The DOPERO

Appliqué designs

The Dopero was designed in 1994 by Ralf Beutnagel from Germany. Ralf is a KAPer who has done a lot of research on Picavet, video downlink and more. As a KAPer he knows what is needed for a great KAPkite. The result of his studies is the Dopero.

Stable in flight, high flying angle and pull in low wind conditions are characteristic of the "Roller" family of kites. Best known members of the family are the Steiff Roloplan, the Mezger Kite and of course the Pearson Roller.

Formally the Dopero is a side-by-side configuration of two Pearson Rollers. Two of these kites are put over each other and merged into a new construction. We've seen this trick before in another popular KAPkite: the Double-Conyne (DC). But in the case of the Dopero there is more.

The trailing edge of the Dopero is straight in middle which means you can easily setup the kite for a 'high-start' launch in light wind, something not so obvious with a kite like a Rokkaku or any soft kite. The Dopero can also be launched from your hand. It will fly stable even at lower altitudes and it doesn't need a tail. For all it's size this kite is easy to handle without the need of an assistant.
The construction of the kite garantees a long life and a short setup-time. The spars can be taken apart for easy transportation.
On most kites the exact adjustment of the bridle is the key to a stable flight. On the Dopero this adjustment is hardly critical at all to obtain stable flight. The kite soars like a Delta at a low angle of attack or drags like a Sanjo Rokkaku when the bridle is set more aft. The wide range of adjustment allows you to set the kite's pull no matter what the wind conditions are.

Standard Plus Designs

Special designs

There are two versions of Ralf's kite.
First, in 1994, there was the Dopero 100 with a surface of 3.7 m2 (39.9 sq.ft.), a width of 2.8 m (9.2 ft.) and a height of 1.80 m (5.9 ft.). The frame is based on fibreglass spars with a length of 100 cm. The kite has framed fins.
The MkII came in 1996, it was called Dopero 125 OVK or Maxi-Dopero. The kite is bigger, its surface rose to almost 6.0 m2 (64.5 sq.ft.). It's frame is based on 125 cm material, hence the kite is 3.75 m (12.3 ft.) wide and 2.5 m (8.2 ft.) high. Another major improvement are the two Open Vented Keels (OVK). It makes the kites easier to build, setup, take-apart and even the caracteristics in flight are improved. And thanks to it's larger area it is capable of lifting SLR-with-video or video-camera rigs in the lightest of windconditions. Despite of it's size it kite remains easy to handle in the hands of a serious kiteflyer.

We suggest to let the smaller kite benefit from the improments on the Maxi. So there will be an Dopero 100 OVK aswell.

We let you choose between the Dopero 100 and 125. Between spars made of glass- or carbonfibres. And between regular and light sail fabric.

The kite

• 100 OVK
• 125 OVK

The spars

• Epoxy fibreglass (standard)
• Carbon fibre (saves 285 gr (10 oz.) on the 100 and 475 gr (16.6 oz.) on the 125). That is on Light-versions. There is also a Strong-version of this frame which makes the kite easier to handle.

The sail fabric

• Standard nylon ripstop sail fabric (standard)
• Light weight polyester ripstop fabric (saves 75 gr (2.6 oz.) on the 100 and 140 gr (4.9 oz.) on the 125)

The sail design

• Standard design. The sail of the Dopero is build out of nine main parts. Each of them can have a different colour.
• Standard Plus design. Some of the nine sail elements have more then one colour.
• Appliqué design. Based on a standard sail but with some decoration sewn on top of it.
• Special design. Since the sail is made out of ripstop nylon we have to take care of the sail maker's rule: The grain (the straight of the weave) should follow the unsupported edges of the sail. That makes a design like the chess-board a difficult/special one although it looks very simple at first sight.

Standard designs

Width

Height

Weight

Surface

Use line