Dazza gets his new Rebel :-)
I have not got any photos yet but check out:
Not that video again!!!!
Apart from that...Well said dazza, you put words to the feel of the 2012 that I couldn't... 'the immediate striking feeling that keeps on giving the whole session, no flutter, just pure oil', was out on the worst north easterley crap the other day on the 11m, and you just don't feel a thing at the bar end.
I also totally agree with the power control...'the power for the kite is perfectly even though the whole stroke, the power gradually increases as it goes into the power band and gradually dissipates coming out of it. this is what you want, no spike, no jolts and no weird dull spots which so many kites have (I'm sorry but they do)',
which was the last detail i needed in a kite. Flown many kites for 12 years and towards the end, some of the more expensive brands, where this smooth consistent power deliver and jerkiness at the bar became less and less (you get what you pay for honestly), but this rebel goes to another level and beyond.
I find I can interplay with board now and bleed power with subtle edging or slight bar adjustments, a really connected and direct feel.
And no dull spots nor when bleeding power instaneously, no jerk - just a smooth bleeding of power, reposition edge slightly pull in and there it is - power again.
So,so happy with this kite and i have never, ever said that before.
Jury still out on my mind with the 5th line though, I know it's fine and it's been in the water and out again in surf, and it has helped me land and launch in difficult conditions, but it does give me the eby geebies... the thing is however it is loaded, the kite won't fly without it, hence it is not just a safety I reckon it plays a crucial part in the above... my own fears, not reality.
Bloke down the beach said he now uses fuses, cause of the fifth, said to him so do they fly as good as the rebels, he said yeh as long as you pump them up really rock hard...mmmm no thanks, kites gotta perform on its own geometries and wing dynamics, not by filling them up with excessive air. My opinion anyhow of course, no offense fuse riders.
Ta for that dazza, couldn't put words to what i felt with this kite, but please, please no-one show that same damn clip again.
Mate's got a new 2012 12m, 2nd time out split in half, reckons there was a floor in the material where the rip started, Ummm is North quality slipping?? His Dealer is going to replace it no drama. Anyone else had similar dramas? By the way I dont ride Rebels but last tme I did I liked the 2011 12m Rebel Give me the $ to buy one and I would good allrounder, so I have no affiliation to any brand I currently own 3 brands of kite
My 2011 8m rebel seams came apart near one of the front line connectors at the leading edge. That being said I still got 2012 rebels, I think they are still the best quality of what I have seen.
eppo, can you clarify what your concerns are with the fifth line? I've been on five line rebels since I started kiting so I know no difference but i would be keen to understand what the concerns are with five line kites. I know what the positives are but keen to learn of the negatives
as I said it is more imagination than reality. Looking up seeing another line took me a while. Also scared of the fifth wrapping through the wingtip if dropped in surf. Another line to roll out, make sure not twisted through. When undoing lines I have had to quite a few times take thread the back lines through the other lines as they wouldn,t 'unroll' when setting up. Not a big deal but pissed me off sorting it out while others where on the water and away.
If you could outline the fifth advantages for and reduce these issues above I'd appreciate it.
if you've flown nothing else, keep it that way
when the early day 5 liners inverted, rolled in the waves etc....
problems
you cannot beat the direct feel from kite to bar with a 5 liner which means faster everthing, brain to hand no pulleys or bridels, and for what ever reason(ask the designers) the old school probs off 5th line catching don't seem to happen, spent the last 3 years on torch & rebel would i go back to a 4 liner, when a better allround kite than the rebel comes out,,,imo,,,,,,,,,,,,, maybe.
Eppo we will have to have a session up here on the new 2012 Fuse if 5 lines still bugs you. According to the designers they have further bridged the gap between Fuse and Rebel this season so it may be worth a try.
Nah, I looove the 2012 rebel man, never flown a better kite - for my allround style, bit of everything, except gay wake style (nah i just don't have the balls to try),.
I have talked to crew who fly both a lot and I trust their opinion, so I know the differences between the two, they are more different than people think.
The fifth line thing is in my own imagination, I will get over it.
But if I'm up there (love to soon), be awesome to catch up with ya for a kite and beer mate, I know you like the rebels, let me know what you think of the new fuses.
5th vs 4 is an interesting argument, I flew the new Evo on the weekend, 9m in 20-25 knots and really loved it, it was at the Demo day and the water was flat (many people commented that I got lost) but I got to try the new North Whip 5'6" and where there is ocean and wind there are waves (albeit 1 ft)
The evo is another great kite and the bridle is so simple having one pully on one simple line set up, as soon as you put the kite in the air you can feel the slight difference from the Rebel, it does have a softer return feedback, still turns quick and I could ride it immediately without having to get used to it. If I was a wake boy riding at Largs I could easilly go Evo, but I,m not, and riding waves I need a kite that instantly depowers to zip, the evo is for when I want a bit of left over grunt in my big double S bend - thingy (the one no one has ever seen me do). also if I am trying slamming moves (in my dreams) and my kite is going to be in the water a lot then Evo has the 4 lines, but the only real issue between them in the water is when you are doing moves that go wrong and you end up with massive slack in your lines and the kite rolls. but even then I have had an older Rebel roll through the 5th and relauch it to get back in okay.
5th line direct feel is awesome, but remember the new Rebel has a second setting for more bow feel, and one of my mates rode it on the demo day and said he felt that it was not that much different from his switchy in depower stroke, I have to ride it in the second setting to feel the difference as if there is such a large difference with these 2 settings then Rebel just has another advantage.
For wave riding really we see kites both 4 line and 5th line go down and get trashed, they are not coming up after that, 4th or 5th, if they are then its small waves. a lot of kites get washed up on the beach here after a beating.
hes the advantage for me with 5th line, If I have to hit the safety, that kite is going to flag out to one line with no spiralling. Hovering a few feet over the water or face down in the water.
remember that Rebels on 5 lines have a different relaunch method than a 4 line kite and that is not a defective design, its intentional in the 5 line set up, the new rebel if relaunched properly will basically turn around itself and line up, but if you fight it then it won't. All you have to do is hold one steering line in and wait a second, don't panic and try something else, give it a second, it will come around and edge up, if it does not in that first couple of seconds, then grab the other line and it will, then relaunch per normal.
The other hint is as soon as you feel you have put the kite down, in that instant BUTT check in the water, don't keep riding or worse keep going towards it, then you get slack lines, hit the water fast and hard with your butt and keep the line tight, then it will relaunch really fast.
bit of a ramble
with any kite in surf, keep it in the air, that's my advice