Video - Libre Majestic

Clive has the only Libre Majestic in Australia...

Libre Majestic First day out from Clive Tebbet on Vimeo.

Kite Buggy Weights

Over the last 18 months I have often looked at envy at other buggies, the Sysmic S2, the Libre Majestic and Dragster and of course the the Hobbs Carbon kite buggy, with a dream of owning a new shiny chunk of metal.

Hobbs Carbon Fibre

 But the one thing that comes up again and again (for me) is the weight of these buggies...

Sysmic S1 -  56kgs (big foots)
Sysmic S2 - 38kgs (basic)
Libre Majestic - 54kgs
Libre Dragster - 48.3kgs
Hobbs Carbon Fibre - 50kgs (approx)

(All weights from the manufacturers websites.)

Libre Majestic

And this puts me off as surely there must be some kind of power/weight thing going on? Stainless steel seems to be a heavy material to produce a performance kite buggy from.

F1 the ultimate example of power v weight

This maybe a completely stupid question, but I work in health and am not an engineer (though I did do technical drawing at school )-

But why aren't kite buggies designed and built to be as light as possible?

Surely a buggy could be built out of aluminium (like aircraft, some performance car chassis, mountain bikes) and be built/engineered to withstand the stresses, they wouldn't corrode and would potentially weigh less?

Libre Dragster

Sysmic S1

I am guessing the weight may help in up-wind performance(?) and holding that power, but can that be designed/engineered into a light weight buggy. How much lighter is aluminium at an equivalent strength to stainless steel? Is it a cost issue, is aluminium more expensive to manufacture and work? Is the weight limited by what we bolt onto the frame ie rims, tyres etc?

I don't know!

In the mean time I will keep on in my nice light weight Peter Lynn Comp XR+ (14.3kgs basic).

Would I get a Sysmic S2?

I have been pondering this question on and off for the last couple of days!

I have had the opportunity to borrow a Sysmic S2 from Bones, while he has been on holiday, this has been my dream buggy for a while and was worried that I would struggle to get back into my humble Peter Lynn Comp xr+.

There is no doubt that the S2 is a great buggy, it's size and weight means I am probably holding down more power than I was in the Comp, those side rails hug me tight so I feel that I am unlikely to leave the buggy in an undignified manner.

For me the downside of this buggy is the weight, as it is set-up (according to various sources) it weighs about 44kgs. I'm not a small bloke but with the swanny and front wheel/axle attached and no rear axles, it is heavy to lift in and out of the car and it is on the lighter side of buggies  - the Libre Majestic is 54kgs and the Dragster 48.5kgs.

My Comp weighs in at about 12kgs!

Personally I think I would of opted for standard barrows rather than the midis especially for use on the salt lake. The midis look great and provide extra traction but I also feel they are holding the buggy back, especially as I have dropped the tyre pressure for a smoother ride. I found it fairly hard work especially on the upwind runs.

I have the swanny and front wheel attached as I can still get it in the car like that, so at the salt lake it is just a case of attaching the rear axle with four bolts. It does take me longer than the comp an is a bit more fiddly  The ride is great, I can really hold the power, I can unstick the back end as needed to slow down and slide it round - don't worry Bones I have been picking my spots and making sure there is lots of loose stuff around before sliding...

I like it a lot, but am not sure I like it enough to fork out the big bucks for one yet - not that I have the big bucks to buy one, but if I did I'm not sure I would - does that make sense?

Is this my dream shattered? Where to from here?

I have ordered a couple of 6 ply highway rated trailer tyres for my comp, the same size as standard barrows - hopefully these will prove to be more hard-wearing, once I get them on the rims!

The next step will be to get the Peter Lynn heavy duty extended side frames, which will add an extra 150mm to the length and also the wide 140cm Peter Lynn gigastrong axle - both these mods should increase the buggys foot-print and increase the stability and weight to allow me to hold more power. I probably need some new wheel bearings as well.

Then I will look at some way of making a back rest, which should also stabilise the frame. And eventually a new seat and kite buggy bag from Buggy Bags should make things a bit more comfortable!

Buggy Lust - Libre Majestic

After finding out that the Libre Protask is being discontinued (insert sad face!) I have yet again transferred my affections - this time to it's replacement the Libre Majestic (slightly dodgy name though!)...

"Brand new race–Buggy with high safety potential. Together with the world's best Buggy pilots we created the new Majestic.
High speed and maneuverability are achieved through an extremely rigid frame design. The inward curved seat rails prevent the pilots from being lifted out of the buggy. The result is an additional safety feature for the race-pilot as well as for the ambitious recreational pilots.

The wide rubber pads on the foot pegs absorb the vibrations in hard use, offering a fatigue-free comfortable buggy ride."

I am a buggy tart!