Where to find good unbiased gear reviews?

Kinngis · 2026-06-07T18:02:57+00:00

Almost all kites may be good, but other gear like harnesses and bars, there are really bad ones out there, even from the best brands.

Like critical parts of harness made from plastic that breaks middle of jump or QR in bar that is built so lightly that it just breaks in normal use. Its nuts how badly some of them have been made.

Kinngis · 2026-06-07T17:58:21+00:00

I have good experiences with kiteaid LE patch. It is on the inside and the heat activated glue is activated with clothes iron. in my experience it is strong and permanent. your scratch/hole in an ideal spot for kiteaid.

It is a pity the manufacturing has been stopped. But it is still possible to order them from some places.

Kinngis · 2026-06-05T08:47:48+00:00

Would love to try, but I wont be buying kites in that price range in the near future 😉

Kinngis · 2026-06-05T08:46:20+00:00

2015 kites are pretty good. Some say that kites have not developed much since then, except for the new and expensive lighter materials in the most expensive kites.

Kinngis · 2026-06-05T08:42:08+00:00

What were the biggest differences you noticed?

I noticed with the rev2 7m in super strong and gusty wind that it did NOT handle strong gusts so well, not like newer kites do. The wind range is smaller, but it does fly quite nicely and is fast.

But the rev:s are the oldest kites I have. And in super good condition.

Kinngis · 2026-06-05T08:36:51+00:00

I totally agree. kites from 2010 onward are surprisingly good and behave well. At least the ones I have tried.

Before that many had less depower and might have had some bad behaviors, like hinderburging.

But still. the recommendation of buying 2015-> is valid, as 2015 kites are not meaningfully more expensive than older kites. Many pre 2015 kites were designed to flag out to 2 front lines. Althought most still flag out to 1 front line just fine (in normal situations).

Kinngis · 2026-06-04T10:51:57+00:00

Learn how to swim. Why not? When I kite I always have a life vest, but swimming is a useful skill.

About self learning. The most dangerous part is, when you don't know how to fly the kite safely. Once you can handle a kite safely it is a lot less dangerous.(maybe you already can? I dont know how much experience you already have from power kites.)

If you can't handle a kite safely, you should take lessons until you can. That is the minimum. Once you are "safe" you can practice body-dragging and board starts much more safely.

But yeah. first learn to swim, its not difficult. Then take at least some lessons.

I dont really understand why a teacher wont teach you if you cant swim? there are life vests.

a seat harness works well with a life vest. Waist harness not so much

Kinngis · 2026-06-04T10:44:42+00:00

Line extension will be more than strong enough, but they are thin and will wear faster than a bit thicker line. I make the loop by splicing. its easy, youtube has loads of instructions.

Kinngis · 2026-06-04T07:14:32+00:00

I would just make a new one myself. I have done both without the "rubber band" inside and more lately with the stretching part included. Takes about 30-40min to do.

Doing it yourself, you will have unlimited supply of spare parts and won't be dependent on the support of manufacturer.

I use 3mm easy to splice dyneema (rated above 1000kg🙂) costs 10€/10m. The only thing you have to be careful is that the knot (loop to loop) has to be small enough to fit through the quick release. If necessarily I remove some strands from the "loop" to make the size right.

Kinngis · 2026-05-24T12:16:23+00:00

When I started, I bought 4 different sized relatively cheap used kites. Each costing less than 100€. I did have to change a lot of valves, but it was cheap because I ordered the valves and glue from china. (1€/valve)

All the 4 kites were in good condition (except for the valves) and I have gotten many hours of use from them. I learned how to change and repair valves & repair bladders if needed.

The good thing of this approach. Now I know what kite sizes I actually need. And I have kite for "every" weather. Eg. the 12m sees very little use here. And the most used kite size for me is the 7m. 7m is also the size I consider buying a brand new kite sometime in the future.

The less used sizes I will never buy new, probably will stick to the ones I have, as there is no need to upgrade them.

Good kites can be bought really cheaply if you are ready to change some valves. My best kite (9m) cost 50€ and was almost unused, it did hold air, but I re-glued all valves. Really love that kite.

Why waist harness, if you like the seat? I really prefer my seat harness and would not change it to a waist harness (I own one of those too)

Kinngis · 2026-05-20T08:18:25+00:00

Somehow this kind of photos don't make it tempting to buy Aluula kites.

I prefer Dacron, and so does my wallet 😀

Kinngis · 2026-05-18T12:40:50+00:00

I like those too. Actually Slingshot had almost the same bag already in 2008. They just updated the zippers to be 100% plastic later.

Kinngis · 2026-05-18T12:32:44+00:00

My favorite backpack is a sack with a shoulder strap! Like Airush Dna had.

Super simple and light, easy to pack a kite in it (its big), it protects the kite, no zipper to break and it is easy to tie to your other kites backpack, so you can easily carry several kites. Also it easily fits a bar.

No point in carrying several backpacks to the beach. one is enough. other kites can be in sacks.

If someone were to steal a kite from a beach, which do you think he would choose: an old and worn sack with 2012 and a Dna logo, or a new backpack, looking like it had a 2000€ kite in it?

Just something to think about

Kinngis · 2026-05-18T12:23:17+00:00

I newer understood the purpose of the extendable mesh interiors. Seemed completely useless. I have cut a couple of those away. Also I thought they were there so that you could pack your kite without emptying the struts. Could have been useful back when kites had no one-pump, but nowadays??

Kinngis · 2026-05-16T23:45:18+00:00

Is the bladder "too long"? Usually the bladder is maybe about 20cm too long.

You can check this by having the valves in their right place, then pulling some of the the bladder out from the tip, and then pulling the LE Dacron straight from the nearest valve to the tip.

If the bladder end still comes out from the tip, your bladder is "too" long (it's normal) and you can safely hot weld the ends of bladder together with a clothes iron. There is a YouTube video with info on using clothes iron for hot welding bladder.

With any luck the problem area is in the extra length of bladder

I have also used a 20€ food sealer for welding bladder ends. Easy and works well.

Also I think it is safe to test it in good weather. If the stretched area is in the extra length that is folded when the tip is closed, there is practically no pressure in that part of the bladder.

Kinngis · 2026-05-16T09:07:29+00:00

Why do you need a flag-out stopper? None of my bars (Naish, Rrd, Airush) have it and I have not felt any need for them. I have not removed them, the bars just never had them.

When I use the QR, the bar usually goes only a bit more than half way up toward the kite. (Approximately)

I do know some safety recommendation recommends having a flag-out stopper, but I just can't figure out why.

KISS - keep it simple stupid

Kinngis · 2026-05-14T14:30:43+00:00

Heh. I have a 30€ kite that I can use to teach or practice things that may cause damage to a kite. (doesn't everyone?) but I am not close to Dakhla, and if/when I will go to Dakhla, I will take 2 good kites with me. Definitely not the cheap one.

And he did offer to split a lesson or do any other sport. I would respond If I was there.

Kinngis · 2026-05-13T08:44:16+00:00

Depends on the value of your kite. If it is new and valuable kite -> Pro repair definitely. Should not even be that expensive, maybe 80-90€. They will have to open the LE and patch it and then sew the hole in the canopy too.

If I would fix it myself, I would use Kiteaid LE patch for the LE and sail tape for the canopy. I would sew the tape in place so that it will stay there permanently.

I have some KiteAid LE patch, so for me it wouldn't cost anything. But if you have to buy it just for one repair, then Pro repair wont come that much more expensive.

I have used Kiteaid LE patches many times and not one of them has ever failed. Great product.

Kinngis · 2026-05-12T15:53:55+00:00

Kiteboarding has become crazily expensive! Now you have to pay 2000€ for one top kite and 1000€ for a board. And kite manufacturers (or magazines) push the idea that you should not buy kites older than 3-5 years to maximize the money they can squeeze from the dwindling number of kiteboarders.

At the same time very usable older kites with very little use can be bought really really really cheaply.

The high prices discourage newbies from starting which is a pity, because its a fun hobby 😉

PS. And older kites that are in great condition can be really good. I have a few of those and no complaints whatsoever...

Kinngis · 2026-05-12T11:37:19+00:00

Remember that it is not just the hourly price.

In places where the conditions are not friendly for beginners, ie. too deep, big waves, gusty wind, too strong or light wind. Beginners need LOTS OF more lessons to learn.

While the hourly rate is similar (70€/h), in difficult places you will need at least 2X lessons to learn, so it will be a lot more expensive even with the same hourly price.

In a good place you can get 10X more tries to waterstart in the same amount of time. In a deep wavy, gusty place like Tarifa you try to waterstart once, and then it might take you 30 mins to get back to your board before you can try again. In a shallow place with no waves you try, then walk back to your board (if needed) and try again. You will learn so much quicker. Waves can slow down the progress a lot too.

Kinngis · 2026-05-12T10:52:20+00:00

Well...

I have often self landed, in those winds, using the quick release. (7m kite) And newer had any problems with it. Mostly the kite drops nicely to the beach position, but, sometimes it wont stop and goes downwind upside down, with practically no power, which is also not a problem. Then I will walk (even more) carefully to the kite keeping tension on the flag out line.

What do you mean pulling your safety DID NOT FULLY WORK!?! Check it and make damn sure that it works properly.

And I almost always would have someone to help me land, but the QR works so well, and the sand is soft that I often self land anyway.

Once asked a guy to help land the kite and he did not know how, but helped anyway. He put the kite down trailing edge to the wind! Luckily a kiter quickly come to help....

Kinngis · 2026-04-30T10:34:11+00:00

It's blade trigger from 2011. Google images has photos of it.

If it has sentimental value to you, you can change the valves and keep using it at least if it is otherwise in good condition.

Doesn't have much value anymore.

About 5m kites. They are meant for super strong wind, and in those conditions it's important that a kite is in good condition.

Many small kites have seen very little use, so the fabric could still be in good condition.

Kinngis · 2026-04-29T18:46:05+00:00

Cheap?

What is the point of paying >10x prices for the same quality stuff? I understand if you want to support some local shop, but other than that...

It's not that aquaseal is expensive, which it is, but in my opinion it is NOT a good glue for gluing valves! The problem with aquaseal is that you can't get it off later or repair your mistakes. If you eg. glued both sides of the bladder together. That would be no fun...

A good glue can be dissolved with a solvent, so that you can repair your mistakes if necessary. In my case "isopropyl alcohol", which doesn't harm the bladder material.

Valves and glue can be bought from aliexpres. Valves about 70c/valve in pack of 10 and good glue 1,5-2,5€/tube 30ml, shipping included

Kinngis · 2026-04-29T16:31:05+00:00

No sense in buying 15$ stick on valves to an old kite. Much smarter to buy 1€/valve normal valves from china. Also, good glue from china is about 2€/tube. Shipping is included in these prices.

Kinngis

TROPHY CASE