Ahh not sure if I agree about not rotating.
The delaminating valves issue as far as I could make out was an age related issue and not down to use as the valves all started to lift at about the same time period.
I could be wrong but I don’t think the glue on valves will last forever.
I still have the 4 kites and a brand new unused bladder set.
I just need some time and someone with very small hands to try and install on one of the kites.
A kite's useful life expectancy
-
andyjiggs
- Medium Poster
- Posts: 70
- Joined: Fri Apr 11, 2008 4:03 pm
- Local Beach: south coast england
- Favorite Beaches: south coast england
- Style: freeride
- Gear: naish
- Brand Affiliation: None
- Has thanked: 3 times
- Been thanked: 22 times
Re: A kite's useful life expectancy
But if I’m right about the age thing then I don’t really know what to expect putting an old unused bladder set into a 16/17 year old kite.
Obviously just an intrigue thing as I have retired the kites and just can’t bring myself to throw them away.
Obviously just an intrigue thing as I have retired the kites and just can’t bring myself to throw them away.
-
vela99
- Frequent Poster
- Posts: 229
- Joined: Wed Aug 05, 2015 3:02 pm
- Weight: 74
- Style: Wave Kitesurfing
- Gear: North Neo 6, 8 & 11, Appletree Applepeeler 5 7" and Gong Lethal 5 6"
- Brand Affiliation: None
- Has thanked: 10 times
- Been thanked: 28 times
Re: A kite's useful life expectancy
Here my two cents.
I belong to the group of people that keep a rigurous register of their sports activity.
North Neo 11, 5.5 years of use, 157 sessions, so almost 500 hours of wind and sun exposure. I only had to replace the valve. Otherwise the kite looks still very good and I hope to get at least another 100 sessions with it. Current cost per session including repair cost 7.2€.
North Neo 8, 5.0 years of use, 134 sessions, so 400 hours of wind and sun exposure. No repairs so far. The kite looks still very good and I hope to get another 100+ sessions with it. Current cost per session 6.6€
I never leave the kite pumped up and exposed to wind and sun on the ground for more than a few minutes.
I belong to the group of people that keep a rigurous register of their sports activity.
North Neo 11, 5.5 years of use, 157 sessions, so almost 500 hours of wind and sun exposure. I only had to replace the valve. Otherwise the kite looks still very good and I hope to get at least another 100 sessions with it. Current cost per session including repair cost 7.2€.
North Neo 8, 5.0 years of use, 134 sessions, so 400 hours of wind and sun exposure. No repairs so far. The kite looks still very good and I hope to get another 100+ sessions with it. Current cost per session 6.6€
I never leave the kite pumped up and exposed to wind and sun on the ground for more than a few minutes.
- These users thanked the author vela99 for the post:
- CaptainKook (Sat Aug 06, 2022 1:05 am)
- Rating: 3.03%
-
Pemba
- Very Frequent Poster
- Posts: 626
- Joined: Fri Feb 27, 2015 5:39 am
- Kiting since: 2002
- Local Beach: Murrebue
- Gear: Eleveight FS, Shinn Bronq
- Brand Affiliation: None
- Has thanked: 170 times
- Been thanked: 45 times
Re: A kite's useful life expectancy
Around here they seem to last about 4 years, maybe 5, being used once or twice per week during the seasons. After that the canopee material gets weak and might start to crack along regular folds. Valve delamination issues seem unrelated to use, more to age. Quite fixable, so I wouldn't say they limit a kite's life.