I've made pig tails out of thicker Amsteel (3.2mm?) with rings for the 21 which work great, and another set with just a knot in the loop that I haven't actually used yet... I figure the difference in thickness between the pig tail and the lines will be enough to keep them secure. The knots are not bulky.foilholio wrote:It obviously creates a weak point, just not much. I'll test some more and try to get better numbers. Maybe the square end creates more wear over time, eventually thoroughly weakening the line.
Those FS pigtails, the front and rear mains, look strong but they all are only one section of line in the middle. One full splice with just an 8 knot on the end would be stronger and cleaner than current with rings. But I prefer old setup with ELCs for less tangles. No ELCs/rings is cleanest, but any mixer work involves removing all 4 lines. Maybe I will try it as pulleys lines last so long anyway.
I weighed some rings and ELCs. FS ELC 2.7g, pansh ELC 3.4g, FS little ring 0.6g, FS slightly bigger ring 0.9g. Wow those ELCs are actually quite heavy. Ok I am going to try with out.
The original pig tails? They are just regular line, near as I can tell. A few grams isn't going to bother me, I can take a good dump before kiting if it was an issue.foilholio wrote:You got to replace them before holiday or bring spares. 3mm used to be a bit of a thing on foilzone a long time ago. I tried it and it's far too bulky/heavy. 2mm is well sufficient. I am thinking of using ~1.5mm kite line.
Do you replace the pulleys at the same time? Old pulleys destroy the rope quite quick. Do you wash your pulleys every session? Do you land on sand or grass? If you land on sand I would give extra attention to washing the pulleys.
I thought I got 3mm but we couldn't find the sizes so it's just what looked right. Fits the pulley well but is thicker than the original SPL. So far so good... Marlow 12-strand I think. Suspiciously close to the originals in length--just a few mm to adjust C mixer.foilholio wrote:No I was referring to using 3mm on the SPL not on the pigtails. Though 3mm is a bit overkill for pigtails too. I was just pointing out the way FS uses it's current pigtails, they could make them smaller, lighter and stronger. They could definitely trim some fat from the mixer too.
Grams at the kite are a whole lot different than the rider. If you just let a few grams pass here and there when designing you soon have kilos extra. You start to get a bit gram obsessive when youre hunting for every last drop of performance. Designing good aircraft, weight is one of the utmost important considerations.
I found the orbits jam easy with sand. And they are heavy/big, so more tangles.
I was just asking how you handle your gear because I don't really have the issues you do. If you aren't rinsing stuff, things like the axle on the pulley will get corroded quicker and jam easier. Plus salt seems to make things sticky, so you might start out with unjammed pulleys but then quickly pick up sand on the beach. You could always drop your kite at the start of a session to give it a rinse
Anyway I look at maintenance and handling gear well as not just a way to make it last long/save money, but to maintain performance/safety as high as possible. No one is going to replace stuff every session. So you need to think what simple things you can do so next time you use your gear it's in the best possible condition.
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