Hal's
Blue Moon "Mamba Standard"
(Custom Design & Colors)

Last Updated January 15, 2007.
Click on the photos for enlargement.
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Introduction
Ken McNeil, owner of Blue Moon Fabrications, made this custom designed kite in August 2004.  It is the 437th Mamba produced and is a real work of art, and flies like one too!  Ken charged a little extra for the custom colors and to stitch in the three white stars: well worth the investment in my opinion.

Dimensions
The width of this kite is 95" (or 7' 11") from tip to tip.  This is 2" wider than the Blue Moon specs.  When stood on end, its overall height is 45", which is 7" taller than my Nirvana.  The tail of the spine is 9" above the ground, which gives this kite a tall full profile.  The outside standoff is the longer of the two per side, measuring 11" from sail to inside edge of lower spreader bar.

Flight Characteristics
This is a standard wind kite, designed for precision competition.  However, it can do a lot of freestyle tricks.  However, I find it difficult to make this kite do a yoyo.  It flies in a very wide wind range, which can be increased on the high wind end by the use of air brakes (left side, third photo down).  Also, it has a large sail for its weight, so it flies very well with very little wind.  In fact, it can easily stay in the air with less wind than it takes to fly Patrick's Benson Gemini Ultralight.  When this kite is flying in its sweet spot, it will do nearly every trick I can through at it.  Since it has virtually no over-spin, it can be pulled out of a spin and pointed exactly where you want it to go.  It does graceful flat axels and all of the coin tosses with ease.  I especially like the way it handles a "ground toss".

I use 150# line on my Mamba because this kite can be a real monster.  In a strong wind, it will try to lift me off the ground, pulling me several steps forward before I can get my footing.  In fact, Patrick's only complaint about our Mambas is that after flying in a strong wind for awhile, his wrists hurt.  Personally, I like piloting a powerful kite.  It is fun to lean back at a 45 degree angle when flying in a STRONG wind.

Details
The photos to the left, are of my Mamba's construction.  The top left photo depicts the thin spars that are used to support the trailing edge of the sail near the tips.  I believed this detail to be flimsy when I first received the kite.  However, these spars have not been damaged in two years of reckless flying.  The second photo from the top is linked to a page that details a problem that I had with my Mamba's spine.  The lower two photos show the after-market air brakes that I use in strong winds.

Closing Thoughts
Of all of the kites that Patrick and I own, I prefer three.  My Mamba is number one... Patrick's Nirvana Standard (the red one) is number two... and Patrick's Quantum Pro is number three.  (Note that I too own a Nirvana but prefer the nuances of Patrick's over mine.  Patrick also owns a Mamba and I prefer mine over his.  Each of these kites have different characteristics but of all 26 stunt kites, these three are the most fun and functional... in my humble but incredibly accurate opinion... LOL.  Needless to say, I am not an expert pilot and I am sure that there are adjustments to be made to make all of these kites fly even better.

There are many kites that neither of us have flown yet, with new designs coming out regularly.  Hopefully Patrick's enthusiasm will not wane and he will continue to enlarge his kite bag!

If you have questions about this or other kites on this Web site, please feel free to email Patrick or me.  If we can, we will be happy to answer your questions.
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