wood paddle refinish question

oopsiflipped · Post by **oopsiflipped** » Mon Sep 20, 2010 8:13 pm

ok, ok, i'm sure this info is on here somewhere, but i'm having a hard time with the search function.

just got a mitchell, wood shaft and carbon blade. there is a gray spot on the shaft, less than an inch wide, maybe 4 inches long. does this mean that i need to strip the entire shaft or just redo this spot?

what is the procedure? hand sand, epoxy, and then varnish? west systems epoxy, what kind of varnish? start with 60 or 80 grit and then go to what?

sorry again if these questions have all been asked before. i rarely find the information i'm looking for with the search function on here.

ezwater · Post by **ezwater** » Mon Sep 20, 2010 8:38 pm

You can just do the spot. You don't even have to make it look pretty, just varnish to stop further water protection.

Post by **PAC** » Mon Sep 20, 2010 10:36 pm

either or but .... make sure the wood has dried out some prior to re-work and then take your time to re-work.

Might want to take a moment to figure out how the water is getting in the first place too so you can address that (storage in the car, deflector shield for rocks, kayaks being dragged across it when laying on the beach, some one using it as door stop, etc.) - my $.01.

oopsiflipped · Post by **oopsiflipped** » Mon Sep 20, 2010 10:45 pm

paddle is new to me. water is getting in b/c the clear coat (still unclear if this is just varnish or varnish / epoxy) has completely worn through, perhaps from rubbing on gunnel according to previous owner. just tried it sitting in my boat. 60" might be a bit long as my old 58" has been worn down to 56".

i just went outside to compare the two paddles and the difference is almost all in blade length. shaft on the mitchell is maybe only and inch longer than on my old galasport.

Post by **PAC** » Mon Sep 20, 2010 11:06 pm

After you epoxy think about adding a coat of spar-varnish for UV protection.

Nice meeting you this weekend too... above K-Flume in the eddie waiting for some other folks to figure things out.

Larry Horne · Post by **Larry Horne** » Mon Sep 20, 2010 11:12 pm

could be wrong, but i don't think they would put epoxy on it.. unless it has some glass on it. it's probably just varnish. or poly. doesn't really matter what they did though, just rough it up with some ~120 grit and seal it up with 3 coats of varnish, or whatever you got layin around. use your fingernail polish

it's just going to get beat up anyways, so i'd keep it simple.

Jeffrey Ward · Post by **Jeffrey Ward** » Tue Sep 21, 2010 12:42 am

Mitchell Paddles recently told me that they use polyurethane on their wood shafts.

milkman · Post by **milkman** » Tue Sep 21, 2010 2:02 am

I had a Mitchell paddle with a wood shaft and carbon blade for a while. I was always wearing away the varnish on the shaft and having to redo it. My solution was to sell that paddle and buy another Mitchell with a carbon shaft. That paddle I love. No maintenance. Of course after a year the aluminum bead fell out from constant beatings on rock, but Mitchell is now repairing it for just $35 (plus the cost of shipping it to them).

vann evans · Post by **vann evans** » Tue Sep 21, 2010 2:58 am

I have been using Mitchell paddles for years-refinished them all the time.Sand the shaft lightly-start with 80, then 100 and finally 120. don't take off wood-just the finish and gray spots. After you sand the shaft, use masking tape and newspaper to cover the blade and handle. Use spray polyurethane-the higher gloss is actually stronger than the satin sheen. Use 5 or 6 light coats and let it dry( 30-45 minutes) between coats.If you don't like the high gloss, use steel wool to soften the gloss after the last coat dries.
the newer Mitchells can have a sleeve of Dynel appliedto the shaft and that cuts down tremendously on the wear factor.

Vann Evans

Larry Horne · Post by **Larry Horne** » Tue Sep 21, 2010 3:05 am

what i love about my mitchell paddle is the hundred dollar check in my wallet from the sale of it this weekend

i'm way too mcgnarly for one of those sweeties

milkman · Post by **milkman** » Tue Sep 21, 2010 3:33 am

So what will you buy instead?

Larry Horne · Post by **Larry Horne** » Tue Sep 21, 2010 4:47 am

Don't get me wrong, i think mitchells are sweet and I've had a couple of them. I just don't seem to have enough finness to keep them in one piece.

ezwater · Post by **ezwater** » Wed Sep 22, 2010 12:20 am

Whether for a wood shaft or for a carbon shaft, some might consider having Mitchell put on an 18" shrink down vinyl sleeve, which obviously must be done before the grip goes on. Such sleeves do not add much weight. For wood shafts they protect the varnish. For carbon shafts they prevent spot damage of the carbon matrix that can lead to sudden failure.

If my vinyl sleeve gets slippery, I stop by the shore and give it a light scrubbing with sand.