Cracked Paddle...any suggestions to fix?

I cracked my paddle this past weekend (it’s an Aqua Bound Sting Ray Touring Paddle) and have a big trip coming up in 3 weeks. Most likely I’ll just buy a paddle by then, but was wondering if anyone had any history on a temporary fix. My thought is to cut out the cracked part (about 1.5-2 inches), inserst a piece of PVC piping (about 5 inches long) into one side (2.5 inches of the whole 5" PVC) using adhesive/epoxy and then inserting the remaining half (the other 2.5 inches of PVC) into the other half. (hope that makes sense).

Depends on how old

– Last Updated: May-19-08 6:37 PM EST –

the paddle is. I love AquaBound and find them to be a great company. Perhaps an e-mail or call to them might get you a perfectly restored paddle for a small fee.

If it ain't AquaBound... I ain't paddlin' with it.

Paddlin' on
Richard

thanks for the opinion, but what about
getting a new shaft (I was looking at the Lendal Fiberglass Touring Paddle Shaft - http://www.campmor.com/outdoor/gear/Product___73125) and attaching the Aquabound paddles to it? My aquabound paddle was (is) young…just under 2 years. Are inter-changing the paddles and shafts easy (and would you recomend it)?

Definitely seek a replacement
Aquabound really stands behind its product and may even replace it for free. However, they’re a Canadian company and tend to bundle their shipments into the U.S., so it might take longer than you have. So if you bought it from a store, contact them. They may be able to give you a replacement paddle sooner than Aquabound can ship one, or at least a loaner. Then they can deal with Aquabound. This is what I do if any of my customers have problems with the products they buy from me.


Sorry, can’t help you there

– Last Updated: May-19-08 7:42 PM EST –

I know absolutely nothing about repairing or swapping shafts or paddles. That is left up to the pros.

Trilliumlake (below) gave you another good option.

Best of luck and please let me know the outcome.

Paddlin' on
Richard

shaft
You mean they would give him the shaft for free?

Repair
I’ve repaired a few paddles in the past and it never seems to be worth it…

A. You never really want to trust a repaired paddle.

B. If you err on the side of a very dependable repair, you end up adding too much weight.

Mistaken Identity
No, that would be Perception.

I broke an Aquabound shaft …
sent all four pieces back (4 piece paddle). They replaced the broken piece. They will need to matched the new piece to the other half, so the whole paddle must be sent back. I think it took about three weeks to receive the repaired paddle.

Not sure about the PVC splice you
contemplate as a temporary repair. I have used wooden dowel for similar repairs, and the added weight is noticeable. If you do try to splice your shaft, find a way to align the two shaft segments while the epoxy sets. Even a small deviation from “straight” may feel disconcerting.

Contact Aquabound…
I’ve dealt with them on a few occasions and have found them great to deal with.

Even if it ends up being somethng not covered under warranty, they are EXTREMELY resonable with pricing for repair work.



One example with me would be replacing both paddle blades when I wanted to cut my paddle length from 240 to 220. They replaced both blades and cut the shaft down for (if I remember correctly) $35.00 US.



Scott

Broken Aquabound Paddle - Follow-up
Aquabound contacted me yesterday and the guy said he’ll fix it for free. Although not in the timeframe I need (so I bought another) but at least I’ll get it back. Thanks again for all your help!

Broken Paddle
Aquabound contacted me yesterday and the guy said he’ll fix it for free. Although not in the timeframe I need (so I bought another) but at least I’ll get it back. Thanks again for all your help!

Aquabound customer service is great
Had a crack in mine, sent it back and they sent a new one.

always good to carry a spare
and now you can