Rider: Weight: 70kg Level: Advanced Strapless, unhooked
Style: Freeriding, Surf
Weather: 20-24knots (GPA seview)
Build Quality: 9/10
Satisfaction: 8/10
Disclosure: RPM rider for 3 years
Riding out at Point Moore Geraldton 1.5-2m swell Head high +1/2

My Comments:
Kite build quality is excellent, material feels tough (must be the double core ripstop) lots of Dacron to beef up construction. One pump system seems better than history suggests. Graphics look good in the sky. The kite feels solid in the sky, no flutter on the trailing edge no odd deformation when fully loaded under pressure edging hard (experienced this on many brands). Having flown an 8m as a big kite for the past 3years i did find the 9m a little slow to turn but 80% of the time i ride a 6m so i dismissed this as big kite syndrome. Nice and light pressure on the bar meant you don't have to be He-man to crank the kite round in a loop. Being a waverider i wanted a kite that would not only drift but also be fast through the turns as there is some degree of kite flying thats needs doing, this is why i chose the TS over the CABO, the CABO really is a park and ride dream but unless you live in cross off heaven its really not the kite for Geraldton. I tend to ride with quite slack back lines so rigged on the back knot and had an inch or two of trim max. Unhooked the kite flew great,let me ride the wave and parked when needed.

The Redline bar is comfortable for a extended sessions (4hrs yesterday) but be carefull if your grab the ends with your palms as i found them quite abrasive and could lead to soreness if touched to frequently. The bar ends are far to big, not needed in my eyes. Accidently triggered the safety yesterday whilst unhooked and the bar flew down the lines towards the little red stopper, yes great if your a noob and want to flag out the kite but for experienced riders this is overkill. Thankfully you can remove this system and fix both front lines together to flag out the old fashioned way. I also found the push away release a bit too easy to activate, would be nice to have stronger bungee's, Joe any ideas? Its not all negatives, the chicken loop and safety system itself is easy to put backtogether in the surf its a simple push and click. Again build quality spot on and no need to replace depower lines for a long long time due to the delrin insert!

In the box you get a Bag, laptop sleeve, generous amount of stickers, pump etc. Nice bag but too heavy for travelling. Thankfully best have thought about this and have included a ligtweight travel bag. Considering the trade in offer i got a great deal on 3 brand new kites 5,7 &9. Can't wait to get on the 5 in the summer & winter fronts, never getting blown of the water again!

Satisfaction is 8/10 due to some bits on the bar that i would have changed but with a little thought most things can be customized to suit your needs.

Never thought i would have had such a good time yesterday on her first flight, easily would have beat my 8m RPM in these conditions.

Any questions fire away.

The RP bar is a nice bar, but it has to follow the strict French standards for release weight and safety flag out system. This system is standard issue, but as most advanced riders make mods to their bars anyway, I can't see Best changing the rigging design in the future.

The new one pump system on the TS is great and no longer are there any zip ties or failures due to that style of system. The new plastic fasteners on the one pump tubes are welcomed. The material is the dual braid ripstop which is durable and less likely to stretch out over time.

Enjoy
Joe

Yep the one pump is spot on and super fast to pack away too none of this waiting for struts to sloooooowly deflate. Just last night changed over to a double front line flagging system, super easy, nice that Best left this an option for the more experienced.

i rode 12 not long ago, loved the design and the bar itself but wasn't a fan of the safety system and the construction around the bar... looked cheap and plastic i guess its quite standard after riding and teaching on cabrinhas... do you know whether there will be improvements to the bar and line setup for 2014?

just bought a 7m 9m and 12m Best TS V2,have not tried them out yet but I did try my mates 7m a few weeks ago in 26-28 kts,will let you know how they go

I'm assuming you are all talking about the TS V3. The latest version just relased is (Taboo Series) version 3.

Sorry i should have seen how old this topic is.

no i bought T2 2013 not the lastest 2014 kites

Come to think of it it the 2013 model is version 3.

I've been a Best fan for years and always loved the Waroos (except 2010 which was a total dud model) I bought the 2011 9m Best taboo and still have it. I was happy with the feel and control of the kite but dissapointed by the lack of grunt. I still have the kite and only use it instead of my 7m because it seems to be able to handle plenty of wind. I normally use a slingy RPM 9m for lighter days. Just wondering if the 2013 model has more grunt. Also the old waroos used to have a small gap with no stiching behind the leading edge of the centre strut which was great for a camera. Does the latest TS have this gap?

Funny how the Taboo series has dropped off the Taboo as version 1.

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billykiter said..

Funny how the Taboo series has dropped off the Taboo as version 1.

Legal threats from Tabou windsurfing I believe!

Yep the TS series named kites are just (serious) upgrades of the original BEST Taboos which had to be renamed due to some rather stupid naming rights legal issues.
IMO the most UNDER-RATED kites on the market. Every demo has produced huge smiles and its the full package when looking beyond performance delivery to issues like build quality, warranty back-up etc.
Should be way more Best TS kites out there.
Demo Demo Demo - if you are seriously chasing a great all-rounder that excells in surf then the Best TS should be on your list.

Just like to amend that I'm now riding on the Best Cabo as it offers better unhooked performance to suit my style of riding (park & ride). But if your into driving the kite around on a surfboard for huge power hacks and spray then the TS does this very well! The TS does unhook on waves just needs a little tweeking on the depower to get it in the sweet spot, and these days have retired from freestyle so no need for a crossover. Any TS/Cabo/Kahoona questions do fire away and I'll try best to help you out.

The 2011 taboo had no centre strut for the smaller sizes including the 9mI know the latest ts have a centre strut. There a small gap of stitching behind this strut to allow for the wrap around for a camera mount? The old waroos had this gap so they were great for a camera mount. The slingshot rpm doesn't have this gap. I would be keen on a new ts if they have the gap.

The gap should be about 100mm of no stitching behind the centre strut just behind where it connects to the leading edge.

Hey Austin. Have you ridden the Cabo 7mt and smaller ?
Was wondering what they are like in the higher winds in surf.
Heard that better to go for the TS in the under 9mt Cabo size.

Yeah I have a 7 and 5 Cabo, was out on my 5 last weekend when other guys were riding 10 s on twin tips. They go really well in strong winds as your on a smaller kite sooner, would be riding the 5 in 25knots and up, but I don't like to be super powered up. Unhooked you can fly them around like trainer kites If the conditions aren't suited to park and ride. Can't wait for the summer days of 25-30 knots on a 5m.

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austin said...
Just like to amend that I'm now riding on the Best Cabo as it offers better unhooked performance to suit my style of riding (park & ride). But if your into driving the kite around on a surfboard for huge power hacks and spray then the TS does this very well! The TS does unhook on waves just needs a little tweeking on the depower to get it in the sweet spot, and these days have retired from freestyle so no need for a crossover. Any TS/Cabo/Kahoona questions do fire away and I'll try best to help you out.

Hey Austin why does my wife have small kahoonas, when I like big ones

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cauncy said..

austin said...
Just like to amend that I'm now riding on the Best Cabo as it offers better unhooked performance to suit my style of riding (park & ride). But if your into driving the kite around on a surfboard for huge power hacks and spray then the TS does this very well! The TS does unhook on waves just needs a little tweeking on the depower to get it in the sweet spot, and these days have retired from freestyle so no need for a crossover. Any TS/Cabo/Kahoona questions do fire away and I'll try best to help you out.

Hey Austin why does my wife have small kahoonas, when I like big ones

Maybe their a representation of your own 'kahoonas', better man up and go dragon slaying!

took my new Best 12m TS v2 out yesterday,

wind was light,maybe 15kts,

its slightly more powerful than my old 12m and I was able to go upwind easier but it was slower to turn than my old 12m,but maybe that was because its a brand new kite and I was being cautious,did not want to get it wet

there was only wind for about an hour so I wasnt fully used to it,need to ride it a bit more to fully get the feel of it,

the bar felt great,very comfortable but maybe might of been better off with the 57cm rather than the 52cm bar,but I only wanted one bar and the 52cm is the medium bar so should be good for the 9m and the 7m

it looked great in the sky and had nice direct handling,was pretty stoked with it

unfortunately the wind forecast looks bad ,real bad,so I may have to head off somewhere else to get wind and try out my 9 and 7m TSs

Hello,

I'm searching for some opinion on best kites (2013 edition since it's on sale at this moment).

I ride strappless with side-on mainly, some side-off when lucky (70-30)

I have a 2 quiver kite. Smallest is a Kah7,5 v3 which I enjoy very much riding it when the wind hits 25knots or so. My biggest used to be a Kah11,5 that I bought one year ago and sold last week. I didn't like it and understood that seldom are the times where I go in with 15knots. the kite was heavy and slow for side-on surf. It frustrated me and was not a good choice.

I realized that I need to come one size down, but can't decide wether a kah+10.5 or a TS10 would be the better choice.
This would be a kite for the next 2 years, and the improvments I foresee on my riding would be start unhooking and riding the board more and more.

My doubts: kah10.5 would that have the same syndrom of the 11.5, heavy and slow? for unhooking, kite steering how would that be? on a 2 year time, won't it be a stopper for progression?
On the other hand some say that a 10m bow (ts) would be too close to the 7,5 and would have doubts most of the time.

what do you say from your experience?

Kahoona dont do a 10.5

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zzzzz said..

Kahoona dont do a 10.5

kahoona no, kahoona+ yes

light wind and you want performance then go for the 10m TS, most underrated kite out there, super fast steering, light bar pressure, and great drift, no bull, if there is a better 10m let me know, I've ridden most and there's a heap of totally bull**** reviews coming through!!!

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pumpnjump said..

light wind and you want performance then go for the 10m TS, most underrated kite out there, super fast steering, light bar pressure, and great drift, no bull, if there is a better 10m let me know, I've ridden most and there's a heap of totally bull**** reviews coming through!!!

thanks for the input. i'm leaning to the ts no doubt.

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billykiter said..

Sorry i should have seen how old this topic is.