Two or three years ago I attended the Western Pennslyvania Solo Canoe Rendevous as a day guest. While there, I test drove an amazing Savage River wonder canoe. In doing so, I grabbed one of the available PFDs and a Bending Branches Sunburst ST carbon/wood hybrid. While the wonder canoe was way out of my price range, the paddle was a little more doable. I ordered one as soon as I got home. Since then, it has become my favorite paddle and is all I ever use if not paddling whitewater. All this said, I am in no way experienced enough or knowledgeable enough to say whether it is a good paddle or a great paddle. All I know is that I love the weight and I love the smallish blade surface. I also know that because of its uniqueness, everyone wants to try it. So, of course, there are many temporary trades on the water. When that happens, I always count the minutes until the trading is over.
Here is what I don’t like, and what worries me about it: If it happens to just be laying in the boat for some reason, the black carbon absorbs a tremendous amount of heat. As long as it’s being dipped in and out of the water, all is fine. Set in the boat, though, and things get hot. Not so hot that you can’t handle it again, but worrisomely hot none-the-less. I don’t know how the paddle is held together, but surely some sort of glue is used. Is the heat affecting that glue in some way? What about differences of expansion rates between the wood and carbon? It all worries me, and I’m hoping someone will soften my fears just a bit.
In hindsight, I’m not sure I’d have purchased this particular paddle. At the time, I think the Expresso had been discontinued, and the Java, its replacement, had not yet been introduced, or perhaps I just didn’t know about it. The Java, is only an ounce heavier but $75 less expensive than the Sunburst. I’m sure I’d have liked it just fine.
As I said, I love the Sunburst when I’m using it. Not so much when I’m not. Someone, please tell me not to worry.
I don’t expect too many comments as hybrid paddles aren’t all that common. Thanks, Waterbearer, you do make me feel a little better. That paddle has been around long enough that I guess BB would have discontinued it had there been problems.
I’ve got the older version called Sunburst XL and it has a lot of miles on it and I like it a lot. I’m also borrowing one of the newer ones (on right). My older one is much lighter and clean in the water while the newer one with much smaller blade is kind of heavy plus the blade has a little flutter/ buzz in the water and overall the paddle is much less powerful than the XL. Just shows how much variability there is in wood paddles. As far as construction it looks like both the blades and handles have dowels that just stick into a hollow carbon shaft so it’s a very secure construction method. Plus both carbon and wood have low thermal expansion rates…carbon fiber material is exceptionally low. I have several brands of carbon fiber paddle that have all sat in direct sunlight for hours as spare paddles (including the Bending Branches) and I’ve just never noticed them feel hot to the touch…but I do wear fingerless paddling gloves even in summer.
Okay. I’m feeling totally good about my paddle again. Thank you all.
Before returning to this thread and finding the two previous posts, I did a Google Image search for: carbon fiber bicycle. A good percentage of those bikes are black. They’re never dipped in water, and they’re subjected to far more stress than a paddle.
Unlike TomL, I prefer the small blade surface of the Sunburst for paddling solo. I also don’t experience any flutter. To be honest, though, I’m probably not as experienced so may not notice if it’s subtle.
The flutter is due to paddle to paddle variability so I’m not surprised if you have one that does not flutter. The newer model does have a symmetric grip which is a nice feature.
I’ve had a bunch of different paddles over the years. I’d heard the term “flutter” in relationship to paddles before but assumed it was a term used by the super experienced paddler and not something I could even notice. Yesterday, by chance, a friend wanted to paddle so he could show me his new Redtail Ottertail paddle. In handing it to me on the water, he said it had a bit of flutter. Of course, I thought of this thread and wondered if I’d finally experience what he was talking about. Boy, did I ever! I’d have been upset if I’d spent good money on a paddle only to have this annoying problem. At least it was pretty.
Anyway, I asked if he noticed any flutter with my Sunburst. He did not. I must have just been lucky than none of my paddles have ever exhibited the issue.
After paddling canoes with dozens of wood paddles for more than 50 years in sorts of waters, and even pledging my undying troth to them, I switched to ZRE all carbons 12 years ago and never looked back. I’ve paddled a lot in hot climates and never had a hot carbon paddle. Maybe that’s because I’m no longer a hot paddler, if I ever was.
All carbon paddles are better than wood/carbon hybrids if you favor light weight, but the Sunburst in my opinion does the hybrid the wrong way: carbon shaft and wood blade. This makes the overall paddle too blade heavy for my taste. A wood shaft with carbon blade, like my Mitchell double bend Leader, has a much better balance and swing weight.
But we paddle on with what we have, until the next paroxysm of gearslutmania attacks us.
@Glenn MacGrady said:
After paddling canoes with dozens of wood paddles for more than 50 years in sorts of waters, and even pledging my undying troth to them, I switched to ZRE all carbons 12 years ago and never looked back. I’ve paddled a lot in hot climates and never had a hot carbon paddle. Maybe that’s because I’m no longer a hot paddler, if I ever was.
All carbon paddles are better than wood/carbon hybrids if you favor light weight, but the Sunburst in my opinion does the hybrid the wrong way: carbon shaft and wood blade. This makes the overall paddle too blade heavy for my taste. A wood shaft with carbon blade, like my Mitchell double bend Leader, has a much better balance and swing weight.
But we paddle on with what we have, until the next paroxysm of gearslutmania attacks us.
I think you are right in general. I had a Bell Voodoo with carbon blade and wood shaft and it had nice balance plus the paddle on the right in my pic feels blade heavy and the blade is small…less than 100 sq in. But my Sunburst XL is not blade heavy since it apparently has a lighter than average wood blade plus those bending branches carbon shafts have a little more mass than something like a Zaveral.
Too bad Pat Moore isn’t selling Cues any more, that’s the only paddle I’ve seen where balance points were actually measured and documented.
Per Peter Mitchell, the Bell Voodoo and Voyageur Blackwood were both made by Mitchell, both being modified versions of the Mitchell wood shaft/carbon blade Surreal, which is Mitchell’s straight version of the bent Leader.
I strongly suspect that Bending Branches did the hybrid the way they did was so they could have such an intricately decorous wood blade. The aesthetics of all things canoeing are often as or more important to many of us as function. So, it’s a good thing that we have a choice of hybrid type paddles.
Here’s a “how many paddles” poll I did on CTN two years ago:
My favorite kayak paddle remains the Mitchell Black Magic. I also really enjoy the Bending Branches Navigator. With a kayak paddle, the wooden blades and carbon shaft do really well for swing weight. The submerged blade wants to float up from being submerged, so the start of the lift of that side of the teeter-totter is actually less than weightless. Something that won’t be experienced swinging it in a paddling motion in a shop. But you’ll feel it on the water.
I’ve been using a Black Magic for a lot of years with no issues with the wood/carbon lamination, and a Navigator for a few with no issues at the carbon shaft/wooden blade joints.
