*%$ Lines! How do i wrap them up on a 4 liner?

Ok...

I have a Hi 40 and love it. Unfortunately, if I follow the instructions on putting it away OR use the method I was shown when I got the kite, I end up with a tangled mess and 1.5 hours of fixing time in the HOT sun. Any ideas for 4 line kites that work all the time?

Yeah Brian, first throw away the instructions and get two winders. Wind each side (2lines) separatly and then make two trips to unwind the two sets of lines. Otheres will tell you ways to keep the tangles from happening when you wind 4 lines on one winder and how you have to make that two trips. Takes less time to work with two lines at a time especially in the hot sun. I do this with my Revs all the time in sunny hot Texas. I go to fly my kites not play with knotted up lines. Chris the Bigfoot

Brian, I use a combination of figure 8 and straight wrap (about half each way) on a LP winder and have had no problems. The lines do not tangle like the straight wrap which I used to use. I still straight wrap my dual line sets. You may want to try this before the two winder method and save the problem of getting to the beach and having only half a line set. Joe

That's pretty easy. fold the kite, leaving ends of bridle sticking out with lines attached, go back to handles, hold handles in right hand, wind lines around handles with left hand until you get to the kite, put handles (with lines) on top and roll up... The Most important thing to remember is to ALWAYS wind and unwind the same way... i.e.. hold handles in right hand and feed lines out with left hand, then go back and finish unfolding kite. The Moster Most important thing to remember is to NEVER let another person touch your lines during setup or takedown, and you will be a happy camper.

Mikey luvs ya!

Use a card winder..

Put the handles together with the top pointing to the kite (brakes full on) and wind clockwise. Keep going all the way till the kite bunches up. Stuff the kite in the bag, tail first (to help expell the air). Stuff the handles down the side of the bag so that they don't drop through the bridle.

Alternatively... fly continuously!

I use a card winder and the figure-8 method and have never had any problems.

*grin*

It's not as complicated as that. You need to learn to handle the line. It only seems to come with experience.

hmmm...

Here's something that might help bring 'fast track' your experience:

- Stake out the kite.

- Take a stuff bag and stuff the kite into it.

- Stuff the bridle in on top.

- Squash everything down.

- stuff the line on top. Just keep going till all the line is in the bag.

- Poke the handles down the side of the bag so that the don't fall through the line.

Now to unpack:

- Remove the handles.

- Throw the bag as far as you can. To the end of the line would be cool.

- Stake the handles

- Pull the kite out the bag

- Fly.

It should work first time. If not, repeat till you get the hang of it.

Hmmm... If you put a rock in the bottom of the bag and the bag isn't too tight a fit, you might be able to pull the kite from the bag sithout walking down the lines.

Brian,

I know the frustration of having a great wind blowing, limited time and a birds nest of dyneema. So here is what I do which works 95%+ of the time:

1) Be methodical ... more haste less speed & therefore less flying time next time out!

For the kite I use a strop with a loop at either end. I larks head the upper and lower bridle lines together. First one side then the other. This means that they don't get too tangled or wound round each other. I roll the kite up and put it away. When unfolding the kite I grab the strop and let the wind take the kite. At this point it is usually easy to see how to get the bridle lines straightened out.

I always unattach the kite from the lines as I use the same lines for more than one kite. If you only have one kite this may not be an option you like as leaving the lines attached may be more effective. The strop method is the same principle as leaving the lines attached however.

For my lines ... I use Tradewinds figure 8 winders for all but my longest and heaviest quad line sets...:

1) Put the stake in 2) lay the handles over the stake 3) walk out the lines 4) pull on the left and right lines separately (This removes mirror twists ie: one clockwise cancels one anti-clockwise) at this point the line set should look pretty untangled. 5) return to the stake and feed the brake loops over the stake 6) pick up the kite and walk down the line set holding / untangling the left & right pairs as you go. 7) Attach kite ... Waaaaaaaaaa! have a blast 8) Land kite and attach brake loops to park 9) disconnect kite one side at a time and attach bridle lines to the strop mentioned above 10) pack kite away 11) attach the lower lines to the upper lines using a larks head making sure left goes to left and right to right! 12) walk back to the stake and remove the handels from the stake laying them out flat 13) walk back to the end with the winder and hook the upper line loops over the winder notch. 14) wind progressively from the front to the back of the figure eight winder. When you get to the back jump straight from the back to the front in one go then proceed slowly to the back again (This means that it unwinds cleanly ... I could explain but think about it yourself!)

Hey presto! ... well I did say you need to be methodical. My problems usually occur when I have difficulty putting the kite down after flying in winds that pick up. At this point I can't be too fussy about getting the damn things packed!!

Cheers ian

Don't throw your kite, a dog might think it's a stick, somone might walk on it, it might simply break (not likely). Carry your kite to the other end of the lines.

Don't stake them till you have the pairs seperated. What I do is attach the lines, and then lay them on the ground about 4 feet apart, I then unwind the lines and from the other end spread them apart back to the handles. If you have the staked at this point they can 'cross inside' each other if you pick the up wrong, it seems to be a law of physics that if there is a possibility of one pair crossing inside the other, no matter how remote, it will. after that I walk down to the crossover point and walk the twist back to the end of the lines. With the two pair now seperate I stake the handles, hook up the kite, and untwist each pair from the handle end.

Yep, that's how most do it with Quad Power Kites. Put the handles together and wrap around them. If you always wrap and unwrap around the same end, while holding the handles in the same hand and wrapping the same direction it works flawlessly. If any one of those 3 things gets reversed, prepare to have to untwist one twist per wrap the lines did around the handles. This is where the Figure 8 winders have the advantage, they are idiot proof, you can't mess up. Make sure too when taking your lines off the handles that you don't just let them fall off the end, this too can cause wraps. Guide them off with your hand. Takes an extra minute, saves you 30. Welcome to a WAY fun sport : )

Jamey