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how to make a line set out of Q-power

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GregK
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Re: how to make a line set out of Q-power

Postby GregK » Tue Mar 09, 2021 7:13 pm

watercamper wrote:
Tue Mar 09, 2021 7:01 pm
What does he mean when he says 12 strand?
12 strands of Dyneema line braided into a kite flying line, kite bar leader line, or kite leashing safety line.

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Re: how to make a line set out of Q-power

Postby edt » Tue Mar 09, 2021 8:30 pm

There's q-power which is sheathed spectra, 4 strand, 8 strand and 12 strand spectra and dyneema both in sk-75 and sk-99. 12 strand lines are the only type of lines which can be spliced and spliced lines give you the strongest loop, and the strongest lines by specification. All other lines have to be sewn, sleeved or knotted. 12 strand of some sort is your typical kite line. I've used all sorts of lines, and have kind of drifted towards q-power as my favorite not because it is the strongest on paper but because in real life your 12 strand lines pick up abrasion on the beach and after a few months perform well below their spec. Q-power isn't the strongest when everything is new but it retains its strength the best even after several years.

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Re: how to make a line set out of Q-power

Postby alpaia » Tue Mar 09, 2021 8:49 pm

Thanks so in the end do you knot the Q Power ? I have a bunch of the french equivalent (cousin trestec topline fusion, 12 baids fused to a core).
I never dared to use it as making a knot in a line seems against everything I have heard of so far, and sewing it I was not able to do (this is stiff as hell)

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Re: how to make a line set out of Q-power

Postby edt » Tue Mar 09, 2021 9:48 pm

You are allowed to knot q-power it's in the spec but nobody is clear exactly what the strength loss is for knotting because generally the testing is done without properly done knots.

The reason it's ok to knot q-power is that the covering gives you more distance between the knots. What causes knots to create a failure is that the bend in the knot creates stress and when it is tensioned the spectra heats up so much that the fibers melt down. The sheath creates distance so there's not quite as large loss in strength. This by the way is why lark's head knots are ok. The bend in a lark's head is not that sharp so it doesn't hurt the dyneema or spectra.

I would go for it. Make lines out of figure 8 loops. You can also sleeve and then knot but then it's kind of thick. For 4 strand and 8 strand, I just sleeve it and then knot it after I sleeve it, using the same big loop idea as in in my youtube video above.

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Re: how to make a line set out of Q-power

Postby nixmatters » Wed Mar 10, 2021 1:19 am

alpaia wrote:
Tue Mar 09, 2021 8:49 pm
Thanks so in the end do you knot the Q Power ? I have a bunch of the french equivalent (cousin trestec topline fusion, 12 baids fused to a core).
I never dared to use it as making a knot in a line seems against everything I have heard of so far, and sewing it I was not able to do (this is stiff as hell)
That topline fusion is not equivalent of the QPower. It is just a regular 12 strand braid with a filament core that bonds the strands during factory pre-stretching where heat is applied. Impossible to splice, sleeved loops are the only solution.
Knots will reduce its strength significantly.
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edt (Wed Mar 10, 2021 2:01 am) • alpaia (Thu Sep 02, 2021 6:47 am)
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Re: how to make a line set out of Q-power

Postby edt » Wed Mar 10, 2021 2:02 am

ah, well you can still use it as kite line. go grab some kind of sleeve material. I usually go buy some braided rope of the correct size and take out the old core. Now cut it into sleeves, then sleeve and tie figure 8's for the loops. for the center safety, use the technique in the video above with the long loop


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