Delivered to me by a wise man from the east was what I believe may have been the very first 13M Rev2 to hit the shores of WA. Last Friday (19th Sept) was a perfect day to demo this potential light wind addition to my 09 quiver. It was sloppy chop from 11 to 18kts of variable cross-shore wind.
Heres my response.
I didnt really take a lot of notice of the build features when pumping up as I fully intended setting it up side-by-side with my 13M REV1 after the session. A bit of a pity really because by the time I came off the water it was way too late for those sort of games. Like the 9M REV2 it definately has thinner struts, which are set further apart from the centre. I strongly suspect that the LE is also thinner. It may also be a little higher aspect 
though this assessment is suggested here more from its flying characteristics than observation (and it does need checking).
On hitting the water the HUGE difference I noticed straight off was that the water temperature had risen dramatically from my last session earlier that week. Now most of you will probably be aware that this has absolutley nothing to do with the new kite but I was so stoked that I just had to mention it. Winter is receeding - summer breezes are on their way. YEAH 
(If the first one hits on Sept 27th I will be lodging a formal objection to that dodgy prize winning call of Sept 4th - 
)
But anyhow back to the kite .......
Despite my initial +++ reaction to the 13M REV1 it has never been my favourite kite since getting my 9M very soon after.
One thing I was looking for in the 13M REV2 was a more consistent response at its lower end. The 08 kept me going down to 11 or 12kts but often became 'messy' in its handling in wind this light. The REV2 delivered on this one - no problem. Power delivery remained smooth and consistent right down to those times when I was almost at the point of losing ground. It didnt quite come to that on this day but the few times I had to work at holding ground the kite still flew like any well behaved kite should, smooth and responsive.
The most desired improvement in my mind would be in the area of its upwind-ability. At its low and high end the 13M REV1 was (imo) less than perfect in its upwind performance. It had a tendency to sit too far back in the window to deliver a good upwind angle. Too often on my light 133TT it was hard work maintaining any ground gaining angle. Again the REV2 delivered - hence my guess at it possibly being a little higher aspect.
It was not a huge difference but the angle I was able to achieve definately stayed achievable well down towards bottom end limits of the kite. And it delivered this improved performance without the concentrated effort needed on last years model.
Bar pressure is, like the 9M, a bit heavier this year but with the 13M not so much, or so noticable as on the 9M. I could still hold power on while carving upwind quite easily with just a few fingers on the bar. So definately no really big increase. If I hadnt been looking for it, having had the experience of the difference with the 9M kites, I may not even have noticed it . Another hint that perhaps the 13M may be cut a little narrower
But the greatest difference, REV1 to REV 2, was again with the speed of the kite. Through the window, its response time off the bar and in its turning - all significantly quicker. A big here. I strongly suspect that this is the major reason for it delivering better performance at its low end. With more kite speed and less response lag you can, obviously, get better performance as conditions become marginal - as was was my overall impression.
In its sweeter spot this added speed was a well received improvement - as it would always be in a bigger kite. The increased kite control delivered some seriously extended hangtimes on even some of the lighter wind jumps - an improvement hardly needed with the 13M REV but always a bonus .
It will be interesting to see the effect increased kite speed will have on the high end . But who cares - for me I will still be downsizing to my 9M well before getting blown away on my 13.
Overall a great experience. A 2nd generation of the same kite; for sure; but very nicely tweeked. My 13M REV1 has probably only been used about 20 times but (with apologies to Col 
) the REV2 more than definately warrants an upgrade - IMHO.
