Kite Strings

Real nice tow setup you got there, Niki. I can see that a lot of thought and engineering went into it.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_sUcPYeKkdI

How many yanks does it take to release the bridle?

1:00

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rNq1WKy0EqE

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MyD4oL5dwWQ

450 lbs through two cables, so we're doubling that load of 450 lbs of lead shot.

Wonder why he didn't use 100 lbs with 4 or 5 pulleys and pull it by hand. More shot than pulleys?

Or a tree with a come-along to crank up the tension. But then you'd need something like:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/aerotowrelease/8317889807/

to gauge it.

(In my more primitive days I would winch things tight between a couple of Tulip Tree trunks and use multiple strands of 130 pound Greenspot as rough gauges.)

But what the hell... What a delight it is to see people doing things some flavor of right. Difference between a branch of aviation run by designers and pilots versus a lawyer and tandem thrill ride operators.

<BS> wrote:Wonder why he didn't use 100 lbs with 4 or 5 pulleys and pull it by hand.

I wonder why he bothered to do any load testing of the release. Perhaps it was something to do with not targeting hang glider idiots as his clientele.

A year later and it looks like they're having trouble duplicating that 900 load to actuation ratio of the glider release.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FODFtMmQaWs

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zpwMKgp7OPg

Bad Tow Worse Landing
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MP5-aSHvQZs
Net Mangler - 2016/07/18
dead

Oh well, at least you tried for the foot landing and that's the important thing.

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Edit - 2016/07/25 01:00:00 UTC

Apparently Mister Mangler has decided he no longer wishes people to see his flight. Well...

36-3720
http://c1.staticflickr.com/9/8162/28398133416_e2cb0ba124_o.png

38-3826
http://c1.staticflickr.com/9/8152/28398131716_8d8567b1d6_o.png

40-3907
http://c1.staticflickr.com/9/8687/28430757245_5f1b99e155_o.png

Tad
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http://www.kitestrings.org/post9540.html#p9540