Paddles

[mshelton]

I've seen some talk about a few different paddles lately; fluid tech, Waterstick to name a couple. I'm currently using a Werner bandit but can see that it is wearing fast on the inside corner of the blade. I really like the paddle, comming from a Lightning, it's much lighter and the curved blade at first didn't seem like much but after paddling a little bit with flat blade recently I can really tell the difference the curve makes. The wear is my fault, paddling and trying to attain in low rivers. What kind of paddles are you paddling with, what's thier pros and cons. The little lady has been asking me about a Christmas present and a new paddle would make a nice present.

[aldenb]

interesting that you would mention lightning. has anyone on here ever used a lightning canoe paddle? what was it like? im curious because im looking for a new creeking paddle.

i have broken two paddles this fall from creeking. one was a werner nantahala. i loved it because it was light and oversized. but it broke easily, and a friend had the same experience with a nantahala. i hope the bandit proves more durable.

i just ordered a new galasport M3 for slalom racing. the one i am creeking with is a perception paddle that i got for $20. it has stood up to three years of creeking and has outlasted three other paddles. the blade is too small though and the t-grip is coming off, so im hoping to get a new creek paddle. i may look into lightning or get another mitchell (the other one i broke, which held up for 2 years).
Alden

[KNeal]

Over the years, I've purchased several paddles and have pretty good opinions about all of them, except for the yellow-shafted Werner. The blade got severely gouged in just a few months of use and the shaft finally exploded on me as I was making a power stroke while running Cemetary rapid on the James (bad timing to say the least !).

My two more preferred paddles are the Norse (are they made any more?) and the Viking (they are not made anymore ), so I guess I do not have a good recommendation for you, Marshall. Call me if you have any questions or want to go paddle.

KNeal

[Craig Smerda]

Hands down without a doubt the most durable and best performance paddle I have had to date is my wood shaft-carbon curved blade Clinch River.
I use this paddle for playing, creeking, you name it. (I don't carry a break down because of the lack of space) I had Bailey lay up the blade a little heavier than the norm because of the way I abuse them. It has stood up well. I have broken lots a paddle's that range from $80-$275 (no names to protect the innocent) and this one is the bomb. They are not cheap as is nothing of quality... but once you spend a day on the river with one these paddles you won't want to use those cheap plastic twigs again.

"The bitterness of poor workmanship remains long after the sweetness of low price is forgotten"

[Craig Smerda]

PS> Alden

Send that Mitchell in to Peggy at Mitchell paddles. They will fix it up for you. I had them put back together a carbon curved blade that I folded in half playing a big hole... my fault! Too much air+paddle blade hitting rock= repair bill. They are very reasonable too for all repairs.

[aldenb]

craig,
funny story about that actually!

Originally the blade was wood, but i ripped it in a hole. So I sent it back to Mitchell and they covered it in carbon. Last week i broke off the carbon on the end, and . . . it's back to a wooden blade!
later
Alden

[C1Dub]

Alden,

I love Mitchell all wood paddles. I've had my original canoe paddle for over 20 years and I beat it alot. Also in over 20 years of boatin I'm only on my 2nd Mitchell kayak paddle. Not as light as carbon but very sturdy. I've paddled alot of shallow stuff too so they've put up with alot of abuse.

KNeal,

Norse (from around the State College,PA area) is not making paddles any more. They were heavy but also very durable. I started with a Norse and passed it on to my brother when I got a Mitchell (after I quit swimming so much).

Natalie

[C1Dub]

Alden,

I love Mitchell all wood paddles. I've had my original canoe paddle for over 20 years and I beat it alot. Also in over 20 years of boatin I'm only on my 2nd Mitchell kayak paddle. Not as light as carbon but very sturdy. I've paddled alot of shallow stuff too so they've put up with alot of abuse.

KNeal,

Norse (from around the State College,PA area) is not making paddles any more. They were heavy but also very durable. I started with a Norse and passed it on to my brother when I got a Mitchell (after I quit swimming so much).

Natalie

[NEOC Slalom Rules]

I've always used Mitchell blades and for the past decade have used the spoon (curved) wood blade with carbon reinforcement and the stainless tip insert. I have two of them, both with wooden shaft. I like the give of wood since my shoulder is already screwed up and have recently shortened the shaft. I was using too long of a paddle (thought length equalled being a man) but going from 58 to 56 made a huge difference in my paddling, especially my offside confidence. I have had the insert replaced once. Dave does a fine job of rebuilding at a nominal price and generally delivers for free if he knows you and where you're paddling. He'll give it to someone who is crossing your path. I like the spoon for two reasons. It places the catch about an inch ahead of a standard blade (keeping you forward)and when going for a power stroke the spoon allows the water behind the blade to compress more before running off the sides allowing a bit more power to generate. I think its too bad that Norse is not making blades anymore. They were the standard for bombproofness and abuse. I've seen Craig's Clinch and its a beauty. And Alden's Galasport for racing looks cool. Does having the blade catch an inch and a half ahead of everyone else make you faster or enable you to be lazy and keep pace? I thought you were from Indiana, Alden. To each his own, there's a lot of good stuff out there.
Pat

[mshelton]

I've seen some talk about the Clinch paddles but havent found any online info on them. Are the still being made?

[NZMatt]

I want to put in a quick word for Echo Paddles up in Canada. They're beautifully made and well designed - Andy does a great job. My wife will be picking hers up just after Xmas. I haven't had the cash to splurge on a new paddle, but I'll be going to Echo when I do. He also uses sustainably harvested wood (it used to be all recycled, but I think he said it was too hard getting enough good quality recycled wood to maintain the durability. He still uses recycled hockey sticks for the shafts though). Andy's website is www.echopaddles.com

Myself, I currently have a Mitchell OC1 paddle (flat blade, all wood) that I bought used when I was looking for a replacement for my waterstick. I have beat the living daylights out of that thing, but it's still going strong. I've rounded off both corners from repeated rock impacts and have pinned it creeking once. They definitely make beautiful and solid paddles. Great folks too.

I also have a galasport that I bought used this season. I'm still in the process of putting it back together after shortening it (and giving Kalin back his custom t-grip) so I can't give much feedback on it yet. It recall has a beautiful slice through the water though - I'll have to wait and see about durability. It's going to be my C1 blade since I like a shorter paddle for C1 than OC1.

Paddles are like boats - so many different ones and they each have something to offer...dam I can tell I'm going to be dangerous once I get a real job I see a storage shed (barn) in my future.

[the great gonzo]

I am currently using a 60" Werner Bandit in my open boat. I like the shape and stiffness of the shaft and the catch and stiffness of the blade; slice is o.k., but I am not to happy with the blade wear. They should use a metal wear tip insert at the bottom and a diolen edge rope on the sides of the paddle to increase durability in my opinion. The T-grip is also a weak point, it's no fun when it comes apart just as you are about to thread the needle on McKoys on the Ottawa . This may lead to a rather lengthy swim... .
My C1 paddle is an Acquabound Carbon C1, I am pretty happy with it, Nice shaft stiffness, although for shape I would prefer if it was oval instead of round. Failly good catch of the blade, although a little too much flex in it and slice could be better. Blade wear is excellent, I used it on all the fall runs and it only shows minimal blade wear so far.
The nicest paddle I used so far was an Excho paddle Kalin let me try a few weeks ago. It had a wooden shaft with diolen wrapping, a carbon-kevlar wood sandwich blade with rope side edges and a metal wear tip. Excellent shaft shape, flex was maybe a little more than what I am used to, but they are also available with composite shafts. Nicest blade I have used so far, great catch, excellent slice and looks sturdy enough to handle low volume creek runs without wearing out too early. I think this will be my next paddle once the Werner or the Acquabound dies.

martin

[Judd]

This is a good topic since Kalin and I had a bit of a paddle demo just the other day. Here's my thoughts on what I've used.

Aquabound:
They're pretty cheap for their lightness and how they perform. They have a decent catch, but I find the blade (I've got the carbon one) has a lot of flex in it. I've broken 2 of them, and i know other people that have too. Both my breaks were doing pretty basic things, so I just don't trust them anymore. But if you are looking for a lower price paddle with pretty good performance, they aren't a bad buy.

Werner Bandit
I liked the werner quite a bit when I used to own one. It had a nice catch, felt super stable in my hands, and sliced nicely. The new bandits have a wood t-grip, and it's too big for my hands. I liked the old plastic t grip a lot more. A great paddle overall and always a good buy imo.

Echo Paddle
Kalin has been raving about these things quite a while, so it was nice to actually get one in my hands. It felt heavy to me, and again the t-grip was too large (I think it had an oversized one on it). But it felt great in the water, was super stable, sliced really nicely, and had a good catch too. The paddle felt really stiff to me compared to what I'm used to. I think that may be more to do with the different feel of wood vs synthetic in the water than the stiffness. I think I need more time on the water with this paddle to really figure it out and decide what I think about it.

Galasport Demon
This is the paddle that I own and use for all my paddling. I do a lot of play, and a decent amount of riverrunning with it. I also bought it used and it is quite worn. This paddle has a TON of flex to it. Easily the most flexible paddle that I've ever used. The power face also slopes slightly away from the center of the blade, which can let some water shed from the power face when paddling forwards. When I first got the paddle, I hated it for these two reasons. It seemed like all my power was just flexing the shaft, and shedding water from the power face. After paddling all summer, my opinion has changed completely. This paddle needs to be paddled differently. You can't just heave on this paddle and expect to get somewhere, pulling really hard does just flex the shaft and shed water from the powerface, especially starting from a dead stop. I found I need to take a couple easier strokes to get it up to speed and then I can start really pulling on it. The flex can also give a little bit of snap to the end of your stroke, when that build up energy releases, but you have to paddle it just right to do that. The backface of the blade is a strange shape as well, and it makes for super strong back strokes which is great for play, and great for rolling. Overall the Demon is a great paddle, but it took me quite a while to get used to it before I actually liked it.

Judd

[sbroam]

I'm no longer sold on metal tip reinforcement, at least not aluminum. Aluminum deforms and can split the front face from the back. Stainless may work better, but I don't know if anybody uses that - it's probably a bit heavier.

I have two paddles of similar age and similarly abused. The first is a basic Grey Owl with only epoxy tip/edges and I have been very surprised at how well it has held up. Especially considering the abuse it receives in shallow rivers with a lummox of a paddler like me leaning on it. No big gouges or nicks. The second is a carbon over wood blade with an aluminum tip and rope edges (Climax by Maxwell) - the aluminum deformed and started to split the face. Maxwell told me that he was switching to nylon (I think?) . He suggested I pry the aluminum out and replace it with just epoxy - I added some accessory cord to fill the gap. It is holding up quite nicely now.

Scott
[Yes I'm posting a lot today, I'm out of commission at work and play while I recover from some minor sinus surgery. Percoset is your friend and day time TV sucks.]

[Timzjatl]

I've owned a few paddles so far, so here's my summary:
Werner Point- (yellow shaft) I used this for about a year of paddling non frequently, and broke it. It wore quickly and sucked hard. Georgia tech's outdoor club has a few of these, and all are broken in some form or fashion.

Norse- GT has a bunch of these, some dating back 20+ years. They seem pretty tough, but the weight and flat blade aren't really my thing. If I keep breaking paddles however, I may start creekin with one of these. Keep in mind... the T grips aren't pinned like most paddles of similar construction. We pulled the t grips off of two while trying to empty a raft. I ended up under the raft, and took a flying Tgrip to the face.

Werner Carbon Bandit- I liked this paddle, but the blade wore easily, and I broke it in 8months. That was 8 months of paddling 2-5 days a week though. Werner was prompt on my warranty replacement, and Larry Dillon has the new one now.

Galasport 3M carbon/aramid- This has been my favorite paddle as far as feel goes. Super light, great catch, great slice. Perfect amount of flex. Now for the bad.... It wore better than the werner, but as stated above, the aluminum tip bent, and de-lamintated the end of the paddle. I bent it back and re-epoxied it twice, and it was good to go until this weekend. I broke it doing something on Wilsons Creek. I don't remember anything in particular, but the back sheet of carbon broke, and it has a hinge in the blade now. I managed to limp out on it, but I was pissed. Had the paddle 4-5 months probbably. I haven't looked into a warranty yet.

I ordered one of Maxwell's last paddles. From the sound of it, I should be happy for a while with it...

Tim