10m 2010 Ozone "Access XT" bar replacement

My 2010 6m Ozone "Access XT" was my first depower kite and I love what it did for me. It really began my snowboard kiting experience. The complaints that my friends and I had about the kite mostly had to do with how fast it turned. Too fast, in fact, and so fast that it would require near constant attention via looking at the kite to see what it was doing. But I can say that I have learned to manage it fairly well, and I still have a use for the kite.

My 2010 10m Ozone "Access XT" was exactly the opposite in this department. I would be completely worn out from trying to turn the thing "all the way". I even caught myself going past "all the way" on a few occasions and felt really stupid about it since it actually turns the kite less when you cross your trim line with the bar ends. Two of my other kite friends had the same experience with the slow turning of this kite, especially when power stroking in a lull. So that is when I undertook the task of replacing the Ozone bar but keeping the Ozone lines.

Luckily and upon my request, I was sent a free HQ 60cm bar (without lines) with my purchase of another kite from my retailer Kitemare.com. Thanks Jeff!

The first task was to figure out how the bar end lines come apart. It turned out that this was the simple part. The bar end lines are simply looped together and can be taken apart and reassembled if you lay them out in an organized fashion. The center line, or trim line, was much more difficult. I quickly realized that removing the trim line from the bar would effectively destroy the trim line. So I almost quit there.

On a recent visit to the local sail boat shop, I found what I needed. They had some 6mm "Amsteel Blue" in a 10foot hank that was lying in the scrap rope bin. Bingo! This is exactly the brand and type that my kite retailer had recommended for replacement trim line. So I set to dismantle the Ozone trim line with a seam ripper and soon there was no going back. After a few knots and a sewn on stopper for the chicken loop knot (to match what Ozone had there) I was back in business except for the bottom stopper (above the chicken loop, below the bar). With the "Amsteel" being slightly larger than the original Ozone provided trim line, I had a "too small a hole" issue. This was solved by removing the black tube insert inside of the bottom stopper. I then replaced it with a flat piece of clear vinyl (PVC) sheet rolled around the "Amsteel" and inserted into the bottom stopper to give more thickness and provide a buffer between the set screws and the "Amsteel".

Now the kite turns like a dream and is no longer for cruising only. The extra 2 inches really made my 10m "Access XT" kite faster and less tiring to turn.

Good you have the sewing at the end of the knot....
I've done several as the wear out in time.

Paul
http://www.PBKiteboardiing.com