stapp59

Rob your issues seem pretty common as do the reinforcements recommended for most all Rev sails. I bought several Revs before the Pros were even available. The early nylon sails are not known for longevity. Based on what I've learned so far, I took my earlier sails and did these reinforcements: Added a mylar strip along the vertical tube on the back of the sail. This area stretches, wrinkles, and wears quickly. The mylar fixes that. I ripped some of the LE thread seam so the mylar can be tucked under and then sewn. Sew 2" strips of Dacron behind the screen at the fold points. Even if the screen breaks down from folding, the Dacron will hold the sail together. I put Dacron in the middle also, just because. Run an additional zig zag stitch down the edge just below the LE tube and heat seal with a lighter flame. This area can come apart and fray otherwise. Replace the 1/8" bungee with a little heavier 5/32 bungee. The 1/8" tends to stretch out with time. I like how the heavier bungee is firmer with less give. Yes you need to use the sewing machine but practice on some scraps first. Do not be afraid to make small cosmetic mistakes at first. You will still add many hours of life to your sails. It is best to add the reinforcements when the sail is new but an older sail can be renewed if not too broken down and stretched out.

I've heard sail stretch, mesh fatigue, and frayed edges as common complaints especially on non Pro sails. Are there other problem areas? The upper vert connection is just asking for a cleaner implementation if one is out there. The pocket is one idea...

Awesome! I thought about using a non stretch cord on the upper vert cap before going with the pocket idea. I may just use cord on the Nylon Rev sails I'm currently updating. More on that in a bit...

I expect the kite will wear just fine, time will tell. Has anyone seen other treatments for the top of the verts or other quad build details? Please post pics if possible.

To eliminate the pigtail wrap over LE, the pocket has to be sewn all the way to the top of the leading edge which is complicated by the width of the overlapping spars. That can probably be done but my attempts did not look so good. Perhaps if a more flexible Cordura Nylon is used rather than the Dacron. Keep in mind the goal was something clean, straightforward, easy, and functional. For street flying, strips of gaffers tape along the LE could be helpful and replaced as needed. Same with vinyl end caps over the end caps. Of course the caps can be easily replaced, the sail not so much...

Thanks for the comment. I've been thinking about that detail quite a bit as it's one of the more complicated areas on the kite. The upper vert junction has to do three things: Nock end for the vertical tube Bridle connection Hold the LE and vertical frame tubes together Traditionally an end cap is bungee wrapped around the LE with the bridle larks-headed to the cap. This performs all three functions but the bungee can move around, stretch, and looks a bit clunky. The goal was to simplify the connection if I could. The pocket with a vinyl cap on the vertical tube is much like the nose on a dualie and eliminates the endcap and bungee - mostly. Certainly the fabric pocket folds down flat for packing and is easy to sew. The bridle could be larksheaded around the vertical pocket (and tube) only but this would not hold the LE and vertical tube together. Without this connection the LE is pulled forward and will bend downward 90 degrees under flight load. Not good - ask me how I know this By looping the bridle over the LE, the flight loads will pull the LE and vert tube together and that issue is solved. Concerning ease of replacement, each bridle point is sheet bend tied to a 2" pigtail. It is easy to replace the bridle and/or any of the pigtails independently though a quad is not known to wear out bridles. If you are dragging your LE over pavement enough to wear that bridle leader I suspect you will have bigger issues with the LE fabric. Is the bungee known to wear excessively in that area?

I could ramble about the build details and choices made. Here are some closeup pics. If interested, ask questions...

A couple members asked that I post detail pictures of a recent quad build. This seems a like good forum spot. History: I've had a BagO'Revs for years but am primarily a dualie flyer. Have spent much time since 2000 tweaking and modding and recently building entire sport kites. I could not find everything I wanted in a single kite so I set out to create my own by merging design elements to create a wind efficient, trickable, ballet style sportkite in SUL, UL, Std, and vented models. The project was named Enigma and after two years of development am pretty happy with the results. JB has seen some of the prototypes. My Revs are ten year old nylon 1.5s and show the normal wear issues. I decided to do a quad project to match the graphics of the Enigma and use build materials and techniques similiar to the dualies. The result is my first quad shown below.

Would that pic go in the sportkite section or quad section?

I really should hang out here more Renewed my membership to KL and all. Have been a dualie for like ever. Recently have been thinking a bit about quads, who knew? JB teaches a great flying workshop. Everyone should attend one or two...