How To Build A Roller Kite

Step-by-Step - Page 2 of 3

The MBK 2-Skewer Roller

How To Build A Roller Kite
Keel 

20 pound strength Dacron line is ample for all the Skewer Series kites.

In this photo, pieces of clear sticky tape are indicated by yellow rectangles.

• Mark out a triangle on some spare sail plastic, as per the dimensions on the template.
• Cut off 4 pieces of flying line, each about 1.25SL (36cm, 14") long.
• Cut out the triangle and tape down 2 lengths of flying line onto one side, as visible in the photo.
• Now flip the plastic over and tape down another 2 lengths of flying line, directly over the first 2.
• Also lay down tape along the remaining edge of the keel, on both sides of the plastic.
• Reinforce the keel by sticking down and wrapping extra bits of tape where the pieces of line come out, making sure the plastic remains flat.
• Where the 4 pieces of line come together, tie a Multi-Strand Simple Knot close to the plastic, then tie another one further out, as in the photo.
• Also tie Simple Knots close to the plastic at the other 2 corners.

How To Build A Roller Kite
Sail Tethering

At this point you need to make sure the glue is dry on the frame. If it is...

• Lay down the kite with the bamboo on top, and cut 2 short lengths of flying line. About 0.75SL (22cm, 9") each.
• First, tape the lines to the lower sail near the tips - over the bamboo, around the sail edge and then back towards the bamboo. As shown by the yellow rectangle in the photo.
• Lay the lines across the upper sail and tape them down with just a small piece of tape near the sail corner.
• Carefully pull each line through the tape until there is no slack - as in the photo.

During test flying, it might be necessary to slacken off one of these lines to get the kite to fly straight. Once you are happy with the trim, you should add more tape to make sure the line never slips during flight. It should still be possible to pull a little line through by hand though.

How To Build A Roller Kite
Bridle

Firstly, attach the keel...

• Poke 2 holes in the lower sail, near the lower horizontal spar, where indicated by the black dots near the top of the photo.
• Take the keel and poke the upper 2 lines through the holes near the horizontal spar. Then pull tight against the knot, and tie them off around the bamboo using a Granny Knot.
• Now poke the bottom 2 holes in the plastic, using the keel to find the exact spots for the holes.
• Thread the lines, pull tight against the knots, and tie them off tightly around the bamboo, using a Granny Knot.

These knots must never come loose, so use tiny drops of glue to keep them secure.

Next, attach the bridle...

• Lay the kite down with the keel on top, then cut a length of flying line, about 5.0SL (145cm, 58") long.
• Tie a small Loop Knot into each end of the line.
• Poke 2 holes in the upper sail where indicated by black dots in the photo.
• Attach one end to the vertical spar through the 2 holes in the upper sail. Use a Double Wrap Slip Knot and pull tight. Then secure with a tiny dob of glue.
• Attach the other end to the keel using a Larks Head Knot, and pull tight against the keel's big knot.

Finally, take a length of flying line about 0.5SL (15cm, 6") long, and tie one end to the bridle line with a shiftable knot such as the Prusik. Tie a small Loop Knot into the other end.

At this point, you've pretty much finished making the 2-Skewer Roller!

Continue to page 3

Return to page 1

FREE E-Book!

I'm referring to Simplest Dowel Kites, my popular kite-making download. It's a printable PDF file. Make a diamond, delta or sled. Each kite is capable of flying hundreds of feet up for hours on end.

Could you do me just a small favor though?

Please sign up for my free monthly publication, "Tethered Flying". No other emails will be sent, and your details are safe with me. You need to be at least 16 years old. There's...

• A huge "photo of the month" (via a link)
• 3 "tips of the month" (one each for beginners, parents and the more experienced)
• A "flight report of the month" (selected from my own flying logs)

Need winders, reels, flying line?

We earn a small commission if you click the following link and buy something. The item does not cost you any more, since we are an "affiliate" of Amazon.

Click here to buy anything you need. Just use the Search box in there if you need different weights or lengths of line, for example.

P.S. Keep an eye out for books by kite author Glenn Davison, a prominent kite person in the USA.

What's New!

• 
• 
• 

1. Flight Report:
   Canard Makes 50 Feet

   Jul 08, 20 09:07 PM

   With so little opportunity to fly, development of the 5.5 meter (17 feet) span Canard has been pretty slow.... For the first time in many days, the sun managed to make an appearance. In fact, there wa…

   Read More

Return to How To Make A Kite from How To Build A Roller Kite

All the way back to Home Page