Manufacturer:

Flexifoil

Model:

Sabre 2

Sizes:

5, 7, 9.5, 12M (Review based on the 9.5)

Type Of Kite:

Non – Water Re-launchable Depowerable Foil

Introduction:

This is the second generation of Sabre to come from Flexifoil, and it seems that Flexfoil have listened to the feedback generated by the original model. With this new kite comes a new safety feature, simpler bridle and also a set of bridle adjustments to alter the kites performance.

Packaging, Style + Construction:

As to be expected a new kite means a newly designed bag, now as one person commented 'it's like the Ipod, all the kids are going to want one as its white and trendy'. I'm not too convinced on the white look, it does look amazing fresh out the packet but i'll report back next season to see how it fares, there are enough adjustments to allow you to place the bar on the inside or outside of the bag along with a few pockets for keys and the such.

What makes this bag useful to actual have with you when riding is the port that allows for a hydration tube to pass from the inside of the bag through the back to you, without getting tangled. Nifty, but we'll move on to the kite as after all thats the reason you buy a Sabre 2, not just for the bag alone.

The kite has multiple reinforced points throughout the canopy and the traditional gauze over the air intakes, it appears as though there is more internal ribbing throughout the kite to allow for it to keep its profile well even in some of the light winds we tested it in.

As with the BladeIV's there are rings on the wingtips, part of the bridle that runs through this section goes to a bridle adjustment set of knots, which alter the speed of turn and also the apparent stability of the kite (note: we never found an issue with stability but I'm assuming they are saying that a quicker turn can have the possibility of reducing the stability of the planform).

The Bar is ultra grippy, with the usual features such as elastic on the ends and such forth, what makes it different from most the other contenders on the market is the 5th line running through it, but more on that later. Also the old clamcleat system has been replaced by the trimstrap as seen on Flexifoil's kitesurfing range, the primary safety has changed to a simple push away safety - no more fiddly loops to set back up!

Setup and Flying:

This kite was setup on the shores of wales on a 'no wind' day of KiteJam, so plenty of time to ensure things were tiptop. The kite itself just needs the lines attaching to it, so once the lines which are preattached to the bar and then sorted (remembering we now are dealing with 5 not 4 lines as last year) it's simply a matter of rechecking then hooking in and in my case running! Even in a nonexistent breeze the kite managed to keep it shape throughout the turns.

When flying the kite in more wind I can certainly say once you give it a tug on the centre line to get it off the ground(or walk back) it likes to stay in the air, the turn can seem slow at first before you get used to where is best to position the bar for the current trim.

So now, I was up and flying for a while, it was time to properly checkout this 'total' kill safety, 5th line on a foil. At first I thought surely this would be a disaster and the kite would spiral, here I was all hooked in, and leashed in. One push of the red primary safety and the bar flew away the 5th line attached to the leash the bar travels and stops part way up the 5th line. Meanwhile you see the wingtips of the kite collapse behind the kite and the trailing edge fold up too. In all of my tests the most that occured was the kite did one full twist (I.e anticlockwise). To reset you just need to pull the 5th line back in reset the safety walk backwards and unspin the bar if required. Also a there is no big crossover bridle to worry about the chances of anything catching at the kite end are very low.

Overall I was impressed so far, the traditional and still a recommended method to bring the kite down to land is to use the back lines and pull on a landing line. This seemed to bring it down gently too with not too much effort. However on doing a reverse launch you need to use this line, and in that situation I did on a few occasions have trouble trying to coax the kite to turn over once it had reversed up the window, and the line was pulling with more force than I expected.

Don't forget it's easy to go unhooked too as the kite comes with the leash so you can clip on and start working on your muscles!

Jumping:

So we know that we can get the kite up, land it, use the safety all fine. How does it perform when you want to be in the air, thats what everybody wants to know. The word from the designers is that they had given the kite more stability, (which from earlier we know is true), they said it also gave more hangtime (I.e float), and also height.

I was an ex-sabre owner, so I was looking forward to getting tuned back in with these kites as I had been away to the darkside of the Arcs for a little while.

The timing felt totally different to my old kite, and I admit I got spanked by it a few times. The kite has been giving me more airtime than I've expected (I'm not going to specify this into seconds or height as thats all dependant on many factors), it was treating me nice after a while. It still took some time to get the redirect 'dialed' and I am certain that I was going higher than before on my old Sabre, someone has asked me if it has 'aggressive lift' and I would reply no to that comment, and personally I don't think it's a factor I would look for in a kite.

Final Summary:

Now, I personally think that the only negative I can find with this kite is the force that the reverse launch sometimes needs. Though I'm compelled to say that the ease of using the trim strap, the safety systems etc negate that as factoring in as a major negative, instead i'd call it a minor personal issue with how I like my kites.

As with all kites, I'm an advocate for believing its not whether a kite will do the things you want it do do, it's more will you get on with the kite. You must seriously try and find a local flyer with one of these, or a shop. Once you have done that then you will know if it suits your flying style.

Personally I'm glad that I went for this kite, from say 7mph to the high 20's are easily covered for me now, and that's just right for me.

Reviewer:

rasga @ KiteATB.co.uk

Pictures: