Bubble test, bladder patch, bladder glue, fishing line and talcom powder, and patience (in that order.)Or take it to a shop.

use a foil :D

(hehe couldn't resist :)

I'll reply you properly, because chances are if no one tells you how to do it you'll take it to sos and I'll have to do it anyway!

Near the middle of your leading edge you should have a velcro or zip opening. You pull the bladder out here. If your kite is really old or really small you might just have to take it out one of the ends. If you are well prepared you will tie a piece of string to each end of the bladder as you pull it out. You can use this string to pull it back in once you've patched the hole.

Once it's out you have have to pump it up till it bounces, but not too much. Without the leading edge casing it is not as strong, and will "cancer" if you pump it too much.

Take it to a big bucket of water, or a bath, or a pool, and submerge it section by section looking for the hole (see the bubbles streaming out of it). If it's a slow leak (3 hours kiting) it might only be one small hole. Places to start looking include the tips ('specially on wipikas), the valve, and then anywhere else you might suspect it got poked.

*sigh* bored yet? Once you've found a hole you need a repair kit, you should have got one with your kite. Naish and Gaastra have little squares you can just peel the back off and stick on. Too easy. If you have nothing then go to a shop and get an excess piece of bladder rubber and some glue. Clear contact cement is what came with some brands of kite, and worked well.

Follow the instructions of the glue! Put it on both parts separately!! then stick them together after it's virtually tack free. Be warned, the small patch of rubber will curl up when you glue it. If the hole is big then good luck! Anything is possible (we've joined up a completely split-in-two leading edge before).

After its dry test it for a few hours. Does the bladder still bounce? Hopefully that's the only hole, but you don't want to put it back in and find another hole.

Now to put it back in. If you have the string there then tie it to the ends of the kite and pull it back thru. It helps if you have a friend to pull the string thru while you thread the bladder in. MOST IMPORTANT to keep the bladder going in the right way with no twists. Lay it out beforehand in preparation. Cover it with talcum powder so once it's in it can untwist any mistakes you've made.

Take the bladder to the ends, put the valve back thru the plug whole. any excess bladder at the tips can be just pushed back into the leading edge, and then the tips secured as they were before you started (don't forget to close them off!).

Pump it up. If there are no twists or only slight twists then you're good! If you have a large twist then you didn't thread the bladder in correctly. Did I say that finding the hole was a pain? Well getting twists out is even worse. Pump it up, let it out, pump it up, let it out, massage the twist. If it's not going anywhere then you might just have to take the bladder out and in again. slight twists disappear after a few pump ups.

Woah that was intense. Any questions?

Great explanation Andy. If the holes are only pin size you don't need to use the patches - just dab the glue (its the same as aeroplane glue)on the hole. The glue effectively melts/drys onto the bladder material. This is pretty useful if you have what appears to be quite a few pin pricks at the end of the tips - you just smother the glue all over the plastic.

cheers - sambo

One note.....

Dont over do it with the talcum powder, coming from self expereince. Or you will have a white kite for awhile

Cya
Roderic

cheers m8