Construction has taken up about half of the field I normally fly. I suppose it's an expansion of Westfield Middle School. Work crews were moving dirt all morning.
I was nervous to launch Y3 because I didn't want to rip the expensive paper sail and I wondered how the bowline would act.
My first few attempts failed. Y3 kept turning and crashing head first. I attached a cloth tail cut from an old bed sheet and the takeoff improved. The tail's weight and drag helped the kite stay mostly head up.
I could tell the kite's angle of flight was off because when the wind caught the sail, the kite soared straight up until it stalled out. After a few goes, I realized the top bridle lines were too long, causing the kite to lean away from me. I wrapped the two lines around the cross spars to shorten the lines, and found the sweet spot at three wraps. Two wraps worked OK and four also caused the kite to stall.
This kite is very stable. It often stayed in one position, appearing to hover. When the wind faltered, it tended to drift to the ground gently. It responds well to light tugs. It doesn't like quick changes in wind speed or direction, which sometimes made the kite flip or turn and sent it tumbling to the ground.
I'm really beginning to understand the strengths of this design. The cross spars and spine extend past the sail, which gives the pilot a lot of options for customizing the kite's flight, such as adding up to three tails, adjusting the bowline or changing the bridle length. Also, the materials are incredibly durable. I crashed several times from at least 20 or 30 feet up with no noticeable damage.
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