My first homemade paddle

[Dana]

This is my first attempt at making a paddle... I have an old beavertail paddle of unknown origin, I like it but it's too long for me. So I copied the basic shape onto a plank we milled from a beetle killed ash tree near the cabin. It's the second best plank I could find; the best became the new gunwales and thwarts for my canoe.

The grain through the shaft is perfectly straight, but there was a knot in the blade area, the extent of which was unclear until I started "carving away everything that didn't look like a paddle." Digging out the soft center left a sizeable void, which I filled epoxy mixed with black mica powder. Hopefully it won't affect the strength too much, but our lake is pretty mellow so it won't be worked too hard.


(The one on the right is the old one I copied.). I did take off a bit too much in the grip area, but it still feels pretty good in my hand. Just gotta do the final sanding and finish it, probably with Watco Teak oil. And maybe make another if I find a perfect plank; we're still cutting and milling dead trees.

 

[Gamma1214]

Looks good. If you're working with a sawmill, have them keep their eyes open for Sassafras. Makes excellent paddles- light & flexible and the smell while working it is terrific.

 

[Patrick Corry]

Great first effort. I like that blade shape. Gamma is correct, Sassafras makes a very nice paddle. Mine is the lighter wood in these pictures; the other paddle is Cherry.

 

[Dana]

Looks good. If you're working with a sawmill, have them keep their eyes open for Sassafras. Makes excellent paddles- light & flexible and the smell while working it is terrific.

The sawmill is our own, or rather, the camp's... we're in a community of about 60 cabins, we bought the mill when we realized we'd have a lot of lumber available from the dead ash trees. It's only appropriate; the cabins were all built from local chestnut salvaged during the blight of the 1920s and by now many are in need of repair. So it's mostly ash with some oak, black walnut, and other things, but my friends know to let me know if there's a sassafras tree in the mix.

The cool pearlescent sparkly look of the mica filled epoxy is sadly lost when sanded flush with the wood, but it comes back to some extent with #000 steel wool. I'm hoping the oil finish will bring out the lustre, we'll see.