I flew some kites with the bums down here in san diego. I had a blast and flew a couple 3M, 5M and a 4 line 5M. I loved the 4 lines way more than the 2 line kites. I have some relevant experience flying a parachute from back when I was skydiving all the time so I understand the dynamics of a pressurized wing. most of the kites I was looking at were $300+ so I have put it off for many months trying to justify it. I found this 3M 4 line on ebay from china. http://www.ebay.com/itm/KITE-power-kite-4-dual-line-Control-...

It's brand new, comes with a bag, lines, handles, etc for $58. How bad will this suck? Will I be able to fly it for a while to see if I want to invest in this sport? My goals are to slide around at the beach or a park, and get a work out while I tear up the skies. No boarding type of activities.

To me it would be a waste of even $60 dollars if you don't get it to fly right at all, or if something breaks in the kite because of poor quality, and you end up getting hurt. Safety in our sport is what allows us to continue doing what we love to do. Someone getting hurt because of a cheap knockoff is what gives our sport a black eye!

Search our for sale section and spend a few more bucks on a kite of quality form one of our respected members. If you don't like it, put it back up for sale on here and someone will buy it. Loof for a local dealer as well, someone may be able to meet up with you and let you try a kite or two to see if you like it.

Customer service?, kite quality?, dependability?Safety! Those are the things you look for in a kite, Price is last.

My humble opinion! And I would not trust those handles for two minutes!

7m may be a lot bigger than what you want and need, but here is an example of what a little more ching will get you.

http://www.powerkiteforum.com/viewthread.php?tid=25169

Here is an excellent kite, much smaller, very high quality at a good price. http://www.powerkiteforum.com/viewthread.php?tid=24892

These kites at these prices are almost like investments. They will not decrease much in value unless you damage them. Your $58 China thingy will be nearly worthless if you try to sell it.

Shehatesmyhobbies! What a fantastic name
Made me laugh alot!! As my Mrs is ALWAYS moaning about my love of KITING,METALDETECTING,GUITARS, and RC HELICOPTERS...
I always say to Her,there's more to life than 'Just' work......Oh how i love my Hobbies!!!!:wee:
I'm 45 years old and she says i'm getting worse!!!:evil:

I bought that exact kite years ago .. it's a piece of sh*t. It won't fly. For $100 , you can get a used 3m beamer to learn with .. way better deal.

Listen to Shehatesmyhobbies....Buying a cheap kite is like buying a cheap tool or anything for that matter...You get what you pay for...
You will be so frustrated if the thing doesn't fly right and only get discouraged from the sport. There are a ton of members on here selling very nice used equipment at fair prices...most often below what they are really worth. I'd say for about 125.00 to 180.00 you could get a really nice kite to do what you described doing with the kite. (static flying) If you love the sport then this will be your first kite in your quiver and you'll just add to that....If you don't like it,( I would find this hard to believe) you can re-post it on here, sell it and get most of your money back...Win...Win...
Buy a cheap kite and I can guarantee you it will sit in that corner of the garage or closet that never gets seen or used. Also tough selling a crappy kite on here to a bunch of kite guru's so....food for thought.

Look for something between a 2m and 3.5 (biggest I'd go) to fly around and become a better pilot. As said, master the small one first and the bigger kites will fly just the same except now you will have some skills and knowledge.

FYI....There were at least 5 kites on here in the last 2-3 weeks that sold for price I mentioned above. All were really nice name brands...
Ozone, Flexifoil, Peter Lynn, HQ are some of the quality names to look for.

If you need more advise on a kite purchase then just ask...that's what this forum is all about. Good Luck and start saving your money now cause....once you buy one kite and love this sport...you will be purchasing another 10 real soon.
:bigok:

Oh yeah, I almost forgot the most important thing.....WEAR A HELMET!

Damn. I was hoping that it would be good, but I had doubts and that is why I posted here. Thank you all for your responses. It's not the 'saving' money that is the problem, it's trying to justify spending it with the wife when we are about to start a $100K remodel! My wife just emailed that I could buy the china crap kite, so maybe I can bump her up a couple notches and get a better one. The last thing I want is a "lazy" kite. With parachutes, the smaller you go, the faster they get, and the smaller (larger?) the aspect ratio (more rectangular than square) the more responsive they get, but they get "twitchier" too. I'd rather have something that hauls ass and I can really whip around, but requires more skill, than something that any idiot can fly and turns like a dump truck. I don't want something less than 3M and people say to not go above 3m to start, and there will always be times the 3m is the kite of choice for the winds. If you guys can throw out some quality 4 line kites in the 3M variety, then I can keep my eye out for one to come up for sale.

Kites just posted....there are a couple there that would work for you. All within your budget...both yours and the Mrs.

Folding buggy and quiver for sale.

Yup, here they are. Snap 'em up! All great kites at excellent prices.

http://www.powerkiteforum.com/viewthread.php?tid=25173

As an experiment, you could buy one of those 3m ebay kites and also pick up a "legitimate" 3m kite. Then compare them:

5-10 mph wind.... both kites are kind of "lazy"

10-15 mph wind... both kites seem come alive, but the ebay kite doesn't seem to respond as well, hmmm

15-20 mph wind... both kites are now pulling me around pretty good - I like! - but the ebay kite keeps dropping into the power zone without any input from me

20-25 mph wind... the "legitimate" kite is hauling ass and dragging me all over the place, under my control - I like! - the ebay kite raced across the wind window and rocketed to the ground, blasting multiple cells open and ripping most of the bridle lines in half - thats not what I was trying to do

The above account is fiction, not based on any actual events I'm aware of...

Quote:

Originally posted by van I bought that exact kite years ago .. it's a piece of sh*t. It won't fly. For $100 , you can get a used 3m beamer to learn with .. way better deal.

What were you thinking Van you know better. That looks like a jonesband special.

Quote:

Originally posted by thanson2001ok Yup, here they are. Snap 'em up! All great kites at excellent prices. http://www.powerkiteforum.com/viewthread.php?tid=25173

Is the ozone 3M a 4 line kite? From a quick search it looks like it's at least 8 years old. Seems pretty old for a kite that may have had a lot of use, especially for $100.

The Ozone Little Devil is a 4 line kite. It's older, but still a great open cell kite. You can get better, more advanced kites, but dude, it's $100. Buying decent lines and handles alone will cost you more than that.

I'm all for researching before you buy, but if spending $100 causes so much trepidation you are entering into the wrong sport.

Quote:

Originally posted by thanson2001ok The Ozone Little Devil is a 4 line kite. It's older, but still a great open cell kite. You can get better, more advanced kites, but dude, it's $100. Buying decent lines and handles alone will cost you more than that. I'm all for researching before you buy, but if spending $100 causes so much trepidation you are entering into the wrong sport.

I was thinking along the lines of an ebay kite for $60 is a waste of money, maybe a 8+ year old kite for $100 is also a waste and I should just wait a bit and get one for $300+ that will last. I know these fabrics get beat up by the sun, improper storage, start to rot, etc. If its faded at all, I will probably pass and get a new one, especially when there is no way to check it out in person. All my sports / hobbies are expensive, some are really expensive like mustangs and jeeps. I've also been itching to get a new RC truck, but those are even more than kites. If that person posts pics and the colors are bright, I'll swoop it up in a second.:o

Ozone is a paraglider company 1st ! They make their stuff to extremely high standard and are respected by most as one of the very top kite makers. Their kites are made to last and Airin keeps very good care of her gear.

The Little Devil is a bit old but sounds like exactly the kite for you. It has a habit of being a bit punchy with it's power.

The 4m PKD Buster she has is also a great deal ? It isn't quite as old a model and in good shape.

Airin's gear is in good shape MANY of us have seen it . She is just putting together pictures .

While you aren't parachuting power kiting can get pretty exciting . Would you ever jump out of a plain with a Chinese knock off of a parachute ? It's sort of the same thing .

Big PROP's for talking this out online. You can waist a LOT of money on kites. Folks on here are all on your side !

Just be warned. If you notice most of us have a few kites. No single kite will do everything. You should try HARD to get the S.O. involved as well. It makes it a lot easier . Far better to get 2 or 3 used kites than any single new one IMHO

Quote:

Originally posted by pyro22487 Quote: Originally posted by van I bought that exact kite years ago .. it's a piece of sh*t. It won't fly. For $100 , you can get a used 3m beamer to learn with .. way better deal. What were you thinking Van you know better. That looks like a jonesband special.

That was way way way back when I was young and naive. It was my first power kite when I was getting into the sport had no clue what to get.

Quote:

Originally posted by Bladerunner Ozone is a paraglider company 1st ! While you aren't parachuting power kiting can get pretty exciting . Would you ever jump out of a plain with a Chinese knock off of a parachute ? It's sort of the same thing . Big PROP's for talking this out online. You can waist a LOT of money on kites. Folks on here are all on your side !

Good points. Hell no I would never jump a cheap Chinese chute! (but that could mean death, a broken kite is just a bad day) I like the fact that it's made by a paragliding company. I knew the first day the bums let me fly their kites that I needed at least a 3M and a 5M. Also when the guys have $1000's in kites and no place to sleep, it must be a fun sport!

I'm not sure that I want a 3 and a 4M, and might just skip over 4M to 5M for when the winds are light, or I want to get pulled around:wee: What is the S.O?

I would prefer a kite that requires some attention to avoid getting "smacked around" just to give me a tiny little rush. Skydiving is a massive rush, tons of fun in freefall, and tons of fun flying the chute. Back when I jumped a lot, I loved to do 360 spirals so that the chute points to the ground and your speed keeps going up with each revolution, then I would straighten out and stab the brakes to yank me 'up' and I'd stall it out to go from super loud, to dead silent. It's different than kites because you are hanging from it, and you can use your body weight and momentum to alter the flight, but still very similar. I'd say that if you can fly a chute, you can fly one of these very similar kites, and probably the reverse too, but in both cases there will be different skills to master.

I've been around the net enough to know to go straight to the forums where the experts are. Learning from others with experience always saves time, money, and frustration, no matter what you are trying to learn.

Sorry. Significant Other.

You may want to decide on the 3 or 4m soon . They will sell fast at those prices.

The 3m is snappy . The 4m is more of an all round kite. Lots of power but easy on the delivery. PKD is also a very well respected brand.

I'm up in the air and can't decide. I almost bought all 3 kites that are for sale in that thread, but then I saw terrible reviews for the 4.9 ballistic

Quote:

The worst modern production foil I have seen. I was just at a kite festival where a guy had two New Tech foils. I flew the 4.9. Horrible kite, cheaply made, the shape of the kite when flown was not smooth. Even though the kite is probably the cheapest meter for meter of any foil in that size range...the kite is not worth it. The worst of all the foils on the market today.

Then I started thinking that if I'm going to spend $300, why not get one new 3M kite. 8 or 10 years ago was a long time and some of the kites are 3+ revisions since then. I can't even find a youtube for these models when there are 100s for the new models. The fabric is probably better, the lines are dyneema, etc. I'd rather wait a bit and get a newer kick ass kite. I'm thinking about a 3M peter lynn hornet or twister, or a HQ beamer or toxic. If a 1-3 year old one of those comes up for sale, I'l jump on it if I haven't bought a new one yet. Do you guys have opinions on this plan? I probably wont fly it that much, but I'll probably keep it for many years.

Quote:

Originally posted by jgorm I'm up in the air and can't decide. Then I started thinking that if I'm going to spend $300, why not get one new 3M kite. I'd rather wait a bit and get a newer kick ass kite. I'm thinking about a 3M peter lynn hornet or twister, or a HQ beamer or toxic. If a 1-3 year old one of those comes up for sale, I'l jump on it if I haven't bought a new one yet. Do you guys have opinions on this plan? I probably wont fly it that much, but I'll probably keep it for many years.

You answered your own question right there IMHO.
As said, even if you purchase used, hit up the for sale/wanted forum here with your needs! Chances are, someone is always looking/wanting to upgrade, and must sell off one or two to fund their new kite. That's where you can pick up a killer used kite. Each of you then achieve your goal . I have bought two excellent shape used top shelf kites from the gang (yes, I just picked up another good one a few days ago...TBA ;-) ). Saved a fortune, and now have name brand quality goods :singing: .Saved $$$ and that makes wifey happy

I must disagree on prolly not flying it much!!!! When you get that "just right kite" life as you know it changes..........
You become a monster...
Ever hungry for that next breeze...
Playing hooky from work...
Spending way too much time on PFK....
You become one of us...
:wee:

Oh and for the record, as far as wanting to skip the 4m.... I'm 6'2" 220 lbs, and had my arse whupped by my 1.8 meter before :tumble: .
All sizes have their nitch.

You will notice that I avoided suggesting the Ballistic. The review from that guy was slightly harsh but they are not a great kite.

FB Foil technology doesn't change too much until you get into race kites. The Buster came out with an adjustable bridle so the original is slightly less high tech. They were a real good friendly kite though !

Ozone has always been ahead of the game. The Little Devil was a well designed kite and VERY well made.

I think taking your time is a good idea. Buying new .... not so much. The majority of the kites you buy on here from trusted sellers will be in great shape or described as faulty. The 7m Blaze Airin had may as well have been new and she took a bath reselling !

Quote:

You answered your own question right there IMHO. As said, even if you purchase used, hit up the for sale/wanted forum here with your needs! Chances are, someone is always looking/wanting to upgrade, and must sell off one or two to fund their new kite. That's where you can pick up a killer used kite. Each of you then achieve your goal . I have bought two excellent shape used top shelf kites from the gang (yes, I just picked up another good one a few days ago...TBA ;-) ). Saved a fortune, and now have name brand quality goods :singing: .Saved $$$ and that makes wifey happy I must disagree on prolly not flying it much!!!! When you get that "just right kite" life as you know it changes.......... You become a monster... Ever hungry for that next breeze... Playing hooky from work... Spending way too much time on PFK.... You become one of us... :wee: Oh and for the record, as far as wanting to skip the 4m.... I'm 6'2" 220 lbs, and had my arse whupped by my 1.8 meter before :tumble: . All sizes have their nitch.

My wife banned me from buying an old kite, she would rather me buy new. I'll keep my eye out, but it seems that the kites i'm after are the ones that most people keep to screw around with and let friends fly. It's too bad that I don't want to kitesurf because there are ~40-50 kites for sale on craigslist for cheap.

How about that 4m hq Toxic from SecondWind... or maybe that 3.9m Viper s from k kites... both are under 300 and like new.

Quote:

Originally posted by van Quote: Originally posted by pyro22487 Quote: Originally posted by van I bought that exact kite years ago .. it's a piece of sh*t. It won't fly. For $100 , you can get a used 3m beamer to learn with .. way better deal. What were you thinking Van you know better. That looks like a jonesband special. That was way way way back when I was young and naive. It was my first power kite when I was getting into the sport had no clue what to get.

Lol just realized I misread your post I thought it said a year ago, not years ago. My bad.

3.9 PL Viper Myself and the 5 other guys that fly my kites will grab a Viper to play with before using one of the others. Perfect for what you describe doing.

my first FB kite was one just like the one you show here. mine is a 3 line 4M, now that I have more then one and messed around with a bunch of kites I'm going to say that I am pretty impressed with it.I don't know why people are saying it's crap? In high winds the kite would drag me around even would get some air from time to time and im 210 pounds. The only thing that gave out after about 2-3 months of crazy ass hauling kite flying is one of the lines. I think that was because i would teach my girlfriend and a few friends how to use it and they would twist the hell out of the line and then crash it. but today I still have the kite it's doing very well, I changed the times on it and seems great I even flew it today with on my ATB.But I guess it's a hit or miss with these kind of things.

Damn, the wife said no to the viper and toxic I said I might not get a deal like this but she said she would rather me spend a couple hundred more in july once the second story is nearing completion. She knows me and knows I get hooked on stuff like this and spend tons of time doing it! I did one AFF skydive and then it was on! Lots of books, tons of forum time, jumping every weekend, etc. a 4M might be a bit much for my only and first kite, but then I almost bought a 'busa for my first bike! (I only didn't because lots of people said I would die, so I got got a 600, then a R1) Another thing that I think might be smart is to buy a smaller 2m kite to let friends fly. I know all my friends will want to fly and I wont want them crashing my nice kites. I'll see if I can sway her (or just buy one and deal with the consequences):frog:

I would not be afraid of picking up an older kite if the price is right. We have buggy kites that are almost 20 years old we still fly. Unless you actually rip the kite, it doesn't really wear out. It might lose some small fraction of its speed and/or up wind angle, but only a hard core racer is going to notice the difference. And for static flying a lot of the "old school" kites are going to be more forgiving.

My current quiver is a collection of old and new with only 2 kites larger than a 3. For me, the CA coast winds are usually right in a 3's sweet spot (for static flying).

Regards,
Darrin