VIC
19 posts
I've got a Slingshot Fuel, last night it seemed to have a puncher, pumped it up tonight and its still hard after 2 hours, if it is a hole it’s got to be a small one. Does anyone know how to test them & where do you start with the one pump system
WA
254 posts
check your inflate and deflate valves mine was leaking from the deflate the other day sometimes its ok sometimes it not.
QLD
95 posts
If it holds good air pressure for 3 or 4 hours .... dontworyaboutit ! .... but if its leaking faster than that then blow her up and close all valves properly, if you have clips on the small tubes close them to.. if its a strut it will go soft eventually, otherwise it may be the LE. The only way to find it is isolation of each part of the kite ... putting a little soap on the connections betweeen each small tube o the inflate/deflate valve will help find if there is a leak here ..... plumbers tape may help if this is the prob .... otherwise it is probably a bladder, when you determine which strut / LE it is you will have to remove, find the leak and patch it.
This is something you wanna first do with someone in the know .... or its KITEMARE
Happy Days
WA
187 posts
a small cable tie on a dump valve works well. Really slow leaks suck, take it out and dump it in the bath or the pool, theres a change you may never find it.
NSW
518 posts
my 2006 fuel had a small leak also . found out that the large dump valve had peeled slightly away from the bladder.fixed it with some stormsure(flexible repair adhesive) picked it up at clark rubber,worked a treat.Mates raven did the same.I think most kites will be prone to this from pulling at the dump valve.Hope this helps
NSW
518 posts
SKYLIMIT check this out this will fix the problem
SA
69 posts
Has anyone tried plumbers tape on Naish dump valves?
I have an 05 Boxer and 06 Raven, both of which leak through the dump valve slowly. The Boxer actually seals fine until I put the elastic safety over. I think it would be a bad idea to leave that off even though it seals better?
Apart from that I love my Naish kites...
WA
5378 posts
i think a similar topic to this has been bought up a couple of times already but, when i used to fix bladders and kites in the kite shop everyday the number one problemo with kites was always the nipple/dump valve pealing off the actual bladder material.
here is how to fix the problem forever.
1. work out which valve it is. this wont be hard because as it leaks more you can hear where its comming from or, just issolate all the bladders by clamping them off.
2.take that bladder out completley unless its leaking from the main dump/inflation valves then you can actually be tricky and just pull that first bit out of the access hole.
3. get a cup of hot water (like straight out of the kettle hot) and put your nipple in it (lol lol lol)
4. it will be easy to peel off now so slowly peel it up.
5. tape your bladder down onto a bench so the part where the nipple was connected is sitting flat and has no wrinkles.
6. you need to clean the bladder and the nipple so take some metho (or any suitable cleaner) and wipe the bladder and nipple.
7. buy some flexible vinyl, polyvinyl chloride ( "sweda" works best) and apply to the nipple and the bladder area, make sure u get a good even coverage as best you can.
8. wait the amount of time your supposed to (dont do it to soon or it wont work)
9. put the the nipple back onto the blader and press down firmly and hold for a while, alternatively if you smart you can find a weight that goes on the end of a weight lifting bar, the hole is the perfect size to sit over the nipple and hold/press it down firmly.
10. thats it, put it back in your kite the correct way and go surf the sky.
This has been a rowdy special paid presentation bought to you by the Inkoe company.
SA
229 posts
Hey Rowdey.. Whats "flexible vinyl, polyvinyl chloride ( "sweda" works best)" Is that a glue? For my two cents, I've re-stuck valves on with "stormshure" glue from Clark rubber and it sticks to bladder material really well. Fix your wettie with it too..and your shoes..etc...If anyone uses Sunseekers recomendation to stretch the valve plug you can fill the little bugger with silicone sealant afterwards and it will form a little rubbery plug so it wont shrink again,
POP
