Making simple stuntkite

introMini Indoor Stunt Kite Make.

A cheap (and I mean really cheap!!) Mini Indoor Stunt Kite.
Made from:

Drinking Straws (thin)
Plastic Bag (pedal-bin Liner, the thinner the better)
Cotton Thread (strong white, but any will do if its strong)
stick (balsa, or anything sticklike and even from tip to tip. no taper)

You will also need:

Glue (superglue works best)
Needle (for minor stitching)
Scissors/Craftknife (sharp)

Step 1Get your plans.

To begin with (other than getting the materials) you wil need to get a suitable plan from online. then print the falf image of the kite (as its going to be symetrical) onto an a4 sheet.

or if your great like me (nah only kidding ;) im poo :( ) you can make your own (see measurements pic in next step).

You will need these materials:

Drinking Straws (thin)
Plastic Bag (pedal-bin Liner, the thinner the better)
Cotton Thread (strong white, but any will do if its strong)
stick (balsa, or anything sticklike and even from tip to tip. no taper)

You will also need:

Glue (superglue works best)
Needle (for minor stitching)
Scissors/Craftknife (sharp)

Step 2Layout

If you prefer to design your own kite shape (like I did) then lay it out on a sheet of card (cerial box would be good).

or you can use the measurments from the image below..

The spine leangth - 230mm, and the LE leangth - 350mm (leading edge)are also the leangths the straws need to be fo those parts. But we'll get to that soon.

step 4Framework Gather your drinking straws.. You will probably have to extend one or two for the longer bits. The lengths are: 60mm x 2 for the two little thingys that go on the mainspar 230mm X 1 for the spine 350mm X 2 for the leading edge (both sides) 110mm X 1 for th small spar that goes near the tip 320mm X 1 for the mainspar (again I have no pictures of this part, refer to the given images) step 5Assembly Now you have everything.. Lay out the Kite surface and carefully glue the spine straw in place making sure its dead center all the way from tip to tail. then glue the LE straws along the edge making sure that they are aligned to the edge perfectly. It doesnt matter if the 3 straws dont meet at the tip.. they dont have to .. you can put a folded peace of straw across the tip slotted inside the LE straws as a reenforced tip and stitch it to them. On the surface at the point between the tail and the wingtips where the surface meets at a angle (the point marked at 115mm x 65mm onthe plan below) attach a small peace of tape to strengthen. then using thread attach the small 60mm straws to this point stitching a cross shape. repeat in symetry. Attach the mainspar to the spine 80mm from the tail (a small rubberband may work), and attach it to each LE 90mm from the end tips by stitching straw to straw. Then stich the small 60mm bits to the mainsparabout 70mm from the spine. this will raise the surface to the desired shape for flight. stitch the smaller 110mm spar in place where it fits snugly near the kite tip. You should now have your Kite :) but we're not there yet. step 6Bridle and control lines This is the fun bit :S You will need to make a bridle to attach the control lines to. This is done by tying a peace of thread to the points where the spars are stiched to the LE, and the mainspar crosses the spine.. You will have 3 peaces of thread on each side. They will need to be tied together at certain leangths to work properly. I used thiese lengths: from small spar/LE, 123mm (spar to knot) from mainspar/LE, 133mm (spar to knot) from spine/mainspar, 97mm (spine to knot) Thies are the same for both sides.. once knots are tied add a second knot 15mm further up before cutting off excess thread. This is for attaching the control lines. We now have the bridle set up.. Now get 2 equal lengths of thread (use the same stuff for all this build) about 6Ft each, tie a loop in one end of each and attach the other end to the stick at a distance of 130mm appart making sure the leangths are equal.. The Kite is now ready to fly :) (hopefully)