Great to hear all the excellent comments about the Bandit Dos. I am waiting for mine to arrive - which I hope will be this week - so I can get out for the first time this season.

I will give my humble comments about the kite once I have ridden it, hopefully later this week.

Lemm

Have had the 10 12 &14 out now in different conditions overall really impressed. Ill have them all on the beach at the Coolum kite festival, so come have a look.
Have fun George

Right here goes my feedback, my background, old school c kite fan, been on vegas for the last few years,

I have been using these kites to teach with last year as I found there safety system and relaunch capabilities the best i could find, (still rode my vegas when i went kiting). I found last years model very fun but susceptible to back stalling and a peculiar thing of the kite feeling like it wants to nose dive all the time. Never felt that comfy unhooking and even though id fly it here and there i kept going back to my vegas for that direct feel and smoothness when unhooking and through turns.

The Dos quite simply has cured what very little i didnt like about them. On my first session I could feel less bar pressure but still sufficient to feel the kite during tricks. The nose diving thing is no longer an issue and straight away i was unhooking.

Beware these kites are extremely powerful I was riding a 10 in about 15kn outgoing tide and was fully powered with about 3 inch of depower(i weigh 80kg and ride a 131). Despite this I was able to hold the kite unhooked but it kept catching me by surprise with lift during tricks and jumps.
The auto relaunch does not appear to be as good as last year when the wind is light due to the new bridle system, Saying this Fone have already replaced my bridles without any stopper balls and this has improved it dramatically, (still not as good as last year but just as good as all the others), At this stage thats my only negative comment. bar is clean simple and lines are now only 22m. They are super fast turning. construction is superb and for simplicity i cant find a better kite.



Hope this helps

Surfer62 said...

RAL INN said...

I've managed 1 play on our demo 10m.

these kites are going to put a lot of smiles on a lot of faces.

Look for a Blue/white bandit around Port Phillip bay this sunday.
where? depends on wind.
ask for a go, you'll be glad you did.

Asked for a go and was glad I did, nice kite, nice power, easy boost. (25-30knts at Henry) thanks ral

Ral, that's me in my avatar, note my first attempt to kitesurf

If that 10m was colored black it would have been perfect and yes it is very forgiving to jump, airs a bit thin way up there & I should have been slammed a couple of times but it seemed to find it's own place and planted me safely back on the water.

Will you take $500 for it

Surfer62 said...

Ral, that's me in my avatar, note my first attempt to kitesurf

If that 10m was colored black it would have been perfect and yes it is very forgiving to jump, airs a bit thin way up there & I should have been slammed a couple of times but it seemed to find it's own place and planted me safely back on the water.

Will you take $500 for it

Sold! delivery next September, OK.

How close is Su(ck )62 to Su(rfer)62 or am I just seeing things(I'm sure the picture in the Avatar shows you in a flattering light)

I picked up my Bandit Dos 10m today, but didnt have chance to get out on the water. I will try and take some photos of it and upload them.

I too am 85kg so I will let you know how i go in varying winds. According to the manual the 10m has a wind range of 12 to 30 knts for a 75kg rider. I am hoping that I will be good from 15ish knts upward to 30ish knts.

As for a 10m Bandit dos at 30kts, I'd moved the centre line knot to the next shorter position to add more depower. then was suprised it still had anough power for the 18kts.

So consider the wind ranges stated may include changing line settings as well as just the depower rope position.

My 95kg was coping very comfortably on the shorter front line position and half depower, in the 30kt sections.

85kg and 30kts on the 10m??? take oxygen.

I am so sore, just took the 12 and 8 dos to the beach wind was 15 to 20kts and late in the session got to 25. Started on the 12m with a lunacy 129 bar presure was just right not as heavy as last years and not as light as my revs. kite was super grunty as i had to depower half( im 90kg +) and very stable. The dos still has the awsome lift that last years had but turns faster when you want it to. The kite sits any where in the window that you want it whether you want it to pull like a tractor or go supper fast or head up wind higher than you should this kite does it all. I took the 8 m out in the same conditions with a 137 555 board. i went up wind even faster than on the 12 the kite behaved very well fully powered up and didnt stall when unhooked the speed it turns is a lot faster than the 7.5( my fav kite from last year) but when unhooked kite remains just where you left it. I couldnt keep off these kites had 2 sessions on each and left the beach exhausted battered and bruised looks like it will be a great season.

Looks like the struts are sewn into the canopy at 2 points. Is this new for '09? Slingy did the splitstrut on '04 - '08 Fuels and have stopped for '09.

If it is new have the struts become thinner, and what is the rationale? --> thinner struts = less weight, more canopy support/stiffness.

Nice looking kite.

Can anyone comment on differences between the DOS2 and the Rev2 (with wave riding in mind)

Thanks,
Hemi

I've been searching for pictures of the bar set up for ever and a day thanks for posting that Lemm.

I will say 2 things that I don't like about this kite (which is a shame cause it looks awsome and I'm looking to up grade at the middle - end of the season).

1. the uni color bar - I know where all smart enough to figure it our but come. pretty much every company does the left side in red or yellow, and the right side in a dark opposing color. I realize it has the red and green balls on the ends of the handle but nothing beats good color coding.

2. the pull tab safety - I love the push away chicken loop safeties. Any one know if you can /tried to retro fit a North (or similar) chicken loop on it? Looks do able in the picture but hard to tell. I just have a hard time beliving that when the sh1t hits the fan you can find this little tab and pull it where the north (cab, naish ....) you just reach down and push the thing away from you.

Just my two cents (which is worth about $5 Aussy in the current market) can't wait to try one.

high as a kite said...

Tony,
Will you have the Bandit around Torqauy / Pt Henry area over the weekend?
Use to enjoy the old tribal, would like to have ago to see what Surfer 62 is creaming his jeans over.

62, I'll be there on Thursday arvo, Come for a SUP / beer if there's not wind.

I thought that was a weird look of contentment on 62's face.
as Pt D Sunday, pray for wind.

Surfer62 said...

Blah blah blah.....
"If that 10m was colored black it would have been perfect"....Blah blah blah

Im picking up my 10 tomorrow and it is black..... and I have the day off .

tightlines said...

Surfer62 said...

Blah blah blah.....
"If that 10m was colored black it would have been perfect"....Blah blah blah

Im picking up my 10 tomorrow and it is black..... and I have the day off .

Um be careful when purchasing something over the phone, when I rang the shop to see if the Bandit 2s were in they said they were but they only had 1 10mtr left as the others were pre-sold.
I asked them what colour it was and when they replied its black and white according to the tag I said that will do so pulled out my credit card and purchased it over the phone without even seeing it.

Lemming said...
The tag attached to the kite says it is Black and Khaki, but as you can see it is actually Khaki and Brown.

Don't always believe what the tag says, and keep your eyes out for a lovely looking black, pink and white 10mtr Bandit DOS