2015-04-10

2m Flame Parafoil

Verdict. Good kite for the money. But not the best materials. Dynema line replacement recommended.

This 2m x 0.7m = 1.4m2 kite is widely available on the Internet. Both in local online stores and directly from China on eBay and AliExpress.
Price goes from $12.50 to $25 for the same kite. 
I bought mine from BangGood.com for $12.52



The kite needs at least 5 m/s = 10 mph = Beaufort 4 to fly good. Will fly with a bit lower wind, but the end cells is then likely to collapse when turning.

The kite I got was made of plain nylon, no ripstop. Bridle lines also does not look the best. But at least it came with a CE label sewed in one side, and there are loops on the trailing edge to stow the bridles.

I think the included cheap nylon lines lasted 4-5 sessions before breaking. A colleague bought the same kite, and his lines broke on the first launch due to a gust.

My 7 y.o. son likes it a lot. But in stronger wind, he let go of the handles quite a few times before he felt he was ready to handle it.

As always, with a steerable kite, replacing the elastic nylon with Dynema aka Kevlar lines makes a huge difference, So that is what I did. The diffence is huge. Now I can have it fly straight towards the ground, and have it turn around 180 degrees almost hitting the ground, the controls are pretty precise. Now it is very fun to fly. And doing hard turns, it generates significant pull in good wind. Had it tear a 100 lbs dynema fishing line at the larks head knot (knots are the weakest point). But with softer turns, larger children can handle it.

Here is a video of me flying it in fair wind, and Dynema lines. I am not very experienced, yet it is fairly easy to fly with the replaced lines.



Sometimes when it collapses, after letting go of the handles, it might take some time to untangle the bridles again. Decided one time to bring it home, as it was too difficult in the wind. But took lesas than 2 minutes at home.

For the money ($12.50), it is a good kite (as long as it will last. Not sure how durable the non-ripstop nylon and bridles are). For $25 is is too expensive. This is about the largest size I will trust my 7 y.o. son in decent wind. I can fly it so I will have to lean back in the tight turns.

You really should get a set of good lines at $15 from China (2x25m Dynema kite line on winder). And if the kite generates pull like here, around $10 for some soft padded straps. But that adds $25 to the $12.50 investment. So a HQ Symphony Beach 1.8 from Amazon might be a better buy at just over $50. It is ripstop nylon, 150 lbs blend-line, and straps (not the padded ones).

But if/when you have the lines and straps, this kite is good fun for the money, as an extra kite for the bag.

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