So i alterd the setting on my kite.....

[Exarch]

a few weeks ago i headed to the beach, blue skies, i had the afternoon off and there was a possability of the wind coming through for me, so why the hell not?

after fluffing around with the 12m Cult for a while on the sand due to a distinct lack of wind i thought.... hmmmm.... if i shorten the rear lines the kite will catch more wind and might just get me up and going on the oversize board.

so down came the kite, the lines were set to their shortest knot which was a first for me.

After kite surfing from 2008 all the way through to now without changeing line lenghts on my kite outside of adjusting them before it's first time in the air (instructors advice).

i put the kite back in the air and found it sucked ROYALLY

on the shorter length rear lines the kite would flare and drop out of the sky. i'm not sure if this is common over all kites but it sure did stuff up the Naish Cult.

so while having some difficulty self landing i changed the lines back to their original setting.

presto, kite was no longer flaring.

now generally when i kite surf my kite did flare every now and then, sooo another brain wave hit me, if i go to the longest setting the kite will stop flaring.

low and behold this has transformed the Cult completley, it's like flying a new kite.

soo after getting out for one more kite before winter really sets in (last weekend) i would have to say best session ever on my kite. nailed everything, carve turns both sides, riding toe side, jumping and responsiveness is just great

soo next light wind day, get your kites up and fidget with them.

[sir lancelot]

I like this story! Will give it a go some time and report back.

When you shorten the rear lines, you're increasing the angle of attack (AOA) of the kite, which can increase lift (pulling force), but also brings the kite closer to the stall angle. Most likely there was not enough wind to stop the kite from stalling at such a high AOA. Not sure what that setting is for - higher winds?

[koma]

You were adjusting your rear line lenght on a 2008 model kite that hasn't had any tuning since '08. Of course it's gonna make a HUGE difference! Your front lines will have stretched over those years of use meaning your kite would have been oversheeting alot. Setting the rear lines on the shortest would only make this worse, as you found out. Setting them on the longest setting probably balanced out your front line stretch meaning your kite is now optimally tuned.

If you want to do it the precise way then lay your lines out on the beach and attach all of them to a single fixed point (fence railing, tow hitch on a car, sign post at the beach, tent peg in the grass, etc). Let the trim strap right out then pull the bar all the way in. Chances are your front lines will be slack and your rear lines will be very tight. Also check that the bar is dead straight in case one of your rear lines has stretched more than the other one.

You want to set the kite up so that all lines are perfect equal length when fully sheeted in and fully powered up. If you have a preference for over sheeting then you need to set the lines up so the bar is about 1 inch away from the chicken loop when all lines are tight, although i'd advise against this unless you know what your doing, and know exactly what you want.

Now, the adjustments. You can either pull on the bar to stretch the rear lines to make them the same length, or if you have adjustments for the rear lines like many recent kites do under (or just above) their bar floats then you can adjust that until it's perfect. If you don't have any rear line adjustment then you can either make up pigtails to add to the rear lines, or you can adjust the length of the attachment points on the kite (ie. change where the knot is). Be cautious if you have a 5-line setup as tuning these can be a little more complex than a 4-line setup.

Also, a word of warning that not every kite on the market is setup to have the front and rear lines the same length. Im aware of a few brands that do this and i have nothing but hatred for them... but ah well.

[Magoo]

On the topic of kite setup and line adjustment, I recently bought a near new REV2 which has 3 adjustment settings on the front lines in the same way it has for the back lines.

Does anyone know if these are there to give me a greater range of AoA settings or do they have another purpose?

[koma]

On the topic of kite setup and line adjustment, I recently bought a near new REV2 which has 3 adjustment settings on the front lines in the same way it has for the back lines.

Does anyone know if these are there to give me a greater range of AoA settings or do they have another purpose?

The front adjustment points will adjust the pivot point of the kite which will increase or decrease bar pressure and will influence turning speed (a little). Further forwards (away from the rear of the kite) will give more bar pressure, with further back giving less.

[Magoo]

The front adjustment points will adjust the pivot point of the kite which will increase or decrease bar pressure

I have three locations on each wing tips for attaching the lines which are clearly labeled as bar pressure adjustment, but the attachment 'pigtails' (not sure what the proper name for these is) each have three knots I can attach to, so I have length adjustment on these lines as well position adjustment. The other lines have only a length adjustment, so I'm not sure how the two sets of length adjustments interact with each other?

[koma]

I have three locations on each wing tips for attaching the lines which are clearly labeled as bar pressure adjustment, but the attachment 'pigtails' (not sure what the proper name for these is) each have three knots I can attach to, so I have length adjustment on these lines as well position adjustment. The other lines have only a length adjustment, so I'm not sure how the two sets of length adjustments interact with each other?

If it's a 4-line kite then it'll just be like adjusting the trim (depower) rope.