Changing paddle length

I’ve got this one piece Whetstone carbon kayak paddle that i bought 4-5 years ago sitting out in my garage not being used. Paddle is 230 cm long which was the length that was suggested to me at the time.

After using for a while i found that the length was too long and not at all comfortable to use. Instead of selling i thought maybe i would try to shorten and give it another try.

I have several questions.

  1. How do i cut a section out of the shaft without damaging the shaft?
  2. What do i use to rejoin the halfs after i shorten it to the desired length?

    Any comments or suggestions are welcome.

    Thanks in advance.

Shortening a Paddle
Only 2 ways that i know of. Take the blades off and cut an equal amt. from each end. Or, make it a two piece which would require some finess and EXACT measurements. I’m not familiar with that make of paddle but your best bet might be the co. that made it. I’ve had a Werner cut down by the factory for a fraction of the cost of a new paddle. Good luck. Vaughn Fulton

Keep it and get a narrow solo canoe to
use it with. That’s the length that I’ve come to prefer in solo canoes while using high angle stroke.

Any Comments Welcome?
If it was me I’d sell it.

onno
Lucky you!



Onno paddles owner is a frequent guest on this forum. I am quite sure he will have good suggestions - he makes excellent CF paddles. You might even be able to convince him to do work for you.

straight shaft? bent shaft??

– Last Updated: Nov-28-07 10:22 AM EST –

straight shaft you can WARM the shaft and pop the blade off....not toooo much heat tho-you can make the carbon burn out all of its gluey stuff holding it together.....
then cut off how ever much....and restick that blade into the shaft lined up again with whaich ever feather angle you wish.....

crankshaft-you would need to take off an even amount from both sides to make the shaft balanced....

personally i would:

sell it
or return it to whetstone to do it for you....if they are still around-seems not tho....
so i would sell it...unless you are REALLY in love with those blades...
r

Jazz paddles in SC
shortened my former one piece Whetstone by 10 cm and installed a very nice button ferrule. He was affliated with orginal Whetstone but appeared to be getting out of paddle biz. Try google Jazz.

RIP Whetstone
FYI, Whetstone paddles has been out of business for a couple of years. One of the former owners runs Jazz. He’s the guy to talk to.

Jazz Paddles
See: www.jazzpaddles.com

one piece
I sucessfully shortened a one-piece paddle by cutting out a center piece and epoxying it back together with a piece of aluminum tubing as a splice. The only hard part is finding tubing with an OD that matches the ID of the paddle shaft.

that’s

– Last Updated: Dec-15-07 8:49 PM EST –

not really necessary, if it's a straight shaft paddle.

cut out the center (if it's a straight shaft). then cut about 3 or so inches of that piece. split the 3 in piece with a hack saw and take out a bout 1/8 inch slice...now squeeze the piece and insert it into one half to make sure it has had enought of a slit taken out of it.
epoxy that piece into the two shaft pieces. it will be slightly spring loaded and hold the paddle in line if done right. (also rember to put a line-up line on the shaft before starting.)

use a good grade marine epoxy, not the 5 min stuff from the hardware store. MAS or West sys.

remember to rough the piece slightly (and the insides of the shaft pieces)so it has some tooth for the epoxy to grab :)

let it dry at least 5 days to fully cure.

Best Wishes
Roy

if you are at all worried about the integrity of the fix, wrap a piece of 2 inch wide bi-axle carbon tape around the center of the repaired area. (use quality epoxy and then wrap tightly with saran wrap to make the job smooth.