They are here,well the smaller ones. M8 sent mine out today cant wait to give them a try. Should have my 9m next week anyone in whyalla or comming down to whyalla that wants to try one send me a PM or catch up with me down the beach. I will give a bit of a review after i have given it a realy good thrashing. With a bit of luck the bigger sizes will be here in october.

Got my FOne B3s today yeah ! It feels like christmas i dont have a lot but managed to get a bit of range limited colours and size but 2 11mtrs so one of them has my name on it. Cant give reveiw on it yet havent got any wind currently, but have ridden the 10 & 13 quite a bit now,just only for shorter sessions . Can say if you liked last years, this years is going to make verry happy, have mostly had it out in lighter winds ive got to admit but once again can say the 13 is awsome fun for a big kite and the 10 is fast and powerful so am looking foward to my 11
Have Fun
GEORGE

Hey George

Can you tell me if they have the multiple bridle attachment points like in some of the pic’s that have been floating around or was that just the final prototype before production ?

What are the pulleys like I found the top plastic ones on the Dos tended to rust out the centre pin?

Thanks .....;)

Hey Waxman anything to report mate? If ya got it that is.

I've ordered an 8m and hoping to get to the Brissy demo day next w'end but doubt I'll get to try the smaller ones.

Cheers.

They will probably get here on tuesday when i have to go to back to work, if they do and the forcast is good i might have to blow a shift. The hardest part will be choosing the colour. I do like the white with the black trailing edge. Im getting a M8 132 dek to try out aswell.

If you have allready ordered it you should have it before next weekend, normaly only takes 3-4 working days to get them to whyalla SA so yours shouldnt take to long. the 8m should be a sweet kite if its even better than last years 8m i rode one all last season and loved it.

Thanx for the update dude, apparently only 7s n 9s were left in the smaller ones on fri.
Gotta wait a few weeks for the next shipment. I got 2 white/Pink Dos's so hoping to get black/something this time.

White and pink, sounds cute.......My 8m dos was black and pink, definatly didnt want pink again this year. Why do they make so many pink ones?

Hey IPump, I have just got my Bandit 3 and can answer your questions, there is no multiple attachment points on the bridle or steering lines and the pullys are plastic ones made by ronstan so they should have a decent stainless centre pin, hopefully with these pullys wont have last years isue of getting the bridle jamed down the side of the pully.

Just having a look through what i got its got the same leash(damit), the bar is awsome a huge improvement over last years with the lock in chicken loop turn away dick and its a bit smaller, the safety cant get tangled around anything this year and runs all the way up to the front line swivel/splitter same velcro release and it hasnt got the plastic bit that kept braking over the last two years.

The kite looks even better built obviosly listening to feed back from last year nice flush scufgards that cant catch the bridle, one pump, slightly different bridle with with 3 pullys nut overall its not much shorter than last years. The side lines have a longer leader line coming off the kite.

Thats all i have for now untill i can give it a good workout.

Select to expand quote

iPump said...

Hey George

Can you tell me if they have the multiple bridle attachment points like in some of the pic’s that have been floating around or was that just the final prototype before production ?

What are the pulleys like I found the top plastic ones on the Dos tended to rust out the centre pin?

Thanks .....;)

Awesome sounds good, I now have kite envy .......regarding the leash you would think they would change the leash to a push-away like the new slingshot leashes. I don’t mind the velcro but I have never had to dump it in real emergency so thinking along those lines the push release would be better.......?

Keep the review coming...............?

hey guys, anyone with some experience on the B3-
Been riding a 12M dos this year (pretty much ONLY the 12M), it's been a one kite quiver all yr but f-one's not having a 12M this yr.
What sort of quiver are we looking at for the B3? Are the bigger B3 (13M) as quick as the 12M dos?

I wouldnt have called the 12m dos a quick kite, but it did have a good range. If you are looking at only having a one kite quiver i would go for the 11m to get a better top end, and a good turning speed. I dont think that the 13m will be much slower turning than the 12m but the topend would fall a bit short unless you are a really big guy. Wont have a 13m till next month sometime and all i can report so far with the 9m is, I got a quick ride on my skim board in 10-12kts the kite builds speed really fast in under 10kts the kite just drifted back in the window with out choking with no depower. last years would have just flewn backwards and falen out the sky.

I love the new one pump, so much quicker to settup.

Tried my B3 9m today in very marginal conditions, only two others out, one 14m (Roger)and a 12m (Lee), Roger was powered up but Lee was struggling.

Had to sign the kite except in the gusts and found out very quickly that this is one fast kite. It makes my 7.5 m Bandit look slow ! Got caught out not being quick enough on the bar and dove the kite into the water

Even in the light conditions and trimmed to full power the kite did not backstall once, a distinct improvement on the Bandits.

Hopefully we get a decent seabreeze soon to give it a proper run

Got a swing under a 13 yesterday... Very impressed.

I have a 12m dos and the B3 is much better behaved in my opinion.
Turning speed is very close... Probably better at the 12-15knts I got to use it in.

Tried everything I could to make it do the hindenberg but it just floated back every time. I know how to make em fall as I got 2 dos's.

Some really nice improvments like the now intergrated scuff pads on struts and the shorter bar throw.... And the one-pump of coarse.

As said very impressed, so impressed I think I'm gunna replace my 10 aswell

hey kitenutt,
so you fly a 12 dos as well? Would you say the 13 B3 is the sub for the 12 dos- speed, grunt (bottom end), turn...?
I'm just stuck between getting a 13 or an 11 B3!

Select to expand quote

kloph said...

hey kitenutt,
so you fly a 12 dos as well? Would you say the 13 B3 is the sub for the 12 dos- speed, grunt (bottom end), turn...?
I'm just stuck between getting a 13 or an 11 B3!

Mate without flying the 11 it's hard to say what the grunt is like but the 13 is very close to the 12dos bottom end wise. I think you'd be hard pressed to get that kinda grunty feel out of an 11 especially as they have I increased the AR on the B3.

If the B3 has the top end improvement they say I'd be going a 13 ova an 11 for a big kite. The big B3 does seem to turn with more consistancy.

Hoping to get out on the 10 this arvo....

Cheers

I have a question for those who are used to the dos and are now trying out the three.

How does the light wind range of the b3 compare to the dos? I'm thinking of getting a bandit as a light wind kite and am interested in the 15. I have tried out the 14 dos and loved its turning speed and grunt in light wind and i just want to make sure the 15 b3 will be as good. Slightly bigger kite than the 14 so I'd expect it to be a bit slower.

Appreciate any comments.

Select to expand quote

AdrianW said...

I have a question for those who are used to the dos and are now trying out the three.

How does the light wind range of the b3 compare to the dos? I'm thinking of getting a bandit as a light wind kite and am interested in the 15. I have tried out the 14 dos and loved its turning speed and grunt in light wind and i just want to make sure the 15 b3 will be as good. Slightly bigger kite than the 14 so I'd expect it to be a bit slower.

Appreciate any comments.

Size for size they are very similar to last year. Some are guessing that the higher aspect has given them less bottom end grunt but this isn't the case. During our demo last weekend it was obvious the new 13 was faster than last years 12m so I would imagine the new 15 is at least as fast as the 14 DOS.

The 14m dos was one sweet kite fore light conditions or big blokes. I think that the 15m will be even better from what i found with the dos the 14m turned almost as fast as the 13 original bandit. with the way the B3 is with turning speed i think it will be plenty fast enougth, but normally it will probably be park and ride. I had my 9m B3 out again today in 15-21kts still not quit in its sweet spot but when those 18-21kt gusts hit the kite felt amasing boosted nice, unhooked easily and was extremely stable you had good feel for where the kite was cant wait to get it out in 25-30 kts should be mental.

Only one small problem i have noticed so far the little donky dick wasnt staying in while ridding popping out ocasionaly. only seems to have around 25mm overhang. not a big deal for me i probably wont be using it too much.

I rode the 10m B3 yesterday in around 16 - 18 knots, I didnt like it and was happy to return it at the end. It has some similarities but the biggest difference was the overall feel with lighter bar pressure and less feedback. To be fair the wind probably wasnt as strong as it needed to be and I had 2 occasions of major backstall where the kite fell at least halfway through the window, these things take a lot longer to recover when they do backstall. It was however noticably fast and turned as quickly as my 09 9m.
Overall I wouldnt bother trading my 09 9 and 12m in, the differences are just not that extra grands worth, I'm stoked with my current setup...

I had a great day out on the B3 today, still loving the one pump, I took my 9m out in 25-30kts easing to 20-25. So i was in the right wind range that i would normaly pull out this kite. There definatly are some differances in the way the kite performs and handles compared to the Dos. The main thing i noticed early on when sheeting out through gusts etc the rear lines went fairly slack, this is with the kite fully powered up and required a bit more bar movement to get it to turn with slack lines. The dos basicly never had slack lines.
The feel of the bar is completely diferent the bar presure is extremely light, and the steering is different, on the old dos a little flick of the rist with both hands in the midle of the bar would send the kite to where you needed it. The new bar is verry neutral in the middle with the steering small inputs make almost no change in direction of the kite but pull just a little bit more and its off like a bullit so fast its hard to keep up with. While ridding the kite seems to sit nicely just where you have put it with basicly no input to keep it there, i had a couple of stacks and just let go of the bar and the kite was just sitting there where i left it.

What all this ment at the end of the day was the kite handled great, while doing tricks the kite was easy to keep where it was, it has excelent speed, tackles gusts easily without needing to depower. this years depower you seem to get a lot more just from the strap almost no need to use the centre line depower knots.

One other thing i noticed was the b3 has lost that raw grunt of power that the bandits were known for, the instant agressive pull that would tear you apart if you werent ready fore it. It still has the grunt its just been refined, so it comes on a bit smother, controlled. i liked it hopfully this year my body wont take so much punishment.

The Bar I love its simplicety, how it has been set up with the unhooked rider in mind, from the shape of the chicken loop plastic bit is so easy to grab if you need to quickly hook back in, the smaller loop, the better safety conection point. I think its one of the best bars i have used ever it really suits my ridding style, I know the safety release isnt for every one but i have always found it when needed and it always works.

It will take a thew more rides to really get use to the B3 as it does feel like a completely different kite, but i think the changes they have made are going to make this one of the best bandits ever. Especialy for the freestyle, wake guys.

Hi guys this is the first chance ive had to get back on my computer, can say that ive put the 10, 12 & 14 dos in the air next to the 10 , 11 & 13 and had different people ride them, ive picked the 11 as my kite ,very fast faster turnig than last years 10, and still able to go when i would usually have used the 12 but more depower than last years 10 had the 11 up in a range of wind and conditions 13 knots flat water, 25knots choppy, gusty and i mean realy gusty(15-25) and nice smooth air as well.Can say that we had the 10 & 13 out most of this time too, all had similiar feel to last years kites no noticiable lack of power just a bit more depower and realy smooth feeling ,that is till you send it then hang on.
Hope this helps have fun
GEORGE

Hi Folks,

I just got my B3 13m as a replacement for my B2 14m. First off I love the construction on the new kite. The one pump system is much appreciated and the bar is neater and more refined.

I only have two small criticisms, I preferred last years bag. Even though there is more use of the brow/mocha colour in this years bag (which will hide the dirt better), last years was of a better quality and you also got the little bar pouch which you don't get this year. I ordered the White/Black colour scheme. According to the online brochure the kite has a white canopy, black trailing trim and brown leading edge bladder and struts. The kite I got has a black main bladder with brown struts. I've been told by my local dealer that the colour schemes don't always match the printed material and that slight variations can be expected. like I said, no big deal.

On the water the kite is much faster that the B2 14m, to be expected. I found the bar pressure to be a bit lighter as well. I tested the kite in very light winds, maybe 9 - 12 knots, and I quickly realized that the back lines of the 13m have to be made shorter to get better low end. (Some of you might be going, "No **** moron") This is very different to the B2 14m where the kite over-sheeted very easily. On my B2, even in the lightest winds I had to de-power the kite by 1 to 2 inches to stop it from over-sheeting and never ever shortened the back lines. This is not the case with the B3.

Regrettably the 13m does not have the low end grunt of last years 14m. Where I could ride upwind quite comfortably in 10 kts on my B2 14m I now will need about 12 kts on my B3 13m. Funny enough the advertised wind ranges for both kites is exactly the same, 9 - 22 kts. I suspect the 13m will have a greatly improved high end but loses a bit in the low end. Heavier riders or riders wanting a dedicated low wind kite may have to look at the B3 15m. The Dos 14m was a fantastic low wind kite, without compare, and will be a very difficult kite to replace.

I'm hoping that with a bit more time on the water I will learn to "tweak" the 13m and get to tap the most out of its low end. This may need a bit more work than the "park and ride" quality of the B2 14m.

All in all, very happy with the purchase and recommend the new kites to anyone in need of an upgrade.

Regards to all,

Dimitri

There are nots of reviews here of the B3 vs B-dos, but is anyone in a position to rate against any other 2010 kites (cab, slingy etc)? Im thinking the changes to AR might bring them closer to each other than ever?...

HI
Have ridden all those kites and for me the love the light bar pressure and responsive ness of the RPM ,but cant go pass the power and speed (boost ) of the B3, could go on about it but is just my opoinion.
Have Fun
GEORGE

Just watched the new FONE vid its great
www.bandit3.com/
it is a bit memory hungary ,
Have Fun
GEORGE

Select to expand quote

caseyguids said...

There are nots of reviews here of the B3 vs B-dos, but is anyone in a position to rate against any other 2010 kites (cab, slingy etc)? Im thinking the changes to AR might bring them closer to each other than ever?...

Casey you may be right i think a lot of people that didnt like the B2 because of its slightly slower turning speed and masive instant grunt. Will definatly like the B3 as it is just way more refined.

Im still impressed with the one pump
Not that its getting let down much

doe's anybody know where I can get my hands on a demo in the sydney to newcastle area?

hey Bennie if you get on the M8 kiteboarding site they have a full listing on there oz distributors with phone numbers and address. Give a couple a call and i bet they will have a demo for you.

A bit of shameless promotion here guys:

www.kitesurfaustralia.com.au/

A cut down version of the new F-One video.

Lowered the quality a bit and cut out all the footage of people drinking out of coconuts for those who don't want wait an hour or two for the video to download

Select to expand quote

waxman said...

hey Bennie if you get on the M8 kiteboarding site they have a full listing on there oz distributors with phone numbers and address. Give a couple a call and i bet they will have a demo for you.

thanks waxman I will check it out

so guys, sounds like there are a few of you that had some time on the B3's- so what'll the 'kite quiver' for this season then for winds between 12-30knots? Should it be 9 and 13M to be safe or would there be too much overlap?