Halfway in to our destination in the BWCA, the plastic grip of my recreational Zav broke off in my hand.
I assume it was the result of some earlier hidden damage from being dropped or something. I really have no idea of its history, since I bought it used. Or maybe it was the result of heating it to release when I shortened the shaft?
Fortunately, I was wearing my heavier paddling gloves, so I just kept paddling with the broken Zav until we reached camp.
Once we had camp set up, I searched for a suitable piece of wood. Something with a good size knot that would resist splitting. Having found a promising stick, I cut it to a length that would allow about an inch of tenon into the shaft.
It took a lot of trial fitting to get gradually down to a press fit. The Zav shaft is not round, but roughly an egg shaped cross section. Also, the inside of the grip that inserts to the shaft is slightly tapered.
Anyway, after about an hour of carving with my Svord Peasant Knife, I had something worth a try.
The final test fit was pretty close, just a little tight. I wetted it before pressing it into place, and kept it wet while using it so it would swell up tight. I would have liked to make some pine tar for glue, but couldn't find any leaky trees. Anyway, it worked for the remainder of the trip.
Now I need to get the remnant of the plastic grip out of the shaft and install a permanent replacement. If I go with the carbon fiber grip, it will cost me more than I paid for the paddle.
It's either that, or just carve a nice grip from some cherry scrap.
I assume it was the result of some earlier hidden damage from being dropped or something. I really have no idea of its history, since I bought it used. Or maybe it was the result of heating it to release when I shortened the shaft?
Fortunately, I was wearing my heavier paddling gloves, so I just kept paddling with the broken Zav until we reached camp.
Once we had camp set up, I searched for a suitable piece of wood. Something with a good size knot that would resist splitting. Having found a promising stick, I cut it to a length that would allow about an inch of tenon into the shaft.
It took a lot of trial fitting to get gradually down to a press fit. The Zav shaft is not round, but roughly an egg shaped cross section. Also, the inside of the grip that inserts to the shaft is slightly tapered.
Anyway, after about an hour of carving with my Svord Peasant Knife, I had something worth a try.
The final test fit was pretty close, just a little tight. I wetted it before pressing it into place, and kept it wet while using it so it would swell up tight. I would have liked to make some pine tar for glue, but couldn't find any leaky trees. Anyway, it worked for the remainder of the trip.
Now I need to get the remnant of the plastic grip out of the shaft and install a permanent replacement. If I go with the carbon fiber grip, it will cost me more than I paid for the paddle.
It's either that, or just carve a nice grip from some cherry scrap.
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