What I want to do

I set out to test out a setup pretty similar to the Mini Kite Kit the Public Lab Kits initiative has been piloting -- which folds up into a fabric bag, and is really easy to pack in a bag.

I don't have that kit, but @liz gave me a beautiful squid shaped kite which seems to be of similar construction -- a sled shape, though with far more tails. She said it cost $4 in Taiwan -- Liz, is that correct???

(Update: apparently $2 ??? See link/comment below)

And it's a bit bigger, but still packs down real small with no spars. I'm happy to post this as its own activity if it's not close enough to the original, but I thought it could add confidence to the idea of a highly portable kite mapping kit built around a #mobius camera and a sled-type kite.

My attempt and results

I flew at George Island in the Boston harbor, so I had really clear, 10-15mph wind -- flags were mostly extended in the wind, although it started out a bit calmer.

We'd had trouble flying this kite at #LEAFFEST a few weeks ago in inconsistent, gusty wind in a mountainside clearing, so I was nervous. But it was SO GREAT -- easy to get into the air by myself, stable enough to walk around with slowly, even at only 20-30 feet up.

Camera setup

It easily carried the 40 gram Mobius camera, although I did something wrong with the settings so I don't have any good pictures. I put the Mobius on a piece of taped-up foam core, with a carabiner attached via a key ring. The Mobius is rubber-banded to the board, with a piece of tape inside-out between it and the board. This is really secure and easy. See detail in the main image above.

Questions and next steps

I'd love to repeat and take pictures -- I've done this with rigid kites, like this flight in Barcelona, but it'd be great to see it with a cheaper, more portable setup.

I also used a 1000 foot reel of 50 pound kite string, instead of my usual 100 pound string. This is lighter, and with a narrower profile, may have less drag and fly at a steeper angle than the thicker string. I think it's viable for this kite -- maybe with some wind speed guidelines.

Why I'm interested

Testing out/replicating the mini kite kit, so more people can give it a try! My whole setup, laid out in the lead image, is really compact now.

Try it yourself

If you have a Mini Kite Kit, please try this out and try it out yourself, posting photos and noting any tweaks you made, or difficulties you encountered!