Crew,

I normally inflate till the tips don’t bent that easy, which mean firm / solid LE and a nice “Ping” when you tap the LE with your finger and you have then good / firm struts. never looked at the meter really.
That was with the Rise.

I noticed that the Razor then still got some underinflated struts so a few pumps more.. pump meter shows 12 psi max, so 10 PSI is inside (the valve takes some pressure to).. but stil the struts a bit soft..
So meter defective?.. no an other (new) pump with new meter shows the same.. (i know the meters aren’t that good)
Kite flew perfect btw..

How are you doing with the Razor? LE pressure and how feel the struts?
I don’t really like to put more then 9 PSI in a LE..
so what is recommended?

thx!

Not sure but I think the strut diameter has been reduced compared to the 2010 Rise, this would put less tension on the strut fabric (easier to squeeze). Just inflate enough for the LE to keep the shape. Razors seem to like a good pumping.

I’m going to go all contraire on you now.
In our lovley gusty spot I tend to run the kites on the soft side.
If the wing tip colapses under heavy rear line pressure when flying it is to soft.
Anything just over that will do. A soft kite tend to flex more spilling wind making for a far morw pleasant expereance in the gusts. The down side is if you drop it in the drink they can be a bit of a swine to get up when wing tips are together.
Another thing found .A soft kite dropped in waves tends to curl up and let the wave past. A hard kite the waves tend to go through.

You pays your money

In the cold i don’t mind an extra firm kite but in warm conditions… I’ve steen too much exploded LE! So i take care.

Next time i do them like i used to do, see how they fly then.

I like the Razor’s a lot, flew the 10 and 7 now, stoked!

El Rudo - 03 April 2012 06:01 AM

Not sure but I think the strut diameter has been reduced compared to the 2010 Rise, this would put less tension on the strut fabric (easier to squeeze). Just inflate enough for the LE to keep the shape. Razors seem to like a good pumping.

your girlfriend seem to like a good pumping.

sunrise - 03 April 2012 11:35 AM

I’m going to go all contraire on you now.
In our lovley gusty spot I tend to run the kites on the soft side.
If the wing tip colapses under heavy rear line pressure when flying it is to soft.
Anything just over that will do. A soft kite tend to flex more spilling wind making for a far morw pleasant expereance in the gusts. The down side is if you drop it in the drink they can be a bit of a swine to get up when wing tips are together.
Another thing found .A soft kite dropped in waves tends to curl up and let the wave past. A hard kite the waves tend to go through.

You pays your money

Sunrise, good point about the waves and a soft kite. Also, the idea of flex of a soft kite in gusty winds is interesting. (My thinking has been the opposite…....that a firm kite would “fly through the gusts” better due to less drag) I’ll try it next time.

As to cold water and kite pressure, it is an art to find the right pressure when the water is cold and you know it will change during the session if it gets put down.

thanks. DAVE

As for the air pressure in the Razors, I pump them until the centre struts no longer have a bend/ crease near the LE.  It takes a fair bit of pressure to get them to straighten out.  As soon as the creases pop out your done pumping!  It’s a pretty good guide to go by, but not sure how many psi.  Higher pressure also makes the Razors relaunch much better.  If under inflated I find the LE bends in the middle (no centre strut) and foils the relaunch. 

As for low pressure in a kite to help absorb the gusts, I’ve never had good experiences with that.  I know what effect you’re referring to, but I don’t think it applies well to tube kites.  Peter Lynns (foil kite) are good for that.  I prefer the kite to be pumped hard and flying as efficiently as possible/ handle as well as possible.