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ZigZag wrote:A few days ago, I pulled back the float on my Switch bar, and noticed what appeared to be fraying of the short lines that attach the leader to the bar ends. So today I removed the leader line, and the fraying was more noticeable.

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I undid the overhand knot, and removed the line. This is what it looked like:

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This is what the other side looked like:

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I reversed the line, and secured it with an overhand knot. The frayed section is now protected by the bar end, and is no longer subject to abrasion.

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Done! The bar is good for another 2 years of kiteboarding!

I fly Switch Method V1's, famous for their bar pressure. No doubt this contributed to the rate of wear. If I had a quiver of kites with wimpy bar pressure, I am sure those lines would be in much better condition.

I'm guessing you only use this bar on the inside settings? I would seriously consider replacing those pig tails, strength is compromised and the result of an outside line breaking could be catastrophic depending on timing. ie. near shore close to beach goers or swimmers.... All you need is a 16" piece of 3/16" amsteel blue. I have some in my kit at all times.

ZigZag wrote:I reversed the line, and secured it with an overhand knot. The frayed section is now protected by the bar end, and is no longer subject to abrasion.

ZigZag wrote:Done! The bar is good for another 2 years of kiteboarding!

So did you reuse the same line? Pretty sketchy if you did. oh well 2 more years you will see if it holds up!

windybrit wrote:
Interesting post, I note the photos show the bar has decent use, how many sessions do you suppose you have on it, is the the only one you have ?

Earlier on in this thread (about Page 4) I showed photos of the bar after 158 sessions. The centreline snapped, due to a sharp edge that developed on the centreline block. I replaced the centreline, and have since enjoyed another 13 sessions. Grand total to date = 171!

I never sell my kit. I ride it until it dies, and cannot be economically repaired. The three kites I bought from Switch have proven to be remarkably durable. Not a single failure yet. The previous kites I had would have valves delaminating after about 12 months, and leading edge seams splitting after 18 months, and cracking of struts (due to folding) after 24 months. The ripstop panels would fail after about 3 years.

My 9m Switch Method had its maiden voyage on the 29th August 2011, so it is a little more than 2 yeas old. The 7 and 5m Methods arrived later. I used the 7m Method for the first time on the 14th February 2012. Yes, I keep records!

since the bar is a shameless (and well executed) copy of the north bar, the failures are similar as well (centerline wear and pigtail wear)



Anyone with a north kite should check theirs for the same. I've replaced mine at the 2 year mark.
Pretty serious factor of safety in place though, 2 pieces of 1200lb line. carrying < 100 lbs max load.

Amazed at how much heat switch has taken about their bar while the $500 north bar with the same design and same weaknesses doesn't really get as many complaints.




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Johnny Rotten wrote: Amazed at how much heat switch has taken about their bar while the $500 north bar with the same design and same weaknesses doesn't really get as many complaints.

Not really complaining, Johnny. I consider what happened to my bar to be fair wear and tear. There are two reasons for raising the issue.

1. To make other users of Switch gear aware of potential points of failure.

2. This thread is a showcase of Switch's programme of continuous improvement. Bill Hansen demonstrates how the equipment performs under controlled laboratory conditions, and I provide data on how the equipment performs in practice. I hope the information I provide can be used to improve the product.

ZigZag wrote:

Johnny Rotten wrote: Amazed at how much heat switch has taken about their bar while the $500 north bar with the same design and same weaknesses doesn't really get as many complaints.

Not really complaining, Johnny. I consider what happened to my bar to be fair wear and tear. There are two reasons for raising the issue.

1. To make other users of Switch gear aware of potential points of failure.

2. This thread is a showcase of Switch's programme of continuous improvement. Bill Hansen demonstrates how the equipment performs under controlled laboratory conditions, and I provide data on how the equipment performs in practice. I hope the information I provide can be used to improve the product.

I think the other thing you bring to the table here is a heads up for any bar manufacturer that the width adjustment can be a point of failure and to look at how to reduce the wear... Anytime a piece of rope is bent 90 deg is something to consider as a wear point.
And how easy it is to fix your own gear, while I don't agree with your fix it still shows how easily this can be fixed properly simply by replacing he line.

I was really impressed with the new switch bar. Especially the swivel above AND below the bar. A really nice piece of equipment. The below bar swivel is the easiest I've used for spinning the front lines back out and I need to do this a lot.

Feedback wise the ONLY thing I think needs changing is the bar grip feels quite coarse, rough if you will. If they are going to follow norths lead (don't know about this, just going on the theme above) then soften the bar grip, the new north bar has a fantastic feel with the grip.

It may seem a small thing but a three hour session, these little things make a difference.

With a softer bar grip I would buy one of these right now!

Well done switch.

Bill Hansen : looking for more things to test in the Switch labs ?

If a sleeved & stitched flying line termination fails at about a 260 kg load and a spliced & stitched termination fails at about 305 kg, how about testing my combination of these two terminations incorporating the best of each ( strength of the spliced connection + abrasion protection for the loop ) ?

For 700# kite-line, I'm currently running 14 cm of the tail buried, end-cut with about a 1 cm taper, and 12 cm loop length covered by 12 cm of sleeving ( lightly stretched ). About half of that sleeving is 2-point zig-zag stitched with Tex-45 Dabond at 15 spi and about 10 cm of the splice straight-stitched at 8 spi. Also the transition from splice to sleeving is wrapped in marker tape prior to stitching.

Perhaps with the tape and stitching at the eye of the splice maybe the stress concentration at this point will be eliminated ? Or to better mimic the whipping sailors use at the eye the stitching at the tape should be increased , to say 25 spi. Although if your flying line is 700# test, then a 305 kg failure is already at 96% of test, so maybe even without any support at the eye of the splice, it's pretty much as strong as it can get.

Your thoughts or comments as always would be greatly appreciated.

Hi GregK:
Your construction seems pretty bomber! At the moment the guys at the lab in NZ are pretty busy testing fabric samples and seam construction. My only thought is that when stitching comes into play, variation and faults crop up even with programmable computer-controlled sewing machines. Your combination method helps to eliminate stitching-related failures.
Cheers!

Hansen Aerosports wrote: At the moment the guys at the lab in NZ are pretty busy testing fabric samples and seam construction. M:thumb:

Any news on the fabric and seam construction testing? Is there going to be a video release soon of those test results?