Aluula OR repair woes

[leeuwen]

FYI: someone from OR read this and reached out to me (which is fantastic).
He will have a look at what went wrong here and hopefully get things sorted.
Will keep the thread updated if I have more info.

Regarding it to sending to the nearest official repair centre (my case Dr Tuba)
I did not find it on the website immediately where those centres where. So I just went to my local shop which
a) sells these kites
b) is a huge repair shop

I assumed they would either already be a repair centre for aluula or they would want to become one.
I also would prefer not to ship my expensive kite halfway across Europe if I don’t need to.

[ORSales]

FYI: someone from OR read this and reached out to me (which is fantastic).
He will have a look at what went wrong here and hopefully get things sorted.
Will keep the thread updated if I have more info….

I assumed they would either already be a repair centre for aluula or they would want to become one.

Hi Leeuwen,

We’ve had the guys at Aluula make direct contact with Versus today to get them set up as a repair facility. This is a very easy process. There’s literally nothing more than the purchase of some spare material and the review of a repair manual which specifies the type of thread and stitching to be used in various repair possibilities. If you wish to leave your kite with them for repair, they could be authorized this week. Perhaps prompt them to ensure they got the email that was just sent.

I want to add, because of your experience here I’ve also had our Support page for the kites and wings updated to include a call out to repair centres to reach out to be added to the list of authorized repair centres.

As an FYI all of our manuals and a list of repair centres can be found here:

https://oceanrodeo.eu/pages/support
https://oceanrodeo.ca/pages/support
https://oceanrodeo.com/pages/support

Anyone knows the actual repair method and materials???

This seems like a pretty big resale issue for these kites.

Matteo,

A list of repair centres and all our manuals can be found here:

https://oceanrodeo.eu/pages/support
https://oceanrodeo.ca/pages/support
https://oceanrodeo.com/pages/support

However, to address your questions, the Aluula material is actually incredible for adhesives. All of our kites and wings ship with an easily applied stick on repair patch that will repair most tears or punctures under 5cm with an adhesion much stronger than you’d get with a similar stick on patch on Dacron. (If you are an existing customer with an Aluula kite that shipped last year, ask your dealer for a free repair kit now shipping standard with all products).

For larger repairs, the authorized repair centres are your best bet and as Leeuwen has pointed out, we’re working to expand that list to now include Versus and I’ve added a call out for others to become authorized.

Repairing kites or wings made with Aluula materials is no harder than regular kites and wings but the centre just needs to be aware of specific sewing and stitch options for each possible type of repair.

[Peter_Frank]

Why cant you just sew a normal dacron patch onto the area?

Yes, maybe you need to know how to sew in Aluula, it seems, but otherwise I cant see what should be so special - use any repair material for this small patch.

Peter

[leeuwen]

Thx, for the great info/update.

I will ping the repair shop.
Also interesting to read about the adhesive because my tear would probably be easily fixed by that. (It is a tear of maybe 5-10mm)

I will try to see if the shop can maybe help me by using that from a new kite (assume they have one that shipped recently with a patch)

[leeuwen]

Why cant you just sew a normal dacron patch onto the area?

Yes, maybe you need to know how to sew in Aluula, it seems, but otherwise I cant see what should be so special - use any repair material for this small patch.

Just guessing here but it seems logical to me that you want the materials to have the exact same stretch properties.
If one behaves differently enough from the other I could certainly see some issues happening.
Maybe Dacron is “close enough” but maybe not when wet or other circumstances (Eg heat and load amount/type)
I certainly don’t want to be the one to find out with my kite if it’s “close enough to work”

[Peter_Frank]

You could be right, but I doubt it.

As if either Dacron or Aluula stretch noticeably, it is worth nothing for a kite.

Peter

[GregK]

Why cant you just sew a normal dacron patch onto the area?

Peter - suspect you have not yet had a close look at an Aluula kite so are unaware of how different the stitching patterns are on them. When you get a chance, have a close look at how different most of the structural seams are stitched. Only the Leading-edge-to-Canopy seam is done with the traditional 4-point zig-zag stitch.

Anyone doing the work to open and close back up the LE closure seam on an Aluula kite would want to use the best tear-patching material. If Dacron was the only available material, then you would need about 4 layers of 170 gsm Dacron to match the strength and stiffness of Aluula. Also the pressure sensitive adhesives commonly found on sailtape or used on Dacron patching are not optimized for bonding to Aluula. So another reason to use the right repair material for the patch.

[downunder]

Well,

If thats the case, thanks but no thanks...

Even Soul is a bugger off for fixing, so slippery.

Looks like sail lofts will earn some dough.

[Peter_Frank]

Why cant you just sew a normal dacron patch onto the area?

Peter - suspect you have not yet had a close look at an Aluula kite so are unaware of how different the stitching patterns are on them. When you get a chance, have a close look at how different most of the structural seams are stitched. Only the Leading-edge-to-Canopy seam is done with the traditional 4-point zig-zag stitch.

Anyone doing the work to open and close back up the LE closure seam on an Aluula kite would want to use the best tear-patching material. If Dacron was the only available material, then you would need about 4 layers of 170 gsm Dacron to match the strength and stiffness of Aluula. Also the pressure sensitive adhesives commonly found on sailtape or used on Dacron patching are not optimized for bonding to Aluula. So another reason to use the right repair material for the patch.

I understand, but its not a LE or strut or anything, but simply a 5 mm cut in the middle of the canopy as I understand the OP?

Peter

[nixmatters]

I understand, but its not a LE or strut or anything, but simply a 5 mm cut in the middle of the canopy as I understand the OP?

Peter

You must have got it wrong Peter. If it were a cut in the D2 canopy this thread wouldn't exist. Aluula is used for the inflatable parts only.

...Also the pressure sensitive adhesives commonly found on sailtape or used on Dacron patching are not optimized for bonding to Aluula. So another reason to use the right repair material for the patch.

Solid point Greg! I found that the laminated face side of Aluula bonds really well to conventional acrylic PSA, but the back is totally different story and surely needs a taylored adhesive.

Does the repair kit include aluula swatches with adhesive applied on one side?