Kite Repair

Ouch, I hate to be negative but If I had to guess I'd go with delaminating valves as your problem.. If this is the case its far quicker and eventually cheaper to buy a new bladder as If one is leaking the rest will follow.

I recently tried to repair one for a customer and found that the Octopus replacement valves were near impossible to find, we ended up getting a whole new bladder set, on memory I think it was around $250-300 but don't quote me on that as the kite owner paid for it.

4 words buddy
"Moi Levy Kite repair" up here on the tweed
www.kiterepair.com.au
07 5599 2267
If he can't fix it BURN IT

If it is delaminating valves, then airtime valve traps are the go.
You can cut out the original valves and re stick with the valve traps.
Done a number of these with 100% success.

If you buy the 10 pack,saves you money and can use the left overs
for future valve or bladder repairs.

If the valve or valves are cracked, you are probably better off spending the
extra bucks on a new bladder or buy another same make second hand kite.
You then can use one of the kites for spare parts.
(valves,bladders,bridles sailcloth, dacron and pigtails etc)
Second hand kite that age is probably cheaper to buy than a new bladder.
Good Luck.

Flybykite says the right thing valve traps ten bucks each unless bulk..100% success rate just plonk' over the top
Other than that its pee easy just pull them out the end blow up put in bucket to check if its bladder pinpricks or whatever..
Valves..use tarzan grip and acetone just put them back on its the chemical reaction between the two that welds them..without acetone glue wont work .squash/weight down after.it should take ten mins each strut..
I really wouldnt bother..and thats with lots and lots of experience as tgcp said.. to buy new valves for an 09 kite.just stick them on as above
I really wouldnt bother sending away something as easy and quick to fix as struts either..also
Neither would I bother buying bulk small struts..for 09!..they are too easy' to fix.. ..but the leading edge is very# important!!!!
failing that I have about 7 10m cabrinha struts if u want a bunch..with good valves

I've been going 2km out on patched up bladders.dont glue around the valve..just take it off

Just do it yourself mate, If its a valve delaminating remove bladder and get a cup of hot water and put valve in hot water for a couple of seconds and you should b able to peel the whole valve off the bladder ,clean up the sticky side of valve [I use a wire buffer on a bench grinder ]but u can use sandpaper it just takes a bit longer .Once that's clean and back to plastic lightly sand bladder till its a bit rough ie not shiny and make sure there is no sand on the inside of the bladder where you are sanding as this will put extra holes in ur bladder and u don't want that ..I then have a couple of pieces of 16mm ply about 100mmx100mm with holes cut a tad bigger than the valve stems 25mm hole saw works a treat and a piece of paper the same size with the same size hole.. Lay your bladder out on a hard flat surface and sticky tape it there so it wont move. clean area to be glued with an alcohol swab and let dry about 30 seconds Next get some general purpose Tarzan grip and apply generously to the valve but not to the bladder as the bladder will go all wrinkly and will be hard to work with. Once you have applied the glue place it onto the bladder making sure its round the right way . Place piece of paper over the valve stem then the piece of ply over the piece of paper the piece of paper stops the ply sticking to the bladder if excess glue comes out the sides you can also put a piece of paper inside the bladder under the hole which can b removed later when the glue dries. This can be removed out through the valve stem .use the second piece of ply on top of the first as one piece of ply is not thick enough now get a G clamp and clamp it down and leave it overnight to dry properly ...As mentioned above if one valve is delaminating the rest are probably on there way out also so as you have it apart you may as well do the lot. I have fixed about 20 valves this way and haven't had a problem the oldest being about 2 1/2 years .
hope this helps
cheers

I just joined specifically to answer this thread, as I was shocked at some of the suggestions above re: postage and that there is only one or two people in the entire country that do repairs. My god.
I do repairs! LOL and I've been doing it for years.

farNT is spot on: try and do it yourself if you cannot find a local repairer. Even some sail repairers are good at repairing kites, especially the stitching and canopy work.

I might add to farNT's suggestion, that instead of a piece of paper and ply over the top of the valve stem trick, if you have spare bladder material, cut a circular piece about 1/2 inch larger than the base of the valve and apply that over the top instead. Then apply the ply-wood over the top and clamp together. Once dry, the bladder piece over the bladder acts as a double-seal to the valve - just like those over-priced valve-traps mentioned.
And yeah, TarzanGrip with a bit of water as a catalyst and you've saved a packet on those over-priced Stormsure and Aquaseal glues. Smell them. They are the same thing.

You do not have to fork out a fortune on an entire bladder either.

With the Octopus kites, seal the holes on the main bladder, seal the holes on the leading edge (using glue and pieces of ripstop tape), and seal off the female holes on the strut bladders. Turn the kite into a single pump/dump kite with individually inflatable struts. Yeah I know it's an inconvenience to pump but you'll save a pain in the neck with that Naish "octopus" system. It's a pain to repair and the valves are currently very hard to get due to a poor supply chain from Naish.

Hi Mate,
Perhaps I can help with your repair issue. Feel frew to call me on 0459416816. Or email at Adamhochmuth84@gmail.com. Hope to hear from you.

For what its worth guys, spartaco has sent it to me for repair. Im helping him out with a super cheap price to keep him going till he is ready for a new kite. We cant all afford brand new gear. SO I try my best to help guys out on a budget.

Good on you Adam,
Keep up the always good work.

Townsville crew been repairing kites and boards for over 10 years. 1-2 day turn around and we specialise in parafoil kites.www.facebook.com/kiteboardrepair/?fref=ts

Prob not good for ur business either bagging people by name on the Internet hey lofty