So this year I decided that I needed a dedicated low wind kite. Something that could get me going in an ants fart worth of wind and still have a fun amount of pull.

After much pricing, longing, looking, and prodding I came to the decision that a 15m NPW9 would be the way to go. I got quote from our beloved NPW builder Susan here on the forum and presented the info to my wifey. I have seen Susan's work here on the forum and thought that it would have been a perfect setup for what I am looking for.

Well, our "house fund" came out on top and I was sent back here to figure something else out.

I noticed a thread about building your own NPW and thought hey, I don't know how to sew and have never done ANYTHING like this before, but I should be able to pick it up.... How hard could it be? (It is not easy!)

Well, I now have a sewing machine, a NPW9 that is almost ready to be bridled, and many many many hours spent learning how to sew and what not to do when building your kite. It seems that the hardest part about building these big things is figuring out how to wrangle all of the fabric. When you have 150 square feet of material, even getting a place just to lay it all out can be a challenge. Not to mention the stress of not wanting to screw up a seam.

So I was thinking about putting a thread together here of tips someone can use when building these kites.

1. For instance, one guide I read recommended using superglue to hold the seam together while you stitch it together. I found that using masking tape to hold the seam together was much better. It is cheaper, easier to work with, and does not stick the fabric to your fingers!


Here is my kite so far!

Looking good but the real question i have not counting your time or enjoyment are you really saving any money by making it yourself? I regular make things that i could buy more for the experience and the abilty to say "I made it" then any cost savings are you finding this to be true in your endeavor? Cant wait to hear how she flys
Scott

"Looking good but the real question i have not counting your time or enjoyment are you really saving any money by making it yourself?"

Well, at my current hourly rate, this kite has cost me prob in the realm of $170 in materials and $1800 in labor. Haha. But, I am spending my leisure time building the kite, and I do enjoy the challenge.


I mean, I enjoy it enough to put pictures of my work so far on the internet

I can't wait to see how it will fly. I keep thinking to myself "hope this thing will actually fly well and not just uncontrollably drag me to my death"



I also look forward to telling the random passerby that I build it when they inevitably ask me where I got it from. Lol

15m for a first build, well done getting this far . As you've invested a lot of time and effort to get this far don't skimp on the bridle line quality.

Don't worry it will fly, but make sure you have @ 5mph wind and nothing more than 8mph to try it out, that is going to have some serious pull.

I'm going to be using 140lb linear spectra core sleeved with braided Dacron for the bridal. It was like $40 for 300 ft.

It has a slightly higher aspect ratio than the normal build dimensions for this size. The width of the center panel is a little wider. (made for a lot less cutting). Hopefully this will not hinder the performance of the kite too much.



Last night my wife asked me why I did such a large kite as my first project.

I said that if I tried a smaller one I would of never started the large one after finding out how much work it is. Haha

Quote:

It has a slightly higher aspect ratio than the normal build dimensions for this size. The width of the center panel is a little wider. (made for a lot less cutting). Hopefully this will not hinder the performance of the kite too much.

I think you'll find a slightly higher aspect will make the kite fly better! It does on other models. It's when you go past a 50% centre panel increase things start to get interesting ;-)