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Tips and Tricks to Repair Kites - add your experience!

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

Postby nafets » Fri May 31, 2019 4:05 pm

Hi Guys,


The LE Bladder on my kite burst and now I have a hole (not huge, but there is at least 5cm tear) on the bladder. What kind of material would you suggest to use, so that I can repair the bladder?


Thanks

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

Postby JaZone » Fri May 31, 2019 4:17 pm

Type A , Tear aid tape.
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Gigi;)
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Re: Tips and Tricks to Repair Kites - add your experience!

Postby Gigi;) » Sat Jun 01, 2019 6:53 am

If the tear is straight you will need this:

https://drtuba.eu/product/ultra-repair-patch

If tear is bigger or L shaped it's better to use this:

https://drtuba.eu/product/ultra-repair- ... -30-x-15cm

:bye:

nafets wrote:
Fri May 31, 2019 4:05 pm
Hi Guys,


The LE Bladder on my kite burst and now I have a hole (not huge, but there is at least 5cm tear) on the bladder. What kind of material would you suggest to use, so that I can repair the bladder?


Thanks
These users thanked the author Gigi;) for the post:
nafets (Sat Jun 01, 2019 6:36 pm)
Rating: 3.03%

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

Postby nafets » Sat Jun 01, 2019 6:37 pm

Gigi;) wrote:
Sat Jun 01, 2019 6:53 am
If the tear is straight you will need this:

https://drtuba.eu/product/ultra-repair-patch

If tear is bigger or L shaped it's better to use this:

https://drtuba.eu/product/ultra-repair- ... -30-x-15cm

:bye:

nafets wrote:
Fri May 31, 2019 4:05 pm
Hi Guys,


The LE Bladder on my kite burst and now I have a hole (not huge, but there is at least 5cm tear) on the bladder. What kind of material would you suggest to use, so that I can repair the bladder?


Thanks
Thanks a ton!

I'll get the larger and have spare just in case :)

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

Postby dboltenko » Sat Jun 01, 2019 8:43 pm

HI guys,

I got huge hole on a rocks, LE bladder 10''*3'' - 25cm*8cm. Did anyone repair something like this? Does it make sense to repair it? Or is it better just buy a new bladder?

Here are some pics https://drive.google.com/open?id=1dUp3s ... YX8ZOOKltN

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

Postby GregK » Fri Jun 07, 2019 4:41 am

Hard to tell for sure from your photos - damaged bladders are notoriously difficult to photograph , they either reflect light from the camera's flash or they are transparent.

If the damage is less than 10 cm in width, and at least 1 cm from the bladder's edge seam, then it can be patched with TearAid. If the damage is too wide or close to an edge seam, then it is possible to have a patch of new bladder film welded in place at a professional kite repair facility that can weld bladders. Not too many can weld bladders, but there are a few.

It looks like the a portion of the damage is along a bladder edge seam. If so, that section needs to be re-welded, TearAid patching along an edge seam is rarely successful.

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

Postby bragnouff » Mon Jun 17, 2019 5:49 am

Hi, if a Leading Edge bladder is cleanly cut in half, what would be the best way to put the two halves together?
Would it be possible to insert one half into the other one, with maybe 5cm overlap and glue it? If so, I'd imagine the glueing process would be in 4 stages, glue inside bottom half, turn around glue other inside part. That overlap would provide strength. Then eventually glue on the outside over the joint, one side at a time, for airtightness. And possibly a touch up job here and there.

Before I stink up my house for 48hrs, does it have a chance of success?

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

Postby sarc » Sat Jun 22, 2019 11:00 am

I found that Gorilla tape (the black one) sticks extremely well to my kite leading edge (Dacron). I used it to cover some minor (aesthetic) scuffs and to add some extra protection from beach coral etc. It also stuck very well to my harness where I had some small rips and scuffs. I clean and dry very well, use a lot of pressure (back of a spoon) and a bit of heat (hairdryer) when applying. Almost 1 year on use and still going strong. I'm sure it's not as strong as Tear-aid and I have not used it for any structural repairs, but it's cheap and something to consider for cosmetic or adding extra protection.

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

Postby Bbking » Wed Aug 21, 2019 4:28 pm

merl wrote:
Mon Jan 07, 2019 10:20 am
MutantWizard wrote:
Sun May 13, 2018 7:16 pm
Greets, my first post and thanks for the lot of tips found here.

Here is one of mine. Check the pic. This kite has seen a couple years of action when I bought it as my first and learned to ride on it. Attached it as high resolution so If you close up U will see along dacron on the trailing edge all the repairs. Fabric started falling apart from just touching it. That's when I treated the sail and its now as good if not better than when it was new. Here is how.

Pump up and open the kite. Get a small can of water based clear acrylic varnish or sometimes called acrylic emulsion. Usually this is intended for waterproofing exterior concrete walls. Mix half and half with water and apply one coat on each side of the sail. A brush or a roller is ok, just try not to be to liberal to prevent beads but still apply sufficient for it to soak into the sail fabric. It dries quickly and withing 15-20 minutes the sail is like a new plastic sheet. Try not to get any on the leading edge to prevent soak through and sticking the bladder to it. Welcome to your brand new kite!
Any update on this? How is it holding up over time? (For example, it might flake, crack or do any number of ugly things.
Any updates?...

I need to know what would be better to reinforce the canopy of an old kite: silicon or varnish ?

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

Postby Peert » Thu Aug 22, 2019 1:38 am

Reply to Bragnouf, GregK and Dboltenko regarding bladder repairs...

It is not that hard to heat-weld repair your kite bladders yourself.

I have had success on all attempts.
You need a bit of patience and common sense to figure out what to do in which order....

You need a normal household Iron, some baking/oven paper, a pencil or other small strip of wood a kitchen towel..

Put the pencil at the bottom, the two layers of bladder material you want to weld on top of it, oven paper on top. Use towel to protect the part of bladder you do not want to weld from the heat. Put your iron on the right temp setting (no steam) and apply pressure to the pencil...

You find the right temperature by doing a test on a piece of bladder material. (tip of strutt usually has excess material). The required time is usually around 5 to 10 sec.

Too hot and you will get bubbles and burned material or material totally melted.. When it cools down it will be to hard an brittle. To cold and it doesn't stick.

usually bladders are too big (long and too large diameter) for the strut or LE so you have a bit of room of play for repairs.

I am sure you will be able to find more detailed instructions elsewhere (YouTube) if you search well.

So you can choose: These repairs cost time... or money... :wink:


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