New Tech Kites

winged v · Posted: Thu May 19, 2005 8:22 am Post subject: French Connection proto

Been flying this one for 2 weeks and maybe 20 hours and have not attached my fly lines to any other kite in my bag since launching this one for the first time.

This one is 8' tip to tip and has 20 grams on spine which can be removed in about 10 seconds. Setting up kite is very easy and this proto has:
yoyo glides
yoyo rails
yoyo support system
fade line
5' leader lines
covered stand off connectors
tail weight system
aluminum center tee
mylar sail reinforcments
apa connectors
p200 skyshark leading edges
5pt skyshark lower spreaders
5mm upper spreader
heavy duty sewn upper spreader patch
5oz polyester sail

The French Connection is put together very well with the best of everything,but does it fly?Man does it fly!

Loves it on its back...deep turtle or floaty flat turtle just depends on amount of slack line you give it. Lazy Susans are very easy and repeatable at will. Roll ups? Well let me tell you about this one and rollups, this kite rolls up SUPER easy. Wing tips on the ground and overrotate a flap jack. It rolls up and flys off. Back flip roll up. Front flip roll up. Fade to roll up and back to fade...like flic flacs but let it overrotate and roll and keep popping lines and roll and unroll to fade very fast...looks really cool.

Flap jacks are easy to do....pop into deep turtle,bang one line and when it comes around pop both lines and drive wing tips into the ground and repeat over and over.

With all the radical moves the French Connection does so easy, there is other stuff this kite does very well also which I did not expect...Floaty complete axles, 540s, stalls,slides its all there for the taking. I find myself just flying this kite and I have a bag full of "FLYING" kites but I think I can say none of them have the flying repertoire that this one does....."balls to the wall" and bang.. floaty old school stuff in a instant.

Oh, and one more thing "Precision flying" this thing tracks like it is on rails and will knock out perfect 90 degree corners.

Does not make a sound in flight even with super aggessive punch turns.
Does not pull hard,which is surprising giving how it tracks.

This maybe Dodds best ever!
_________________

Rick
Flying in the winds of change.

Dodd · High Flier Joined: 13 May 2005 Posts: 186

WOW RICK!

You sound like a paid employee of New Tech's, a New tech poster boy!

Just kidding!

I am really happy you have connected with this kite, since this is really the first one of mine you have connected with since Ive known you. 3 years right?

I need to come over and measure your bridle, because once I get mine in a fade, my nose tips up way to far. possible it could be a bridle problem. The winds were inconsistant and light at Rex Roth yesterday, and this happened mostly with the wieghts on, have you experimented Flying in light winds with the wieghts?

I flew yesterday for, well I was there 3 hours, but someone kept touching the on/off and wind direction switch. So total, about 1 hour of mostly stuggling.
I flew the 7fter for half that time, trying to get video. I need a camera man!
I flew the 8 for the other half, without wieghts because the winds were so terrible and light, the flag was barely moving most of the time yet the fades were better but still kind of off.....But then again I am seeking total perfection in imperfect winds.

I also enjoyed the old school flying ability that you talked about in your sumation of the FC , that is rarely found on kites in the same class as the French Connection.

One of the classic tests for what I consider a good kite, is the down the middle verical dive to a snap stall two tip spike with no over steer and the FC does it. I love the one tip spikes and snap stall too!

The way the FC is flying right now, (except for that one thing) really shows the amount of my past designs in this one, the 540s and cascades reminded me of a Jam but without the power move to get it there. The Precision, flic flacs and Cometes reminded me of the Techno, The Roll ups reminded me of the Big bang.
So as I designed, its all in there on this one.

I will be testing one more bridle for it though, just to make sure, a standard 3 point goes on it today. It sure cured what was ever wrong with the 7 foot model.

Thanks for your posting Rick! I am as excited about this one as you are. you just never know how the fliers will react. This kite has has a lot of exposure already so the expectations of it may be greater than normal which is kind of scarey......

I know Rick is just one flier, but his skill level at the time he got his hands on the French Connection, was exactly the skill level I designed this kite for. And it looks like its been a "Love Connection"
gotta be happy with that!

Rick, hope to hook up with you this weekend.
Dodd

action jackson · Posted: Thu May 19, 2005 9:53 am Post subject:

dodd,
if you would like a newbies perspective i would be glad to hack around with one.....aj

Dodd · High Flier Joined: 13 May 2005 Posts: 186

I am so nervous right now, like a daddy waiting for the baby to be born, will it be healthy, live a long life, be successful? all of these things.

So I am doing what a nervous father does, or designer in this case, going through all of this in my mind. And every day now, I test every possible thing again and again even though I already approved the kite for production. I am confident that I will not change anything on the kite except for maybe the bridle.

Yesterday I tried my new bridle, and finally my fades were better, but I lost everything else!

So I pulled out my last prototype I brought back with me, never flown it, the yellow one, and man, it flew so much better than the purple one I have been changing, so back to factory specs for me..

The only thing I will do is add a Fade line to the bridle, that should fix the minor problem I am having although I have not heard this complaint from anyone else.....

More on the French Connection to follow.................
Dodd

S

randyg · Wind Seeker Joined: 17 May 2005 Posts: 8

Dodd, I won't have much of a report on the prototypes until hopefully next week.
_________________
Randy

My Sportkite Blog

Dodd · High Flier Joined: 13 May 2005 Posts: 186

WHERE IS THE FRENCH CONNECTION?

Originally, the French Connection was scheduled to be introduced at the KTAI in January of 2006.

The prototypes flew so well during testing that we decided to produce a test run of 20 kites early.

I brought only 4 back from the factory with me.

Now the bridles are dialed in, and we are very happy with the performance and are confident that it is ready.

We hope to have a production run of 100 kites completed within 2 months.

WHERE CAN YOU BUY THE FRENCH CONNECTION?

At any of our Authorized dealers of course, but I personally would like to start a list of direct customers on our forum who are interested in purchasing our new high end sport kite, the French Connection to ensure you know exaclty when they will be available and from whom.

Please Email me to get on the list of the first 100.
Number one is already promised, but we have 99 to go!

I still do not know the SRP, but it safe to say it will be under $170USD.
Compared to the other high end sport kites in its class, it will still be around $80 less than our competitors, which is close to my goal of making available a high end peformance sport kite with all the extras at a great affordable price without sacrificing quality, in fact, with an increase in quality that matches the quality and perfomance of sport kites with a much higher selling price.

I will do my best to get this first run of French Connections to your favorite dealers quickly, your pre orders will really help.

Thanks so much!
Sincerely
Dodd

montana · Posted: Sat Jul 09, 2005 10:29 pm Post subject:

put me on the list Dodd, or Chris, or whoever is making the list.....I want one