does anyone have feedback about the new bandit and also last years 07 model does it perform well etc.etc.There is alot of new kites coming on the scene making it damned hard to make a choice!

hey philthy1 what sizes u got and give us the low down on some performance issues does it have a wide wind range thru all sizes etc.
stitching and quality etc. hey thks for the links its tops.

hi the bandit has huge range and its extremly grunty i sell them so some would say im one eyed but I also sell all the other brands so it dosnt make mutch diff to me . Ive found im flying them more & more
its got good water relaunch and saftey and turns real fast even the big ones. Havent had any problems yet (except web site) ive even used them in my school and still no probs
Hope this helps

I just brought the new F-one Bandit 11m... have flown it a couple of times between 12-18kts... Wikid kite to fly compared to my old C... so easy to re-launch - GOLD! ...just curious if anyone else who has one, or has flown one, of these kites has had any issues with the clam cleat depower system... I found it a bit hard to release when I wanted to sheet out. Might just be a new thing but thought I'd suss if anyone had any techniques or experience with this system?

quote:

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Originally posted by Bradools

I just brought the new F-one Bandit 11m... have flown it a couple of times between 12-18kts... Wikid kite to fly compared to my old C... so easy to re-launch - GOLD! ...just curious if anyone else who has one, or has flown one, of these kites has had any issues with the clam cleat depower system... I found it a bit hard to release when I wanted to sheet out. Might just be a new thing but thought I'd suss if anyone had any techniques or experience with this system?

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Most of the cleats seem a little difficult when they are new (not bandit, but all others I have tried) and get better over a period of time.

Good point saffer, totally agree ......... same goes for bow kites and hybrids They definitly get smoother and easier to operate after 3 or 4 sessions.

I'm keen to get on this gear but at the moment old Elvis's bank account would come in handy.All in all could be right the most sought after kite 2008 .really waiting to see what develops out of the competition base of riders on this kite.

hey
I had a go on the 11m bandit the other day and comin from the Tribal II i found it was much smoother, faster when you want it to be and not so other times and it also boosts really good. I gave the auto relaunch ago and i found that it worked fine for me came straight to the side ready for me to launch it
And i also found the cleat thing to work really well much quicker and smoother than the strap.

sam

I demoed the 13 Bandit at Peli point in about 10-12 knots Last week. I was riding the M8 super light wind board and cound go upwind no probs. I weigh 100kg's and am only just past beginner stage......I found it to be pretty grunty compared to my 04 boxer 12. I went out and bought the Bandit 11m. Absolutely love it !!! Took it to safety bay on friday last week. Riding in 15-20knot winds going upwind on full depower (using my board - Force Matrix 142 '06 model). Would totally recommend giving it a try if you're interested in a new kite.

I'm going to put a rubber band onver the depower cleat same as the 08 rebel. The cleat slipped on me (once only!) resulting in full power. Gave me a bit of a fright but no harm done !

I did crash both the 13 and the 11. Relaunch is excellent. 13 relaunched no probs in negligable wind. 11 was at the edge of the window ready to be relaunched in 15-20 knots before I recovered from my stack. Awesome !!!!

'roast

Hey lam
what do u mean by a rubber band?

I had a go on Roasts brand new 11mtr Bandit (thanks for trusting me with your new toy) and was that impressed that I went out 2 days later and bought a 9mtr and 13mtr. I was hanging out to try them but the wind was less than 10knots, I pumped up the 13 and had a fly on the beach it launched straight away and was as stable as in wind that light that my previous kites would not have even got off the ground in.
I had a little go on my 9 at sunset this arvo in less than 20knots and was going no worries on my 132 (I weigh 95kgs), I can't wait to have a decent ride and will post a review when I do.

Hey Sam,

Just a Rubber band, actually the north bit I'm talking about is more like a girls hair tie. It goes around the bottom of the depower cleat and over the depower strap. Keeps the line close to the cleat when you are pulling it out to put more power on. I'll explain when I see you on the beach next.

'roast

I used to love the Cleat on my Airblasts.
They do actually require a slight bit extra thought when using but once your brain is taught the new move, they do offer a more compact system.

Been flying the 9 and 11 constantly from 10-30kts with no wuckin furries @ all

F-One got it right his time for sure - jump forever - easy in waves - ALL GOOD

Oh, can you say new World Speed Record ????

hey philthyone can you give us some indepth view of your association with the 11 bandit and all the dirty details please.

hi jimmy george here Ive flown 7.5 ,9,11 & 13 you can ride the 13 from
8 knots to 20 something deepends on how high you want to jump and how hard you can edge.Ive used the release in 25knots pluss on my 13 to self land and it all worked good.

adventuresports.net.au

just tried the bandit yesterday, and i think i am in love. Have flown the naish torch for the past couple or years and this thing beats the crap out of it!!!!was flying the 13m in approx 24-30kts (i am bout 100kgs and i was pretty lit up) and i could not get over how easy this thing is to fly and relaunch. As soon as i got on it, it just oozes confidence and ease of flying. Good boost and makes popping off the water easy for some nice loopy rolls so easy!!!. It turns so smooth and the power generated is such a consistent power.The bar on new kites is way better than the old tribal which i demo'd last year,and to me the way that F-one have set up the four line kite with simplicity of five line for the leash is brilliant. In all the best kite i have every flown!! Would recommend this kite to anyone.

Cheers and good wind to all.

Blake Reichelt
Whyalla SA

www.seabreeze.com.au/gallery/gallery.asp?imageid=6420

He certainly looks warry must be because the pop could be explosive!!!

Rode the 11m today in 18-25kt wind.

Good: Loads of pull, nice hang, big boosts, wicked looking kite.

Bad: Couldnt see anything bad about it. If i had to grasp straws i would say that the bar pressure is a little heavy, but it isnt intolerable. And it is an expensive kite...

Im pretty positive i will be buying the 13m for my next kite.

Rode the same kite briefly in the same conditions. Briefly because at 70 kg. I was feeling like I had too much kite up in the air when the gusts hit. Strange considering it was an 11m. Perhaps the kite could have been tuned differently to get a bit more top end out of it. Not sure? Trim strap pulled right in at the depower cleat. When I hopped back on my Rebel 12 I still had at least 50-60% depower up my sleeve. The other reason I decided to give it back is that I didn't like the huge dangling loop hanging off the bar. Similar to North's microloop & hook combination but at least twice as big with no 'rigidity' for lack of a better word. Did I mention that it just dangles off the bar? It got caught twice on the large hook positioned at base of the chicken loop when I didn't want it to, keeping the bar in the fully sheeted position. I also had visions of my little fingers getting all tangled up in it unexpectedly. Too me, unsafe and basically a recipe for disaster. Having said that, I was later told you can flip the hook around so there is less chance off the large dangly loop catching on it. Not sure if you can do this on the fly, or if you have to adjust the bar setup before you head out on the water. Anyway... if I owned the kite the first thing I would do is cut that loop off!

Onto the positive... as I said I only flew the kite briefly (hope to have another decent go on it), but first impressions is that it is very easy to boost, and offers great hang. Also felt stable thru the gusts and turned well - nice and direct.

Fist of all hi to all, as I have just registered. Buschy the f.one microloop, which you didn’t like, you can remove it from the bar. The bandit which I test it had no microloop.

Now concerning the bandit I had the opportunity to test it this weekend. I currently fly Cabrinha Contra 12 2007 and Switchblade I 9. My main board is a Carved Imperator III Generation 11 130x42 and I am 79Kg. I like the kite lots and I found it really well behaved, even on the gusty wind we have in the inland lake were I kitesurf. The kite fly nice in the air and it is not nervous. The only think that I have to agree with the Buschy is that I didn’t found the top end so satisfying. For a point the wind picked at 28-32 Knots (the air was also cold, around 10C ), I had the kite fully depowered and I felt that the kite was on its limit. With my switchblade I 9 I have kited in stronger wind with no problems. The f.one dealer told me later on that if I shorten the frond lines I can get a better depower, I will have to test that next time I test the kite. Generally the kite jumps well, is fast, I really like it but the top end is one of my worries. Like I said before I will have to test is once more in order to test the high end and get used to it in general, as its flying way different than my Cabrinha. By the way I really like the 5 line safety, which by the way is one of the points where Cabrinha is behind in safety. Can someone comment on the top end of the kite please?

Good winds and ride safe.

The bandit comes out of the bag with the front line adjustment set on the last knot ie maximum power, if you move the front line down a couple of knots you will find it has heaps more top end and lots of adjustment still available via the depower.
Once you have flown it a few times you get to know where to set the front line before you launch so you can get maximum power with the bar just about fully sheeted in and have heaps of depower up you sleeve.
Not recommended for beginners but if you are careful and know what you are doing you can rest the kite on it's wingtip on the beach at the edge of the window pull in on the front line and adjust the front line setting and relauch with ease.
The more I fly this kite the more I like it.

I am almost sure that the f.one bandit will be my kite for 2008. However I don’t know which sizes I shall buy for a 2 kite quiver. Basically I am looking for something to replace my Cabrinha Switchblade I 9 and Contra Bow 12. Where I kite is really gusty (is an inland lake) so the quiver sizing is really important. I am 79Kg, intermediate and I have two boards, a Carved Imperator 130x42 and a Skywalker Dimitri Pro 135x48. By the way with my current 2 Cabrinha kites and 2 boards I can kite from 13 till 35 knots, so I hope that with 2 bandit kites I can cover the same wind range.

Many thanks

Just a quick note to say that Melburn now has and F1 dealer...me....i have a 13M Bandit demo and for the kitebeach demo day will also have a 11 @ 9M
You can contact me at info@emlkiteboarding.com
The store isnt set up yet but soon you will be able to drop in and check out some gear, i will announce when EML kiteboarding officially opens. I am down at Brighton and St KIlda just look for the matt black ute with F1 and EML signage. You can also take a look at www.emlkiteboarding.com

cheers

Hi Kripper
George from noosa here i recommend a 13 & a 9 i've used them all extensively the 13 has huge range once you know how to adjust it I'm 70kg & I can ride it in the surf from 9knots up to 22 plus, truth is if I didn't have 9 i'de probably try even higher its very grunty but seems to have more range than I expected any other questions just email or ring

have fun
George

The Bandits are great kites for wave-riding and jumps,top wind range, control, super simple bar,strong build quality kite, but! and it's a worrying but, the bridle material is wearing out fast(5 sessions) where it travels over the rollers. Apparently the go is to first of all swap the bridle connections to spread the wearing and then get yourself some back up chord from a chandlery until F-One land some better quality bridle lines or bridle-pulley combos in Oz.
I am bummed at not being able to relax at my local cross-off spots with my beautiful new kites. Hopefully the right set-ups arrive in the country in days rather than weeks.

lol had a guy on a ss try and tell me the new bandit is a bow kite......LOL

quote:

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Originally posted by ran

lol had a guy on a ss try and tell me the new bandit is a bow kite......LOL

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technically it might be. according to bruno's patent definition it requires a bridle on the leading edge and a concave trailing edge. Looking at the Bandit, it has both, even if the bridle is more simplistic.

ahh come on, its a C kite...its not really a bridle...geeze..lol

looks more like Mat Pendles's KPO than a bow kite bridle!

maybe it's an original idea and that's why the Bandit has a patent?