Essentials Kite Plan

Essentials

Esentials is a full-size hadzicki-wing quad line kite. It is meant to be a performant and durable quad line kite, and is the kite that I use in competition and other more serious applications.

License

This plan is free for non-commercial use. If you would like to buy an Essentials, I have them available for order on my Shop.

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.

Sail

Materials

2 yards of Icarex (alternative ripstop may be substituted, but Icarex is highly recommended)
- I'd recommend incuding a bit of black to make 3/8" strips for the back of the leading edge mesh. Any color would work for this though.
4 yards of 2”-wide 3.9oz Dacron
1 yard of 4"-wide 3.9oz Dacron
1 yard of mylar (Dacron can be used as a substitute)
1 yard Crinoline
- 1 yard Screen door mesh
¼” Double sided tape
Bonded Polyester thread
- Other thread may work, but I’ve found this to work best when sewing through tape
Bungee cord
2 Enclosed Quad Line Endcaps
2 Open Quad Line Endcaps
2 Quad Line T Fittings
2 Small Zipties
5 Skyshark P2X
2 3.75 inch - .24 internal ferrules
100lb Spectra bridle line
BSI Tire glue

Recommended Tools

48" metal ruler
- Metric + Imperial
18" metal ruler
- Metric + Imperial
Bone folder
Clear protractor
Fabric scissors
Thread scissors
Hemostats
Tweezers
Soldering iron
Lighter
Sewing Machine
- Must support a straight, single-step zig-zag, and multi-step zig-zag stitches.
- If it doesn't have a built in walking foot, get a walking foot attachment
90/14 universal sewing needles
Aluminum tape
Ram Board
Wire threading tool
Mechanical pencil
Fabric weights
A heat-proof working surface, like glass or metal
Dremel with abrasive wheels
Mini cut-off saw
Face mask

Plans

For some additional guidance, here is a Google Doc containing step-by-step written instructions for making an Essentials S sail.

I recommend printing the XXV Blueprint and the Panel Templates at an office supply store. I use Staples and have them printed as "blueprints" on 36"x48" paper, printed at actual size. The XXV Blueprint has all of the lines from the other blueprints, so it can be reused for all variations of the kite.

Bridle

My bridle plans are based on using 100lb Spectra bridle line I use the 3-Wind french bridle for S and V sails, and a traditional bridle on XV and XXV sails.

If using my printed fittings, I recommend using the "Loopless Bridle" guides so you can clove-hitch the line to the caps for a cleaner connection.

Framing

The Essentials is a full-size Hadzicki Wing sail and uses 5 31" spars. 1/4" spars are ideal, like Skyshark P2X. You will need 5 spars, and 2 internal ferrules.