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We thought the wind had died right down, as we headed out again with the Simple Delta. The sun was not far from the horizon. But the conditions were deceptive. A warm gusty NE wind had been blowing from inland all day, quite fresh.
On putting the Delta up, it became clear that every few minutes, a very fresh gust would come ripping through. When this happened, even while the kite was fairly low, it would get over-powered and loop out of control.
So, I just played around with the kite on less than 20 meters (70 feet) of line for a while. Whereas the Dowel Delta will bend quite a lot as it approaches its limits, the Simple Delta is less forgiving. Being considerably stiffer, the Simple Delta will fly fine up to a certain airspeed, then quite suddenly get over-powered as the wind gets just a little stronger. In light winds though, the Simple Delta is a real pleasure to fly, achieving good steep flying angles on less than 100 meters of line.
If you want to see the bigger and better Dowel Delta in action, check out the video near the top of How To Make A Delta Kite.
About This Post: There are 2 kinds of Kite Flying Reports at MBK. Reports like this one are short comments on a recent outing, which keeps you up-to-date with the latest kite-making and flying activities here. No pics or video, although there might be a link to a related web page. The shorter Flight Report listings here link straight to a new page on the website, complete with video and in-flight photo of the kite on the day of the report.
Not much to report really, since our outing with the Simple Delta was cut short. The day had been cool temperature-wise, but quite hot in terms of thermal activity! Even in the late afternoon, when we put the Delta up, it had a hard time. Even got knocked out of the air by a gust that must have been either from behind, above or maybe both.
Perhaps it was just as well that we didn't get more than 30 meters (100 feet) of line out. The higher wind speeds up there would have soon made the spreader slip through its tape attachments. Being part of the Simple Series, this is the main drawback to this decidedly 'Quick-n-Dirty' design! As it was, I had noticed the leading edge spars flexing under the load of the fresher gusts. The air was rough.
As soon as slightly slower wind speeds arrive, we'll get out there again and hopefully record a nice long, high flight. If you would like to make this beginner's Delta for yourself, just check out How To Build A Delta Kite. They don't come much simpler than this one!
About This Post: There are 2 kinds of Kite Flying Reports at MBK. Reports like this one are short comments on a recent outing, which keeps you up-to-date with the latest kite-making and flying activities here. No pics or video, although there might be a link to a related web page. The shorter Flight Report listings here link straight to a new page on the website, complete with video and in-flight photo of the kite on the day of the report.
Flying kite reports. This page has many flight reports of my own single-liners in various designs and sizes.
Permalink -- click for full blog post "A Flying Kite - Plenty Of Kite Stories Here..."
This kite flew quite well. As you can gather from the name, it was easy to make. I would recommend the 1-Skewer Diamond to any person who doesn't have
Permalink -- click for full blog post "The Idiot Proof Kite"
The new 1 Skewer Barn Door kite needed a small tweak to get the towing point just right. Today's outing proved the design is finally good!
Permalink -- click for full blog post "The 1 Skewer Barn Door Kite - Kite Flying Report"
(From a few days ago...) Better weather this time, and I managed to get a better in-flight photo. Plus some video of 2 1-Skewer Barn Doors flying in a train. However, it seems that while the first towing point I tried was too far forward, the current one is a little too far back! That's the draw-back to a simple, non-adjustable bridle. Easy to make, but it has to be in exactly the right spot, for a kite as small as this one. The kites never got much above a 30 degree angle.
So, I'm making another Barn Door, with the design tweaked a little, to get the towing point right. Stay tuned...
About This Post: There are 2 kinds of Kite Flying Reports at MBK. Reports like this one are short comments on a recent outing, which keeps you up-to-date with the latest kite-making and flying activities here. No pics or video, although there might be a link to a related web page. The shorter Flight Report listings here link straight to a new page on the website, complete with video and in-flight photo of the kite on the day of the report.
Learn how to make a Barn Door kite by following these complete instructions for the MBK 1-Skewer Barn Door.
The glue had dried overnight on the bamboo spars of 2 new 1 Skewer Barn Doors. Time for a test fly. These kites have a short leading edge and longer trailing edge, in contrast to the original MBK Barn Door design...
Almost as soon as the little kite was airborne, it was clear that the towing point was too far forward. That was surprising since the original kite liked the towing point almost over the leading edge! About the only option, on the spot, was to poke another hole in the sail, right under where the diagonal spars cross. After poking the single-leg bridle through here and re-attaching the flying line, the squat-looking orange Barn Door took off and seemed much more inclined to climb.
Unfortunately, the winds at this time were gusting from very light to very fresh, so the poor kite couldn't cope for more than half a minute or so at a time. Despite some extra tail, even. So we'll have to wait for better weather. Bur it seems like the new 1 Skewer Barn Door kite will be a fine little flier in even lighter winds than the old one could manage. It has more sail area and less sticky tape!
Stay tuned for the How To Make ... page for this kite.
About This Post: There are 2 kinds of Kite Flying Reports at MBK. Reports like this one are short comments on a recent outing, which keeps you up-to-date with the latest kite-making and flying activities here. No pics or video, although there might be a link to a related web page. The shorter Flight Report listings here link straight to a new page on the website, complete with video and in-flight photo of the kite on the day of the report.
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