BurkeyBoy said..

I have a 10cm neat tear to the end panel on my kite. I have taped both sides with rip-stop sail tape with plenty of overlap and rounded corners. Do I also need to stitch, or should this hold?

Mate that's like asking how long is a piece of string.

It's better to sticth a patch if you can, as they holds the fabric tightly together and actually outlasts the patch, as the glue on some patches weakens over time and pow! You have another tear. But don't go stitching it yourself. You need special sewing equipment and needles for kite canopies, as they are not too thick to create further weaknesses in the material for another tear somewhere else. The sewing thread has to be unique too.

Tape is totally fine just make sure you get a good stick.

correct me if wrong but I use an iron on lowest setting with sail tape to melt glue for a much better bond. Then stitch too.

Clean area with metho, use your tape both sides with min 20mm from tear and repair will outlast kite.
Rub sticky back down hard and allow some time to set.
I have repaired leading edge to trailing edge rips this way and they last for years.

BurkeyBoy said..

I have a 10cm neat tear to the end panel on my kite. I have taped both sides with rip-stop sail tape with plenty of overlap and rounded corners. Do I also need to stitch, or should this hold?

Its more about where the cut is located, end panel is low load area, but can get loaded with water when relaunching so make sure you clean it well and get good adhesion.
If the kite is torn closer to the centre and in the upper half (LE being up) of the panel, then it would need sewing or you can fix it with Kitefix, kitefix is a permanent repair that is actually stronger than sewing.
Don't worry about the overlap now that you have done the patch.

Do my comments mean nothing to you mate!? Geesus