Bent shaft paddles.

Hey Charlie…

– Last Updated: Apr-12-06 6:03 AM EST –

My error string, I thought you were asking about the "J" stroke.
My "J" boat is a 18 foot long, 19 pound, Wenonah carbon graphite solo racing canoe.
Hard to keep up right, especially on turns.
Lean and Pray!!!
cheers,
JackL

Jack and Charlie - I’ll keep the
Voyager,but thanks for the generous offers. Mark, it is a beast in the wind , even with the cover. At least the cover makes it a manageable beast. Look at the Prism or Advantage.

Better yet, let’s drive to Ely and try them at Piragis Northwoods.

handcrafted paddles
Like I posted last week. If you are going to have a thread about bent-shaft paddles you have to include the individually handcrafted paddles (Undilla, Whiskeyjack Paddles, etc.) They are just as light as Zaveral and even stronger. Plus they are works of art.



Of course, they are much more expensive than any of the other paddles listed so far -but I think its worth it.


handcrafted paddles
Like I posted last week. If you are going to have a thread about bent-shaft paddles you have to include the individually handcrafted paddles (Undilla, Whiskeyjack Paddles, etc.) They are just as light as Zaveral and even stronger. Plus they are works of art.



Of course, they are much more expensive than any of the other paddles listed so far -but I think its worth it.

Is there a difference in length that
a person would use as opposed to a straight shaft paddle…?

Yes
Bent shaft paddles are always shorter than straight shafts. Most are only available between 48" to 54". I’ve never seen a bent shaft longer than 54"

How do you measure yerself for a
good fit…?

Depends
I think that it depends on the manufacturer and model. But, I bought my BB paddle at PaddleSport Show and the BB representative had me extend my arm down to my crotch (bear with me here) and hold the paddle upside down (paddle in the air) in that hand. The flare between the shaft and paddle should be right at the tip of your nose. For me, that gave me a 50" paddle and it actually is a great length for me. I also got a 48" for my wife and it doesn’t feel as smooth as the 50".



I would think you’ll get lots of different ways to find the right length - and of course the most ideal way is to take a whole bunch of different lengths into your canoe and test them out.

Well Well what to do…?
I wuz thinkin bout ording a zav second through the mail…I guess I’ll have to get creative…maybe head over to REI and see if I can use some of theirs on the racks to come up with the length…

Rough measure, tough one
The Medium Z blade is listed as 19 inches. Using the method stated above, you could use a tape measure, to measure from your palm to nose, which is the shaft length, more or less. Add 19 inches to get a very rough idea of the total length you’ll need. One variable is the length from seat to waterline. There are many different opinions, but I think generally the idea is to have your upper hand about even or a little above shoulder height. This is a tough one to get exactly right without some prior experience using a bent, especially if you have more than one boat, and use them loaded and unloaded. It turns out that I’ve been using a 2-inches too-long bent in my Prism for years.