Mushrooming of aluminum paddle tips

cheajack · Post by **cheajack** » Thu Oct 27, 2011 11:54 am

This is a spin off of the Mitchell wood paddle thread. I have paddled almost exclusively with Mitchell paddles for the last twelve years or so. I was taught early on by some racer head that you should file down the mushroomed end of the tip regularly to prevent the mushrooming of the tip from causing the carbon layer to delam. I have followed this advice and have only had one tip break off and that wasn't related to material failure.

FullGnarlzOC · Post by **FullGnarlzOC** » Thu Oct 27, 2011 7:47 pm

mushrooms? what

ezwater · Post by **ezwater** » Thu Oct 27, 2011 7:53 pm

I poled for some years, so you'd think my aluminum tips would mushroom. They don't, not even on my old Norse paddles. I'm puzzled about this mushrooming.

craig · Post by **craig** » Thu Oct 27, 2011 8:14 pm

My paddles' aluminum insert has not mushroomed, but if it did/does I can see how it would cause problems. The tip would force the layers apart, then dirt, sand, water would get in and accelerate the delamming

Walsh · Post by **Walsh** » Thu Oct 27, 2011 8:31 pm

I likewise don't understand the hoopla over aluminum tips. I have two kevlar Galasport 3M's, one wood Mitchell, and two second-hand Norses, all with aluminum tips. My old Viking may have an aluminum tip, too. Of all the maintenance and repair issues I've had, I've never experienced the horror stories I hear about aluminum tips leading to delamination.

I understand the problem, in theory. In the real world, I find that aluminum tips are more durable than some other paddle parts and don't cause much of a problem.

Bill M · Post by **Bill M** » Thu Oct 27, 2011 9:09 pm

I've never had a problem with my Mitchell. In the old Norse days I wore off the rivet on one side and the insert swung out like a hook, nasty looking but duct taped it back in place for that trip.
Bill

KNeal · Post by **KNeal** » Thu Oct 27, 2011 10:07 pm

I periodically come across the same issue with the aluminum tips in my Mitchell and Viking paddles--not so much with the Mitchell though. I've repaired the Viking once where the mushrooming did cause the delamination. No big deal with the repairs. It can happen so rubbing the aluminum edge on a concrete sidewalk/side of a rock/other hard surface takes care of it pretty well. Plus, it makes the blade end of the paddle more like a blade.

Hello, Mr. Raft. Can I give you a push with my trusty paddle blade?

philcanoe · Post by **philcanoe** » Thu Oct 27, 2011 10:10 pm

While this is not mushrooming...

I had a problem with wearing out the wood, just above the aluminum insert. Eventually banging the edge around enough, so that the metal tip was exposed . And this in turn would grab a bit, then eventually break. Imagine a file would take care of it. And yes my paddles are really abused, but that's why I buy them... to wear'em out having fun. I have a Bachlund paddle that I keep around to cherish. My Mitchells' are bought to abuse, push off, and rock brace with.

kx250guy · Post by **kx250guy** » Thu Oct 27, 2011 10:20 pm

Broke every mitchel paddle I ever had long before I wore the paddle out. Id go with a werner . I tried a Classfive Stinger on the Hiawassee this summer , great paddle too.

Larry Horne · Post by **Larry Horne** » Thu Oct 27, 2011 11:09 pm

my mitchell tips partially fell out or broke off before they ever got a chance to mushroom. Some of you have finess. Obviously I don't.
Some may like to file the tips of their paddles after boating... I like to throw my paddle in the back of the car and forget about it till the next time i need it. heck, i have a hard time just hanging gear out to dry.

i'm looking forward to the new plastic Core paddle.. that was ordered 3 or 4 months ago...

eddyhops · Post by **eddyhops** » Thu Oct 27, 2011 11:57 pm

I've owned 3 all wood Mitchells.

I purchased this new ~'95-

- blade tip repair 2 times by Mitchell (1st = $18.00, 2nd $38.00... prices included shipping). After the second repair I used it twice, hung it on the wall & bought a new one around '99-2000. Tip repair on this one twice by Mitchell. While waiting for the 2nd repair bought a 3rd (~2005). Sold the repaired paddle to Golder last ALF.

This is the 3rd-

Tip repair by Mitchell once, minor repair & experimentation by me twice. I poll ALOT with my wood Mitchells. This picture shows (poorly) some mushrooming, this is also after filing recently filing some out but then attaining almost 2 miles upstream on a local run at Extra Low Flow... i.e. much poling.

I've owned 3 carbon/wood Mitchells, This is the oldest of the carbon reinforced wood blades I have, bought in ~'98-

Never sent to Mitchell for repair, the gray patches are epoxy stick patches. It works great for filling in chips in the glass rope edging, very tuff stuff.

I am pretty darn tough on my paddles, and in almost 19 years destroyed a couple other brands of wood paddles. I don't think I've ever come close to breaking a Mitchell shaft. I've only had one major blade breakage (carbon reinf. wood, 5-6 yrs old with one tip repair) and am not certain this wasn't due to operator error.

I must say that the Clinch River (Bailey) paddles are also very solid if you're blade abusive.

... just sayin'...

TNbound · Post by **TNbound** » Fri Oct 28, 2011 12:51 am

eddyhops wrote: I must say that the Clinch River (Bailey) paddles are also very solid if you're blade abusive.

... just sayin'...

Amen. No aluminum tip on mine and it looks just fine after a season of beating on it.

bushpaddler · Post by **bushpaddler** » Fri Oct 28, 2011 8:47 am

We paddle Kober with Aluminim Tips now for quite a while, no mushrooming on none of the paddles...

Flo

milkman · Post by **milkman** » Fri Oct 28, 2011 3:31 pm

I used an all carbon (blade and shaft) Mitchell Premier for a year, probably around 70 paddling days. While paddling on the Middle Fork of the Salmon, the entire tip fell apart. What was weird was it wasn't from any big colision with a rock or something. I just heard something odd as my paddle grazed a rock and looked at it and all the aluminum bead was gone and the carbon and wood splintered. It might have happened over the course of several paddle strokes and I just didn't notice. I don't think this was a case of the aluminum bead mushrooming. I think what happened is the material around the bead got worn away. Or maybe it was a little of both--wear and mushrooming.

I sent the paddle to Mitchell for repair, got it back, used it about 5 times and then one side of the blade cracked and fell off, leaving a jagged edge. Again, there was no incident I could point to where I could say it was me banging it hard against a rock that caused it. In fact, I didn't notice the blade's damage until I got out of the river that day.

Despite that experience, I'd buy another Mitchell. I loved that paddle. So from all the positive experiences people are relating here, I'd try another.

By the way, the Foxworx Whitewater 3 paddle I bought is still going strong. For $130 it's quite a deal. I just wish they offered it with a carbon shaft so it would be lighter ... but the weight of the paddle hasn't actually bothered me that much. The end of the blade is beginning to wear, but it's reasonably thick and isn't going to quickly whittle away like a Werner Bandit.

clarion · Post by **clarion** » Fri Oct 28, 2011 5:46 pm

Seems pretty simple, it's only aluminum afterall. If you drive it straight down into solid rock, it's going to mushroom, eventually. It's aluminum. Now if you scrape it along the bottom enough, you may wear away what would eventually become a mushroomed area. But if all you do is drive straight down hard into solid rock, a soft metal is going to mushroom.

I used to cut a lot of stone with a chisel. Beating a chisel into stone isn't all that different from driving a paddle into stone. Both chisel and paddle will deform. But the good chisels had carbide inserts at the end. They never deformed and the carbide never wore out. The chisel was shot when the hammered end mushroomed out and was then ground down enough times that the chisel became too short to use. But the carbide was still completely intact and essentially like new.

I've wondered how much it would cost to have a paddle with a carbide insert instead of aluminum.