Check your lines!

If you think they are looking a little tired, might be a good time to replace before summer kicks in. I found out the hard way during this morning's session.
Funny, cause just 2 weeks ago I was thinking "Hmmmm maybe I should get a new set"

Lucky I wasn't out with a pod of Orca this time, not that I think they'd eat me, but I still be s h i tting bricks

Enjoyed a good few hundred meters of swimming

Wife even let me go back for round 2 after lunch, what a champ

Yes always a good idea to keep an eye on the twist point if you do a lot of loops or rotations..

I swap the lines around from bar side to kite side to get a bit more use then bin them..

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KPSS Used said..
Yeah good advice. Also check main lines especially the uncovered ones, flag out lines, chicken loops and any part of your gear that wears, especially if you don't kite during winter.
We have seen some shockers in the shop lately, but thats ok at least they came in and had the good sense to get things fixed.

Oh yeah, wax your centre rope too before it frays and you don't get round to replacing it because theres sea breezes every day

Does anyone know a good supplier of custom replacement lines? I know there's been threads about this in the past - it would be great to order a set of preferably ozone-type front and back lines of custom length, mix and match bars/chicken loops/saftey/split hardware, etc., I have sitting around, but have always found it vastly more expensive than have a rummage at my local kite shop or buying an older new or barely used full set of bar/lines...

lads, thanks so much for this thread . i found two surprising knots in my lines. i am not big into rotations (yet) so was very surprised to find them at all. found out they weaken lines by up to 50%. spent about 10min each one, trying to work the knots out using the soak and gentle pliers method. then checked other bar which was ok. thanks again guys.was better to look at home with time and equipment, than at beach when wind is cranking and no equipment.

Don't put knots on the concrete and hit them with a 4lb hammer to get them undone either. Don't do that.

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CapNRonK said..
Does anyone know a good supplier of custom replacement lines?

Seller name: "Bozracing" on eBay (I bought 2x15 m spliced "Black Dyneema? SK78 Fiber Synthetic Fishing Winch Marine rope 480kg" for AUD 35 (?) to replace Ozone central lines)

Been successful getting knots out by CAREFULLY pushing a SLIM needle through the knot and then levering it gently to break the knot apart...you have to be a bit careful and push the needle through what you think is the place where the two pieces of line are adjacent (make sense)...not push it simply thorough a line and lever it......if you look at the knot carefully and insert the needle alongside one piece of the line where it , in effect, butts up against the returning piece that makes up the knot.....(need a diagram here)...lubricate with water/saliva and be gentle.....works for me, keep a needle in the car!

This diagram may help....its a figure eight knot...and any knot I've ever had is not this complicated...usually a simple loop....but if u insert needle as per the black line between the adjacent bits you should be able to open it up...be patient Grasshopper

yep, mine looked pretty impossible too at first look.....but try to c a r e f u l l y push a narrow needle through and see how it goes, be patient and careful

a needle will go through the bundle with minimal damage I found,,,,the knots i took out were ones found unexpectedly in a line (how do they get there?)... so they were pretty tight

in my experience (from a background as a textile technology consultant) its a lot more likely to succeed and not cause as much damage than banging fibre bundles with a hammer or chewing (as others have suggested....)

it won't work for everything I suppose, but in my two (only two so far) cases, its worked with no damage.....

Hey, I'm not a knot expert........the needle has worked for me that's all....

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brinm said..
yep, mine looked pretty impossible too at first look.....but try to c a r e f u l l y push a narrow needle through and see how it goes, be patient and careful

a needle will go through the bundle with minimal damage I found,,,,the knots i took out were ones found unexpectedly in a line (how do they get there?)... so they were pretty tight

in my experience (from a background as a textile technology consultant) its a lot more likely to succeed and not cause as much damage than banging fibre bundles with a hammer or chewing (as others have suggested....)

it won't work for everything I suppose, but in my two (only two so far) cases, its worked with no damage.....

My secret to avoiding knots is by practicing the following,

Disconnect the left steering line and center line from the kite and reattach them to each other. Do so with the right side too and then proceed with roll up your lines in a figure 8 around the bar.

I do this religiously as I have found this reduces my set up time significantly when planning to go out. When setting up my kite, I pump the kite up, then run my lines after packing out the bar. I will always have the steering and center lines attached, and have them sitting above my knee once I have walked my lines out from the bar. I disconnect the left steering and center lines and reattach them to the kite and then do the same with the right side - This aids with preventing lines crossing and I only ever have to run my lines once from the time I have packed them out.

This also helps when setting up in high winds as loose steering and center lines tend to whirl around each other when flapping in the wind which creates unnecessary frustration when you just want to get off the beach and kite.

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KiteAddicted said..
lads, thanks so much for this thread . i found two surprising knots in my lines. i am not big into rotations (yet) so was very surprised to find them at all. found out they weaken lines by up to 50%. spent about 10min each one, trying to work the knots out using the soak and gentle pliers method. then checked other bar which was ok. thanks again guys.was better to look at home with time and equipment, than at beach when wind is cranking and no equipment.

Has anyone had any personal experiences where the line had broken at the knot due to the 50% strength reduction. Or are there other people that have flown kites with line knots for years and nothings ever broke.
I have a knot and just wondering should i put in the effort to remove it.

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dkeating said..

KiteAddicted said..
lads, thanks so much for this thread . i found two surprising knots in my lines. i am not big into rotations (yet) so was very surprised to find them at all. found out they weaken lines by up to 50%. spent about 10min each one, trying to work the knots out using the soak and gentle pliers method. then checked other bar which was ok. thanks again guys.was better to look at home with time and equipment, than at beach when wind is cranking and no equipment.

Has anyone had any personal experiences where the line had broken at the knot due to the 50% strength reduction. Or are there other people that have flown kites with line knots for years and nothings ever broke.
I have a knot and just wondering should i put in the effort to remove it.

I make sure I always get any knots out, so I have never had one break in that exact spot. But what I do know is that broken lines are dangerous and usually happen at the worst possible time, so you probably want to do everything in your power to reduce the chances of it happening.

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dkeating said..

KiteAddicted said..
lads, thanks so much for this thread . i found two surprising knots in my lines. i am not big into rotations (yet) so was very surprised to find them at all. found out they weaken lines by up to 50%. spent about 10min each one, trying to work the knots out using the soak and gentle pliers method. then checked other bar which was ok. thanks again guys.was better to look at home with time and equipment, than at beach when wind is cranking and no equipment.

Has anyone had any personal experiences where the line had broken at the knot due to the 50% strength reduction. Or are there other people that have flown kites with line knots for years and nothings ever broke.
I have a knot and just wondering should i put in the effort to remove it.

This is a useful explanation