C-Forum

Hello out there,
Just wondering if anyone has any ideas on how to remove the wooden t-grip on a Werner Bandit. I have tried to heat the (fibreglass) shaft and pull/twist the grip for removal but have have had limited success. Any experience with this out there?
Thanks in advance!
Cheers,
Mike

This may be of some help. I shortened my Werner Bandit (Carbon) paddle. Carbon cuts real nice with a hacksaw unlike your fiberglass which needs a high speed cutter such as you would find on a dremel tool. I have little experience cutting fiberglass so someone please help me on fiberglass cutting technique if that is not correct. Keep in mind that the wood plug on the handle is 2 inches long so make sure to cut at least 2 inch increments or you will be cutting into the plug. When I cut my carbon shaft, I measured two inches down the shaft and wrapped masking tape around the shaft to give me a line to cut on. Once the two inch piece containing the wooden plug was cut off, I used my dremel cutting tool and cut laterally down both sides of the shaft just deep enough so I didn't cut much into the wood plug. Once the cuts were made, I took a screw driver, placed it in one of the lateral cuts and twisted it which poped the carbon sections off the wood. I sanded the old glue off the wooden plug and inserted it into the paddle shaft making sure that it fit well and to line up the handle parallel with the blade. I used a laundry marker and placed a mark accross the shaft and handle so I could line it up quickly once the plug was wet with epoxy and inserted into the shaft. You only have a few seconds to line it up so move fast. I let it cure overnight. It looked and performed factory perfect. I would imagine the fiberglass technique would be similar.
LarryD

What I've done before is to cut the shaft to the desired length, then cut other piece as close to grip as possible, clamp grip in a vise, and carefully drill/chisel out the original shaft from inside the grip, being careful not to enlarge the original hole. take your time... does a great job with epoxy..

One comment and one question:
LarryD's description is right on. I put a little foam plug in the shaft at the bottom of the handle just below where the handle is going to stop. I just stick the shaft on to a 1-2 inch scrap of mini-cell foam and then screw it down into the foam. Once the plug is embedded in the shaft, I then push it down with the handle and then proceed with the gluing process. This keeps the glue from dripping down off the handle into the shaft and also helps with the paddle floating on the surface if you drop it, I think. This is very important If you're not using five-minute epoxy, because after you've positioned the handle you have to tilt the paddle upside down on to the handle so the glue will stay on the handle while it cures. Wipe the joint clean where the handle and shaft meet and then quickly put a strip of tape around it to keep the glue in once you have tipped the paddle.

You might also think about replacing the grip, since you're going to cut the shaft anyway. If there is some other paddle grip that you've tried or liked, or if you want to adapt the grip that you have by making or sanding a wood handle, now is the time.
I was also wondering if anybody has ever tried just heating the handle/shaft section on a carbon or fiberglass shaft? I have a titanium shaft, and when I replaced a broken blade you just heat it and the resin heats up and pops right out as clean as can be, almost no cleaning of the interior of the shaft. Since you don't care about the little piece of carbon that's on the handle, couldn't you just heat it and pop it off?

Good luck;
Ric Taylor

Hey all,
Thanks a heap for the info. I did actually try to heat the shaft/grip but there was absolutely no movement. Well, not inside the shaft but the glass that Werner uses does become flexible when heating. A little disconcerting when you realize that a little too much torque may actually alter the alignment of the shaft itself. No worries though! All is just fine. I used the method similar to Larrys'. I simply cut the shaft down (saving the wooden plug), cleaned up the old grip and the interior of the shaft and reglued. So far, soo good.
Take care and happy boating,
Mike