Dabbler Construction Instructions

These instructions go hand in hand with the Excel file and .gif files for the pattern.

These instructions were first written for the Dabbler 2.2. I have gone through and added separate instructions for the Dabbler 5.0 where they are different, but I might have missed some spots. This page has also gone through a few minor revisions, and I may have missed some bits in revising. If something doesn't make sense, then it may be wrong. Just go with your instincts.

If you have any questions on these plans, send me an email.

	What you need
	Printing the plan
	Cutting out the plan (seam allowances)
	Stitching panels (and pockets)
	Reinforcing
	Bridle
	Flying technique

What you need

	Kite material. Carrington or other type of rip-stop nylon is good, although don't buy garment grade rip-stop from your local material shop, like I did. This will fly (mine did), but is not the best thing for kite making. Basic kite making rip-stop from a kite shop is just as cheap, and a much better option. If you want an ultra-lite version, use Icarex. If you want the best option for water-relaunchability, use Chikara, and you'll need to add floatation air-bags to the kite. Chikara is about twice the cost of basic rip-stop, and Icarex is about 3 times. The amount you need depends on the colour-scheme. I bought 2m1.5m each of red, yellow, and purple. If you make it all one colour, 4m1.5m will be enough. I haven't sat down and worked out exactly how much is need for the 5.0m kite, but 10m*1.5m should probably do it.
	A suggestion has been made to use double-layer ripstop for the wingtip panels. If you do this, align one layer at 45 degrees to the rest of the plan, to improve diagonal strength. Another alternative I have seen is to make the wingtip panel entirely from Dacron. Mine works well with wingtip panels of a single layer of ripstop, with extra reinforcements as described further on.
	Support strings. Three times the wingspan of the kite, plus a few metres for knots, pigtails and extra bits. Hardware store nylon cord (woven exterior, straight core, 2mm diameter) is fine for these, because they are inside the kite.
	Bridle string. Use spectra or dyneema or something if you want. I used nylon cord from the local hardware shop - it works, but again, it's not the best thing to use. You'll need about twice the wingspan of the kite, plus a few more metres for knots and extra bits. Make these a bit stronger than the flying lines, just to be safe. 250kg (500lb) lines should be good.
	4 metal rings, around 2cm diameter. Make sure they are solid rings welded shut. These will be subjected to the full pulling force of the kite, and non-welded rings may pull apart. For use in or near water, use stainless steel rings, or small circles of rope, so they won't rust.
	Fibreglass rods. Lengths given are approximate. It's probably a good idea to cut the ribs to exact length after sewing, just in case the sewing is not 100% accurate. Leading edge rods can be made from shorter lengths joined by ferrules.

	Dabbler 2.2		Dabbler 5.0
Rod	diameter	approx length	diameter	approx length
Leading edge	5mm	3.8m	8mm	5.6m
Ribs	3mm	1 x 1.2m 2 x 1.1m 2 x 0.8m	5mm	1 x 1.8m 2 x 1.65m 2 x 1.2m
Wingtips	5mm	2 x 0.3m	8mm	2 x 0.45m

	About 6m of woven nylon strap, 15-20mm wide.
	Sewing machine.
	Kite sewing thread. I used normal cotton thread, and it works, but apparently it rots, and my kites will fall apart after a few years, so I won't be using it again. Kite sewing thread is made from polyester, I think.
	Scissors, pens, etc.
	Plenty of other stuff probably makes life easier, like hot-knives, but is not necessary unless you make lots of kites.

Printing the plan

First, download the plans and print them out.

Plans are now available in CAD format instead of the old Excel format. The best thing about this is that I don't need to explain how to print it out. You just hit the print button.

There are two parts to the plans, as follows

the skin panels
the rib panels

These are graphed onto the same plan. I printed out the plans, and then traced through the material. Just make sure you use light material. I used dark purple in the centre panels, and it was almost impossible to trace through. It was also very hard to see the lines when sewing, so I will steer clear of dark materials in the future.

If you want, you can print out the bits of the plans individually and cut them out, so you have a full set of templates, but I find it easier to trace them straight off the plans onto the kite material. It also saves trees.

Cutting out the plan

Once the plans are printed out, the material can be placed over the plans, and traced with a felt pen, or tailors chalk, or a really soft pencil.

NOTE - The plans give the actual sewing size of the panels, and extra hem allowances must be left outside these lines when you cut. I didn't mark the hem allowances in the plans, because I find it easier to mark out the actual lines to sew on, and then add hem allowances manually when cutting out. It also makes the plans less cluttered. You just have to remember - don't cut on the line, and don't lay out the pieces up against each other.

The required hem allowances are as follows :-

	Sides of skin panels - 1cm (1/2")
	Front of skin panels (toward bottom of plan) - 3-4cm (1.5"). This allows for pockets (for fibreglass rod and re-inforcement strings) to be sewn with the seam, as I did on my kite. It was awkward to sew these pockets at an angle to the material grain, due to diagonal stretch of the material, so in the future, I will try using no hem allowance, and sewing on external pockets of re-inforcement material.
	Rear of skin panels (toward top of plan) - 1.5cm (3/4") - The trailing edge hem contains a pocket for re-inforcement string.
	top (curved) edge of rib panels - 1cm (1/2")
	bottom (straight) edge of rib panels - 2.5cm (1") - This is allowing for pockets for 3mm fibreglass rods.

Remember that the plans are mirrored for the other side of the kite, so cut two of each of the skin panels. For the ribs, cut only one of the largest rib for the centre, and then two of each of the others, one for each side.

Stitching panels

Stitch the skin panels together, making sure the seams are on the underside of the kite (although it doesn't really matter, because they will be double stitched down.)
Sew the pockets into the bottom edge of the rib panels. This is basically a single fold hem, but it needs to be big enough to hold a 3mm fibreglass rod, including the rubber endcaps for the rod. Leave the hem unsewn for about 3cm from the leading edge, so that you can insert the rods later.
Sew the top edge of the rib panels to the skin. The rib panels go onto every second seam, starting from the centre. Remember that there are no ribs on the wingtips, so if a - represents a seam with no rib, and a | represents a seam with a rib, the kite looks like this... --|-|-|-|-|--. To sew in the ribs, start from the leading edge of the kite, making sure that the bottom of the rib pocket lines up with the leading edge, and sew to the trailing edge. (Stop about 5mm before the trailing edge to leave room for the trailing edge hem underneath.) Correct alignment is more important at the leading edge than at the trailing edge, so it doesn't really matter if things get out of alignment a bit by the time you get to the trailing edge. At the leading edge, leave about 1.5cm unsewn to leave room for the leading edge pocket/hem. Also make sure that the trailing edge of the rib pocket gets sewn shut. If it not, sew straight across it to close the trailing edge of the pocket.
Hem the wingtips of the kite.
Double fold and resew the skin hems, for strength.
Sew leading edge and trailing edge pockets. The trailing edge pocket contains a support string (nylon cord, about 2mm thick). Lay the string into the hem as you sew, because this is far easier than trying to thread it through later. The leading edge is similar, except that the pocket needs to be larger to hold a 5mm fibreglass rod as well as a support string. Sew the leading edge hem pocket about 12mm wide. Both pockets are sewn underneath the kite, and care must be taken not to accidentally sew the ribs into the pocket anywhere.
I keep changing my mind on whether this step is needed. I originally had to do this step because I used the wrong material, and thought it wasn't necessary with proper kite materials, but I've changed my mind, and I now think it's a good idea no matter what material you use. It certainly can't hurt anyway, and just helps to solidify the kite, particularly the larger versions. Anyway, here's what you do...Sew two diagonal strings into each wingtip, on the underside of the kite. One starting from the leading edge of the wingtip, and going diagonally across the material until it reaches the trailing edge. A second line will go diagonally from the trailing edge of the wingtip until it hits the leading edge. These lines basically support the material and stop it from stretching out of shape with the tension of the kite. If the kite was made from a non-woven material (i.e. plastic), or other type of material with no diagonal stretch, these strings would not be necessary. Make sure the strings are pulled tight as they are sewn Also make sure the material does not stretch as you sew. Try masking-tape stuck to the underside of the material as you sew - this will stop the material stretching, and should be removable afterwards by tearing away from the stiches. Hopefully the tape is not so sticky as to gum up the sewing needle. Sew the strings right up to the hems at the leading and trailing edges, but don't sew across the leading edge hem, because you won't be able to get the fibreglass rod in! Make sure the ends of the strings are securely sewn down so they don't come loose. I sewed the strings along the hem a few cms to give a good anchor point.

Reinforcing

Attach/reinforce the leading edges of the ribs. This requires nylon webbing or dacron tape, about 25mm (1") wide. Cut two pieces about 5-6cm long, and one piece about 8-10cm long. Construction of the reinforcing is a bit complicated, so I've drawn a picture...

a) Place the long piece over the short piece and sew them together up the middle.

b) Put the second short piece behind, and sew along the bottom edge. Take care not to sew the blue piece at all.

c) fold out the blue piece, and sew along the bottom of the blue piece.

This forms a t-connector to reinforce the points where the rods along the bottom edge of the ribs meet the rod at the leading edge. The red and purple pieces go along the leading edge of the kite, and the blue piece goes along the rib.

Once this is fitted over the reinforcement points, the top edges are sewn shut to attach it to the kite, and hold everything in place.

Here's a photo of the finished reinforcement. Click for a larger image.

All in all, 5 of these re-inforcement points need to be made, one for each rib on the leading edge.

Insert the 3mm fibreglass rods into the rib pockets.

Place the reinforcement point over the join of the rib and leading edge, making sure that the end of the rib rod is lying neatly in between the two halves of the blue bit, and that the red bit is inside the leading edge pocket, and the purple but is outside the leading edge pocket. Sew the top of the blue bit closed so that the fibreglass rod for the rib is inside the blue bit. Sew the top of the red and purple bits together through the kite, such that they form a channel around the leading edge pocket. When the fibreglass rod is inserted into the leading edge pocket, the rod inside the pocket will pass through the front of each of these re-inforcement connectors, between the red and purple pieces.

Sew metal rings securely to the end of four nylon straps by threading the strap about 5cm through the ring, folding the strap back on itself and sewing it down. Attach these to the wingtips of the kite. (Refer to photos in the bridle section). These should be sewn securely to the diagonal reinforcing strings at the corners.

Sew the wingtip rods in place. This is basically a strong rod (5mm for the 2.2, or 8mm for the 5.0) sewn into a pocket of nylon strap, and sewn onto the wingtip, such that the rod is securely held to the leading and trailing edge reinforcement straps. I'll put a photo of this in soon, to make it a bit clearer.

Sew nylon webbing into a pocket, and tie or sew a 30cm piece of string to the pocket. (Refer to photos in the bridle section) Sew two of these pockets. These pockets will hook over the ends of the leading edge spar and stop it from slipping out.

Insert the leading edge spar into the hem on the leading edge. 5mm fibreglass rod, at least 3.8 metres long. My leading edge rod is one 4m length, which I roll into 2 loops and join to itself in a ferrule to transport. Alternatively, you can use shorter lengths of rod, and join them with ferrules. They can then be taken apart for transportation. (use 8mm rod for the 5.0m kite. Make it about 10-30cm longer on each end than the leading edge, which is about 5.5m)

Hook pockets over each end of the leading edge spar and tie the pockets to the rings on the leading edge wingtips. Don't tie the pockets tightly, because this will stretch the material. Tension is put into the leading edge in the next step, not here.

Tie the leading edge and trailing edge strings to the metal rings. Pull the leading edge string in particular fairly tight to maintain tension so that the leading edge rod doesn't fall out. With a fair bit of force, you should just be able to get the leading edge spar out without untying the pockets.

To pack up the kite, remove the leading edge spar, fold the kite in half with the bridle lines inside, and roll it up. It packs down to a roll 1.2 metres long (1.8 for the 5.0m). If you can dismantle your leading edge spar into sections, then these can be rolled up inside the kite. My leading edge spar is one length, so this is a separate coil. One day I'll get around to cutting and rejoining this with ferrules.

Apparently, you can also pack up the kite like a C Quad, so you don't have to remove the leading edge spar. If you want to try this out, go for it. Me, I'm happy to remove the leading edge spar.

The kite is basically now flyable, although without the bridle, it can be unstable and it must be flown as a four-line kite - two-line style steering will not work. At times, it tends to lose pressure in the wingtips and collapse. Much of this is solved by the bridle, but if you are getting impatient, you can go out and fly the kite now. Just be warned that it may be difficult.

Bridle

I've added a bridle to stabilise the kite and to allow 2-line style flying, making it much easier to fly, particularly for an inexperienced flyer. It is a simple bridle that does not require any readjustment for different wind strengths. The bridle should not alter the shape of the kite in normal flight, and this is the main guide to setting it up correctly. The bridle lines must short enough to be tight, but long enough not to alter the shape of the kite noticeably when it's flying. The kite shape is determined by it's design, and the bridle should hold this shape firmly without distorting it.

The black bit is the kite (very detailed picture, I know). The thick black line is the leading edge toward the viewer, and the thinner line is the trailing edge. The flying lines are not shown, but basically, they are attached to the four corners.

The bridle comes in 2 parts with 2 very different functions. The first part of the bridle (red) basically keeps the wingtips curved. This makes a very big improvement in stability, and also improves the ease of takeoff, although one person landings are a little more difficult, because the curved kite no longer lands easily flat on the ground, and tends to blow away. :) For no distortion, the theoretical length of the red lines on the Dabbler 2.2 is 1m14, but mine are 1m07, just pulling the curve of the canopy out of shape only slightly. Any longer, and I started losing the benefit of the bridle.

The second part of the bridle (blue) has 2 functions. Firstly to keep the trailing edges of the wingtips in (i.e. keeps positive aoa on the wingtips), and also has the double function of giving 2-line steering. The theoretical length of this bridle line on the Dabbler 2.2 is about 1m85cm, but I found 1m76cm was a good working length.

For each of these bridle lines, erring in the side of short bridle lines will decrease performance of the kite by pulling it out of shape, although I have flown the kite quite well with very short lines. The kite looked funny, and upwind performance suffers if you go extremely short, but it still handles well. If the lines are too long, the stability advantages of the bridle will be lost. My recommendation is to start on the short side, and lengthen them until you start losing stability, then shorten them a notch again.

I have tied the bridle to the reinforcement points at the top of the kite, and to the metal rings at the wingtips.

On each of the four metal rings, I have attached short knotted loops of string, called pigtails, to connect the flying lines to. This is easier than attaching the flying lines directly to the rings. The pigtails are attached to the rings by passing the loop end through the ring, then pass the knotted end through the loop, and pull the knotted end. The end result is that the loop end is larks head knotted onto the ring, and the knotted end is free. Look at the pictures below to see the end result.

One last support string is tied between the two rings on each wingtip. Because of the taper of the wingtips, the strain of the flying lines can tend to pull the leading and trailing edges of the wingtips apart. This support string takes the tension off the kite material.

The images to the left and right show the final stringing up of the wingtips, including flying line attachment loops, wingtip support string, and the nylon pocket for the end of the leading edge spar. The bridle lines are underneath the kite, so are not really visible here. Click on the images to enlarge.

Note that these photos do not show the wingtip rod reinforcement, because they weren't there yet when I took the photos.

2-line bridle

To fly the Dabbler on 2 lines, an extra bridle is required. Essentially, it's a V on each wingtip so that one flying line connects to both the front and back of the wingtip. Tie a piece of string, about 1m long, from the leading edge of one wingtip to the trailing edge of the same wingtip. Do the same on the other wingtip. Attach the flying lines to the centre of these loops. I used short knotted loops to make this easier - the same as the ones for four-line flying. You may find you have to adjust the lines forward or backward along the loops to adjust the angle of attack of the kite. I visually guessed half way, and it flew well first time, but maybe I was just lucky.

If you find your Dabbler dropping out of the sky when it reaches the zenith, move the points further back to increase the angle of attack. If the kite is very slow and sluggish, move the points further forward.

Flying techniques

Firstly, a word of warning. Kite flying is dangerous. Take care that you have a clear flying area for 100m on all sides of you. That means no trees, no power lines, no people, no water, no buildings, no animals, no vehicles. Just you and flat ground. Also make sure there is nothing above you, no clouds, no lightning, no power lines, no planes or flight paths, no flocks of rare birds. Also, be aware that this is a traction kite. It can pull very strongly, and even lift you off the ground, then collapse, and put you back on the ground unceremoniously. OK, having got that out of the way, here are some hints :-

Holding the quad handles - the line tension is fairly evenly distributed between front and back lines, so hold the handles in the middle, not right up the top as you would for a foil kite. For most flying, the handles should be kept perpendicular to the flying lines. Unless of course you haven't put the 2-line steering bridle on, in which case, you must steer with the brakes.

Turns - Turns can be done like a 2-line kite by pulling one handle or the other toward you. Turns can also be done using a four line method of applying more brake on one side, and less brake on the other. This is particularly useful for getting twists out of the lines, because you can pretty much turn on the spot without losing any altitude. If you want, you can even fly this kite backwards. I haven't tried a reverse takeoff yet, but I have flown backwards across the window.

Take-off #1 - 2 Person Launch. If you have 2 people, take off is easy. One person can hold the kite, and the other person holds the handles, and off you go.

Take-off #2 - Solo Launch 4 lines. This takeoff can be done directly downwind from the flyer if not overpowered, or off to the side. Lie the kite on its back, leading edge toward the wind. When you pull on the lines, the kite will roll into flying position, leading edge down. With a bit of practice, and a good steady wind, it's fairly easy to roll the kite over to one side toward the wind and take off into the wind. Take the upwind side of the kite. Let's say this is the left side of the kite. Apply brake on this side with your right hand (remember the kite is still upside down), and move your whole right hand a foot or two toward the kite. The wind should blow it over. That's the basic idea for getting it to roll over. Walking to one side can help if the kite is directly downwind. As I said, it does take practice. Once it rolls over, a bit of pressure on the front lines will help it launch off quickly. Just remember to take off before it rolls right over.

Take-off #3 - Solo Launch 2 lines. I used to use this method for four lines as well, but I've found the previous method is more reliable, and less prone to bridle tangles, so now I only use this method when I'm flying on 2 lines. Lie the kite down about 45-60 degrees off downwind of you, on it's back, one wingtip pointing directly toward you, leading edge on the windward side (i.e. into the wind). The flying lines from the far wingtip should be lying on top of the kite. Pick up the handles, upwind handle first (the one farthest from the kite, attached to the upwind edge of the kite), and then the downwind handle. Face the kite, and take a few steps backward quickly (check first to make sure you aren't going to run into anything). The kite should peel off the ground starting from the tip farthest from you, and finish in the air flying horizontally into the wind. From there, it can be steered up into the sky. If you find that the kite keeps nose diving into the ground, there are two things you can try. 1) Try again, with the furthest end of the kite slightly further downwind. 2) As the kite peels off the ground, there is a tendency for the top edge to fly while the bottom edge is on the ground. To counteract this, takeoff quickly before it has a chance to roll over, and after the kite peels off the ground, and has filled with air, keep pulling the top edge of the kite toward you to compensate against the nose diving.

Landing #1 - 2 Person Landing. If you have a friend (hey, some of us do!), fly the kite gently to one side, and hover it above the ground. Ask your friend to go and catch the kite by grabbing the centre of the leading edge and holding it. The flyer can take one step toward the kite, and the friend should have no trouble holding it.

Landing #2 - Solo Landing. If you have no friends, fly the kite to the edge of the window, touch one wingtip to the ground, then turn the kite leading edge down. Step toward the kite, and it should lay on the ground upside down, in perfect position to be solo relaunched. This will take a little bit of practice to perfect, but you should be able to land and take-off using this method without having to walk to the kite. This can also be done in the middle of the wind window if you are on a narrow beach. Fly horizontally toward the landing point, using the brakes to slow the kite down, then at the right spot, just turn directly into the ground. Step toward the kite, and it will lay down on the ground. Step backward, and it will roll nicely back into position, read for takeoff.

Hey! If you got this far, you must be doing well. If you have any questions, drop me an email. Please send me a photo of your kite, and I'll add it to these pages somewhere.