Rider: komaExperience: Intermediate/AdvancedWeight: 78kg dryStyle: Freestyle, a bit of wake, and a bit of free ride etcBoard: '09 Nobile NHP 666 134x42Conditions: 18-22kn gusting to ~25, low tide and a bit choppy/sloppyAffiliations: None at presentOther: Thanks to Tony @ RalInnovations for the demo of both of these kites.
Epic SCREAMER 10m Limited Edition 2010
The Epic Screamer Limited Edition is a kite that i'd heard a fair bit about and had been told that it's one of the most powerful kites around for it's size. In short, it is. If you want to stop reading and go buy one now, please do... however there's a lot more to this kite than the raw power.
The KiteThe limited edition only comes in one size and one colour; 10 square metres of black. It's got some nice little details and graphics done in white which really make it a simple and subtle kite. Nothing flashy or over the top, very nicely done. All of the Epic kites are one pump with a nicely detailed inflation system with the hoses and hose clips all neatly held in place curving smoothly from the leading edge to each individual strut. I didn't set the kite up (thanks Tony @ RalInn!) so i can't say how easy or quick the inflation was, but it looks like a pretty standard setup.The kite has a very small bridle which is attached on each side of the kite in four places. The left and right bridles are completely separate and do not meet at the top of the kite. There is one pulley on the lowest V at each side of the kite. The detailing on the pulley was a minor concern as if the line is pulled to one side it can load up the pulley unevenly. I would hope in future revisions that the attachment line will be at 90 degree's to avoid this issues altogether.The rest of the kite appears to be of pretty 'standard' appearance with only the slight kinks in the leading edge towards the tips being notable features. Hidden in black, this kite really is a bit of a 'sleeper'.
Bar & LinesBar & lines are a nice design with a few positives and negatives. The good points are that there's a rotatable 'head' to the chicken loop assembly allowing you to untwist your lines very easily. Whilst on the water i untwisted them a couple of times with no issues. The integrated donkey dick seems to stay out of the way unless you want it engaged which was nice; well sized and stiff enough to stay in place without being difficult to engage/disengage. The depower setup is both nice and simple with it's pull to depower (labelled nicely!) and pull to power, however on a couple of occasions with large amounts of depower pulled in i had the problem of the depower toggle wrapping around steering lines. It wasn't in any way dangerous, just annoying that i'd have to untangle it. My most significant problem with the bar and lines setup is that the head of the chicken loop assembly doesn't have any sort of 'key' to hold it in position with the bar when unhooking. Other manufacturers have been doing this for a while now so i felt it was a step backwards. It may be because of the swivelling head to allow for untangling lines, but surely some small detailing would have allowed for both of these features.
Flying and on the waterAs soon as it was in the air you could tell that the Screamer Ltd meant business. It was a bit of a gusty day so the minimal depower and gust absorption may have been more apparent than had i been flying it in perfect conditions, but this is real world kiting. In the 18-22 knots i would have been flying my '09 Naish Torch 12 with a little bit of depower pulled; on the Screamer 10 Ltd i had alot of depower pulled and it was still pulling like a truck with cooked brakes on a steep slope headed towards a ravine... ok more dramatic description than i was intending, but it's powerful, very powerful. It's at this point that i actually forgot what size kite i was flying and just put it through it's paces... or tried to. It turns like a 9m and has the power of a 12, maybe even a 13.Diving the kite to get out of the water you notice that you get ripped out a little faster than usual, and if your a little too aggressive with getting going or downloop it through the window, it's akin to a roadrunner moment where you get whiplashed out with significant force.Boosting was a bit of a challenge for me as i found it difficult to hold down the power that it would generate from a quick flick back across the top of the wind window. Eventually i managed to get a few solid jumps in and was greeted with a nice floaty ride back down. It takes a while to get the timing right, but if/when you do your rewarded for your efforts.Thanks to the phenomenal turning speed, kiteloops (in 'normal' wind ranges) would be quite rewarding on the Screamer Ltd. It keeps a decent amount of power in the turns as it arcs around with a turning style which is very similar to many of the high-depower C-kites these days. As you come out of a turn or a kiteloop and straighten the bar up the Screamer Ltd accelerates and really pulls as it shoots across or back up through the wind window.Unhooking with a bit of depower pulled in... ok ALL the depower pulled in was still quite a fast and powerful experience. The kite (in this wind) had insane amounts of power and pop and was quite unforgiving. I have a tendency to occasionally pull on my back hand whilst pulling unhooked tricks and the Screamer Ltd took this as an invitation to dart straight up to 12 and then float me towards the beach at an alarming speed.
Safety & RelaunchThe safety is handled by way of a mini fifth line which you clip onto the small ring inside the chicken loop. When activated it pulled both front lines in about 3-4 feet which is enough to have the kite sail gently down to the water with almost no pull. Relaunch from this position is very easy; just pull the mini-fifth in enough to reach the bar, grab the chicken loop and hook back in. By the time i'd done that the kite was already sitting at the edge of the window waiting to be steered back up into the sky.On the other occasion i had to relaunch from directly downwind of me, it was as quick and simple as pulling in ~1 foot of steering line and the kite rolled over onto a wingtip ready for relaunch. Very quick and easy.I'd really love to have another crack at the Screamer Ltd 10m as i think it would be even more fun in a few knots less. I think my wind range for this kite would be ~17-20kn as it's sweet spot, which for a 10m is practically bonkers. I'm used to relying on 12m kites for that range.If your considering buying an Epic Screamer Ltd 10m then i'd definitely recommend trying it before you do as it's a very specialised kite for a very specific riding style.
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Epic RENEGADE 9m 2010After coming in with the Screamer Ltd 10m i had to ask Tony if he had anything smaller.'Oh, i've got the 9m Renegade but that's just their surf kite.' Well i'll still give it a try, and i'm very glad i did!This kite is quite simply sensational. It's like a comfy pair of shoes that Epic have strapped rockets to and then lit the fuse.
The KiteThe renegade has the majority of the same detailing as the Screamer Ltd and the regular Screamer, so i won't cover that again. The colour range is wider than just the black/white of the Screamer Ltd, and the one i took for a spin was white and bright green. Again simple graphics adorn the main sail.I think where i underestimated this kite the most is that whenever i see a kite with three struts i assume it's going to be just like an Ozone Light. Nothing wrong with an Ozone Light, but having owned one they're just a bit... boring. Thats where the rockets strapped to your old favourite shoes bit comes in.It turns like a 9m, because it is a 9m. It has the power of a ~9m, but it is a 9m. It's just honest about what it is and it's heritage, but that's where it all changes. The depower range on the Renegade is greater than the Screamer Ltd that i found a bit limited especially in the gusty conditions i tried it in. It's also more stable, and more pleasant to fly. It doesn't jump around, it doesn't feel unstable, it's solid and reliable.
Bar & LinesI used the same bar and lines as with the Screamer Ltd 10m, so refer to the Screamer Ltd review above.
Flying and on the waterSmooth, friendly, controllable, great unhooked pop, adequete depower - all the things that make a great freestyle kite. I can see why a few people are saying this is much more than just a wave kite because my time with it as a freestyle/wake kite certainly proved it to me.Boosting was much easier on this kite as i wasn't overpowered as i was on the Screamer Ltd 10m, so almost instantly i had the timing right and was getting some nice smooth floaty jumps. Redirecting for landing was very compliant and the timing for a smooth landing was incredibly flexible. As long as you brought it back over some time on your way down you were almost guaranteed a gentle reintroduction to the water.Unhooking is where this kite really shines! With a bit of speed the Renegade generates some sensational pop, more than enough to throw you to some decent heights... enough so that i managed to break the strap on my board (grumble grumble). Hooking back in is also no problem as the Renegade seems to give you a second worth of slack lines as it floats back readying itself to resume normal flight.Bar pressure is light/medium and feedback is medium, less than the Screamer Ltd but still ample enough that i rarely had to look at the kite.
Safety & RelaunchThe safety system is the same as the Screamer Ltd as i used the same bar and lines. The relaunch was also mostly the same as the Screamer Ltd but slightly quicker if that's possible! Where i mentioned before that the Screamer Ltd would move a little to one side of the window and wait to be relaunched, the Renegade did much the same but even quicker. It was just a matter of regaining composure and grabbing the bar and steering the kite back up off the water.
Taken from this web page:http://www.kiteforum.com/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=2360987&sid=555fbda5ac7132691680d0c1580d38e8&p=634432#p634432
