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Sea Devil
Specs
HistoryThe Sea Devil was the 10th kite I purchased used from a friend. I have one of the early "deluxe" models signed and numbered #16. Introduced in 2005 by Lam Hoac, this kite has generated quite a bit of interest in its first year. Many top US competitive fliers have switched entirely to the Sea Devil. It is a high aspect ratio kite that is a little faster and trickier than the Nirvana, but is in the same class in that it is truly capable of all the tricks, is very well balanced and handles exceptionally well in all positions. ConstructionThe Sea Devil is very well constructed. Though it is not made of Icarex like many other top kites (except for the UL model) the heavy gauge poly sail is remarkably strong and wear resistant. The trailing edge is very well reinforced to allow for roll-up and turtle maneuvers which the Sea Devil excels at. My deluxe model also features the competition nose, which is a special shiny material applied the whole length of the nose down past the yo-yo stoppers. This results in a perfectly smooth nose that is almost totally immune to snags during roll-ups. The 5 point spreaders and skyshark frame are strong enough for standard use, though I also have a set of optional 7 pt spreaders to use for high winds. The bridle is a cored dacron turbo bridle that stands up well to heavy use. TuningMy Sea Devil came with standard tail weights installed. I did add about 10g to it which helped a bit with fades and roll ups in high/bumpy winds. There was no noticeable loss of precision from the extra weight, and some owners have added considerably more tail weight to their Sea Devil's with good results. I have not needed to modify the bridle other than to add some extensions to it to avoid wear during yo-yo's. In FlightThe Sea Devil is an outstanding performer with a well deserved reputation. Low wind performance - down to about 4mph - is surprisingly good considering it is a very high aspect kite. However, the kite is equally at home in fairly high winds, and I prefer it slightly over my Nirvana in higher winds. Pull does not increase dramatically with wind speed, so the kite is still able to do many tricks well in the 10-15 mph range, even without wind brakes. The Sea Devil requires smaller inputs than the Nirvana, but is still very predictable in all positions and to all inputs. The speed and tempo of the kite is a bit quicker and it "feels" smaller than the Nirvana - reacting a bit more like my STX 2.1 than a larger kite. However in proper conditions you can slow it down quite a bit - so perhaps it is somewhere in between the STX 2.1 and Nirvana in terms of speed and tempo. It does not have the same slow motion grace of the Nirvana during axel maneuvers, but it has significant advantages in yo-yo and backspin maneuvers. I would place the Sea Devil just a hair behind the Nirvana for precision. While the Sea Devil will track a line with ease, and corners well it is just a tiny bit more sensitive than the Nirvana in cornering and tracking. That does not mean it is any slouch - you can easily fly a precision pattern with the Sea Devil and it has no tendency to oversteer, even with substantial tail weight. Axels are smooth and predictable. It does require a bit of setup for a full 360 axel, but with proper slack management even very slow axels are possible. Spin axels, coin toss and other axel maneuvers can be done either slow or fast. The 540 looks great with any reasonable setup. Turtle maneuvers are easy to enter and exit. The Sea Devil performs very well on its back - making lazies and multilazies a snap. Fade performance is also very stable and easy to enter - either from a broken axel or pancake. The Sea Devil backspins a little easier than the Nirvana and it is not hard to do a dozen or more spins without losing much altitude. The Sea Devil also excels at yo-yo and pitch maneuvers - performing these in a blink of an eye. For example on a lateral roll from a fade can snap into a yo-yo with one quick snap, and the kite pitches so fast it will be recovering before you even realize it has rolled up. With the deluxe nose, it is also easy to hit the yo-yo stoppers every time - the line just slides right into place. Overall ImpressionA worthy new competitor for the Nirvana in the battle for top kite. Quick, agile and tricky it provides the alter ego to the slower, large-input Nirvana. The Sea Devil requires slightly smaller inputs, rolls up faster, yet still has remarkable performance in every position and every trick. It has its own feel quite distinct from other top kites. Like the Nirvana, the Sea Devil is truly a "jack of all trades" in the kiting world. The kite has remarkably good precision and tracking, smooth cornering, stops on a dime, yet transitions into tricks quickly. Inputs and reactions are measured and predictable in every case. Better than the Nirvana? It really comes down to personal taste - the character of the Sea Devil is much different than the Nirvana. The Sea Devil sports slightly smaller inputs, faster rollups, a bit of a smaller kite feel, while retaining all of the capability you can pack into a top tier competition kite. The Nirvana has larger inputs, slower tempo, larger "graceful" feel and a longer history in competition but does not roll up or backspin as quickly. They are both clearly in the "world's best kite" class. I learn different lessons from each one every time I fly them, and would not necessarily trade one over the other. I also have this lingering feeling that the Sea Devil might provide just a bit more room to grow than the Nirvana - though I don't yet have the skills to fully exploit the potential that is there. Pro
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