Greenland Paddle

[kingiFiddler]

You're obviously not making enough paddles

troof

[Blazer60]

Just purchased a nice piece of Cedar so about to embark on my first GP build. Let the chips fall where they may.. I know there's a GP in this length of timber somewhere.

[kingiFiddler]

Good luck with it.
My next one will still be native timbers but ultra thin. There may or may not be unidirectional carbon fibre between the laminations. Buggered if I know if it'll work.
The one after that will be native too, but 100% Tanekaha. Just have to let the timber season before I dare use it.
Couldn't give a rat's backside if they all fall apart or have me going in circles. As long as learn something along the way.

[Blazer60]

Progress, blades starting to emerge. Loom next. Lots of learning, couldn't do it without my six friends.

[Hairy Little Dwarf]

Nice colour flow in that one.

[kingiFiddler]

Noice. I still can't get the loom shape right for me. Seems like I want different shapes depending on the conditions. Probably just inexperience.

[Mac50L]

Does that pictured paddle have sharpish edges?

You might find this interesting.

In Defense of Greenland Paddles
https://www.rapidmedia.com/adventurekay ... ddles.html

[Blazer60]

Does that pictured paddle have sharpish edges?

You might find this interesting.

In Defense of Greenland Paddles
https://www.rapidmedia.com/adventurekay ... ddles.html

A little way off shaping the edges but I have absorbed all the advice I can garner around how they should end up. I have a ‘professionally made’ stick as a template so that serves as a good reference point. Thanks.

[Hairy Little Dwarf]

I have a ‘professionally made’ stick as a template so that serves as a good reference point. Thanks.

I'm fairly sure Max has taken to thinning his edges right down now he's got more water hours with them.
(He agreed with me that my flashy whizz-bang carbon stick was horrible to use too )

- As an aside, he's in the throes of making a SOF at the moment, frame just about done last I saw

Wood all the way

[Mac50L]

- As an aside, he's in the throes of making a SOF at the moment, frame just about done last I saw

Serioius stuff, full marks.

Wood all the way

Definitely yes, I've always paddled my wooden kayaks with wooden paddles - for the last 4 decades.

[Blazer60]

First coat on board. Well pleased with first effort. Heaps learned and a very satisfying project.

[kingiFiddler]

Looking good.

[kingiFiddler]

Blazer, it's been two weeks. How did the new paddle go on its maiden voyage?

I'll finish up GP2 and GP3 this weekend, all going well. Still experimenting so am not sure which, if either, will paddle OK.

[Blazer60]

Blazer, it's been two weeks. How did the new paddle go on its maiden voyage?

Great. There was some flutter on the power strokes from a dead in the water position but, changing the angle of attack sorted that. I will trim down the edges of the blade a little more and be a little more precious around the shaping of the blade faces of opposing sides. My eye is still adjusting to getting that harmony between each face. So once I've tweaked this paddle and started the next I'm hoping to grow that skill set. That said, really chuffed with it. They aren't a fast start paddle as you know but, once underway I just love the ease with which you can generate some impressive go-forward. Even in a weighty Reload.
Buying the next length on the weekend.

[kingiFiddler]

Good for you. If you get the chance, after a few outings could you try your euro paddle again and see how that now feels? I'm just wondering if yours will be like my experience and it felt so ugly that I gave up after about 100m. Also keen to learn what you settle on for the loom shape. It's still a mystery for me. I really like the oval shape for short sessions but much prefer a rounded rectangle for longer paddles. Still trying to work out the ideal shape to compromise. And then there is the option that HLD mentioned, of changing the orientation of the loom to pitch the blades at a more natural angle.

Trouble is, cedar is bloody expensive. I snagged some offcuts from a job to do GP2&3 but would not be willing to afford it while experimenting otherwise. Maybe once I've totally nailed down the best paddle shape I splurge on cedar.

The two I am in the process of making are laminated cedar and it's great to put them side by side and see the differences. There are plenty, even on the flex depending on whether heart or sap cedar was used.

[Mac50L]

Good for you. If you get the chance, after a few outings could you try your euro paddle again and see how that now feels? I'm just wondering if yours will be like my experience and it felt so ugly that I gave up after about 100m.

I'd also like to hear the result. Maybe haggle over whether 80 metres or 110 metres.

Also keen to learn what you settle on for the loom shape. It's still a mystery for me. I really like the oval shape for short sessions but much prefer a rounded rectangle for longer paddles.

I'm starting to suggest the latter (rectangular) for all paddles but expect it would be shovelling @#$% up hill.

Trouble is, cedar is bloody expensive.

What!!!??? About $20 for a paddle? I read about Brits paying the NZ equivalent of $1000 for a Euro paddle.

That less than $20 gets me a plank ~20 mm thick, just over a handspan wide and just over 2 metres long.

[kingiFiddler]

To be honest, I never really priced just enough for a paddle. $20 sounds way better than I thought it would be. I just bought 5 lengths of cedar for a pergola extension job I'm on and that came to almost $900 so didn't even bother doing the math on one stick for a paddle. On the matter of length, GP2&3 are longer than 2m. I found our fishing yaks are relatively wide and I have been scraping the side of the yak or my fingers, so I've widened the loom but kept the blade length the same. They are now slightly further out on the lever so I'm thinking that even though I wanted to try a slightly wider blade (but still get my midget mitts around the end of the blade), I'll see how it feels to have the blade a bit further out on the lever. It might be all the load I'm comfortable with.
So many ideas and things to experiment with, so little time.

[Blazer60]

I think my length of WRC was around $60. Loom shape: I didn't commit to a particular shape at the start. My one and only GP has a round loom so if anything, that was the default. I'd read all the commentary around the options and I could connect with the rectangular logic. What I ended up with was probably edging closer to rectangular than round, and that was more by happenstance than a predetermined plan. Either way, it is comfortable. I reckon for the next one it'll be the same methodology, just see where it takes me.

I found our fishing yaks are relatively wide and I have been scraping the side of the yak or my fingers, so I've widened the loom but kept the paddle length the same. They are now slightly further out on the lever .....

Agree. My home made GP has a longer loom than my bought one for that reason and I found that with the original one I did have my hands embracing more blade than root of the loom. The longer loom suits. I also manufactured it broader in the shoulder. This had had the effect of creating more blade surface area from that taper up to the widest part of the blade.

[Hairy Little Dwarf]

Go for the KASK laminated version. Get 5 blades for $90
I sell the first paddle from each batch which pays for all 5, plus enough Epiglue, oil and sandpaper to cover the next 10 blades.

Plus, you can mix up the laminates from different boards to get nice contrasts

In this temperature, I can whack out a blade from first cut, to last coat of oil in a weekend (Still give the epiglue a week to do it's thing before the baptism though)

[kingiFiddler]

Plus, you can mix up the laminates from different boards to get nice contrasts

And different flexes too. I was surprised at the difference. Learning at every turn