I was just wondering what kiter's are using for weights to hold down their kites when launching ect. I have seen water bottles and sand but was wondering what other inventions or cool finds people might share

Thanks

Lacrosse balls.... sometimes in nylon fabric tubes.

No, I have never played lacrosse. Yes, I have been called strange. :embarrased:

They were just the right size, weight, and roll pretty easily off the kite canopy. If they get wet, they are easy to dry off.

This Spring, if I get ambitious, I will probably get more systematic about these.

ATB,
Sam

When on the beach. I just kick sand on my kite until its held down good... On snow, I burry a wing-tip. In fields, I normally have a small (over the shoulder) water cooler that I drop on the kite. Either in the middle, or on a wingtip...

Nothing special, just whatever is available at the time and place...

this is definately sparking my imagination I think I will bag up some of the pail of used golf balls I bought at a garage sale or stuff some tube socks LOL

:wee:

tennis ball
cut a slit it and add metal washer, sand, penny's ..what ever is close at hand and they roll right off.... their bright.. so you'll won't forget were they might be

What I recommend is to get yourself some 1 gallon zip lock baggies. Stuff them into your kite bag and when you need them, fill them up with dirt/rocks/sand etc... They slide right off the kite when you are ready to launch. When finished, just dump the filling out on the ground where you got it from and stuff the bags back into your kite bag.

This way you can carry around several bags without having to carry the weight. Also, nobody will ever steal your bag of dirt when it is lying on the ground.

Divers have bags of lead shot that are made of a really heavy duty nylon fabric. They aren't really cheap but they are compact. Lots of good ideas here.

I like the big ziplock idea except might be hard to find ballast in a large sod field but if I were going to the beach I would use that idea

Used to use ankle weights - the kind with velcro straps. I used the straps to attach them to my kite bag while heading to the field and put them down soft-side down to hold the kite. Worked pretty good but I've switched to water bottles when flying on grass and sand bag when on the beach. Just use snow when I'm on....well, snow.

I went to the local hardware shop and bought a bag of rounded pebbles - used for decorative mulch in pot plants. Made up some canvas sleeves and filled 'em. You could just as easily use a sock. Or the zip lock bags. You'll get a look at them in my 'how I launch and land' vid. (in the flying techniques thread)

Fat chicks :evil:





OK, that's a joke. What kind of kite are you flying and on what surface?

In a field, on a foil, nothing beats a kite stake /tent stake / 9-12" nail / screw driver.

Same can be said for the beach if the sand packs well.

I also have a dog stake for the beach when the sand is loosely packed.

On ice you can't beat an ice srew but can also use just plain old snow and any of the suggestions above in most conditions.

LEIs require different techniques.

The Peter Lynn sand/snow bag I got with one on my arcs ...

I use my fold out chair bag. Either with the chair in or anything I can toss in it . The only time I have had an issue the stopper ball from the bag had snagged my bridle line. I tuck it in now.

Similar to the PL sand / snow bag.

B-Roc - do you hook the kite fabric to the stake/screw/dog somehow....a bridle line maybe? I use a stake as well for the control system but to weigh down the kite prior to launch at the window's edge I always use other stuff. Is there a way to secure it down to a stake at the edge of the window and launch away? That'd be handy and less likely to allow the kite to wriggle free like the last weekend.

PKD make bags for sand, cheaper plan, grab thick opaque knee high/stocking thingies form wifes drawers and fill with sand....lol, I got told off but it works pretty dam good and cheap as chips

does the sand not come out of the stockings or does it hold it well? might have to go shopping for some stockings um oh maby better send the wife LOL

Quote:

Originally posted by macboy B-Roc - do you hook the kite fabric to the stake/screw/dog somehow....a bridle line maybe? .

For starters, I always parapack my fixed bridle kites and I think that makes a huge difference as the handles are totally secured before the kite ever comes out of the bag.

So I plant my stake and hook the brake line loops or wrap the brake line leaders if the handles lack loops and then walk the bag out. When the kite finally exits the bag it snaps to attention, staked securely and inflates. Perfect.

For the depowers I leave the kite in the bag with lines attached (I never wrap my bar inside the kite) and then run the lines / bar out securing the chicken loop or leash or safety or whatever (depending upon the setup) to the stake and then walk back to the bag and let the kite out so it too is totally secured before it exits the bag.

The stake never touches the kite and I generally always launch from the center of the window as that's where the kite stakes out best.

<--- my favorite someone else's sandbag

I thought that's what kids were for!!!! :frog::frog:

I have used 2L pop bottles filled with water /ice, or smaller bottles filled with sand, steel shot.

at nabx i use Dino too

"he who doesnt fly, holds thy kite"

I've used old worn out in-line-skating wheels - a set of eight sprinkled on the trailing edge.

Few years back I invented the "kite snake"- 8' +- steel chain inside of heavy tubular webbing. In the end I settled on water bottles. I'm sensitive to dehydration anyway. A cooler with at least six bottles is the first thing in the car when I go to the beach.

Quote:

Originally posted by truman does the sand not come out of the stockings or does it hold it well? might have to go shopping for some stockings um oh maby better send the wife LOL

I used rice, works a treat and cheaper than anything else on the market

Ok now if someone could come up with a long snake like water bottle cozy made of neoprene that holds 4 bottles I'll take 3 please LOL by the end of the day all your ballast is gone hehe love it call it the water bottle snake I think kite brand names should have them made and give them out with their kites have their logo printed on them

i use my telekinesis:karate:

by the way anyone uses my idea and I get 3 for free LOL!:wee:

Hey Sailors,
Kite anchors on hard-pack and grassy fields:
After losing who-knows-how-many sand bags, weights, carabiners, gear bags, etc...
(Dogs and kids... "Hey! Look what I found!" and the occasional busy-body)
I now use a couple plastic juice bottles.
Two or three along the trailing edge (wind at your back, kite on its back)
You know the ones (6-10 oz) with the flat sides and the rounded edges?
Like Odwalla or Naked Juice.
Drink the juice and rinse out the bottle.
Fill about halfway with rocks or sand and then glue the cap back on (don't need that spilling).
The flat sides keep if from being blown off the kite on a windy day when you're not paying attention.
The bottles roll off the kite when you launch but they don't roll away.
And, because they look like garbage, nobody picks them up while you're flying.
(I love the cynicism)

A stake or old screw driver secures your handles and keeps the kite from getting away.
On beaches, use the sand that is there.


Safen Up! Buggy On!

"Often wrong... Never in doubt"

the coreylama

Truman - One of the local breweries had a summer promo here about 10 years back and were giving away tubular beer coolers. Held a six pack I believe. Brilliant - wish I'd have kept it.

Get Yours Today!

my idea was to just carry a drawstring backpack liek the kinds they give away and fill it with sand but now seeing this ill just fill it with some of my lacrosse balls

and if any of you are looking for a place to find balls just go to any nearby lacrosse field or practice area you will probably find plenty in bushes and under trees

my coash like most get hundreds of them for free so they don't really bother looking around for them because once they spend a week outside they are pretty much useless because the natural rubbers they use to make the balls looses its bounce

Hey macboy that's awesome! Dual function