How many hours off air flight is a kite built for?

[windfreak74]

Recently discussing this topic with our kite group i was curious of several parameters used for evaluating a kite durability and value.
this is for clarification purposes for the begginers and self suficient kiter who are looking for used gear so please bear with me and share your knoledge.

1.Year of kite means squat! this parameter is just for knowing when kite was launched.
most important parameter is hours of flight?

ex: My friend bought his kid a brand new 2019 dice. ive seen how he treats his gear and how many hours and crashes he has put in it.probably some good 150 hours of flight. and now he is trying to dump it for premium value because the kite is 1 years old.kite has more stretch marks than my bariatric operated aunt.
on the other perspective another friend bought gear for his kid, a used 2016 rebel which was flown probably 50 hours and cloth is spanking new.
which kite should be worth more?
how many hours does a kite fly good? 250 hours is my guess after that is all down hill!!!
what do you guys think?

[Kiterpep]

Probably depends on a lot of factors, like UV intensity, coarseness of the sand on the beach, salt or sweet water, skill of the user, amount of crashes/daringness of the user, amount of unpacking and packing (i.e. length of average session), wind conditions in which the kite is used, just to name a few...

250 hours sounds in the ballpark to me, but it might also depend what you mean by flying well. After that amount of hours, the canopy should definitely have started to stretch a bit. Considering an enthusiastic kiter with a three-kite quiver of which each gets used the same amount for a 3-hour session every week on average, that would mean the quiver would last some five years.

[iriejohn]

If you leave the kite on the beach for hours many times it will reduce the kite’s life a lot.

Pump up kite, go out, pack it up, will make it last longer.

[iriejohn]

If you leave the kite on the beach for hours many times it will reduce the kite’s life a lot.

Pump up kite, go out, pack it up, will make it last longer.

That's what I do.

I also use a hand brush to remove loose sand from the kite before packing, roll it up loosely with the leading edge flat, and partly close the valve to prevent sand etc. getting into the LE bladder. Sand and flapping in the wind on the beach are the kite killers.

[windfreak74]

wow guys i understand the damage and the how to properly access damge in a kite ive been kiting since 2006. i guess my language barrier does not allow me to comunicate correctly. question still remains how many hours if a kite built to endure? average? please share your knoledge.many may find this stupid but debating it will improve beginners aquisitions.

[windfreak74]

simple math for the weekend warrior ! 52 wekends x 3 hour session= 156 hours of flight x 4 years . 624 hours of flight average. by that assumption kite will be very worn out! would you guys consider this kite has diminished flight carracteristics for its use?

[windfreak74]

i trying to come up with consensus about hours of flight with average use. 200 hours good kite, 400 hours average, 600 hours poor deformed kite and diminished flight caracteristics.

[windfreak74]

for exemple i still fly a 12m 2008 best nemesis canopy material has 75 hours of flight durring all these year. last year changed all the bladder kite flys excelent. nobody would offer 100 dolar for it. cant buy a trainer with that money today!!still many hours of flight in it.most recently i butcher it to one strut and it still keeps on giving!

[backcountry]

Windbreaker, I have 2008 nemesis 6, 9, 12, and 14m kites that I still fly. Replaced Valles in 6 and 12, but other than that they are still pretty crispy. My kiting in the summer is pretty limited due to where I live, but snow kite a lot in winter. Didn't answer your original question, but what bar do you use on the 12. I still use 2008 best bar and chicken loop and the flag out are pretty sketch.

[juanpasala]

Well, it dependa a lot on the kiter...
When i was learning (217) i went though a 2016 naish pivot in a year, about 200 hrs of flight.
After that I got a 2018 Pivot, which after 3 years and well over 500 hrs of use still flyes perfectly today; fabric is still crispy, and appart from a few scratches in the bladder (rocky landing area) the kite is still perfect.