Flexifoil Bullet 3.5M

Overview:

This is a buggy (or maybe kite-ski) kite, pure and simple. This is now my "go-to" buggy kite in 10-15mph winds, maybe more when I'm more experienced.

Out of the "box": (or bag, in this case)

Kite comes complete with lineset and handles (or bar, if you prefer). The bag is actually a pretty fancy backpack (side pocket for handles with clip/strap to hold in place, mesh to drain sand, padded straps, and so on...). I would rather have seen a cheaper bag and a lower pricetag overall - how many people spend hours wearing their power kite? (And it's maybe 3-4 pounds total anyway - IF you include the weight of handles/line - do you really need padded straps?)

Handles are ABS (plastic), but are sturdy enough even under strain. Upper part of handles has neoprene covering the finger area, including the link line and leader at the top - actually not that comfortable on long rides, since it tends to bunch up at the pressure points (recipe for blisters). The "throw" or length of the handles is pretty long, this turns out to be necessary in "normal" winds, as the brake lines don't have as much slack when the kite is powered up, but it still takes a lot of brake to bring the kite down.

While I'm on the subject of quick kills, the kite also comes with special wrist straps so that novices can safely let go of the handles without losing the kite complete. I still haven't tested it yet, but it looks like it would turn the kite into a flag pretty easy, definite plus for newbies.

Lineset is not figure-8 wound, so getting it off the winder and untangled took me a while - still not sure how I should have unwound it to avoid that mess, manual gives no indication.

The Kite:

Construction:

looks pretty solid, "croc-grips" are little velcro strips for keeping the bridle from tangling - nice if you tend to swap linesets around, also useful if you can't "sand" the kite to make it stay still (more on this later). Warning tag like you would see on a mattress, made to be torn off so that it won't affect flight.

Shape:

Yes, like a lemon wedge or something, but not much "arc" front-to-back when in flight, so the projected area should be closer to the flat area (3.5m2) than other kites.

In flight:

Conditions:

11-14mph winds, not super smooth but I wouldn't call it gusty either. 14mph seems near-ideal, though more experienced buggiers would probably prefer more wind (or the 4.5m Bullet).

Liftoff:

Fairly fast up the window, and quite a bit of power right off the bat - this could catch beginners off-guard. Might have been safer to edge-launch and work it up to the top of the window. Standing still with the kite at the top of the window or at the edge, it's pretty tame - different story when it's moving...

Power:

Developed whenever the kite is moving, especially in the power zone. Working the kite brings on the power, parking it calms things down somewhat unless the buggy is up to speed and the "parked" kite is actually moving through the power zone. This can generate some overhead lift if the kite is still moving when repositioned to the top of the window - not as much as certain other kites, but definitely noticable...

Window:

Didn't seem to be able to overfly the window, and the kite was reasonably well-behaved when my jibing skills weren't up to task and the lines went a little slack - kite would luff a little and slide backwards toward the window. The "ball of laundry" can and does happen when the lines go totally slack long enough, and bowties are part of the result.

Gusts/lulls:

When in motion, gusts = extra power. This is fairly immediate, so I wouldn't recommend this kite for significantly gusty conditions. Lulls aren't as big a deal, except that after the lull is over the kite will re-power quickly - something to watch for since the kite will tend to drift behind the buggy in the lull...

Upwind:

I'm probably not the best to judge this, but seemed very comparable to my C-Quad 3.2, really wouldn't be able to tell better/worse without direct comparison (same day, same conditions). Pretty decent overall, I think.

Landing:

Definitely a weakness - this is a real bear to reverse-land in anything other than light conditions, wants to power back up at the slightest provocation (not good for beginning or even intermediate quad pilots). As with liftoff, maybe I should have used the edge instead. Not safe to stake out directly downwind, definitely must "sand" or otherwise anchor the kite itself immediately as soon as the handles are on on the ground or it could become partially airborne again - one method for parking is to put the bridles into those "croc-grips", this turns the kite from an unruly twitching/jumping lemon-slice into a mellow pile of nylon (not relaunchable that way though).

Summary:

Even with my limited traction-kiting experience, I think this is a great "intermediate" buggy kite for 12- 15mph winds. Experienced quad-line pilots new to traction kiting should be fine, but I would not recommend it to someone new to both traction and quads. One major weakness is reverse (brake) landing, and stability when anchored on the ground, but in all other respects it seemed very comparable to the C-Quad 3.2, but perhaps with more power when in motion (and less when not).

By : Tom Michaud