Our latest little adventure to Lake Wazeecha, saw a custom built walnut paddle makes its debut. As with nearly all other woods, walnut can be just right for a paddleboard paddle. While some suggest that walnut is too heavy, I push back just a bit and suggest that weight belongs in a performance-oriented work world – not the leisurely world of having fun on the … Continue reading walnut gets wet
I think wood makes for some beautiful paddles. Wood has heart. It has character. It has soul. Looking at it, you can just about see the story it is telling you. Here’s the story: It’s gorgeous stuff, at least to my eyes. While it is hard not to be a good bit upset at how North American virgin redwood was treated back in the day, … Continue reading a Redwood Custom Paddle
It may not rise to the level of peanut butter and chocolate, but pine and cotton work just fine as paddle blades. My so-called ‘creative side’ favors the machine made paisley in all its many colors and patterns. My eye also likes the wild patterns found in nature, in this case a pair of bookmatched knots and the surprising revelation of ‘birds eye’ upon slicing … Continue reading Birds Eye and Paisley Paddles
Every once in awhile even a blind squirrel finds a nut, or so a guide down in Mobile told me a few years back. A few days back I found a bunch of nuts, only they are in the form of several ancient old boards of old growth redwood and spruce. The picture above is the piece of spruce I found digging through the dark … Continue reading old Growth Spruce for Shaft Top Piece
One benefit of making your own paddles is that you can make a paddle exactly how you want it to be. While wavetrainSUP may not have an infinite variety of raw materials, you certainly have more choices for your paddle project than you would buying a paddle at a store. For starters, here are some details on the picture below: This is a pair of … Continue reading Paddle Blades with Knots – Old Growth Character
