KITE MAKING IN GENERAL
By Leslie Hunt
Is there anyone who has not felt the desire to fly a kite and feel it tug
away at its string like a living thing? The joy of kite flying is greatly
increased when we make our own kites and have the satisfaction of seeing them
rise gracefully on the lightest breeze, or soar swiftly to a great height with a
stronger wind and cut capers in a bright blue sky.
Many boys and girls do not make their own kites for fear they will not fly,
but it is just as easy to make a kite that will fly as it is to make one that
will not. In fact, most of the non-fliers can be made to fly with just a few
minutes thoughtful work.
If you have a kite that does not fly well, do not
throw it away, but read the description of the kite most like it in this book
and see whether you cannot correct its faults. If you do not already have a
kite, you will be able to make any number of satisfactory fliers by following
the directions in Chapters II, III, and IV.
The author has made all the kites described in this book and rated them as
excellent, good, moderate, and fair fliers. Even the fair fliers may be put up
in a moderate breeze without a great amount of running, and fly high enough to
show their decorative character to the best advantage.
The kites rated as
excellent, fly in the lightest breezes, and with a small, smooth string will
climb quickly to a great height. It is impossible to say how high any of the
kites will fly, as only 1,000 feet of string was used while testing them. Several of the kites have been at the end of the string pulling for more, and
flying at an angle that showed them to be several hundred feet above the ground.
Sometimes it happens that a good opportunity comes to fly a kite, but there
is no time for experimenting. What is needed then is a kite that is sure to fly.
This book describes various types of kites that are sure to fly and that can be
made with common materials and gives directions for making them. I have had such
splendid results with sticks cut from the boards of orange crates that I have
decided to pass the good news on to others.
We may consider kites as either high-flying or decorative. Common flat kites,
bow kites, and box kites are suitable for high flights, while the figure kites
are designed more for decoration. There is no object in making a high-flying
kite decorative since brilliant color combinations lose much of their
near-at-hand vividness when high in the air.
In making a high-flying kite, it is
better to spend a little extra effort on neatness and on cutting down weight
than on decorations. While it is best to keep the decorative kites as light as
possible, still a little added weight for the sake of stiffness is not as objectionable as it would be in the case of the high fliers.
THE QUESTION OF SIZE
The author has made kites of all sizes; from the tiniest, made of broom
straws and thin tissue paper and flown with No. 100 thread, to huge affairs
flown with braided clothes-lines that were real problems to make and store.
If
one increases the size of a kite indefinitely, the extra stiffness needed for
the large kite makes the weight greater in proportion to its size, and a point
is soon reached where the weight begins to increase faster than the lifting
power.
On the other hand, if one makes a kite very small, it may be too flimsy
to fly well. In a word, large kites are often too heavy, and small kites too
frail to give the best results. A length of 20 to 40 inches will be
satisfactory. If you need more pull or lifting power, use two or more kites on
the same string some distance apart.
KINDS OF KITES
Considering the kinds of kites from the way they are constructed, there are
those having one plane surface, those having a surface or surfaces not in the
same plane, and combinations of the two kinds.
The plane-surface kites must have a tail or suitable substitute, which does
not disfigure the kite, if it is properly made. A pretty tail is as much an
adornment to a kite as a pretty tail is to a bird.
Kites having surfaces not in one plane do not need tails, although tails and
pennants may be attached after a little experimenting. As a rule, it is better
to carry the decorations on a rigging attached to the string some distance below
the kites as described in Chapter VI. Combination kites require no tails, if the
plane surfaces are of equal or less area than the curved or oblique surfaces.
MATERIALS AND TOOLS
Fruit crates, especially orange and lemon crates that are made of sawed
boards, provide excellent material for kite sticks. The crates made of veneering
are not suitable. Veneer does not show the rough surface left by the saw, and
may be easily distinguished by its tendency to split and curl.
An ordinary crate
has eight boards about 5 inches wide, 26 inches long and a trifle less than a
quarter of an inch thick. Even if one doesn't get the two top boards there is
enough material to get two dozen full-length sticks, if one uses care in cutting
them out. I have found it better to cut the sticks with a knife than to use a
saw. Study the direction of the grain in the board from which you are cutting
the sticks, and lay a straight board along the grain and cut along the edge of
the board with two or three firm strokes of the knife. T he stick may then be
detached with the fingers and will require very little dressing to make it ready
for use. If the sticks are first marked out with a pencil, time will be saved
and disappointment may be avoided.
If quiet flying is desired, crepe paper is superior to smooth paper in spite
of its extra weight. It may be had in many colors and in a large number of
brilliant patterns. When one wants to make a kite that will dance or perform
antics, smooth or even glazed paper seems better. For all ordinary flying, plain
tissue paper is excellent.
Thin wrapping paper serves well for box kites, since considerable strain
comes on the paper and thin or crepe papers would have to be reinforced. Crepe
paper is difficult to paste, but thin paste and quick work will solve the
difficulty. Glue is better than paste.
Liquid glue and prepared paste are preferred on account of their convenience
and keeping properties, but, if neither is at hand, a thoroughly cooked flour
paste may be used. The tapioca paste described in Chapter VII is a little
troublesome to make, but it keeps well and has wonderful sticking qualities.
Glue is preferable for work with the sticks. It gives a stiffness to the
joints that is desirable. A string dipped in rather hot paste and wrapped around
the sticks where they cross will make a strong joint, although, with a little
help, one can do nearly as well with string alone. If a wire is used to fasten
sticks together, it will be well to shape the wire to the sticks before twisting
it tight. By shaping the wire first, cutting the sticks is avoided. Some kite
makers fasten their sticks together with brads. Select a brad to correspond to
the size of the stick used; those obtained from cigar boxes are about the right
size for the kites here described. One brad with a few turns of string will make
a stronger joint than two or more brads alone.
In applying decorations, such as those cut out of paper napkins and the like,
do not use too much paste. No matter if the decorations flutter a little, this
fluttering usually makes them all the more attractive while in the air.
Decorate
boldly. Colors that appear startling close up are greatly modified when flying.
Contrasts may be kept by running a bold dark band between the colors, or by
selecting the colors desired, and then using the dark color of the selection and
a subdued lighter color.
For example, a blue-and-orange combination has strong
contrast near at hand, but when high in the air, the colors merge toward a gray.
The contrast may be revived by running a black stripe between the colors, or by
using an ocher instead of a bright yellow.
Few tools are required. A good knife, with a means of keeping it sharp, a
pencil, a rule, a large darning needle, and a hammer are all that are actually
needed. If a small plane is handy, it will be found very useful. A thin-blade
saw, such as a hack saw or coping saw may be used to slit the ends of the
sticks, but if no saw of this kind may be had, the stick ends may be notched as
described in the Introduction and as shown in Figure 2.
The materials other than sticks and paper that are needed are easily
obtained. Some string will be needed for tying and framing, which may be the
same kind as that selected for flying the kite. A tube or liquid glue, a bottle
of paste with brush, a few 1/4-inch rubber bands, about 20 feet of No. 18
covered iron wire, and paper festooning makes up the list. The wire may not be
needed in the kite you wish to build, and material other than festooning may be
used for the tail.
Before starting to build any kite, it will be well to read the Introduction
and the directions for making the Two-Stick Kite. Many small and essential
details are given in the suggestions and directions just mentioned that will not
be repeated in the descriptions of the other kites. Should you have trouble in
getting your kite to fly, make sure you have followed the directions carefully
and study the suggestions given in Chapter V.
25 Kites That Fly
