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This review aims to cover: 1. How to easily and non destructively change the Angle of Attack AoA of the 5m Pansh Ace 2. Why you would what to do this 3. The results from some of my experiments, to demonstrate what to expect While this article is specifically aimed at the 5m Pansh Ace, The principles applied could be used on almost any kite, it would just depend on how the bridle was constructed. However all the measurements and fittings would differ from kite to kite, and size to size. For a brief introduction to Angle of Attack (AoA) see: * http://www.racekites.com/theory/angleofattack.asp To test out my ideas I constructed a full Adjustable Angle of Attack (AAA) x2 bridle similar to that found on some production kites (some U-Turns, PKDs and the BladeIV). Rather than repeat everything the diagrams in this manual show what I fitted to my Ace x2 (note - the Blade AAA kit WILL NOT fit the Ace) http://www.flexifoil.com/downloads/instruction_manuals/bladeiv_tripleA_ammend.pdf Using my AAAx2 bridle I can alter the AoA for my Ace (on the ground) in under a minute. HOWEVER, the measuring and tieing of this AAAx2 bridle was quite complex, needing a lot of patience and accuracy It took me around 4 hours work in total. Also I'm not sure of the long term durability of my handiwork. Hence now I've finished playing with AoA, I've fitted this EASY PEASY AoA TWEAK (EPAT) This EPAT has the advantage that it is: * a non destructive way to change the Ace AoA and easily removed to return the kite to its "factory" state * very easy to fit and quick to make, * needing very little materials * very difficult to get wrong! * easy to understand * causing less drag than AAA The downside that: * you have to undo a the bridle leader loops to fit or change it. * It takes me about 4mins to reconfigure the AoA with EPAT, as opposed to 1min with AAA So how does it work? The Pansh Ace is bridled as shown in the diagram below. To decrease the AoA you have to: * lengthen the B row of bridles, * lengthen the C row by double the B measurement, * lengthen the brakes (or shorten power lines to keep the hands in the same neutral position) To increase the AoA you have to: * lengthen the B row of bridles, * lengthen the A row by double the B measurement, * shorten the brakes (or lengthen power lines to keep the hands in the same neutral position) There is a slight complication in that on the Ace the AoA of the tips needs to be less than the root (called Washout), I found if it was the other way, with greater angle at the tips (Washin) the kite was unstable. With EPAT these changes in the A,B and C bridle are achieved by adding simple measured loops. EPAT The measurements below will allow you to adjust the AoA of the 5m Pansh Ace by the following amounts: * minus 4 degrees AoA * minus 2 degrees AoA * plus 2 degrees AoA * plus 4 degrees AoA To achieve negative AoA you need to make the following double loops. Its best not to get too fixated about the measurements of the loops themselves, as different thickness of line take more or less distance in the bridle attachment loops. What's important is the changes to the bridle lengths the loops achieve when fitted and pulled tight: * C row - C2/3/4 = 2x 28mm and 48mm - (changing length by 20mm and 40mm) * C row - C5/6 = 2x 31mm and 56mm - (changing length by 25mm and 50mm) * B row - B2/3/4 = 2x 18mm and 28mm - (changing length by 10mm and 20mm) * B row - B5/6 = 2x 18mm and 31mm - (changing length by 12mm and 25mm) To achieve positive AoA you need to make the following double loops. * A row - A2/3/4 = 2x 18mm and 38mm - (changing length by 10mm and 30mm) * A row - A5/6 = 2x 31mm and 56mm - (changing length by 25mm and 50mm) * B row - B2/3/4 = 2x 13mm and 23mm - (changing length by 5mm and 15mm) * B row - B5/6 = 2x 18mm and 31mm - (changing length by 12mm and 25mm) I made my loops from 150kg SK75 Dyneema, and the extra 6 to 8mm on the first section of each is to allow for the extra length needed for the extra set of loop connections. This measurement will vary with the line used, hence my stressing it's the overall length changes that are important, not the loop length, You could make it even simpler, and just make a variety of measured single loops. This might be a lot easier, entirely up to you. Use: * green measurements for two degreees * blue measurements for four degrees Any power or bridle line 150kg and stronger would do, it takes around 2m in total. Construction is easier to show than describe. Here's a part set to allow -ve AoA only (B&C) ... To construct them I first fold the line in half, and tie a simple overhand knot at the right position for the first knot, then do the same for the second. I trim the line ends to 1cm overlong, and then use a lighter to seal the ends. Simple. It is a good idea to label or colour code them somehow ... Fitting the EPAT. * For minus AoA you use the B and C set ONLY * For plus AoA you use the A and B set ONLY I'll demo minus 4 degrees AoA attack below (end settings) but the principles are the same for -ve and +ve. 1/ Undo the loop on the big black knotted pig tail that collects the three bridles leaders on each side together. 2/ As the very tip (1 column) A, B & C are very close together, and are very close to the 2 row, I've found you don't need to change this one. Hence put this bridle set to one side. 3/ Undo the bridle leader loop that collects A-C/2-4 together 4/ Loop together B 2,3,4 together using the 18/28mm loop 5/ Loop together C 2,3,4 together using the 28/48mm loop 6/ Reattach the bridle leader loop by going though A2,A3,A4 and the end loop of the B and C EPAT loops you introduced above (end loops = 4 degrees, shorter loops = 2 degrees) 7/ Repeat this process for the bridle leader loop that collects A-C/5-6 together using their appropriate loops. 8/ Redo the black link cord to pull the three bridle leaders together, you can retie it with a smaller knot. Note I've changed the pigtail here, to make the powers more obvious. 9/ One side done, repeat with the other. Adjustment of AoA is achieved jut the same way, moving all the bridle leaders to the same loops remembering * For minus AoA you use the B and C set ONLY * For plus AoA you use the A and B set ONLY That's it! its that simple. ======UPDATE======= Clarkee has come up with an alternate way of doing this which allows adjustment both ways ... nice one mate! "Make row C and row A loops with five knots in it and row B loops with only 1 knot. The middle knots of loops A and C would be equal to the length of the row B loop and by moving row A up a knot and row C down a knot or vica versa would pivot the kite around the row B altering the AOA A1/B1/C1 length would also need an extra loop (the same size as B row) to account for the overall length of the other loops." Also many thanks to Castle who has added another excellent alternative that could be used in addition to Clarkee's above, "Why not just larkshead the bridles onto your red knotted lengthening cords rather than attaching the way you show. This would allow easy adjustment without taking the bridle apart each time" Keep the ideas coming folks! ================= Why would you want to do this?? Changing the AoA fundamentally changes the way the kite flies. Increasing the AoA will ... * Make the kite fly slower. * Will allow it to fly in less wind. * Will decrease the size of the wind window (kite doesn't go as high or wide) * Will give more lift and float Decreasing the AoA will ... * Make the kite fly faster * Will increase the size of the wind window and makes it easier to get upwind in buggy * Will give less lift * Will require more wind to fly. So which way do I adjust my Ace?? That's really up to you, what you want, and what your Ace currently does. By far the best advice is: * FLY IT FIRST, IF YOU ARE HAPPY WITH IT THEN DON'T CHANGE IT!!! Having said this there are reputable reports that not all Pansh Aces are the same. Mine was one of the initial batch and it was VERY lifty. Hence I'm now running it with minus 4 degrees AoA to make it faster and less lifty in a buggy. If your Ace is lacking lift, then its possible Pansh have reduced the AoA on latter models. Try increasing the AoA 2 or maybe 4 degrees ... but DO THIS CAREFULLY IN LIGHT WINDS. With the Ace in "lift" mode, it will loft a 20+ stone person when simply parked at the Zenith. Lastly there is no reason to stick to my measurements, so long as all the measurement are in proportion there is no reason you couldn't go for 3 or 6 degrees ... The best advice is just try it, experiment, and have fun doing it. Then see if you like your modifications in a variety of conditions. Experimental results As the Ace's seem to vary I'm not going to give my results in degree measurements. Instead I'll describe the flying characteristics I found in various setups: Acceptable range Higher range AoA Kite launches fine, straight up to the Zenith, loads of lift and pull but slower. Easy to get jumps with nice float, Lifts even parked at the Zenith. Kite is difficult to fly out of the window and difficult to luff. Wind window is quite small - under 90 degrees. Lower Range AoA Kite is noticeably faster with lower lift. Kite now flying much higher, definitely over the top, beyond vertical. Wind window much larger, beyond 90 degrees. It is quite easy to fly the kite out of the window and luff it. Even sitting at the edge, a small gust can take the kite out of the window and luff. Recovery should be Ok without "bang re inflation", but it may Bow tie Troubleshooting Too low AoA VERY fast, looking good until it gets to the edge of the window, then the upper most tip folds every time. Too High AoA Kite difficult to launch, sits very low in window, very slow and grunty. Washin - angle of tips too high Kite is very unstable at the edges. Its quite odd, but with the kite sitting at the edge, a slight lessening of the wind sees the kite starts to fly backwards, deflating slowly. Its difficult to recover from this. By : andya

I live in San Diego and regularly kitesurf at the Silver Strand where the wind conditions average about 10 mph. I weigh 180 pounds and use a 179 cm Litewave Dave as my board. The Silver Strand is on the ocean side of the Pacific Ocean and the surf can range from 3 feet to about 7 feet. I have a Cabrinha 23.5 lei, a 15 m2 and a 19m2 slingshot lei. Of all the kites i own, I prefer the Speed 17. The speed has just as much power as the 23.5 Cabrinha and the turning speed is faster on the softest 2 steering positions. Prior to trying the Speed, I had modified my Cabrinha into a 5 line kite using the bar from my 19m2 Slingshot. My primary motivation for using the fifth line was to aid in relaunch and secondarily to assist in self landings. Launching still required help. Self launches with a big kite in light winds is fairly difficult. However, self launches with Speed 17 is easily done by launching directly down wind in the power zone. The kite takes off with only half the usual power as kite continues to fill with air. It doesn't attain full power in 10-12 mph winds until directly overhead for about 5 seconds. I place the kite downwind and put a handfull of sand on the trailing edge in about 7 places and shake out the bridle lines to insure no tangles and seaweed passengers. I untangle the line by walking toward the bars rather than walking from the bars toward the kite as I normally do with the leis. When I get to the bar I usually have to twist the bar a few times to get the lines untwisted. If necessary, I can easily slip off the center lines and reconnect if the bar has rolled so as to have the center lines wrapped around the steering lines. The key to avoiding tangles is to pack the kite with the bar near the center of the kite but two feet below the trailing edge with the red lines off to the left and the green lines to the right and the kite and the bridles laid out horizontally in front of you on top of the kite. I then fold one wingtip over the other wingtip and roll the two wingtips with the bridles safely sandwiched inside toward the center. When I get the kite fully rolled up, the dirty sandy bar and some of the pully lines are available for easy washing when I get back to my house. The kite is now about 6 feet vertical with leading edge away from you x 1 feet wide with trailing edge at feet and kitebar with small amount of lines right underfoot. I then fold the kite from the leading edge down towards the trailing edge twice, in order to fit into backpack and wrap with a strap. The bar is easily washed as it is not buried in the middle of the kite. The 23.5 m2 Cabrinha has about the same power as the Speed 17. The Cabrinha turns faster than the speed when the speed is on hard steering and slower when the speed is on the second knot from max soft steering. Also, when the Speed is tuned correctly (additional 4 inches added to the back lines), the kite will turn faster when sheeted in and slower when sheeted out. If the kite is backstalled by sheeting in too far (usually a problem when kite is used as delivered with the center lines that are 4 inches too long after third use of kite and stretching of lines and bridle has taken place) sheeting out slightly may be necessary for optimum turning speed. Since, the wind is usually about 10 mph, I have modified my Speed by adding 10 meter lines and putting the steering on max soft steering. With the extra line length, the Speed is a little less responsive to turning pressure, so the maximum soft steering feels the same on longer lines as the second knot did with the standard setup. In addition, the four 10 meter lines that I added were not exactly the same length. Two of the lines were about 4 inches shorter. The shorter lines, I attached to the center lines and the longer lines to the steering lines. This fixed a problem that I noticed has also been experienced by other Speed owners. By the third use, The sweet spot of maximum power with the kite as delivered is almost fully sheeted our with the yellow line pulled almost all the way in. The answer is to shorten the center lines (with big problems with adjusting the emergency depower lines) or easily adding 4 inches onto the back lines. I suggest adding 4 inches onto the back lines. With the additional line length, I now am the first one on the water and the last one off. The extra line length gives a larger power window. The disadvantage is that timing for jumps is more difficult since in non overpowered conditions, the kite takes longer to swing overhead from the edge of the window 30-45 degree off the horizon position. If the wind is 13+mph, the kite is higher in the window and jumping is a lot easier to time and the lift is amazing. Also, with longer lines turning is slower so the kite must be moved to the maximum soft steering position. Also, a big board is required because turning at the edge of the wind window requires slightly more bouyancy to keep on plain for a slightly longer turn. If I time the jumps correctly with the extra power off the ramps produced by the surf, I can get higher and longer jumps than anyone else on the beach. The Caution 20 is the only lei kite that delivers the same class of jumping power, but the people on these kites have about 2 years more experience than I do and weight about 20 pounds less and they still don't get the same lift. With the Speed 17, I can self land the kite without help. I direct the kite towards the edge of the wind window. When the kite is close to the sand, I grab the blue emergency depower line which pulls the trailing lines and collapses the kite with the leading edge up. I then immmediately grab the steering line closest upwind, and run upwind with pressure only on this steering line as I reel it in and get closer to the kite's leading wing. The kite may tumble a litle bit downwind and even roll as this happens. Makes sure that no spectators are downwind when self landing. If the kite tumbles, detangling the bridles can be a 30 minute project if seaweed and brambles get caught in the lines. Nonetheless, after the first two times self landing by pulling the emergency blue line connected to the steering lines, I had no fear of losing control over the kite. Another advantage; I have overflown the kite a number of times through jumping. My Cabrinha would have tumbled out of the sky and perhaps even inverted. The speed will float in the air with slack lines and with a minimum amount of direction and end up back in position within the wind window after 3-4 seconds of powerlessness. The weight of the bridles keep the kite from deforming or tumbling. This is a big advantage when jumping a half mile off shore. One disadvantage of the kite: If you are an expert who doesn't drop the kite into the surf, this kite rocks. If you drop it into the surf and it rolls around in the sand, you might as well pack it up. You have a water logged mess that weighs a ton and requires at least 30 minutes to untangle the bridle lines. All the lei users are busy laughing at you on the beach. I have done this twice in about 12 sessions. Washing the kite in the garage when you get it home and letting it dry now becomes a necessity. If you don't drop it in the water, I don't even bother to wash anything other than the bar and lines which I have conveniently available and unburied in the kite. I have relaunched this kite when dropped into the water by pulling on the back steering lines and flying it backwards off the water. This works great in non surf conditions and with 10mph plus winds. With the advantages of easier self launch, self landing, huge power in a smaller, faster turning package and the useability in otherwise marginal conditions, the Speed 17 with the modifications mentioned above, is the ultimate light wind machine. Having developed some skill with other kites that are easily relaunched, I prefer to use the Speed 17 whenever the wind speed is below 15 mph. The performance is simply not matched by anything else I've seen on my beach. By : SilverStrandMan

For those of you who have a Blade III 6.6, 8.5, or 10.5, you may be interested in this review of the superblade. The superblade is a Blade III with some relatively simple bridal modifications that convert it to a 4-line de-powerable foil. The modifications are the result of a significant amount of experimentation that was conducted by my friend who goes by the handle of "loco4viento". I contributed mostly as a test pilot and also put together the attached diagram. The diagram as well as the comments below are based on the 10.5 Blade. These mods are effective on the 6.6 and 8.5 as well. Basically the modification removes the entire C and the most lateral B bridal lines from the A and B bundles and combines them into a new bundle that is then coupled to the existing break bridal leaders. In addition a new A line is added from this new bundle to the most lateral A bridal Y junction. A normal LEI or ARC bar and lines is used where trailing edge lines are attached to the break leaders and the leading edge lines are attached to the A/B bundle. The bar does need to provide a fair amount of sheeting. I use a 20" line from my shackle to my power strap. All I can say is "WOW". I was about to sell this kite because of it's very narrow range and scary, difficult flying characteristics. Now it has great range, easy and fast turning, and much better upwind performance. It also is very safe and easy to deal with on the beach. This kite flies a lot like an original S-ARC with turning characteristics between and 840 and a 1120. With the normal bridal configuration, there was always a compromise in the bridal adjustment between grunt and up-wind performance. To get the power to water start in really light wind the angle of attack needed to be higher resulting lots of grunt on a dive but a very athletic, marginally up-wind ride. When set up with a lower angle of attack there was not enough grunt to get started in really light wind. The superblade mods give you more of each characteristic. Sheeting in during a dive provides nice grunty power. Once your up and going sheeting out brings the kite farther up wind than I have ever wittnessed any kite go allowing me, at 155lbs with flat board, to park the kite at 8mph with a relaxed edge and go WAY up wind. The huge bar pressure and lethargic turning characteristics are gone. However one must use a little caution not to turn to hard or the kite can stall in the turn since it now comes around so fast. On the beach the tiger has been tamed. When sheeted out there is very little pull when the kite is overhead and there does not seem to be any tendency to over fly. It's not as stable as an S-ARC but does not require much attention. The problem of the kite losing it when parked to far to the edge of the window is reduced dramatically as well. Landing is much improved. With the power strap fully loose all you do is pull the bar all the way in and the kite will drop down nicely right down the middle of the window. The kite is also great land boarding and gets you going up wind quite well in 4-5mph winds. I land board in the desert and the winds are very gusty and shifty. I would have never considered riding with a standard Blade in these conditions. This is not a problem now although not recommended for beginners. This kite can still hurt you badly in gusty conditions if you aren't on top of it. Summary I highly recommend this mod to those of you who have one or all of these kites. As far as I can tell the only sacrifice is the greater simplicity of two line flying. In every other way performance and safety is improved. The mod does not involve any permanent changes to the kite and takes less than an hour to perform and you can always change it back if you don't like the performance changes. Chris By : screven