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Another XT.z review from Infinitive of Fractured Axel forum this time. 
Atelier Transfer XT.z
I recently acquired a baby Transfer. (Sorry Craig, Bilboquet sale was irresistible!) I quite like it and I’ve written a little review.
Construction
Compared to his bigger brothers, the Z has been given a few small but appreciable fixes: the nose has finally been cut square, the tiny winglet spars are now protected by a rubbery coat rather than just mylar, the centre T is a neat hard-rubber dome thing, and the tail is a neat little slot in ferrule with a T on the end, rather than a piece of hosepipe cut and drilled (which works, but doesn't look all that pro). The stitching is as usual, nicely done 3step zigzags. Chikara forms the LE panel, they claim it makes the kite more reasonable in rough wind. Trailing edge nicely reinforced, which is just as well as it is going to need it with all those lazies. Unusually, the coloured nose panels and the white TE panels are doubled up (TE is mylar and white icarex), just for visual kicks. The frame is Sky Shark Black Diamond Nitro, except the miniscule upper spreader. It is a stiff old frame, very stiff. And heavy. Without tailweight (and with roll bars), I weighed the kite at 320g. On the tail comes a 19g weight, and they give you a 12g one too.
Finally, yes this kite has “yo-rings”. In one word, I would describe them as lame. They are made of what looks to be 1.5mm carbon, going through an APA on the LS, and through a hole on the TE. They look ugly, and extend too far out back from the kite. OK they hold the lines perfectly well, until they break that is. I broke one within the hour. The yo-stops are fine as back up, but of course I immediately converted them to roll bars (2mm carbon), using their own hole on the TE to connect it to. At first glance that hole looks a bit too far down the TE (and the bars aren’t as upright as they are on a Deep Space or converted Akujis), but they work incredibly well this far akimbo. But really, they should have paid homage to Benson/Wardley by carbon-copying the design, rather than making a hash of it.
Flight
It needs a lot of wind to keep this kite happy. My estimate is that less than 6mph is the bottom end… though its trickable range is a lot higher than the XTr or XTs. It gives plenty of feedback, and I found the precision of the kite to be top notch. I’ve had more practice with the Frenchies, but in direct comparison with the Fury .85 (a kite of nearly identical size), the XTz won hands down. Really impressed. It is a little kite, and it can tight turn well within its own wingspan, unlike the R or S. It is virtually silent in flight unless at the top of its range, which I find to be a good thing.
So to tricks… Firstly, the 19g weight is odd – I used it initially, but then realized that the kite easily wraps up without any weight at all. Then I found out why it is there – to hold the kite in a fade better. With 19g, the nose is just a touch higher than horizontal, and requires careful tending. With 10g, a fade is perfectly flat, and requires more perfect tending. With none, the nose is lower than the horizontal, and though holdable, it’s difficult. This was disappointing, both the R and S can keep an indefinite fade, but it will take some practice and perfect wind to hold a sixty second fade on the Z. I eventually elected to put 10g on the tail, as the roll up speed is quick with any of the weights - 10/12/20g.
The stiffness and weight of the frame gives this kite loads of impetus – it rolls up as quick as an Akuji, and lazy susans like no other kite I’ve flown. It’ll do double lazies off a single input, which is amazingly good fun! Axels are crisp, yeah it’s all there, and the usual Transfer problems are there – cometes need to be soooo delicate to stop them ending up on their back, and backspins (though plenty easier than on the R or S) are difficult to do without losing altitude. Basically it is - shock! - like a very forgiving, fastforwarded XTr. It’s plenty of fun, especially with all the yoyos it hands out. Extended combos really do roll off the kite well, its a joy to fly these moves. The S and R, tricky for their size, are difficult to fly well - the Z is just the remedy, being forgiving and flippy.
All this comes at a price – which is that the kite is unimpressive in low winds. I’m even tempted to try lighter leading edges – though I’ll leave that until I know the kite better.
Verdict
I think that Atelier have done the Transfer dynasty well and made a very competent freestyle kite. It's poor in low winds, I’m not an expert but I think it could lose some flab off the frame and still perform nicely. If you like lazy-based tricks and enjoy flying in brisk breezes, its a great kite. If you want to learn cometes or enjoy low winds, it’s not right.
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