Contact   Imprint   Advertising   Guidelines

Tips and Tricks to Repair Kites - add your experience!

Here you can exchange your experience and datas about your home build boards
KiteboardingTampaBay
Very Frequent Poster
Posts: 709
Joined: Sat Apr 12, 2008 5:09 pm
Local Beach: Tampa Bay area
Brand Affiliation: School owner,Kiteboarding Tampa Bay
Tampa Bay Kiteboarding Association
Freak Dog Kites
Has thanked: 0
Been thanked: 1 time
Contact:

Re: Tips and Tricks to Repair Kites - add your experience!

Postby KiteboardingTampaBay » Fri Jul 06, 2012 5:35 am

Here's some good Gear Maintenance tips-
http://kiteboardingtampabay.com/kiteboa ... nance.html

Happy Kiting!
www.kiteboardingtampabay.com

dorothyinstead
Rare Poster
Posts: 32
Joined: Sat Aug 18, 2012 11:36 pm
Local Beach: Caloundra, Happy Valley.
Favorite Beaches: Bulcock Beach @ Happy Valley in Caloundra
Style: Freestyle
Brand Affiliation: None
Has thanked: 0
Been thanked: 0

Re: Tips and Tricks to Repair Kites - add your experience!

Postby dorothyinstead » Sun Aug 19, 2012 9:10 pm

Tip on waxing depower rope & why it works, with any type of solid wax.

Got my new depower line of the bar and soaked in melted candle wax. Works a treat. One of the reasons why it works & lasts longer is the wax fills the middle of the rope, so there is no space for single granules of sand to lodge.
One grain of sand imbedded in the fibres of the rope will abrade the fine fibres of Dyneema under load over time. For this reason you should also not walk on your lines at the beach.
( We learnt this in rock climbing, never stand on your ropes, same reason).
After half a dozen sessions the outside fibres begin to show wear but it is the inside where it is being protected.

supachip1
Medium Poster
Posts: 169
Joined: Sat Apr 09, 2011 1:33 pm
Local Beach: south coast uk
Brand Affiliation: None
Has thanked: 21 times
Been thanked: 15 times

Re: Tips and Tricks to Repair Kites - add your experience!

Postby supachip1 » Sun Aug 26, 2012 5:36 am

i had the first issue with my wainman kite recently and it was a valve delamination(as opposed to every other day with my norths)....upon taking the bladder out i realized the valves are stuck on the inside and the fabric on the outside around the valve area didnt seem as it would key to any glues so this is my tip for re-sticking the valves back on the inside rather then buying new or sending it off to a repair shop....

take the bladder out(obviously) , make a slit at the very end of the wing tip to create an opening, dont just cut it off.
then pull the bladder through its self so its inside out.
clean all old glue off both bladder and valve.
glue both parts as usual if using contact adhesive and stick/clamp/weight let dry.
turn bladder back to correct way out.
apply glue to end covering equal amounts over slit/hole.
fold over on itself so slit is totally covered
clamp/weight and let dry...
job done

do not pump it up too much checking for leaks before refitting and when fitted twist glued end/tip a couple of times before folding it inside kites LE(just to be sure)

p.s this method is if you only have access to contact adhesive as it does what the name suggests..but if you have aqua seal or similar that takes time to go off you can just push the valve in the hole and ignore everything i wrote above!!

User avatar
flybykite
Frequent Poster
Posts: 280
Joined: Mon Nov 28, 2011 5:21 pm
Local Beach: Nitinat Lake, BC, Canada
Mui Ne, Vietnam
Style: Old School
Gear: Shinn Monk
V8K Ozone Edges 7&9
Brand Affiliation: None
Location: Saltspring Island, BC Canada & Mui Ne, Vietnam
Has thanked: 0
Been thanked: 0

Re: Tips and Tricks to Repair Kites - add your experience!

Postby flybykite » Thu Oct 18, 2012 2:30 am

Tuck Tape! USA version is called Venture tape. Its a sheathing tape used in sealing vapour barrior on houses. This will fix all your canopy tears wether it be a pinhole or a complete blowout. I've seen completely destroyed kites mended together with this stuff and back on the water the next day jumping, looping, and crashing without fail. The canopy did have flutter to it but the repair was more than 15 feet of shred in several directions. I've used kitefix and had pro sewing jobs done but if you dont care about the look of the repair then its super cheap, lightweight, flexible, and WOW strong. If its just a temp repair you use this for, beware, it will stain your canopy red anywhere you apply it.
Grab a roll for 10 bucks. Clean the area with alcohol. Just apply on the inside of the canopy and put pressure on the tape to secure the seal.

peterheirman
Medium Poster
Posts: 170
Joined: Fri Jul 29, 2011 10:17 am
Local Beach: 2002
Brand Affiliation: None
Has thanked: 0
Been thanked: 0

Re: Tips and Tricks to Repair Kites - add your experience!

Postby peterheirman » Thu Oct 18, 2012 6:24 pm

TearAid A for bladders, canopy and tubes/struts

User avatar
darippah
Very Frequent Poster
Posts: 627
Joined: Sun Apr 22, 2012 9:07 pm
Kiting since: 2011
Weight: 165
Local Beach: New Jersey, USA
Style: Hydrofoil big air
Gear: Sonic 3 13m , Soul 7 and 10m
Brand Affiliation: None
Has thanked: 7 times
Been thanked: 24 times

Re: Tips and Tricks to Repair Kites - add your experience!

Postby darippah » Thu Oct 18, 2012 9:23 pm

RedStar wrote:My fix and improvement is here
http://juhadiy.blogspot.com/
Your website happens to detail exactly what I was looking for ! One question, how did you reinforce the new bigger hole to make sure it doesnt open up more?

Thanks

Doubleupdan
Rare Poster
Posts: 4
Joined: Sat Jan 12, 2013 10:19 pm
Local Beach: Saipan - Northern Mariana Islands
Micro Beach
Favorite Beaches: Managaha Island
Style: Freestyle and Waves
Gear: Slingshot
Nobile
Brand Affiliation: None
Has thanked: 0
Been thanked: 0

Re: Tips and Tricks to Repair Kites - add your experience!

Postby Doubleupdan » Sun Jan 13, 2013 12:36 pm

Valve repair anyone ???
The Valve Trap by Airtime is the best way to fix a
valve that has fallen off or is leaking!
I just fixed my 12M kite (9mm fill valve) and was in the water in 20 min. later!
I just pulled it through the zipper, fixed it and shoved it back in.
I'm so happy I did not have to replace the whole bladder!

I also posted on the message board!

viewtopic.php?f=1&t=2378930

From a different post:
Let me introduce the Valve Trap. The Valve Trap sandwiches a valve between two 4” diameter foam discs with a highly specialized adhesive that can tolerate plasticizers. The foam is soft enough to conform to any irregularities in the valve (think the ridges on the top of the valve base from the RF die) so it seals nicely. Also the valve has contact on double the surface area (top of valve base and bottom valve base). The Valve Trap then provides a 4” diameter base with a 'peel and stick' adhesive that will adhere to any bladder.

DutchFly
Rare Poster
Posts: 5
Joined: Mon Jun 11, 2012 10:40 am
Brand Affiliation: None
Has thanked: 0
Been thanked: 0

Re: Tips and Tricks to Repair Kites - add your experience!

Postby DutchFly » Tue Jan 22, 2013 7:33 am

For small repairs:

http://www.amazon.com/Park-Tool-GP-2-Su ... B000WY730O

unfortunately they only do the small sizes, but with a few together you can even repair kite big tear in your bladder.

User avatar
Gigi;)
Very Frequent Poster
Posts: 555
Joined: Wed Jan 12, 2005 7:23 pm
Location: drtuba.eu, kite-stuff.org, eXtremist.si, kajtar.si
Has thanked: 2 times
Been thanked: 12 times
Contact:

Re: Tips and Tricks to Repair Kites - add your experience!

Postby Gigi;) » Tue Jan 22, 2013 11:40 am


toddalbinson
Rare Poster
Posts: 42
Joined: Mon Feb 25, 2013 1:16 pm
Local Beach: Wrightsville beach NC
Carolina beach
The Basin
Masonboro Island
Favorite Beaches: Any with wind
Style: wake,free,surf
Gear: Switch,Liquid Force
Brand Affiliation: Switch team Rider
Has thanked: 0
Been thanked: 0

Re: Tips and Tricks to Repair Kites - add your experience!

Postby toddalbinson » Sat Mar 02, 2013 12:43 pm

My 2 cents....

If your going to resell your kite have it professionally fixed.Sew it up and bladders mended not taped

If your going to keep it and dont care about looks than here are the ways I have found work flawlessly.

Canopy and LE- Drywall mesh tape,Goop marine glue, cover and heat in sail tape. Same method as kite fix just alot cheaper.

Nipples-Aquaseal press.Same method as fellow couple pages back. All of the stick on type nipples I have used eventually come off.

Bladders- Tear aid. Find leak,lightly skuff,alcohol,stick and test.


Return to “Gear Builders”

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: tomtom and 146 guests