Turbine
Slingshot Turbine 2014 Review
With the ever changing times we have today, there’s always something to discover beyond the horizon. We’re never content with what we have, we strive for something new, something better and something that will take us closer to the edge. It doesn’t matter if it’s a minor difference or a major one, it’s still a step towards achieving our goal and even surpassing it.
The 2014 Slingshot Turbine 17 meter light wind kite (a free ride light wind kite) has delivered on its promise of more days on water. With 10-12km/h wind, you won’t be standing on the beach anymore, you’d be on your board with your new Slingshot Turbine and it lets you stay on the water even if the wind is picking up. There are a number of improvements on the new design: it now has a direct bridle, mini strut and 5th strut on the wing tip, lighter weight construction. The progressive open delta C design updated with a new bridle 5 point cascading bridle attachment system which gives you a consistent smooth feel and specific control over the power. The new design gives a more powerful grunt without sacrificing riding speed, efficiency or upwind performance. The long lines allows for a long power stroke and you can bet with it’s quality build, it’s gonna last forever -or at least for a very long time. This kite is good for those who are into wakestyle, freestyle, or if you just want to go out there and enjoy the waves.
| FEATURES | |
| OPEN DELTA C-DESIGN PLATFORM | The kite’s a higher aspect ratio in combination with speed improves the lift rather than the angle of attack. The new shape allows the kite to fly forward in the wind window while freeing up the wing tips to prevent the kite from being oversheeted. |
| SPLITSTRUT INTEGRATED DESIGN | The kite has only 3 struts and is very light, yet it’s built in quality material for increased stability and canopy shaping control. This kite will not drop down from the sky in the first case and the lighter profile makes is easy to water relaunch. Another plus is that this kite doesn’t take much room once packed down |
| REFLEX WINGTIP | The free pivot wingtips work as natural regulators and open up by the wind to extend the apparent wind range. |
| CONNECT FORWARD ATTACHMENTS | The steering lines have a direct connection with the forward “sweet spot” geometry of the kite. Three different settings enables you to fine tune the bar settings for desired bar pressure and turning speed. |
| WINGTIP STRUTS | The struts have a conical shape to decrease drag and for a more efficient control. |
| LOWPROFILE WINGTIPS | This is a proven design for faster turning speed similiar to the one to Rally. It also reduces drag and hence make the kite even more high performing. |
| ADDITIONAL ATTACHMENT POINT | Use the additional attachment points for optimal performance in super-light wind. |
| AUTO-TRIM TRAILING EDGE | This design feature automatically reduces the risk for oversheeting and virtually makes it impossible backstall the kite while still allowing the panels to open and flex. |
| CASCADING 5-POINT BRIDLE | The bridles are free from pulleys which not only reduce the total weight (only with a few grams, but still every gram counts for light wind kites) but also gives you a more consistent and smooth bar feeling throughout the power stroke when you sheeting the bar in. |
| TRI-TECH PROTECTION | Strategically placed reinforcements such as mark cloth and neoprene, individual scuff guards and ballistic kevlar protect the kites most vulnerable areas and optimize the kites durability and life length. |
| LEGENDARY SLINGSHOT CONSTRUCTION | Slingshot has always been known for their bullet proof kite constructions and the Turbine is not an exception. The newest high tec and strongest materials are used throughout the kite. Everything from the Leading Edge, canopy, bladders to the smallest trim details are made with the best excisting materials. Nothing has been left to chance |
| SLINGSHOT ONE PUMP | One pump systems are standard these days and the Turbine is of course also equipped with Slingshots patented single point inflation system to spare your time on beach and maximize the time in the water. |
| LIFETIME RIDER SUPPORT HOTLINE | If things still go wrong connect directly to Slingshots competent and helpful customer support. |
“The turbine has three attachment points to adjust for bar pressure and kite turning speed. Personally, I like to ride on the middle setting giving me a firm feel yet still quite fast turning for a 17meter kite.” – Tucker from MACkite
The 2015 Slingshot Turbine will be released in February 2015. If you don’t have a local Slingshot store in your area then a recommended online store for European kitesurfers is
0Slingshot Turbine 2012 Review
This year Slingshot has come up with the new Turbine kite which is much lighter in kind. If you enjoy light wind surfing then this is one of the best kites that you can use to stay on the water and have fun. The minimum wind speedfor the Turbine is around 4 -5 knots which basically can get you up and riding when everyone else give up. The bladder material used on the turbine 2012 kite has been lighter by 25 % this time with reduced size on the struts and the smaller diameter used for the edges. The kite works fine in lighter winds due to the increased aspect ratio of the kite surface which is given a glider feel for the wind turbine shape of its. A new concept has also been introduced in the kite wings this time which is called Free-twist tip. On the technology part which Slingshot has worked on this kite so much to add a list of new features which helped to make this surfing kite a lighter and faster one. We would like to review each one by one.
On the wingtips and the edge panels the steering line is attached which has given the extra narrow wind rage for the kites and also the panel to twist when required. This actually helped the kite to acquire wider wind range and a quicker mechanism to turn around. The kite design is given a more delta-C shaped one to acquire higher speed and move it in the forward window directions. The struts situated on the bars have also been integrated to a 3 strut design called the integration of split strut, which has given a more rigid and stable structure to the bars for control. Since the material is light, it helps in the water re-launching of the kite n-number of times due to its flexibility. The wing tip struts are redesigned to give a conical tapering shape for efficient control of the kite. To increase the efficiency of the kite the trailing edges has been made flexible to both the opening and closing. The steering of the kite has also been given a boost with improved power steering plan. Here the power is delivered at the wingtip so that the steering of the kite is smooth and this in turn reduces the pressure of the bar to give top performance while surfing.
The kite uses the single point inflation procedure which is totally a patented product of the Slingshot Company itself. The makers also took care of the affected areas of the kite and they have put scuff guards on those places to make the kite quite durable. Included stuff like Neoprene, Mark Cloth and ballistic Kevlar on those places. Any users who have faced any issues or have queries can directly contact the personnel from Slingshot as the customer care people are very friendly and assist the users in the best possible ways. The design part of the kite has been totally upgraded so much to give a better look, lighter to use and higher is performance and efficiency. This has basically helped to make the Turbine 2012 kite to be lighter and faster and user friendly. I am sure this will be a surely loved by Kite surfers all round the world.
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