Kite anchors/stakes

[Mujician]

Hi,

I'd really like to buy a large single line kite and have it attached to the ground by an anchor or stake. I know there are various kinds around but I wonder if there is a best type or make to get, and how do I actually tie or attach the kite line to the anchor. Many thanks

[Bill Clay]

I use a dog tie out stake that looks like a corkscrew and a carabiner. [emoji3]


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[GammoRay]

Watch the StormForce video! Will hold two tons of pull at 45 deg (like a "bigly" kite pulls)!

 

Each tie-down comes with a big yellow rope (safety!) and you can larkshead over the knot or attach a climbing carabiner and use a tugboat hitch: http://www.animatedknots.com/lightermans/index.php

 

http://www.stormforcetiedowns.com/Storm-Force-XL-Advanced-Aircraft-Tie-Down-Kit_p_10.html

 

 

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[Mitch]

It depends on what your anchoring into and how big we are talking about. 

In grass, I think the Storm force is fine. It is an angle iron placed angle up with a ring on one side and 12 inch ground stakes driven through the holes on the other.  The ad above is a little unfair to the Claw Aircraft Tie Down System, because it pulls at a 45 deg angle for Storm Force and straight up for the Claw. The Claw is also a very reliable system.  And cheap (https://www.amazon.com/The-Claw-C101-Tie-Down-Anchor/dp/B002RXJEHI) <25 bucks with A prime.

Some people just go to the hardware store and get 3/4" x 36" steel stakes (the kind they use for concrete forms) and drive one or more of them into the ground. 

In sand, you need big sand anchors and a shovel. Two or more for the big stuff. 

Now here's my personal way. If you have a half or 3/4" webbing sewn or tied onto your anchor, you can lark's head the flight line on to the middle someplace and it won't slip.  I put a knot (or actually sew and fold over) on the end to the webbing to be safe, but I've never seen it budge.

Some people use a climbing figure of 8. I've never figured out why it's better than the carabiner you have to attach it to.

For small and medium sized kites, I make my own sand stakes that work great. I'll send pics if you want. The army makes sand/snow stakes, too.

Hope this helps.

[ACrop]

Hum, poking@esinger to see if he will share his sand anchor story from this weekend at Regallo in the OBX. His beautiful new huge bowl kite had some anchor lessons to teach.

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[esinger]

Everything turned out okay at the end, however it was really horrifying to see my bol pull the anchors out of the sand and drag the along the ground. Lucky it stopped at an outcropping of trees and I was able to work it down carefully. Lesson learned to rework the sand anchors when the wind shifts

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[Mikefule]

I can see why you might use a climbing figure of 8 if you want to use metal hardware.  It is smooth, wide and strong.  Knots are the weakest point in a line, and the tighter the radius of any bend in the line, the weaker the line is.

I don't like using carabiners.  With a hinge, a gate, and that little hook, there's too much to snag.  As a boating enthusiast, I have always found that the right knot for the job is less fuss than adding the complexity of extra components.

The video shows an interesting knot - I haven't come across it before.  I can't help feeling that if the pull on the line is weak enough to allow you to tie this knot, you probably don't need this complexity.  I guess that if the kite was pulling too hard, you'd probably have a friend to help create some slack while you tied the knot.

I find that the clove hitch is the quickest and easiest way to attach a line to a stake.  You can ether tie the clove hitch or you can make it as 2 loops  and drop it on.  Although a conventional clove hitch is made of only 2 loops, it is easy to add a 3rd or 4th.  Later, it is easy to remove.  If all else fails, you can pull the stake out and slide the clove hitch off the bottom.

For safety, on a windy day or with a kite that pulls hard, I may put 2 or more stakes in series.

[Mikefule]

Back to the three-looped slip knot shown in the video.  I tried this today.

I don't use carabiners, and I'm usually flying on local sports fields so I cannot use long or wide stakes that might damage the playing surface.  Therefore, I use tent pegs.

One advantage of the three loop slip knot is that you can spread the loops and anchor your kite to 3 small pegs rather than 1 large peg.

Another advantage is that it unties very easily, being a slip knot.

Therefore, thank you.  It's a useful addition to my repertoire.