John Fereira wrote:

I paddled with someone last weekend that had a Don Beale paddle. It seemed
like a nice paddle but it was really heavy for a GP.

In fairness to Don, I've seen some of his one-piece cedar paddles that
were pretty light.

A friend of mine just
started carrying Sawyer paddles and got a couple of their Greenland paddles
in. They were also very heavy and even their shortest length was about 4"
too long for me.

The Sawyer paddles have a long loom, like the Betsie Bay paddles. This
is not conducive to good technique.

Malone of Maine *used* to make a nice looking paddle
called a Firestick but I don't think he's making them anymore.

They've been out of production for a while. It was a nice looking paddle
with pretty good feel in the water, but it was quite heavy.

Betsie Bay also makes some GPs.

True, but they're modifications of the traditional shape designed to be
used with Doug VanDoren's low stoke technique. Like the Sawyer, they
have long looms which are not conducive to traditional canted-blade
technique.

It's a self-published book that's not available on the major
bookseller sites, at least not yet. It's available directly from me or
through Chesapeake Light Craft (clcboats.com), The Woodenboat Store
(www.woodenboatstore.com) or Newfound Woodworks (www.newfound.com).
I've emailed you information about it.

I found the book described in the "New" section on the Newfound site but it
didn't show up in the list of books that could be ordered.

I spoke to Michael a couple of days ago and he's just been too busy to
keep up with the changes he needs to make on the website. I guess that's
a good problem to have.

I have always
found the CLC site a bit difficult to navigate but I eventually found the
order form.

They have the book right on their Books page (in the "Accessories"
section under the "Buy Boats, Accessories and Building Supplies" tab).

I've seen suggestion on make the paddle more visible to other boaters
, ships . Any suggestion on how to make what to make the paddles
stand out ?
The easiest way is to make the tips bright. I prefer to use
white-tinted epoxy for that, as it also serves to harden and protect
the tips.

I wonder if there is some sort of reflective additive that could be mixed in
with the epoxy. I've seen lots of diffrent colors at our local marine store.

A friend of mine has been experimenting with reflective additives in
epoxy coated tips. As I recall, she had somewhat mixed results. I'll
check with her and see what the final outcome of her experiments was.
The easiest thing to do would be to put a band of 3M tape around the
blade. I've done it on Euro paddles and it held up well in the water.

Drew Cutter wrote:
Brain how in world do I buy a custom paddle when their aren't any shops
in the area. This sounds as bad as what i had to do a few years ago when
I bought a custom made bicycle. Is their a fit kit (term from my cycling
days) to help the shop determine what paddle design to go with ?

I'm familiar with the Fit kit, as I know the inventor, Bill Farrell.
There isn't anything like that for paddles, nor is it really necessary.
You can determine a good starting point using information in Chuck
Holst's instructions (I go into it in more detail in the book), but it
is literally a starting point. One of the reasons that making GPs is
popular is that you never really know exactly what you want in the
beginning and your needs may change over time. Unlike a bicycle, there's
no adjustability with GPs, unless you want to do some carving and
sanding. As with boats and Euro paddles, your first one will likely not
be your last, so don't get too worked up about trying to get it perfect.

If you're going to buy a paddle, consult with the builder and follow his
advice. In the beginning, you'll be adapting your technique and learning
new skills and minor differences in paddle length and shape really
aren't going to matter. The only advice I'd give you is to stick with
something in the 84-86" range and get a paddle with shouldered blades,
as it helps you to locate your hands and orient the blades properly when
you're learning GP technique. Once you get the technique down and spend
some time paddling, you'll have a better idea of what - if anything -
you want to change. Don't spend a fortune on your first paddle. Don
Beale sells a basic cedar paddle for ~$150 and it's all you need.

FWIW, I've been using GPs for six years and I'm still experimenting. I
used 90" paddles for five years and have just recently switched to 84"
paddles. I've got a couple of 86" paddles - one shouldered and one
shoulderless - under construction. I've tried various other lengths
widths and shapes. While I might prefer one to another, they all work
and I can pick up any of them and at any given time and get where I want
to go.


Brian Nystrom wrote:
Drew Cutter wrote:
I did some more research today on wood vs graphite vs fiberglass.
Apparently the amount of bend (flex ) that a wood paddle does , it
provides stress relieve to your joints , etc.

It certainly can, but it depends on the design of the paddle. If you
build your own wood paddles, you can make them as stiff or flexible as
you like. Personally, I prefer a paddle with a bit of flex and snap to
it, as opposed to a paddle that's really rigid. The other means to
reduce stress on the joints is to make the paddle shorter and/or the
blades narrower and use a higher paddling cadence to move at the same
speed. It's analogous to using lower gearing and a higher cadence on a
bicycle.

What are the different things that you can do to the grip to make if
comfortable , etc ? Since the Greenland paddle is very customized to
the paddler.

First, the cross-section of the loom should be sized to the paddler's
hands. The shoulder size, shape and angle can be modified to suit
one's preferences. Some paddlers prefer a paddle with no shoulders. If
you look in my "Greenland Paddles" album on Webshots, I've just added
a photo of various shoulder and loom configurations.

http://community.webshots.com/user/brian_nystrom-reg

I also cover sizing paddles in detail in the book.

I suppose their is no way to break down (Split) a Greenland paddle to
make to transport easier on the plane or car ?

Feathercraft sells a takedown GP, but it's rather heavy. The problem
is that the only commercially available center ferrules are too small
and the wrong shape (round) for a GP loom. In order to get adequate
strength at the loom-ferrule junctions, you need to use a hardwood or
hardwood-reinforced loom, which makes the paddle heavier than a
typical cedar paddle.

For transportation, a 4" PVC tube with a glued-on cap on one end and a
screw-on cap on the other holds 3 GPs and protects them quite well
when traveling by road, rail or air. It can easily be strapped to a
roof rack.


Brian Nystrom wrote:
Drew Cutter wrote:
Brain ,

I love the tuktu paddles. Question do you carry more than one style
of Greenland paddle . One for bad weather (storm) and another for
more calm condition when you are on open water (like the great
lakes ) ? I kind feel like I'm buying a bamboo fly rod as i look
over the tuktu paddles.

I do carry two paddles, but my "storm" paddle serves primarily as a
conveniently-sized spare that fits nicely on my foredeck. The
"storm" moniker is actually a North American term. In Greenland, it
would be referred to as a "short" paddle for use with a sliding
stroke. They are/were used for all paddling in certain areas of the
country. There are also medium-sized paddles that are used with a
partial sliding stroke. You can see John Petersen using this this
paddle & technique in the video "Amphibious Man". He's so smooth
that you barely even notice that he's sliding the paddle one hand
width on every stroke.

Brian Nystrom wrote:

Feathercraft sells a takedown GP, but it's rather heavy. The problem is
that the only commercially available center ferrules are too small and
the wrong shape (round) for a GP loom.

On Qajaq USA, someone recently posted a link to a web site selling carbon fiber
sleeves of different sizes. These are carbon only, no resins. By stretching or
compressing the weave, you can vary the diameter somewhat compared to the
nominal diameter. As well, you can set its cross section to be oval or any
other shape. Add a little epoxy and you can make a custom ferrule for a GP.

Mike

Michael Daly wrote:
Brian Nystrom wrote:

Feathercraft sells a takedown GP, but it's rather heavy. The problem is
that the only commercially available center ferrules are too small and
the wrong shape (round) for a GP loom.

On Qajaq USA, someone recently posted a link to a web site selling
carbon fiber sleeves of different sizes. These are carbon only, no
resins. By stretching or compressing the weave, you can vary the
diameter somewhat compared to the nominal diameter. As well, you can
set its cross section to be oval or any other shape. Add a little epoxy
and you can make a custom ferrule for a GP.

Sure, but what do you use for molds? You need to make both an outer
sleeve for both sides of the paddle and an inner connecting tube that
fits into one side of it to form the "male" portion of the ferrule. That
means an internal mold for the outer sleeve and a matching external mold
for the inner tube. I'm sure it can be done, but I can't think of an
easy or inexpensive way to do it.

Brian Nystrom wrote:

Sure, but what do you use for molds? You need to make both an outer
sleeve for both sides of the paddle and an inner connecting tube that
fits into one side of it to form the "male" portion of the ferrule.

I was thinking that you could simply wrap the sleeve over the loom (pre-cut and
covered with a mold release). Once cured, glue one half of the paddle into the
resulting tube. Alternatively, just put release film/PVA on only one side and
have the ferrule cure directly on the other half. If you don't want to have a
ridge at the end of the ferrule, you could carve the loom down by the thickness
of the ferrule.

If the loom's not round, there's no problem with the removable end rotating,
just sliding out. A slit cut into the female end of the ferrule will allow a
clamp to close it tight.

Not much of a clamping device would be needed as long as there's enough friction
inside the tube. I once went paddling with a Euro where the tightening widget
had fallen off at home and I hadn't noticed till I got to the water. I wrapped
the shaft with a bit of bungie and it was fine.

Mike

Anyone care to comment on the Mitchell Horizon? For someone who has
borrowed others and wants to go with a generalized paddle to build technique
without spending time making one to experiment with...I'd do that later.
Thanks
"Brian Nystrom" wrote in message
news:6svQg.4059$zs6.480@trndny07...
John Fereira wrote:

I paddled with someone last weekend that had a Don Beale paddle. It
seemed
like a nice paddle but it was really heavy for a GP.

In fairness to Don, I've seen some of his one-piece cedar paddles that
were pretty light.

A friend of mine just
started carrying Sawyer paddles and got a couple of their Greenland
paddles
in. They were also very heavy and even their shortest length was about
4"
too long for me.

The Sawyer paddles have a long loom, like the Betsie Bay paddles. This
is not conducive to good technique.

Malone of Maine *used* to make a nice looking paddle
called a Firestick but I don't think he's making them anymore.

They've been out of production for a while. It was a nice looking paddle
with pretty good feel in the water, but it was quite heavy.

Betsie Bay also makes some GPs.

True, but they're modifications of the traditional shape designed to be
used with Doug VanDoren's low stoke technique. Like the Sawyer, they
have long looms which are not conducive to traditional canted-blade
technique.

It's a self-published book that's not available on the major
bookseller sites, at least not yet. It's available directly from me or
through Chesapeake Light Craft (clcboats.com), The Woodenboat Store
(www.woodenboatstore.com) or Newfound Woodworks (www.newfound.com).
I've emailed you information about it.

I found the book described in the "New" section on the Newfound site but
it
didn't show up in the list of books that could be ordered.

I spoke to Michael a couple of days ago and he's just been too busy to
keep up with the changes he needs to make on the website. I guess that's
a good problem to have.

I have always
found the CLC site a bit difficult to navigate but I eventually found
the
order form.

They have the book right on their Books page (in the "Accessories"
section under the "Buy Boats, Accessories and Building Supplies" tab).

I've seen suggestion on make the paddle more visible to other boaters
, ships . Any suggestion on how to make what to make the paddles
stand out ?
The easiest way is to make the tips bright. I prefer to use
white-tinted epoxy for that, as it also serves to harden and protect
the tips.

I wonder if there is some sort of reflective additive that could be
mixed in
with the epoxy. I've seen lots of diffrent colors at our local marine
store.

A friend of mine has been experimenting with reflective additives in
epoxy coated tips. As I recall, she had somewhat mixed results. I'll
check with her and see what the final outcome of her experiments was.
The easiest thing to do would be to put a band of 3M tape around the
blade. I've done it on Euro paddles and it held up well in the water.

I bought adhesive mylar strips from Campmor and stuck two on each face
of both blades. The mylar is so thin that there is no worry about
disrupting the flow over the blades.

I have received unsolicited, positive feedback from other folks. Most
of the comments sound like: "Damn, I coud see your paddle flashing from
way out!"

Of course it is most effective when paddling east or west but it does
seem to work well, and the strips were pretty cheap.

I bought adhesive mylar strips from Campmor and stuck two on each face
of both blades. The mylar is so thin that there is no worry about
disrupting the flow over the blades.

I have received unsolicited, positive feedback from other folks. Most
of the comments sound like: "Damn, I coud see your paddle flashing from
way out!"

Of course it is most effective when paddling east or west but it does
seem to work well, and the strips were pretty cheap.

James wrote:
I bought adhesive mylar strips from Campmor and stuck two on each face
of both blades. The mylar is so thin that there is no worry about
disrupting the flow over the blades.

I have received unsolicited, positive feedback from other folks. Most
of the comments sound like: "Damn, I coud see your paddle flashing from
way out!"

Of course it is most effective when paddling east or west but it does
seem to work well, and the strips were pretty cheap.

The prismatic tape I mentioned is very similar, but it works over a
wider range of sun angles and it creates a multi-colored reflection
that's quite eye-catching.

I missed your earlier note about prismatic tape. What is the one you
have had good experiences with?

Brian Nystrom wrote the following on 9/27/2006 3:41 PM:
James wrote:
I bought adhesive mylar strips from Campmor and stuck two on each face
of both blades. The mylar is so thin that there is no worry about
disrupting the flow over the blades.

I have received unsolicited, positive feedback from other folks. Most
of the comments sound like: "Damn, I coud see your paddle flashing from
way out!"

Of course it is most effective when paddling east or west but it does
seem to work well, and the strips were pretty cheap.

The prismatic tape I mentioned is very similar, but it works over a
wider range of sun angles and it creates a multi-colored reflection
that's quite eye-catching.