But there are sound basic tips to observe where the slippery ripstop is concerned.

As a man-made fibre, ripstop can benefit from a hot cutter that will seal the edges.

They are made in various patterns, in cotton ripstop or nylon blend cloth.

Canopy is made from lightweight nylon ripstop; extensive mesh offers great ventilation.

Advantages of ripstop are the favourable strength-to-weight ratio and that small tears can not easily spread.

Made with 30-denier high tenacity nylon ripstop.

Right: Checking the thickness of Ripstop nylon in microns.

Holding the ripstop at the rear as well as the front of the presser foot helps to keep any location keys together.

Use balloon ripstop on a 110-degree narrow Delta steerable kite, and you will soon discover why the spinnaker nylon is best.

Remember that your balloon ripstop was probably made for the parascending sport, and you' ll appreciate why it is so soft and at times stretchy.

Many professional stunters use strips of nylon or panels with the ripstop at different angles to achieve a curve upwards from the leading edge pocket.

Martin uses balloon fabric, as it does not crease as easily as spinnaker ripstop.

With a large pocket knife he cut a long slash in the purple ripstop over Pratt Toomey's heart, then rolled him back onto his abdomen.

K2004 garments were printed into heavier cloth than current M04 that is printed to Ripstop cloth.

Ultralight high-thread-count nylon ripstop with DWR technology.

Ejector seat parachutes made with ripstop are woven with an elastic-like fabric so that they stretch to allow more air to pass through at high speed.

With a soft lead pencil, chalk, or dressmaker's marking wheel - but not marker-pen or wax crayon - transfer the panel shape to your ripstop.

For such cases a field repair is soon effected with adhesive-backed sail repair tape, usually 50mm wide and in a heavyweight ripstop that might even be located in a matching colour!

Spinnaker ripstop must not be confused with its near relative,Balloon ripstop which has a stretchy feeling to its touch, comes on 137cm (54in) rolls and does not crease.

The most satisfactory cutting method for one-off home-built kites is to use a sharp modelling knife or 'roller-cutter' against a straight edge on ripstop that is secured to a firm base by tapes.

Wandering among the camouflage hunting outfits and Gerber Ripstop knives is like finding out your new beau is a member of the N.R.A., hates his mother and splits the check at dinner.

Developed for spinnaker sails, where tear resistance is critical and the ability to form into an aerodynamic shape is of greatest importance for efficiency, ripstop has become an ideal fabric for all types of kite.

Generally a basha is made of RipStop nylon with a reinforced seam, eyelets and loops or tabs are located along all four sides of the sheet and across the two central lines of symmetry.

Outside of a Liquid Cooling and Ventilation Garment, pressure bladder, and restraint layer, the TMG for the A7L suit worn on the Moon and during the Skylab Program began with a layer of neoprene-coated nylon ripstop.

Look around any good camping emporium and you'll find many worthwhile things to buy for kiting, not least the silicone protective spray-can to revive worn or weather beaten ripstop; or one of those hemispherical shelters to have on the field as a base in which to store your gear.