(I'm writing this as much as a reminder for me as a document of what and how I'm doing things)
Upon opening my kite packages from MICA [Maryland Institute College of Art], I thought to myself, "It's time for the rubber to meet the road." This collaboration really stretches my kite making abilities, both physical and mental, as it's a project that has none of the familiar aspects of my kite making: geometric form, simple, tested structure, and very straightforward symmetry. I knew all these things going in, but in spreading out the paper and tiling the form together, it really hit me - "How am I going to make this work?"
So here is my approach. I'll use the butcher-paper model to learn as much as possible about both the construction and flight-worthiness of the two "final" models. First step is to tile the paper into its final form. Very straightforward: just a little experimentation with the proper mix of glue and water (about a 4-to-1, glue to water, ratio). I trimmed all "top" pieces' edges to the edge of the printing so that registration with the bottom pieces could be easily achieved. I'll do this the same way when it comes to the "real" paper. |
Because of the light printing, I outlined the entire image with a marker so that I could see all the edges from the back side of the paper. On the two final kites, I'll trace the image in pencil before I tile the four pieces so there is no marking on the front of the kite sail. I cut out the sail with about ½ inch paper border all around the image, and then, because this prototype will take a beating, I used strapping tape to border the outer edges of the printed image. On the final kites, folding over the ½ inch edge will do some of this re-enforcement; additional paper at critical points will do the rest. At first, I did not cut out the "holes" in the sail, just to make working with the kite easier.
My next step was to experiment with a structure that might work for the final kites. For expediency, I used scrap carbon and fiberglass spars, mainly because I will get a consistent curve from the two spars that I'm bending onto the sail. The downside of this expediency is that the sail itself must be able to hold this tension. This will not be the case for the final kites, to be framed with bamboo, because the bamboo will be pre-bent to proper shape, not held in tension. What now looks pretty crude, with tape pockets and all three main spars in place, has already taught me about the structure and its integrity (i.e., where it might rip, twist, and generally misbehave) and will serve as a "proof of concept" model for flight. I've tried to build the minimum structure for this experimentation. On the final kites I'll be able to control the structural stiffness as well as supporting all the outer protuberances, but I'm trying to keep them out of the mix at this point. The carbon bow-spars are too stiff to bend with just air pressure, so I have added bow lines to set a curve in each of these spars. This curve is the dihedral that will make the kite longitudinally stable (it'll fly straight!) - I hope. The problem here is that there is no real centerline in the shape to make the sail area on both sides equal. This has been the conceptual problem all along, and in experimenting with several crude bridle arrangements, it will be the most difficult problem to really solve for stable flight.
On the butcher-paper prototype I've tried several bridle arrangements, with both curved spars and bowed, and have seen what works best inside, in simple pull-up tests. I'll continue to test bridle ideas while beginning bamboo work for the two final kites. At this point, I KNOW I can make the kites fly with tails, but I want very much to make at least one of them fly without tails. It's a great challenge and one that I'm not tested on very often.
Divide Light Kite Collaboration: Flying Weekend
by Scott Skinner
Ali Fujino, from the Drachen Foundation, and videographer, Matthew Stubbs, arrived in Colorado Springs on Thursday afternoon for two days of filming the final making and testing of the two Lesley Dill kites (42" versions). Filming would include start-to-finish kite making as well as flight testing, so my skill was a factor inside, the weather a major factor outside.
On Thursday we had only limited time to set up my studio for filming and quickly discuss possible outside locations. Because we wanted to show the entire process of making one of the kites in the video, I hadn't been able to do much in advance. Progress was slow but steady. We tried to cover materials, tools, and techniques for general kite making as well as special considerations for this collaborative effort.
Most important here was my decision to radically change the structure of the second "final" kite. I had not been happy with the flight characteristics of either the final prototype or the first "final" kite. I knew they would both fly, but only with substantial drag added. I wanted a more elegant solution, and though I thought tails might have to be used, I tried for a more balanced structure. This idea of balance is always an important one, and in symmetric shapes we often forget that it means balance of surface area, weight, and structural flexibility. In this asymmetric kite I tried to approach all three, knowing that none would be perfect. The resulting second kite is, I think, more interesting visually in flight as well as being a much more stable flyer.
Test flying was done in ideal Colorado conditions-that is, no wind-so that my movement backward could control kite flight. With on-the-spot adjustments, both final kites flew well enough to be photographed and I was very pleased with the results. A final note: the morning after Ali and Matthew left, the wind was furious and the sky a dull grey. We would have been in trouble! |
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