Fractured Axel

- Well written manual how to assemble and fly kite ( winding up lines might be a nightmare for starters ).
- Appearance matters to.

Try and buy a 'known' name - HQ, Spirit of air, Brookite - rather than the ubiquitous no name " extreme stunt kite" you often see on Ebay etc.

for me best example of kite for beginners is prism nexus, very nice manual and really good line set, im still using them even on my trick kites.
only problem - kite like that after one season (with reasonable flying progress) is gone to the wardrobe.

pink wrote:

for me best example of kite for beginners is prism nexus, very nice manual and really good line set, im still using them even on my trick kites.
only problem - kite like that after one season (with reasonable flying progress) is gone to the wardrobe.

Hmmm... for me it lasted less than a season...
I think it is too nervous.
I started with it and had a nice time but it is a bit difficult to control if the wind is a bit strong.
I have seen people starting with a Quantum and I think it is a much better investment with not a big price difference.

Maybe it should be looked at budget wise.

What is the cheapest kite that can fly alright? And then go up in £10 or £20 increments. Or if money is not an issue what is the best kite to begin with?

If it is a complete novice are they better with a small credible foil that has less to break as they drive it into the ground over and over?

So what is the cheapest readily available kite to get someone started in doing basis loops and squares etc?
And the cheapest trick kite that is beginner friendly?

At a 'basic' level - loops, squares figure 8's - the HQ Bebop is ready to fly at around £23 ish - fibreglass frame so stands abuse and may do very basic tricks - axels possibly turtles. Better than the cheapy beach kites, but you'd outgrow it pretty quickly if you got hooked. If you wanted to get more serious you would need to spend around £100 for something reasonably trickable with a decent set of lines.

Do any kites that come rtf come with a decent line set? I use those lines to let others have a go with or if I'm flying a diamond kite with long tail for the kids to chase

as i told prism kites comes with pretty decent line set, at least nexus.

Broady wrote:

Do any kites that come rtf come with a decent line set? I use those lines to let others have a go with or if I'm flying a diamond kite with long tail for the kids to chase

The HQ RTF kites from the Bebop upwards come with HQ's basic dyneema lines. From experience they are OK - they stretch a bit for the first few flights but after that they are pretty stable - they do tend to bind quite quickly. Much better than nylon/dacron/blendline but not a patch on a 'proper' £20 lineset.