Hi..

I flew my new 4.5m bullet for about 2 weeks before one of the lead bridle lines snapped/un-spliced where it is spliced into more bridle lines (where two threads spiral round the lines to join them together).

(the bridle failed in about 10-15mph gusty conditions)

on further inspection, I can see that some of the other splices in the bridle are beginning to fray.. is there anythng I can do to prevent this happening again?

I have sent the sail back to flexi, who have repaired and returned it almost instantly , enclosing a note saying that they've checked over the other lines and they're all ok.

I'm concerned that the other splices that are beginning to fray are going to fail one day (hopefully only while my feet are on the ground) - should this happen and is there anything I can do about it?

any advice anyone has to offer would be appreciated...

Gez

I guess that the strings that "spiral round the lines to join them together" that you speak of are stitching threads where the links have been machine sewn together.

If this is the case, the best thing to do to keep the threads from loosening further is hit them with a drop of Fray Check. It can be found at most fabric shops and will glue those loose threads in place. It's also perfect for preventing small holes in the sailcloth from getting bigger.

Give it a try and see if it helps.

BC

thanks - sounds like that will do the trick - I'll try and find some this afternoon...

(I'll also copy that to the flexi forum where I asked the same question)

do you think it's a bit surprising that this has happened to the bridle after only 2 weeks of flying? I know it's not going to be perfect forever, but a couple of weeks of light flying on grass and a sand beach(no rocks or anything) shouldn't cause too much of a problem, should it?

Gez

Quote:

Originally posted by gezmond do you think it's a bit surprising that this has happened to the bridle after only 2 weeks of flying?

Considering that kite bridles are commonly made in some sewing shop in China or the like, it is no surprise that they tend to come loose from time to time. In their defense, sewing bridle loops is a tedious task and kites usually wear out before the stitches could ever come loose enough to cause a problem. It's not really a quality control problem, more like bothersome low priority issue. Your bridles will most likely outlive your kite sail.

BC