wishiwon2
112 posts
Dec 31, 2008
6:51 PM
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I know this has been discussed before, just reading another thread and wanted some more input on it ...
Ive copied/pasted some exerpts to stimulate discussion:
"200 to 300 feet is flight for disaster. That height is dangerous to fly rollers. They barely clear tree tops to allow for their control to take place. Rollers need to be at 600 to 700 feet when they perform....500 to 700 feet is the optimal height for judging. ... At that height the kit will have the best confidence to show you what it is made out of and they won't flirt with early landing. Most the time, they will avoid hawks harrasment at that height."
Jay
"I like my birds to fly around three hundred feet. They will commit at that hieght and I can see whats happening. ... I was just sitting here thinking about my two hundred yard rifle range and six hundred feet isnt too high. I am going to have to reevaluate my thinking. "
Sippi
"If someones Birds are flying
600 feet, they could never see them enough to judge
them. JMHO,"
Chuck
"I like them flying low around 400 to 500 you really get to enjoy the show ."
Ralph
"I like to keep my birds at 300-400 feet as well. Birds rolling from 20-50 feet should have no problem correcting themselves with the couple hundred feet they have left. I have never had birds roll into trees..."
Mike Trevis
The Bigger the Dream the Bigger the Leap
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Jon
"had fun, wish i won 2"
If it were easy, everybody would do it ...
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fresnobirdman
349 posts
Dec 31, 2008
7:01 PM
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i like my birds at 250-500 feet altitude.
any lower than that and they gonna land.
i have a question, how do you guys make your birds go up that high?
is it in their blood to go that high?
~~Fresnobirdman~~
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wishiwon2
113 posts
Dec 31, 2008
7:04 PM
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At my house the conditions are wide open, no trees around. The only thing to interfere with a roll other than the ground is my house and a small tower at the airport across the road.
I want my birds to be high enough to feel comfortable to fully commit to rolling and yet close enough that I can evaluate them by recognizing which bird it is. Because there is nothing to reference against, it is difficult to accuratlely estimate the footage, but I believe where I like mine best is around 300 ft.
I have only once in 8 years lost birds to overflight because they went too high.
When Im judging kits, too high is when I cant distinguish individual wing actions, or I cant see the birds wings move while flying. When birds approach that height I am increasingly more critical of breaks because it is more difficult to evaluate the quality exhibited in the break. This height isnt a fixed distance up, it changes based on weather (clouds vs blue) and lateral distance away from the loft.
Where/what heights do your birds work best? Other height concerns?
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Jon
"had fun, wish i won 2"
If it were easy, everybody would do it ...
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wishiwon2
114 posts
Dec 31, 2008
7:08 PM
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Fresno,
If I want to get my birds to lift, I increase the amount of wheat about 25% and add some milo and millet seed. For me, its more difficult to add height than to bring them lower.
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Jon
"had fun, wish i won 2"
If it were easy, everybody would do it ...
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fresnobirdman
353 posts
Dec 31, 2008
7:16 PM
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thanks for that help wishiwon2.
~~Fresnobirdman~~
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quality
82 posts
Jan 01, 2009
8:05 AM
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I have a row of 100 ft trees.& the birds use them to set up. They use the wind coming up over the top of the trees. There are 3 cocks who set them up & they go over the tops of those trees & break everytime. It's an amazing show. With 20 birds or 80 birds.
The deep birds shorten up, never had any birds hit the ground. I do get roll downs like everyone else.
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Yours in the Hobby
Don Lunau
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Alohazona
535 posts
Jan 01, 2009
3:25 PM
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Don,good birds will shorten up, you are right...Aloha,Todd
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pigeon pete
17 posts
Jan 01, 2009
4:02 PM
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Hi,
My old birds tend to fly at around 150-250ft.
I don't know a judge who can accurately judge quality and depth at 700ft. At 200ft even a deep roller still has a good margin of error before hitting anything unless you have high rise buildings or Giant Redwoods in the area. One of my best fly results was when they flew at 400-500ft but I don't honestly know how the judge could tell what they were doing.
Pete Handy
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Alohazona
536 posts
Jan 02, 2009
9:33 AM
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Hi Pete,
I agree,in this years fall fly,I could tell the birds were working hard,but they were way up there.So I ended up with a zero.I have been trying to train them to stay down,some days are better than others.
I remember Dennis Burke speaking of your kit,when he came to stay with me in 2004,he said your kit flew in some pretty heavy rain.When I released my birds for him,when I said I thought the birds were at a good height,he said his would be hitting things.Other than young birds,I don't think I have flown many low flying kits since.Now I'm back peddling to get my kits lower and more viewable.Good to see you on the site....Aloha,Todd
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rtwilliams
310 posts
Jan 03, 2009
10:13 AM
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Glad you posted Jon. I have the same problem of getting my birds to fly higher. I believe it is compounded by the fact that I live on the edge of a hill, and the wind blows a lot. I have wondered how to get them to fly a little higher. My birds will fly under the wind, behind the hill, shoot up into the wind about 5o feet above my head and then break letting the wind blow them back behind the hill again. Sometimes I think I am going to have to catch one. It is really cool to hear them flying and seeing them that close.
On the other hand when I get a calm day and they fly a couple hundred feet I get a lot better quality breaks and bigger breaks. They also get used to flying low to stay out of the wind and it takes them a few minutes on calm days for them to get to a good height. They can be pretty good once they get to a good height.
I like them when they are between 200 and 300 feet the best. Any higher it is hard to see them, any lower and they stiffen up.
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RT Williams
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