Fish Dopero

by Greg
(Portsmouth, UK)

Fish Dopero!

I made this Fish Dopero from the MBK plans over the last 2 evenings. I adapted the techniques a bit for some ripstop nylon I had (from an old spinnaker sail) and upped the size slightly to 1.6m. After I finished drawing the fish design on, I strolled to the park for first flight.

However, it turns out rushing to get your new kite flying can lead to a snapped dowel! So I ran to the hardware store while cursing under my breath for supplies. Moments later I had a repaired Dopero kite.

As soon as it lifted off the ground for the first time though it soared with ease. It seemed a bit hungry for power so I adjusted the bridle quickly and 2 mins later it was sitting firmly in the sky at the full 100m my line could pay out.

What a brilliant first flight, thanks for the instructions Tim... I'll be starting a new project soon... this fish needs some company!

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Tutorial
by: Tim Parish

Just to clarify - the new tutorial is currently only available to people who purchase the Dowel Series eBook. It's an 'extra' included in the product, so customers can get more than just what is already available for nothing, off the website... That was the idea :-)

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Fish
by: Greg

Thanks!

Eric, I just freehand sketched the design on with pencil, then used a permanent marker to outline and block fill. Tim mentioned a tutorial he has coming up on transferring graphics to a kite though on this site...should be worth a read.

Liz I'm glad you're inspired into making one too...when you're done post a pic!

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Wonderful!
by: Liz

That is an absolutely wonderful looking kite and I am happy to tell you that your story has inspired me to give building one a try! Thanks! Liz

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Really nice design
by: Eric

This is a beautiful kite. Just curious, what did you actually use to draw the fish design on the kite? I purchased some nylon myself, and I was wondering how to draw something on that material...

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Graphics
by: Greg

Thanks!

No It's just a coincidence that your tutorial is coming up. The marker pen worked well enough on ripstop nylon, it didn't bleed as much as I expected it to... and the pencil marks I initially sketched the fish with came out easily. If you've got any other tips I'll be interested in reading those when the tutorial is out!

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Coincidence
by: Tim Parish

Thanks for the pic of your fine-looking Dopero!

Since I've just completed a tutorial on transferring graphic designs to a kite sail, I thought this was a bit of a coincidence. But then, I did mention the up-coming tutorial in a flight report posted just a few days ago. Did you read it and get inspired? You obviously can get by without any help though!

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