emma kites Gray 10.6in Large Kite Reel with Ball Bearing Smooth Rotation Omnibearing Line-Guide Ratchet Lock Professional for Adult Large Kite Flying

Wow. Compared to the JEKOSEN 7" KITE REEL, which I also have, and which is pictured next to this one in my photos, there is no comparison.The construction of this is very high quality, the bearings seem much stronger than the Jekosen 7”, and it’s super smooth to operate. Yea it’s $70 but totally worth it compared to my other reel which was like $11.I was flying a 25 ft octopus in moderate winds with the 7” Jekosen reel with 70lb Kevlar twist line and it couldn’t handle it. The bearings were binding when it pulled hard and was hard to bring back in until the winds calmed. If the winds didn’t occasionally calm to retrieve bit by bit I would have had to walk it down.Flying it with the Emma reel was like nothing was even attached to it. Not to mention the thumb brake and payout lock on this reel. This reel is slick.I have it pictured wound with 1,000 feet of 300lb Dacron line (2.5mm) and that’s about the max it will take. I wouldn’t want to put more on than that anyways. I might actually take 300 ft or so off because:Con: it’s heavy.It’s kinda heavy on its own but when you wind up 1,000 ft of 300lb Dacron on it, it’s quite heavy. In all fairness the kites I’ll fly with this reel and line will be pulling with a bit of lift so that’ll lessen the downward weight but it was noticeable compared to the 7” Jekosen, for example.You can see the two pictured side by side in my photos as well as what 1,000 ft of 300lb Dacron (2.5mm) looks like fully wound on it.Overall, I definitely recommend. I just bought the support strap for it just now for a little more hands free use / support.Looking at getting the 75 ft Emma Octopus kite to fly with this rig as it doesn’t need a lifter/pilot sled and looks like a lot of fun. That kite might need (or should use) the 500lb 3mm Dacron line, but that’s cheap enough once you get into kites that size.

This is a high quality reel, large enough for adult hands unlike the ones (8" diameter) selling for $20. Substantial line guard and smooth effortless turning. Given the larger diameter the resultant force to reel in a kite on windy day is reduced significantly as compared the the smaller diameter reels. Very smooth acting races (bearings holder) and thumb brake is fabulous. Wonderful product and worth the money over the smaller reel I own as that one has snapped the line guide and unknown to me, from constant use, loosened the screws holding the two sides together. Put the $20 dollars into this unit and skip the smaller Emma kite reels!

UPDATE:I emailed the company, even though it had been 3 years, just to let them know I was disappointed. They've responded and are going to send me a replacement! That's great customer service, so I'm changing my 2star rating to 4star - good customer service goes a long way!Original Review:I’ve had this for about 3 years, and took the kite out probably between one and two dozen times. The first day with a few rough gusts did in the wheel, because the tight string pushed out on the walls too much. I think I’ll get a metal one next time.It worked fine until it broke. But it always felt like I was just waiting for something to break - the break always felt funky, the switch/lock was always a little loose, because of the one handle, the whole thing wobbles like crazy if you let out the line quickly.The idea is great. Highly recommend getting a kite reel. And this is better than a lot of plastic ones. But there’s GOTTA be better out there that last more than a couple dozen flights.

These reel is for the serious kite flier.Smooth and rugged. I use it with a 1.8m x 3.4m delta and has no problem reeling it in with no struggle.The thumb break works very well, when letting out line very fast, it will bring it to a stop with on effort.When the reel is in the lock position it will not feed line out, You can reel some in as in taking up slack and the drag clicking can be heard. Dont use the drag to reel in the kite unlock the reel and crank it in.When you unlock the reel it will not feed line out you turn the reel handel towards you just a bit then it unlocks completely. I have 4 of these reelshave fun.

This kite reel by Emma Kites seems to be very well made. I am using it tomorrow for the first time & will report back. Once you figure out it is designed to be held in the left hand with your thumb on the brake lever & using your right hand to reel back towards yourself with the line feeding up into the roller guide, you’re just about ready to go fly a kite! When you tie your line on don’t tie a noose or knot that will keep drawing up tighter… that’s what I suspect split a few of these in half looking at those other reviews. Mine came well packaged & sealed, new, & with a nice drawstring bag to store the reel in. The “instruction for use” are obviously translated & mostly nonsensical but give you a vague idea of how this reel is designed to work. If I had another BIG kite I would not hesitate to buy another one of these top quality kite reels from Emma Kites, maybe the green or pink color!UPDATE: I have had the opportunity to use this reel twice now & if you have a BIG kite that pulls hard, this is a great reel & easily holds 500’ of 100lb test kite line. I have a Prism Bora 7 kite & this makes flying it really enjoyable! Highly recommend & I will be getting another one in the future. Thank you Emma Kites for a good quality kite reel!

Works ok for a few flys, plastic cracked all around it this year, doesn’t last long if you use it, break was hard to use with one hand, hard to reel in during medium winds, needs to be made all out of aluminum or a metal. Not impressed