Paddle makers, any advice for a new guy?

I’ve made a few paddles and like you I decided to make my first out of construction lumber (SPF). Definitely avoid the knots in the shaft of the paddle, especially when using a soft wood. You will likely get away with them without issue in the blade. Another thing, if you have the means, cut out your blank on the bandsaw. A jigsaw blade will sway about as it struggles with the thickness of the board. I suppose you could handsaw your blank but do what you can to keep your edges straight as it helps to keep things symetrical when you start carving. That’s all that comes to mind right now. You should find the book you listed very informative; I certainly did. PM me if you have any questions and I’ll do what I can to help. Enjoy your paddle making. And welcome to LJ’s!

Hi. I haven’t been reading posts for a long time and just came across yours. I am a builder of custom canoe paddles, regular straight paddles, power stroke blade paddles and bent shaft ergonomic paddles. You can see some examples at my website: http://www.screekpaddleco.com

All the paddles I make now are out of hardwoods. Bass, cherry, maple, walnut, ash, birch, and black willow are what I use. My paddles are also laminated together, even the normal style paddles. It is easier to cut and glue than cut out and then whittle from a large blank, at least I thnk it is. You also waste less wood.

Also, one of the benefits of laminating your paddle blank is that you can be artistic with it. Use contrasting woods as accents. Have very hard wood for the blade edges and blade tip (I recommend doing that anyway as that is where all the abuse happens).

When I first started out, I used a hand plane to thickness the paddle blade. Quite a workout. I highly recommend purchasing a power hand plane. Where it used to take me a couple of hours to get the blade down to the right thickness, it now takes about 10 minutes. That tool was probably the best purchase I ever made.

I will end here as I could probably go on for a while and I don’t want this post to get too long. Have fun with your paddle making. If you want to discuss more about paddles and making other styles, drop me an email at koopmaun@yahoo.com and I’d be happy to offer advise, comments or just plain chat.

Cheers,
Doug

-- Koopmaun, Canada, www.screekpaddleco.com