstrated in your previous posts).  What a difference!  I've never had so much fun flying the Rev II.  Still a handful but a lot better than it's ever been before.  And yes (since it's 10 yrs old) I did do a few stops just above the ground!

Seriously  :lol: flier!

BTW - does anyone have trouble with the end caps popping out of the leading edge spar on the 1.5.  This seems to happen quite easily on mine...

Thanks for your help guys!

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Hi all, I was at the link from this topic for kitesonline. The ? I have is why do they list 4 LE, the standard, UL, SUL, and the SLE. I dont understand when there is only three. There is 2warp(sul), 3wrap(standard) and 4wrap(sle), right? The REV 1 I have has the SLE in it and I want to lighten it up. Thanks in advance for the answers.

Ken

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wow macbuzz i thought it was bad here

Antman - took me a while to work this one out.  I take it you are referring to the price of gas/petrol in NL...

:cry:

Still over in the US for 10 days starting next week - time for a dose of US culture (2* baseball, 1* football, 1* soccer).  Visit to the Alamo... all on cheap petrol!

:D

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  • 8 months later...

Not sure if this helps, I did a decorative venting on my RevII that had some interesting side effects. It allowed me to fly in as little as 3-5 mph winds very easily. Also added a little to the top end. Sorry not the greatest picture (cam phone) but you get the idea.

post-1201-1181424385_thumb.jpg

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