Rider: Weight,Level 105 kg, experienced rider
Style: Surf and "try hard" jumps
Weather: 15-22 knots
Build Quality: 9/10
Satisfaction: 9/10
Disclosure: I sell kites including these
My Comments:
I have been anticipating this kite since I first suggested that Chris add one to his range . Having been a user of the griffin and liking it i figured that with a few tweaks and lower AR the Griffin would have a brilliant stable mate .
I have been a fan of low AR "delta style" kites since they came out ,particularly grunt,waveriding and relaunch( a particular bug bear of mine in the early years of kiting when high AR c kites came out pump up kite companies lauded the importance of having a pump up kite because of their relaunchability ,HA!!).The jumping has been surprising as well in all of them .You have read the reviews for the delta style kites and it would be a crime for me to suggest that this kite is streets ahead of anything else out there ,basically I am a fan of this style of kite regardless of brand. I also gave it to a couple of other guys to ride .one is a well known sponsored rider (other brand).Very happy with the freestyle/wakestyle (or whatever you want to call it ) performance including unhooking .One rider who tried it is a well known destroyer of borrowed equipment (kind of like that guy in a couple of movies that I have seen who works in the valet service and takes the ferrari for a spin and sees how well it corners at 200 km/h) It had been a while since I had lent a kite to him (soemthing I rememebered just prior to him slammin the kite on the reef) Yep while doing a super low flat double backspin eyes shut at terminal velocity (after not riding a kite at all for 9 months and never riding this type of kite) slams it fully powered ,bar all the way in (the bang alerted the local police thinking it was someone illegally firing the guns at fort scratchley).The deflate valve released but the good thing is that the kite survived even when it went through the wringer getting repeatedly smashed onto the reef with the rider still hooked in (didn't relalise it's not a bad idea to release to one line to avoid a mincing in the surf )I really though that the day had come to an agonising end but it survived.
Another feature that I enjoyed about this particular kite was giving me one of the best rides I have ever had in smallish conditions (2 ft) .This pleasurable experience had given me enough good vibes to survive the above mentioned experience .
Earlier when I was riding it I really liked how when I completely misread a left breaking wave where i had the kite low and then screamed across the face into what you could almost say was a barrel ,racing at the kite the kite still drifted really nicely and I could control it . I did this again this time ditching the kite when I turned it the wrong way after forgetting entirely about the kite and riding the wave (an old PL habit )but yanked hard on the back line and the kite relaunced while I was still planing and before a wave was about to eat it
One thing that we all found was that the power that comes from this particular kite is amazing .I am a lug and was out in winds that I would have a much bigger kite for and similar size guys to me were turning up with 13 and 15 m kites well into my session where the wind had picked up.
So why would you buy one of these ? Basically it is a solidly built ,tough ,well perfporming kite in this style and the price and value for a single point infation kite is excellent .I and others have found the designer and owner of Griffin Chris Vanderplatt (based in Sydney NSW) very helpful and professional .
Negatives .if I adjusted the trim and didn't ensure the rope was really jammed into the cleat it would slip , kind of annoying .the cloop line on this was pretty old and worn though.When the kite crashed the deflate valve popped out .Perhaps this saved the kite from even more damage though ,plus I don't uber velcro these things usually.
This kite has only just come out and I am sure that when others ride it (including the red thumb variety
) will enjoy
I was sent an 11m Argo to demo last week and have so far used it three times. I ride in the surf on surfboards. The first two times I flew it the way other riders had been using it, I found it heavy, slow to turn but very stable in cross off shore winds. The third time I changed the bridle to the setting the designer recommended, a totally different kite was in my hands and it performed in turning and speed as well as the Furias I am using at the moment. One of my friends was out on his 11 furia and could not make it back upwind to the takeoff zone after he caught a wave and had to keep walking whereas the Argo was chugging upwind nicely which seemed to me gave the Argo a much greater low end. I have only used this kite a handful of times and I am looking forward to testing it some more. I ordered a 9m after my third go.
The settings you used that you got from the designer, are they documented anywhere? Could you post them up here?
I rode the pre-prod 9m argo, and though i liked the kite quite a bit, I found it a bit heavy and slow, so I'd really like to see what you did...
I'm considering picking up the 10m version (coming out in a few weeks)
What is the bar pressure like on this kite?, also I noticed on the website pics that it has almost exactly the same bridle set up at the F-one bandit 3, with pulleys in the same positions, would this mean that the ARGO could be flagged to both front lines where it would lie on its back, like the f-one and cab Ids? I want the next kite I buy to have this feature
Hello, the 10m is getting made up now, I will have a bunch arriving in a week.
There was too much of a gap between the 9m and 11m, so I made up a 10m. The 9m almost being a 1 kite quiver and the 11m a great big man's or lower wind kite and the 10m sitting in the middle.
Re bar pressure:
Talking to many types of riders I found some chicks, some older kiters and people who cruise all day for 4+ hours a session want light bar pressure, I like a bit of feel so there is a default medium bar pressure. There are windsurfers who don't use harnesses and some wake style that like heavy bar pressure. So the kite can be tuned to match the rider.
Re:
Could anybody who has experience with the Argo and the griffin give a comparison, jumping, Hangtime, upwind ability, turning speed, bar pressure, depower, wind range ect
Jumping: Very high, lots of pop on the 7 9 10, also good on the 11 and 13.5 which are more light wind kites.
Upwind is near unbeatable
Turning speed is fast and controllable
depower is massive, 9m is used in 15 to 36 knots from feedback and reviews I am getting from New Zealand distributor and riders.
( riding overpowered is dangerous and should not be done )
Wind range:
the 9m has the power of a 10.5 but turns like a 7m and has heaps of depower. very large wind range.
because of the pulley you can get allot of depower as it can slide and act almost like a 5th line when fully depowered.
The Argo page will be updated on the website this weekend with wind ranges and setting. There are some demos going around to shops if you want to try them.
The Argo was designed to be a stable low AR kite with easy relaunch, excellent upwind performance and jump high. Because of the easy relaunch and low AR stability the feedback I am getting from kite schools is its a agreat kite for teaching on. The turning speed and wind rande make it a great wave kite.
I don't have any affiliation with any company or shop, I just ride kites, hooked in the surf and I am 73kg. I picked up my 9 last week and have used it a few times now in conditions varying from 14 - over 25kts and it has been outstanding in all conditions so far, and as yet I have not trimmed my power while I am riding. At first I set the bridle up using half the designers settings and all fast turning. The kite flew ok but after a chat with Chris from Griffin and just following the setting suggestions on the kite the 9 is rocking and in my opinion equivalent or better than my current kites, which are Takoon Furia2. I say this because of the wind range and the comfort and ease of use. The turning speed and response is A1 and the relaunch is as with all new kites. We have a week of wind now on the south coast and then I have an ACL operation so I am gonna work this little 9 overtime till the knife.
An update on how the kite is going
Still very happy .
I have now taught a number of beginners now on the kite .What I have found is that in the lighter winds the kite still flies nicely and if crashed relaunch is very good .I have noticed that most higher AR kites are much more difficult for beginners in particular to relaunch and tend to get stuck at the shoulder and will often almost relaunch and then stall back and become even more difficult .The argo rolls nicely around the LE particularly when the bar is left pushed away and the rider just pulls on one back line even in the light stuff .
I would expect this kite to be good in the waves and for beginners .I have been surprised by how well this kite jumps .Fast pop and impressive hang .It is hard to be all things to all people but I am sure that anyone who tries it would concur with my findings
The kite is holding up well it has about 50 hrs on it and a good number beginners and is in excellent condition .It is still crisp to touch and crisp to fly.Likes to be pumped up hard
Are you also moving centre bridle as well as shoulder bridle one stop closer to the centre, i thought it was just the shoulder bridle being moved. My kite was better once doing the shoulder Very impressed with upwind capabilities, and hang time, not many waves around to demo in at present . Bring them on,
When it is stronger winds do you go back to default ? Had an amazing session at maroochydore on tuesday, wind 15- 20knts waves some 12ft faces , kite was epic on the waves, headed at them not being pulled away, good boosts , and some late take offs from behind the section, loads of power in the 9m, what wind can the 7m go in?
