new to kitesurfing have boxer 12m can anyone tell me about switchblade
all i hear is about crossbow how good they are also with the amount of depower is it possible to have 16m to cover most wind any feedback welcome Im 85kg
you will get about the same light wind performance as your 12m with a widespan 12m.
If you want to increase your wind range and have heaps of depower, then add the SS octane and F-one impact to your list of kites to try out.
all widespan kites have their advantages but have a long way to go in bar user friendlyness, The SS turbo diesel bar maybe the furtherest along this path.
Going to a 16m may not be the simple solution you are thinking of.
Best winds
Tony L
Dont look for a one kite solution especially if that means going for a big kite. In The cossbow as with all kites types the 16m is a different beast from the 12m. You always sacrifice heaps of perfomance in big kites.
If I only had the money to buy one crossbow, I would get a 12m (I am 85kg and live in Perth) OR I would get some top 2nd hand 05 kites (Rhino 05's, last years Cabrinha's or Slingy's) and get 2 or 3 kites for the same money.
My 2 cents..........good luck
I agree with Tony,
Having a large kite as your only one can slow your learning curve and generally leave you dissapointed. The large Flat kites are slowish turner too. You would need to consider where you live and the type of wind you will be going out in as well.
Beware of buying your kite just on all of the Bow hype. Flat kites are good but not the death of c kites. Look at the features of both flat and c kites and see whats best for you.
Jason
Originally posted by hunts
new to kitesurfing have boxer 12m can anyone tell me about switchblade
all i hear is about crossbow how good they are also with the amount of depower is it possible to have 16m to cover most wind any feedback welcome Im 85kg
Or you could avoid advice from people who pimp the brand you are after.
Not knocking SLE kites at all, if we didnt believe in them we wouldnt be stocking the GK or the Turbo Diesel would we?
I too have tried the 9 and 12m Swithcblade and yes they are better than the Crossbow.
So what you are doing Steve is agreeing with myself and Wal????
" Dont look for a one kite solution especially if that means going for a big kite. In The cossbow as with all kites types the 16m is a different beast from the 12m. You always sacrifice heaps of perfomance in big kites."
Shouldnt we ask Hunts where he lives first? Perth and Darwin have vastly different wind conditions.
Jason
www.briskites.com.au/
Just a question from a casual bystander & buyer of kites from Kitepower Geelong previously.
Is it just me - or does every thread that involves a posting from Steve from Kitepower end in acrimony?
Steve - you are not doing yourself any favours with your attitude mate. Suggest you should ease up on the angry pills.
Ooch, I just bit my tongue.
Hey, it's OK i can still type.
Hunts, where are you? Or are you a figament of someones imagination?
i've been kiting 3 months and the new switchblade has been a huge turning point. got rid of my CO2 and wouldnt ride anything but the new bow kites...switchblade has great control, easy depower and easy to relaunch...you control it , it doesnt control you.
I stand by what I said, there is no anger there, you are reading things into my reply.
It is highly unlikely Jason or Tony could have tried a large STD or GK Sonic, they just are not on the market here yet, not even demos, or am I mistaken?
And besides the 16M Switchblade is nothing like the Sonic 11M I have or the 12M STD.
The 16M Switchblade is a great kite, it turns faster than any 16M C shaped kite I have tried, and has much better top end than any 16M C shaped kite too, as well as having a bit more bottom end too.
However I still recommended a 12M Switchblade as a single kite choice based on his posted weight. If he plans to keep the 12M C shaped kite he has then I would recommend a 16M Switchblade if he is trying to get out in lighter winds.
I think it is a fair statement to point out that neither Tony nor Jason sell Cabrinha, and will quite naturally try to steer people away from this market leading brand.
And it is equally fair for me to attempt to steer them back, OK? 
Wind is wind, if the person asking wants to know about a certain size of kite, then it is reasonable to answer in general terms, like his question was.
I think the anger might be coming from elsewhere.
Cya and
Goodwinds
Steve McCormack
quote:
Originally posted by Kitepower Australia
It is highly unlikely Jason or Tony could have tried a large STD or GK Sonic, they just are not on the market here yet, not even demos, or am I mistaken?
[purple]No I havent tried the large Sonic or Turbo Diesel, but I have tried the large Switchblade
has much better top end than any 16M C shaped kite too. Isn't that the idea of a flat kite after all????????,
as well as having a bit more bottom end too.[ But not much
I think it is a fair statement to point out that neither Tony nor Jason sell Cabrinha Read this as, not jumping on the bandwagon. I could have just as easily bought a pile of Cabrhina kites like some other shops but chose to stick with the brands we trust
and will quite naturally try to steer people away from this market leading brand. And I guess Best were a market leading brand last year were they?? Isn't it really whatever is your most profitable brand for the week
If I were you I would not consider a bow kite , especially if your learning.Theirs no doubt they jump very well, and are execellent in gusty conditions, and are more forgiving than a c kite.
But they do not launch out of the water very well especially if the leading edge is facing the wind direction, I have seen alot of people swim in when this happened, they invert if you push the bar out and a big gust hits you , and they do not self launch no where near as well a c kite.
Also while jumping if you dont hold the bar in you will fall out of the sky, and if you want to progress and start doing unhooked riding forget about it.
But they do have their place and I personnally think when these problems are sorted out I will certainly consider one.
Just on the topic of kitepower, and our good friend s----e, have not yet really met a kiter thats speaks highly of him.
Have heard he is extremely arrogant,
Has an ego the size of the titanic.
And is extremely moody and angry.
So I ask myself , If alot of people say that about you s----e why are you so nice on seabreeze and especially when it has to do with
crossbows or switchblades????
OK, now this is entertainment.
I have tried a 16m & 12m crossbow and an 11m GK Sonic and a Takoon nova 12m.
It seems as if the market hype is carefully worded but these kites still have issues and compromises.
If you want quicker steering then you get more bar pressure.
the 16m crossbow doesn't seem much better if at all then other 16ms
but can depower in gusts.
My local shop up here told me they ccould only get a cabrinha for me if they first ordered 20 kites and waited 2 mths for delivery. If they did that then they would have to push every body to that brand in order to get a return on the outlay. They said they would rather give a wider choice.
I am waiting for someone to solve the bar pressure problem, but sticking a piece of bunge chord on seems very agricultural.
Freed
quote:
Originally posted by BrisKitesquote:
Originally posted by Kitepower Australia
It is highly unlikely Jason or Tony could have tried a large STD or GK Sonic, they just are not on the market here yet, not even demos, or am I mistaken?
[purple]No I havent tried the large Sonic or Turbo Diesel, but I have tried the large Switchblade
has much better top end than any 16M C shaped kite too. Isn't that the idea of a flat kite after all????????,
as well as having a bit more bottom end too.[ But not much
I think it is a fair statement to point out that neither Tony nor Jason sell Cabrinha Read this as, not jumping on the bandwagon. I could have just as easily bought a pile of Cabrhina kites like some other shops but chose to stick with the brands we trust
and will quite naturally try to steer people away from this market leading brand. And I guess Best were a market leading brand last year were they?? Isn't it really whatever is your most profitable brand for the week
No anger this end just telling it how it is.
quote:
Originally posted by bigairman
If I were you I would not consider a bow kite , especially if your learning.Theirs no doubt they jump very well, and are execellent in gusty conditions, and are more forgiving than a c kite.
But they do not launch out of the water very well especially if the leading edge is facing the wind direction, I have seen alot of people swim in when this happened, they invert if you push the bar out and a big gust hits you , and they do not self launch no where near as well a c kite.
Also while jumping if you dont hold the bar in you will fall out of the sky, and if you want to progress and start doing unhooked riding forget about it.
But they do have their place and I personnally think when these problems are sorted out I will certainly consider one.
I have been busting big un-hooked moves on my Crossbow,It is very comforting to Know that if you bail out half way your not going to get punishid as much as on a C kite.Also if you drop the kite who cares they just jump back out of the water.Same story and beter with the Switchblade Just not as much hang time.
G day steve , hope for your sake they do take a large share of the market as you have put alot of faith in them just like the hellfish.
Good points there for learning about the bows never realy thought of that, though they do have their problems and once sorted out they will certainly take a large share of the market.
As for the bows inverting they do seen it happen plenty of times, and when they come down with the leading edge facing the wind you have not got a hope in hell of getting it back up.And the self launching does not appeal to me at all on the bows, c kites do it much easier.
C kites will always have their place as will bow kites depending on what you want to do and how you ride will determine what kite you buy.Greater choice in kites can only be better for everyone.
Bigairman , have to agree with you about relanching Bow when down on leading edge facing wind. Have now seen this 6 or 7 times. What is the method of relaunching from this position. Definitely think the Bow has its place but don't want to swim in every time with the kite when it goes down this way.( and thats what Ive seen done each time I witnessed kites down - leading edge facing wind )
regards
pops
Saw a bow yesterday invert when a big gust hit it , it went hurling towards the water, sat down on the water with its leading edge facing the wind.
The kiter tried everything he could to get it up and could not, mind you he is very experienced has been kiting for several years, was not a happy man after a half an hour swim in.I think having a bow for the gusty winter months would be an advantage and be much safer but as for summer no need I think my C kites will do just fine.
Hopefully the second generation will be much better and they will fix all the problems with them , I think thats what alot of kiters are waiting for.
This thing about not relaunching when nose is into wind.
Is that Leading edge down as in the position you place kite on ground to stop it blowing away?
I have been trialing both the Std bar and a pulley type bar on my Demo Nova 12, usually in gusty inland conditions( testing worse case scenes). and usually by myself. therefore the prefered method of launching is in the water and placing the kite LE down and into wind, on the water, then letting it float out till lines tension.
a pull on one back line results in launching 100% of the time and most always quicker than a 5th line C kite.
There is a slight difference in the bars for this, the std bar is a bit better.
Has anyone tried a non pulley type bar on their crossbow?
best winds
Tony L
quote:
Originally posted by bigairman
G day steve , hope for your sake they do take a large share of the market as you have put alot of faith in them just like the hellfish.
Good points there for learning about the bows never realy thought of that, though they do have their problems and once sorted out they will certainly take a large share of the market.
As for the bows inverting they do seen it happen plenty of times, and when they come down with the leading edge facing the wind you have not got a hope in hell of getting it back up.And the self launching does not appeal to me at all on the bows, c kites do it much easier.
C kites will always have their place as will bow kites depending on what you want to do and how you ride will determine what kite you buy.Greater choice in kites can only be better for everyone.
