Anyone out there have any feeedback on the new NF paddles? I tried a Sports Pro briefly and liked it, but the loom on that particular paddle was a little too long for mee. I found Lightning padddles, just as they went out of business, and only got a fiberglass Standard Sea before they got bought out. I would love to find a lightweight carbon paddle to complement the fiberglass Lightning. Any thoughts?
NF Paddles
What was the length of the paddle. The folks that make Nigel Foster Paddles usually recommend staying under 210cm as they are designed for a very vertical paddling styles. The initial bite of the padddle on the catch is significant. The Hi-Pro has quite a bit more surface area than the Sport-Pro. If it’s high angle touring the Sport-Pro is spot on, if it’s more of racing or playing in the surf zone, the Hi-Pro grabs a lot of water, which makes sense for non-dihedral smooth curve blades. Both models link strokes extremely smoothly as the backside of the paddle bulges outward so there is not single spine. This keeps makes the blade very quiet and balanced when sculling for support or moving from a side slip to a sweep or forward stroke, etc. Lastly they are built tough!
Ok, rambled enough.
See you on the water,
The River Connection, Inc.
Hyde Park, NY
www.the-river-connection.com
BTW I think there are a few of these on eBay! Stores
Lighting Paddles
I found a Lighting paddle like i wanted by putting the word out on this site.Try it. Good luck. Vaughn Fulton
Thanks for the feedback
Not sure what the length on the Sport Pro I tried. So what are the ferrules like? I forget.
Mike
Ferrules
The Nigel Foster ferrule protrudes 4’ and is about 1 1/4" with a low button that lies flush to the surface of the corresponding hole in the female end of the paddle. Being that the ferrule is about the same diameter as the shaft the ends that the ferrule goes into are swedged (right term?) just a tiny bit larger in diameter than the rest of the shaft to accomodate the larger ferrule. The tolerance for the fit are extremely close making for a very solid connection without play. I’ve really enjoyed mine at 210cm for paddling an Impex Force 4, when I’m not using a Mitchell Black Magic. Just for referrence at 6’ the 210cm length seems to be the right length for my very vertical paddle stroke.
Hope that helps.
See you on the water,
Marshall
The River Connection, Inc.
Hyde Park, NY
www.the-river-connection.com