***** Another couple of tricks to tame a fighter:

1. Add weight (putty, clay, a bulldog clip) to the nose. Sounds backwards, but it makes the kite more stable. Then remove it (or even add weight to the tail) to make the kite more unstable and steer able.

2. Adjust the bridle attachment point towards the tail. Makes the kite slower and more stable. And conversely. . . If you have a fixed-point bridle, definitely add a sliding loop. Make the basic bridle almost long enough to go around a wing-tip, but definitely NOT long enough. Then make a simple loop, maybe 3" long, and attach it to the basic bridle with a larks head hitch. (I sometimes call it a "price-tag hitch", which most people understand.) If the basic bridle line is pulled into a straight line through the hitch, it'll adjust fore-and-aft. If the loop line is pulled into a straight line through the hitch, it'll lock in position for flying. Basic position is usually an inch or so above the wingtip, depending on wind and skill. . .

You only need a three-point bridle -- forget 4, a 3-point has a "T" shape, the main up-down bridle larks headed to a loose line attached to the bow (cross-spar) maybe 1.25" either side of the spar intersection -- if the kite won't track in a straight line when the tension is up. If it consistently turns right or left when it should be going straight -- and the bow is made of synthetic material (carbon or fiberglass) -- then you need a 3-point bridle to fix it. Slide the bridle towards the side the kite turns away from, in tiny increments, and re-lock the hitch.

If the bow is bamboo, just "massage" or flex the bow on the side the kite turns away from, until it tracks straight.

In either case, tuning the kite to track straight is most important when it's breezy, because the kite will spend most of its time "tracking". If it doesn't track straight, it may just make a big loop into the ground, when it should be hovering overhead. Don't tune the kite left or right because it seems to be spinning left or right when it spins, just because it tracks left or right when it flies.

There's lots of info online, especially at the NFKA site .

Norm

P.S. Don't forget to grin and giggle a lot, it's part of the fighter experience.